Kinsmen Insist On Appointment of Justice Ikpeme As Cross River CJ

The dust raised by the refusal to confirm Justice Akon Ikpeme as the substantive Chief Judge of Cross River State is yet to settle as her kinsmen in Eniong Abatim in Odukpani Local Government Area have insisted she should be sworn in as Chief Judge of the state in the interest of justice.

The kinsmen made their position known in a statement titled ‘Non-Confirmation of Justice Akon Ikpeme as the Chief Judge of Cross River State’, issued on their behalf by the Chairman of Eniong Abatim community, Dr David Okon.

Justice Ikpeme was sworn in as acting Chief Judge, being the next most senior judge, after the then state Chief Judge, Justice Michael Edem, retired last year. The state House of Assembly refused to confirm her appointment.

The lawmakers alleged that she was a security risk and an indigene of Akwa Ibom State.

They said, “For the Eniong people, we feel very aggrieved. We are not happy at all that our daughter, who by right, by her position is supposed to be elevated to that position, is being pushed out of the way. It is not the best, it does not serve the good interest of the state for a lady who has served this state meritoriously in the past thirty something years. Nobody has found her wanting. If not, NJC in their wisdom wouldn’t have asked the state to confirm her as the chief judge of the state.

“What is going on has incendiary capacity to derail or work against the values of democracy in our state. I think that should not be allowed to happen. In a situation where we allow nepotism to thrive, it will work against the good prospects of a virile civil service as well as legislature in this state.”

They said she has her home in Eniong Abatim and has been an active member of several Eniong Abatim associations over the years without any sentiments, adding that she has “contributed immensely to the development of Eniong Abatim and the entire Cross River State with high sense of responsibility and honesty.

“To have merited the elevation to the chief judge of Cross River State as part of her career is commendable and a source of pride to Eniong Abatim people, especially when there is nothing incriminating against her as attested to by the security community in the country. We therefore frown at the tagging of our daughter as a security threat in the state where she was born, grew up, married and spent all her productive years.

“We call on Governor Ben Ayade and the state Assembly to confirm her as the substantive Chief Judge of Cross River State on the expiration of the tenure of the current acting Chief Judge. Failure to do so will not only set a dangerous precedent in legal and political maneuvering in the state but also exacerbate social and political tension in the polity. A stitch in time saves nine. We will continue to live in peace with others and seek the development and progress of our beloved state and country.”