Justice Chima Centus Nweze raised not a few eyebrows on Tuesday when he read a dissenting judgment in the review appeal filed by Emeke Ihedioha of the Peoples Democratic Party.
Ihedioha and his party had asked a 7-man panel headed by Chief Justice Tanko Muhammad to annul its verdict of 14 January that ousted him as Imo governor and declared Hope Uzodinma of the All Progressives Congress as the winner and thus the lawful governor.

In the majority verdict read by Justice Olukayode Ariwoola, six members of the panel agreed to: “The judgement of the Supreme Court is a finality”.

The justices did not however award any costs unlike the Bayelsa case where lawyers to the APC and David Lyon were slammed with N60m cost to be paid to the defendants.
Nweze in his dissenting opinion, agreed that the court could not change its mind on any decision, having not done so in the past.

However, he said the apex court failed to resolve a portion of the Court of Appeal judgment which struck out the petition by Hope Uzodinma.
He thus held that the Supreme Court was without jurisdiction to have given the judgment it gave declaring Uzodinma winner of the Imo election.
Nweze was born 61 years ago, on 25 September 1958 in Obollo, Udenu Local Government Area of Enugu State. He is a Christian of the Roman Catholic Denomination and is married to Justice Ugonne Jacinta Nweze of the Enugu State Judiciary. They have five children and a grandchild.

He attended St John Cross Seminary, Nsukka, from 1972 -1977, emerging with a Distinction in the West African School Certificate Examination, WASCE.

He studied law between 1979 and 1983 at the University of Nigeria, Enugu Campus. In 1983, he represented the Faculty of Law, and indeed, all Nigerian Law Faculties, at the Phillip Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition in Washington DC, as the Chief Oralist. He also obtained an LLM and a doctorate in the same university years later.

He was called to the Nigerian bar in 1984 and had his NYSC year in Bauchi between 1984 and 1985.

He bagan private legal practice in 1985. Ten years after, he was elevated to the High Court Bench of Enugu State.

While on the High Court Bench, he served as Chairman, Second Robbery and Firearms Tribunal, Enugu State, 1996 -1998; Chairman, Robbery and Firearms Tribunal, Nsukka, 1998 -1999; Member, Ondo State Local Government Election Petition Tribunal, 1999; Chairman, Ogun State Governorship and Legislative Houses Election Petition Tribunal, 1999; Administrative Judge, Nsukka Judicial Division, Enugu State, 2001. He was appointed a Justice of the Court of Appeal of Nigeria, February 15, 2008; and served there until October, 2014, when he was, finally, elevated to Nigeria’s apex court as a Justice of the Supreme Court of Nigeria, October 29, 2014.

Nweze had served in various extra-judicial capacities. These include: Member, DFID Access to Justice Programme, Enugu State, 2003; Member, National Working Group on the Reform of Criminal Justice Administration, 2004 [the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, ACJA, is the brainchild of this group]; Team Member, Enugu State Sector Strategic Plan, 2004; PATHS-DFID Hon Consultant, District Health System Law/Regulations, 2004; Member, OSIWARD C Expert Consultative Forum on Federal Budget Act and Facilitator, Enugu State Justice Sector Reform Team.

A former Convenor/Co-coordinator, LL. M (International Human Rights Programme), and Visiting Human Rights Scholar, Faculty of Law, University of Nigeria, Enugu Campus, 2000 -2008; Justice Nweze, who was a Distinguished Scholar, Pro Bono, Faculty of Law, Enugu State University of Science and Technology, ESUT, Enugu, was formerly, a Visiting Associate Professor of Law, Faculty of Law, Ebonyi State University and Member, International Advisory Board, Annual Survey of International & Comparative Law (Golden Gate University School of Law, San Francisco, USA).

He had published many articles and books and co-authored many books as well.

He has also won many laurels since he became a judge of the Enugu High Court in 1995, 10 years after he began private practice upon being called to the Nigerian bar.

Among his awards were the Nancy Pelosi Congressional Award, 2015;Distinguished Scholarship Awardee, Golden Gate University, San Fransisco, California, USA; Justice of the Year Award, 1997;Rotary International District 1940 Award, Rotaract Club, UNEC: Award for Professional Service, 1998.

He also won the Dignity of Man Award, UNN Alumni Association, 2001; and Award for Excellence, Law Students’ Association, Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka;

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.pmnewsnigeria.com/2020/03/03/justice-nweze-profile-of-the-dissenter-in-supreme-court/amp/?espv=1

IGBO amaka.

chatinent:
IGBO amaka.

