adino: Which State is he from? I hope it is not Osun (too cute for that State). Hope he is from Lagos sha.
This is how a Lagos Governor should be: PERFORMING, FOCUSED,ENERGETIC, SENSIBLE and BRILLIANT among other positives. But, sorry for his state sha because we the people of Nigeria need him as Agriculture Minister Till 2019. We can loan him out after that, Oga Adesina "You Are Blessed"

He is from Ogun State, Ijebu to be precise. Well done son. Bigups

ADDRESS DELIVERED AT THE VALEDICTORY SESSION IN HONOUR OF HONOURABLE JUSTICE ISA AYO SALAMI, PRESIDENT COURT OF APPEAL, HELD ON 31ST OCTOBER, 2013.

Again, I give thanks to God that on the 15th October, 2013, I attained the age of seventy years and ceased to hold office as a judicial officer and President Court of Appeal by virtue of Section 291(1) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. It had been a glorious, interesting and eventful period during which I participated in delivering judgments which had had far reaching effect on the economy, politics and governance in this country. The law reports testify to this achievement.
1 was born in Ganma in Ifelodun Local Government of Kwara State on 15th October 1943. I attended Iyeru Okin African School and St. Cyprian Catholic School both in Offa for my primary education which was completed in December 1956. In January 1957, I commenced my five year secondary education at Offa Grammar School and finished in January 1961. Thereafter, I went to Provincial Secondary School, Kano now known as Rumfa College for my Higher School Certificate. It was a two-year programme which ended in December 1963.
However, universities in those days do not commence their sessions until about October every year. I therefore secured a teaching appointment at the Plateau Provincial Secondary School, Kuru now Government College, Kuru in January 1964 for eight months.
In September 1964,1 started reading law at the Faculty of Law, Institute of Administration, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria which was successfully completed in June 1967. By October 1967, I started my course at the Nigerian Law School, Igbosere, Lagos and was enrolled as a Solicitor and Advocate of the Supreme Court on 26 th June 1968.
1 worked for about three years at the Board of Customs and Excise before transferring my services to North Central State Ministry of Justice in 1971. In 1976, I further transferred to Kwara State Ministry of Justice where I was until 1st of December 1976 when 1 was sworn in as a judge of Kwara State High Court of Justice; a position 1 held until 4th of February 1988 when I took my oath of office as a Justice, Court of Appeal. On 2nd December 2009, I was elevated to the position of the President, Court of Appeal. 1 am married to Mrs. Olayinka Salami. The marriage is blessed with children and a grandchild.
However, the last three years of my career were dogged by travails which are not dissimilar to the fate of Joseph in the Book of Genesis in the Bible. As his brothers conspired to destroy him by throwing him into a well and selling him into slavery, my learned brothers and friends in the legal profession planned and executed doing evil to me.
The National Judicial Council (NJC) created by the constitution to protect me, nay any judicial officer was on the vanguard of my travails.
The NJC failed in its duties and thereby surrendered its functions to the Executive Arm of Government thus ingratiating itself to the executive. At the inauguration of the most recent batch of Senior Advocates of Nigeria, the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Hon. Justice Aloma Mariam Muktar was on record advising the Executive and Legislative Arms of Government that NJC is the final authority in matters concerning judicial officers. This, to my mind, is superfluous, as all the powers needed by the NJC is enshrined in the constitution. It is, therefore, left to NJC to perform its functions or duties in accordance with the constitution.
For instance, the NJC having cleared me of any wrongdoing, following the recommendations of Hon. Justice Aloma Mariam Muktar's committee ought to have recalled me to office without asking the President to exercise the power that he does not possess, on the flimsy excuse that it had earlier referred the matter to him. In truth, as a matter of courtesy, all it needed to do was to write the President that in view of its recent decision, this matter was now outside his purview . After so informing him NJC would be free to take the necessary step to implement its decision.
The position in which NJC has found itself is similar to that of the proverbial cock that betrayed itself to the fox that what was on his head was not fire and encouraged the fox to touch it. The fox having satisfied itself that truly it was not fire has since been hunting cocks to make menu of them.
Also, when the report of the committee the NJC set up to make recommendation on Umaru Abdullahi's report was submitted to it for ratification, neither the CJN nor the next most senior Justice of the Supreme Court was present at the meeting. Hon. Justice Moses A. Bello who was neither the Chief Justice of Nigeria nor the next most senior Justice of the Supreme Court took it upon himself to preside at the meeting contrary to the express provisions of sub-paragraph (a) and (b) of paragraph 20 of the Third Schedule of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria which provides as follows:

