Unified retirement age for judicial officers: Why Tinubu’s first bill as President sparked mixed reactions
On Thursday, June 8, 2023, President Bola Tinubu signed to law the bill unifying the retirement age of Nigerian judges from the High Court to the Supreme Court. It’s his first legislation signed to law since he took office on May 29, 2023.
The Constitution (Fifth) Alteration Bill No. 20 (Uniform Retirement Age for Judicial Officers), 2023 was passed by the outgoing 9th National Assembly. Before now, the mandatory retirement age for High Court judges was 65, while that of the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court justices was 70.
“With the signing of the Constitutional amendment Bill, retirement age and pension rights of judicial officers have been effectively brought into uniformity and other related matters,” Abiodun Oladunjoye, State House Director of Information, said in a statement on Thursday.
Tinubu, who was inaugurated as Nigeria’s 16th president on May 29, 2023, promised that “Nigeria will be impartially governed according to the constitution and the rule of law.”
However, mixed reactions have trailed the passage, with some Nigerians noting that with the rising youth unemployment rate, which is at 53%, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), the signed bill might not be in the best interest of Nigeria’s teeming youth population who are seeking to replace the older workforce. In France, nearly 300,000 people, according to local police, have protested across the country since January 2023 over the government’s decision to increase the retirement age from 62 to 64.
But Oladunjoye said the passage is in line with President Tinubu’s pledge to strengthen the judiciary.
“While signing the amendment Bill into law, President Tinubu pledged his administration’s dedication to strengthening the judiciary, ensuring the rule of law, and empowering judicial officers to execute their responsibilities effectively,” he said.
