Over the 2023 Christmas holidays, a grave and unsettling incident cast a shadow over the Supreme Court quarters in Maitama, Abuja. The official residence of retired Justice Muhammad Dattijo was infiltrated and stripped bare in a disturbing act of burglary. This audacious theft occurred while Justice Dattijo was out of the country, leaving his residence vulnerable to this violation.
Unknown perpetrators broke into the premises, leaving no stone unturned. They ransacked the entire residence, taking every possession that once belonged to the retired Justice. The impunity of the crime was such that nothing remained in the house, marking the severity of this deplorable act.
Justice Muhammad Dattijo, who had retired from the Supreme Court on October 27, 2023, did not part without voicing his concerns about the state of affairs. He left the apex court with a scathing critique, painting a grim picture of an institution infested with bribery and the perversion of justice. He held no punches, characterizing the Supreme Court as ‘rotten’ and ‘laced with filth.’
Justice Dattijo also raised significant concerns about the representation within the Supreme Court. He pointed out the exclusion of two of the six geopolitical zones from the bench that hears appeals on presidential elections, suggesting that such an imbalance could pose a threat to the nation’s judicial processes. As the dust settles on this burglary incident, these remarks echo in the corridors of the court, raising critical questions about the state of the judiciary in Nigeria.