Igbo Amaka for what?

What's so special in what he did Abegi park well

amaniro:



Igbo Amaka for what?

For having balls my friend.

Balls.

Awol1:


For having balls my friend.

Balls.

Lol. It's not necessarily balls. He doesn't agree with the rest justices Ratio decidendi he will speak out now. The rest Justices are Justice just like him. Theyre his mates. It's not Balls but rather what he thinks it dims him fit to do

hisexcellency34:
What's so special in what he did Abegi park well

What is special is that whilst others feared DSS invasion and got cowed into agreeing with a clear rape of justice, this man displayed bravery and stood for justice.

History will be favorable to him.

The courageous Judge who cleared his name.


Posterity will forever be fair to him

amaniro:



Lol. It's not necessarily balls. He doesn't agree with the rest justices Ratio decidendi he will speak out now. The rest Justices are Justice just like him. Theyre his mates. It's not Balls but rather what he thinks it dims him fit to do

Do you agree that the majority judgment delivered justice?

justice NWEZE is a patriotic man .

Awol1:


Do you agree that the majority judgment delivered justice?

Well one thing about the Supreme Court is not it cannot contradicts itself, very rare, it won't. And, no other court in Nigeria can bind with it according to The doctrines of Judicial Precedence and type of precedence, No other court can counterfeit the verdict of Supreme Court even if the Ratio Decidendi is wrong (even if the ruling or verdict is wrong). Other court just have to obey it because they're not of equal jurisdiction. So Apparently, Ihedioha case has been trashed not because of Lack of merit or so but because the Supreme Court cannot Contradict itself, Remember that of Bayelsa was dismissed for lack of merit? Ihedioha own is just following the precedence. So I believe if more justices that led the panel had stood out just like Justice Nwaeze against the previous verdict of the court, the case would have been overturned in favour of ihedioha. But, To my personal view, I feel on normal grounds Ihedioha should have won the case because of the inconsistencies of Uzodinmma votes

amaniro:



Lol. It's not necessarily balls. He doesn't agree with the rest justices Ratio decidendi he will speak out now. The rest Justices are Justice just like him. Theyre his mates. It's not Balls but rather what he thinks it dims him fit to do

You studied Law in Madonna?

His brother, Professor Augustine Nweze is the Rector at the Institute of Management and Technology (IMT), Enugu.

Justice Chima Nweze is sound.

God bless every truthful men.

fergie001:

You studied Law in Madonna?

Taa. No lol What gives you that impression?

amaniro:


Taa. No lol What gives you that impression?

What is Taaa?
Is Madonna a bad school? No impression, just asked.

fergie001:

What is Taaa?
Is Madonna a bad school? No impression, just asked.

Yes Madonna is a terrible school. I didn't study there sha studied in Edo

amaniro:


Yes Madonna is a terrible school. I didn't study there sha studied in Edo

It isn't that bad. My room-mate in school studied there.
AAU or BEN?

fergie001:

It isn't that bad. My room-mate in school studied there.
AAU or BEN?

Lol I stop there bro. Confidential.

amaniro:



Lol I stop there bro. Confidential.

I grab.......

He didn't differ from the rest of the justices. He held like the others that Supreme Court is the final arbiter. He didn't not set aside the judgment of January.If he had ruled that then it won't have been a unanimous ruling but a majority ruling.

fergie001:

I grab.......

yeah fam

Compare his profile with F9/Mathematics and F9 English Sharia judge Tanko, it is an insult for This man to be sitting with Tanko Ibrahim

Go and give him an award for having a dissenting view from the majority.

If you want to be fair, give us the profiles of the judges that had the majority view.

amaniro:



Well one thing about the Supreme Court is not it cannot contradicts itself, very rare, it won't. And, no other court in Nigeria can bind with it according to The doctrines of Judicial Precedence and type of precedence, No other court can counterfeit the verdict of Supreme Court even if the Ratio Decidendi is wrong (even if the ruling or verdict is wrong). Other court just have to obey it because they're not of equal jurisdiction. So Apparently, Ihedioha case has been trashed not because of Lack of merit or so but because the Supreme Court cannot Contradict itself, Remember that of Bayelsa was dismissed for lack of merit? Ihedioha own is just following the precedence. So I believe if more justices that led the panel had stood out just like Justice Nwaeze against the previous verdict of the court, the case would have been overturned in favour of ihedioha. But, To my personal view, I feel on normal grounds Ihedioha should have won the case because of the inconsistencies of Uzodinmma votes

Thank you for saying the truth.

Sound man....