A chieftain of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Nkemakolam Ukandu, has filed a suit against the National Judicial Council (NJC) and two Federal High Court judges, Justice John Tsoho and Justice Joyce Abdulmalik, alleging corruption and bias in an ongoing ADC-related case at the Federal High Court, Abuja.
Ukandu, the ADC’s National Welfare Secretary, is seeking an order directing the NJC to investigate Justices Tsoho and Abdulmalik over alleged misconduct in the suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1331/2025, involving Hon. Dumebi Kachikwu, four others, and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) alongside five other parties.
The suit, filed on March 3 through Abuja-based lawyer Kalu Kalu Agu, also requests that Justice Abdulmalik be restrained from presiding over the case pending the NJC’s review of Ukandu’s petition and that she recuse herself citing “manifest bias and grave likelihood of bias” against the plaintiff.
Ukandu’s statement of claim details that he was added as the sixth defendant to the Kachikwu suit on October 3, 2025. He alleges that tensions began during proceedings on October 23, 2025, when the court reprimanded his counsel for not responding to an originating summons served just 24 hours earlier, compressing the normal 30-day response period to seven days, including weekends.
Following this, Ukandu petitioned Justice Tsoho for a transfer of the case, citing bias, and filed a notice of appeal. However, he claims that despite a directive from the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court to maintain the status quo, the matter was reassigned to Justice Abdulmalik, who allegedly conducted hearings on January 30, 2026, without notifying his lawyer.
The plaintiff is seeking multiple reliefs, including a declaration that the NJC has the responsibility to investigate complaints against judicial officers, an order compelling the NJC to probe allegations of corruption and bias, and injunctions preventing Justice Abdulmalik from continuing with the case.
No hearing date has yet been fixed for Ukandu’s suit, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/445/26.
This case underscores ongoing concerns over judicial conduct and the mechanisms available to political parties and individuals to challenge perceived bias within Nigeria’s legal system.
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