"zo. The National Judicial Council shall comprise the following members
(a) The Chief Justice of Nigeria who shall be the Chairman;
(b) The next most senior Justice of the Supreme Court who shall be the Deputy Chairman."
(underlining mine)
Moses Bello was then and is still the President of the Abuja Capital Territory Customary Court of Appeal.
It, therefore, follows from the above that no other member of the National Judicial Council including statutory members could be the chairman. He wrote two letters to me dated 9th and 18th August, 2011 which he signed respectively as follows:
"Hon. M.A. Bello OFR
Acting Chairman
National Judicial Council"
and
"Hon. Justice M.A.Bello OFR
Member National Judicial Council and Chairman 7th Emergency meeting of the Council."
In either case Hon. Justice M.A.Bello, OFR was an impostor. There is no evidence that he had been appointed to the Supreme Court and he was neither the next most senior Justice of the Supreme Court nor Chief Justice of Nigeria. This is the levity with which the NJC treats matters of grave national importance . Clearly Hon. Justice M.A. Bello has not only behaved irresponsibly but also recklessly. Furthermore, it should be noted that the meeting at which Hon. Justice Bello presided and took this far reaching decision took place when my application for an injunction restraining the council from deliberating on my matter was still pending in the Federal High Court.
The consequence of his conduct is that both the meeting he presided over along with the decision taken are null and void. It is this illegal decision that the NJC had been relying upon to keep me out of office from 18th August, 2011.

justice Bello cannot claim ignorance of the provisions already set out because he was sufficiently knowledgeable to know that representatives of the Nigerian Bar Association cannot participate m the disciplinary proceeding of a judicial officer, for he at that meeting ejected them. He cannot approbate and reprobate.
He relied on paragraph 21 (b) of the Third Schedule of the Constitution in paragraph 1 of his letter NJC/f.2/CA.i/i/ 286 of 18th of August, 2011 to inform me of my suspension. It reads as follows:
"The National Judicial Council at its Emergency meeting which was held on 18th August, 2011, in exercise of its power under paragraph 21 (b) of part 1 of the Third Schedule to the 1999 Constitution of Federal Republic of Nigeria as amended, has suspended you from office with effect from today, pending the decision of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to retire you as recommended by it"
Paragraph 21 (b) of the constitution on which Hon. Justice Bello sought reliance reads as follows:

"Recommend to the President the removal from office of the judicial officers specified in sub-paragraph (a) of this paragraph, and to exercise disciplinary control over such officers"
It is clear from the authority cited by him that the National Judicial Council has no power to suspend me or any other judicial officer. If they relied on any other statutory or administrative practice to suspend me, such exercise of power would be contrary to the express provision of the constitution stated above and would be null and void. It is this arbitrariness that I have been subjected to under the supervision of two Chief Justices of Nigeria who for some inexplicable reasons seem to be comfortable with this act of illegality.
Hon. Justice Dahiru Musdapher on assumption of office rallied for support to correct this injustice. He then set up a twenty-nine man stakeholders committee on judicial reform. Although review of my case was not one of the terms of reference on the agenda of the committee, members of the committee considered my case as one of utmost urgency. The committee saw it as an act of travesty of justice. It, therefore, set-up a sub-committee to look into my case. Notwithstanding that it was not one of the 15 terms of reference submitted to the committee, the committee was of the view that without addressing my case, it would be useless looking into the other matters listed by the then CJN. Not only did the committee make it an issue of topmost priority, to facilitate the resolution of this matter the committee submitted an interim report.
Justice Dahiru Musdapher, the then CJN did not act promptly. It took him several months and several meetings of the council before he presented the report to the council for consideration.
I could go on and on on the way the NJC had in its desperate bid to continue to oppress me breached the Constitution but I would not say more .
It is only sad that it is the body that was established to protect Judicial officers that has dealt so cruelly with me. I have no regret whatsoever over all that I did having acted according to the dictate of my conscience and in the fear of Almighty God. I swore to uphold the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and to do justice to all manner of people without fear or favour; and God has helped me so to do. It is expedient for us as Judicial officers to adhere strictly to our oath of office. Departure from this desecrates the temple of justice and brings untold hardship to the common man.
God has helped me to overcome the travails of the last three years and I am very grateful to Him and all those who have stood by me.
However, it is not only about me but about other innocent Judges who may feel threatened and intimidated about upholding justice as a result of my maltreatment.
I thank you all for coming and God bless you.

ISA AYO SALAMI
PRESIDENT COURT OF APPEAL (RTD.)