Former president of the Nigerian Court of Appeal, Justice Ayo Isa Salami, has blamed wrong court judgment for Peter Obi’s contest in the 2023 presidential election on the platform of the Labour Party (LP).
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According to the foremost jurist, the former Anambra State governor ought not to have been allowed to participate in the presidential election.
Speaking with journalists after he was honoured as a recipient of the 2025 Human Rights Defender Award at the 20th anniversary of the award by the Wole Soyinka Centre for Investigative Journalism (WSCIJ), Justice Salami said Chief Obafemi Awolowo influenced his decision to study law.
Justice salami, who stated that few among Nigerian judges are not necessarily bad eggs, said some of them have problem of learning, which, according to him, affects justice dispensations.
“There are little bad eggs. That is not only. Well, I can’t say bad eggs. Strictly speaking, some of them have problem of learning. They are not sufficiently trained. They don’t have good background to be such. And imagine appointing a higher registrar, a judge.
“There’s no experience. But in the past this one will not happen. But maybe due to population explosion, we have everybody reading Law and every university or college trying to have faculty of Law.
“So, all this may be responsible not because they are dishonest or they take bribe or they are influenced. But maybe personally they are inadequate. And that may be responsible for their wrong judgment. At times when you see or read judgment of some of them, even the Supreme Court judgment, you would be astounded and wonder what is happening,” the retired justice said.
Citing judgement that allowed Peter Obi to contest on the platform of the LP as a case study, Justice Salami said the party had already submitted its members’ list to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) before Obi joined.
“For instance, Peter Obi of the Labour Party ought not to have been allowed to contest election in the presidential election in the sense that by the time he lost PDP primary, Labour Party had submitted its list of members to INEC. The constitution says there can’t be independent candidates. How did he become a candidate if he doesn’t belong to Labour Party?
“The same thing happened to the governor of Kano State who has now defected to APC. His name is not in the NNPP register, but they issued him with membership card, and the register is supposed to be the mother of the card. That is the source of his register of his membership. Even though the Tribunal and Court of Appeal frowned at it and that’s the problem of competence. People get to Supreme Court today not because they are good, but because there is vacancy from their zone. So, they supersede people who who are senior to them, whom they met in the Court of Appeal, who are senior to them and who are more experienced than them but because they do not have vacancy from their zone.”
Justice Salami, while explaining how Chief Obafemi Awolowo influenced his decision to study Law, said he was influenced by courage of the late sage.
“Before I finished secondary school, I was influenced by railway drivers. So, I wanted to be a railway locomotive driver. Then, as I was in secondary school, I wanted to read Agriculture. In fact, I applied to one institution in the Caribbean, either Trinidad and Tobago. There’s an institute for agriculture there. But, in the course of going on, the Akintola crisis came and he (Awolowo) employed an Englishman who was qualified to practice in Nigeria at that time. But, he was denied a visa. So, he couldn’t enter Nigeria. Then, Minister of Internal Affairs, something Sarki, the man (Awolowo) then got up and decided that he was going to defend himself.
“Based on that, I thought that if I find myself in a tight corner like that, I should be able to stand up for myself. That’s why I dropped the idea of reading Agriculture and switched to Law.”
While speaking on the personality of Justice Isa Ayo Salami, Dapo Olorunyomi of the WSCIJ described him as a respected Nigerian jurist known for his integrity, firm judicial temperament, and commitment to justice.
“The jurist served as the President of the Court of Appeal (PCA) from 2009 to 2011.
“He earned a reputation for delivering courageous judgments and upholding judicial independence.
“His career in the judiciary spans decades, beginning as a State Counsel before rising through the ranks to become a High Court Judge, a Justice of the Court of Appeal, and eventually the President of the Court of Appeal. After retirement, Justice Salami remained an influential figure,” Olorunyomi said.
On the decision to bestow the award of the retired Justice, Olorunyomi said the Search Committee cited his distinguished commitment to justice, fairness, and judicial integrity in Nigeria’s legal system.
“Honourable Justice Ayo Salami is widely regarded as one of Nigeria’s most upright and courageous jurists—an example of judicial excellence and moral strength.
“In choosing him for this Award, the Search Committee cited his distinguished commitment to justice, fairness, and judicial integrity in Nigeria’s legal system. From his early service as State Counsel and SolicitorGeneral in state Ministries of Justice, through your appointment as a High Court judge and later as a Justice of the Court of Appeal, culminating in your appointment as President in 2009, you demonstrated commitment to the rule of law and due process,” he added.
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