TheCable

Nyesom Wike, governor of Rivers and some of his allies, alongside Oyinlola, joined Seyi Makinde, Oyo state governor as he hosts Olukayode Ariwoola, the chief justice of Nigeria (CJN).

On Saturday, the Oyo state government held a reception in honour of Olukayode Ariwoola, the recently sworn-in chief justice of Nigeria in Ibadan.

At the reception in Ibadan, Makinde said his administration would continue to promote the independence of the judiciary in the state, adding that the state is delighted to produce Nigeria’s number five citizen.

“I thank God for tonight and for the fact that the Supreme Court was powerfully moved to Oyo state, and what you see here is Nigeria. We have my Lords from different states and geopolitical zones of this country,” he said.

“This is a turning point. For the first time in the history of Oyo state, we have produced the number five citizen of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. So, old things have passed away and things have become new.”

In his remarks, Ariwoola promised not to let Nigerians down.

“On October 12, when I was sworn in as the CJN in a substantive capacity, the governor appreciated President Muhammadu Buhari on behalf of the entire Oyo state and the president just smiled, but maybe he did not understand,” he said.

“The Lord single-handedly, as He has always done, did it for my governor. It is during his time that the Yoruba has the position of the CJN again, which it last had 37 years ago.”

Justice Ariwoola also called on politicians to allow the judiciary to perform its function while warning the judiciary to leave politics for politicians.