By Adewole Kehinde

Monday, December 13, 2020, was exactly a year since the Chief Justice of Nigeria, the Justice Ibrahim Tanko Muhammad, swore in Justice John Terhemba Tsoho as Chief Judge of the Federal High Court of Nigeria, having earlier assumed office on July 26, in an acting capacity.

His appointment followed the retirement of Justice Adamu Abdu Kafarati, who attained the statutory retirement age of 65 years on July 25, 2019.

On 29 October, 2019, the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Muhammadu Buhari, nominated Justice J.T. Tsoho as the substantive Chief Judge of the Federal High Court. The nomination was contained in a letter from the President, which was read on the floor of the Senate.

On November 5, 2019, the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria confirmed his nomination as the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court.

The confirmation was sequel to presentation of the report of the Senate Committee on the Judiciary, Human Rights and Legal Matters. Since assumption of office, his cardinal point has been to fight against corruption, especially in the institution that he represents.

He, however, observed: “The judiciary cannot be singled out when talking about corruption, because corruption exists in every facet, and virtually in every society. So, it might be wrong to give the impression that, maybe, the corruption that exists in the judiciary is higher than elsewhere.”

Tsoho went on to state that corruption should not be encouraged. According to him, open campaigning doesn’t really solve corruption.

To fight corruption, the CJ said, one must be ready to lead by example.

“First and foremost, you try to lead by example. If, for instance, it shows that you are transparent, other people will be encouraged to be transparent too.”

Tsoho has strengthened the Federal High Court’s Anti-Corruption Committee by way of not openly propagating, but genuinely monitoring and advising, where necessary.

The CJ, who acknowledged that corruption cannot be eliminated completely, said it can however be controlled and drastically reduced.

Since his assumption of office, he has maintained an open-door policy by being very accommodating, this attribute of tolerance and openness has engaged the attention of all.

His success in the past one year can be attributed to his leadership style of cooperating with his colleagues. He has extended the hand of fellowship to the judges, which gesture, they have reciprocated. This co-operation has gone a long way in making the court a pride of place.

Tsoho has ensured that judges of the Federal High Court uphold the Constitution for the unity of the country and the enhancement of law and order. He has several times hailed the judges for their contributions to promotion of democracy, particularly their efficient handling of election cases.

It will be recalled that at the beginning of the 2019/2020 Legal Year, Justice Tsoho decried the heavy litigation workload handled by High Court judges, and disclosed that a total of 116,623 cases were pending in all Judicial Divisions of the Court; 16,144 filed in that quarter, while 12,692 were disposed of.

His persistent efforts towards improved justice delivery have yielded fruits, as more judges will soon be appointed for the Federal High Court to tackle the high volume of pending cases.

He has also put in place measures that have improved the welfare of the court staff, thus yielding efficiency.

Justice Tsoho, who hails from Benue State in Nigeria’s North-central Geopolitical Zone, was sworn-in as Judge of the Federal High Court on November 12, 1998.

Born on June 24, 1959, at Mbaduku in the Vandeikya Local Government Area of Benue State, Tsoho, now aged 61, has about four years to retire from public service.

He attended St Anthony’s Primary School, Chenge-Mbaduku, between 1967 and 1972 and proceeded to secondary school.

He obtained his West African School Certificate from St Michael’s Secondary School, Aliade, Benue State, which he attended between 1973 and 1977.

For his Advanced Level, His lordship attended the Murtala College of Arts, Science and Technology, Makurdi, between 1978 and 1979.

In 1980, he enrolled at the University of Lagos, Akoka, where he obtained his Bachelor of Laws degree (LL.B Hons) in 1984.

He was called to the Nigerian Bar in 1985, after attending the Nigerian Law School, Victoria Island, Lagos.

On graduation, Mr Tsoho was posted to Delta Palm Limited, Port Harcourt, for his National Youth Service scheme.

On completion of his Youth Service programme in 1986, he engaged in brief private legal practice before taking up a job in the Benue State Judiciary.

Between January 1986 and December, 1987, Mr Tsoho served as an Inspector of Area Courts.

In January 1988, he was appointed a Magistrate in the Benue State Judiciary. By March 1996, he had risen through the ranks to become a Chief Magistrate.

In-between his role as a magistrate, Mr Tsoho served as an arbitrator in a contractual dispute during the period, February 1994 and June 1994.

At various intervals between 1996 and 1997, he served as acting chief registrar. On October 9, 1997, he was appointed substantive Chief Registrar of the Benue State High Court; a position he held until he was sworn-in as a Judge of the Federal High Court on November 12, 1998.

Justice Tsoho is married to Mrs Helen Tsoho, with children and grandchildren. He enjoys reading, jogging and listening to music.

•Adewole Kehinde, President of Online Reporters Association of Nigeria, can be reached on: kennyadewole@gmail.com

Update news