By Prof Mike A. A. Ozekhome, SAN
THE SILENCE BEFORE THE GONG
When a great Iroko falls, it does not do so quietly. It thunders in the forest.
I was sipping coffee that morning as the world was yet wrapped in its festive linen. Eid al-Adha, the celebration of obedience and the commemoration of Abraham (Ibrahim)’ willingness to sacrifice his son in obedience to God’s command, had brought families together under canopies of roasted ram, plenty food, laughter and spiritual rejuvenation. And then a friend called me to announce, “Justice Mohammed Lawal Uwais has passed on.” The words staggered out of my phone like a wounded gazelle. For a moment, I thought it was a mistake. Not because Justice Uwais was too young to die. No. After all, life expectancy in Nigeria is only 61.2 for men and 62.6 for women, all below the global average of 73.3.So while the acclaimed Jurist was not too young to die, he was certainly too good to die. Just like that. My humble submission.
Justice Uwais had exited the stage quietly without pomp and without pageantry just days shy of turning 89. So his was surely a long life, certainly, outpacing that of the average Nigerian male. Yet, no arithmetic can capture the fullness of a life lived in rigour and relevance such as that of Uwais. As the Hausa would say: “Mutuwa ba ta da rana”, meaning that ‘death does not have a fixed day’. But his felt symbolically placed, almost divinely arranged.
To die during the sacred season of Eid al-Adha when souls are softened, when the air is filled with remembrance of the ultimate sacrifice was itself a testament to Uwais’ fulfilled life. It was a sign that suggested he had made peace with his maker and thus the time when Almighty Allah had chosen the hour to welcome back a faithful servant.
AND TRULY, WAS HE NOT A STEWARD?
This man, who walked into the Supreme Court at a mere 43, not merely young but burning with judicial fire, would sit on the bench for decades. By 1995, he had become the Chief Justice of Nigeria. He held that seat, the very apex of Nigerian justice, for 11 formidable years, the second-longest tenure in the nation’s apex history, following the 14 years spent by the longest serving CJN, Sir Adetokunbo Ademola ( 1958-1972). Uwais was not just a judge. He was the Judge; a Judge’s Judge. Uwais did not just jump into the seat of the CJN. He had pupilaged, serving patiently under 5 whole CJNs- Hon. Justices Darnley Alexander; Atanda Fatayi- Williams; George Sodeinde Sowemo; Ayo Gabriel Irikefe; and Mohammed Bello.
In the ancient Ashanti kingdoms of West Africa, elders would say, “When the drumbeat changes, the dance must also change.” It is the same adage in my Uvhano language in Etsako, Edo State. And Justice Uwais came drumming a new rhythm into the judiciary. Law was not for theatrics. Law to him, was a sacred text, precise, divine, unyielding. A thing to be revered, not wielded like a cudgel. He did not just apply laws. He understood their soul. Calm with penetrating eyes and sharp wit, Uwais was a pleasure to appear before at the apex court. And I did so many times. He would never harass nor talk down on a Counsel, not even junior ones. His humility and respect for the Bar were legendary.
There was a certain meticulousness to his rulings, an almost surgical devotion to jurisprudence. He would dance between the lines of legislation, looking out for justice, with a clarity and erudition that reminded one of sunlight on steel. And he had the rare gift of seeing the implications, not just the letter, but the heartbeat of the law. With him, a lawyer could easily know the outcome of his case based on available precedents. He saw law as the handmaid with which justice is delivered (Bello v AG, Oyo State (19686) 5 NWLR 820 (SC); (1986) CLR 12(b)( SC).
And when he spoke, the courtroom held its breath. This was no ordinary Jurist. This was the son of the Chief Alkali and later Waziri of Zaria emirate. Nobility ran through his veins, but humility shaped his demeanour and persona.
He often quoted legendary Justice Samson Uwaifo (JSC)’s memorable words at his valedictory speech, “A corrupt judge is more harmful to society than a man who runs amok with a dagger in a crowded street. The latter can be restrained physically, but a corrupt judge deliberately destroys the moral foundation of society and causes incalculable distress to individuals through abusing his office, while still being referred to as honourable.” And this was not some offhand remark. It was a creed for him. He lived it. Believed it. Fought for it. It was not a speech given to hyperbole. It was truth wrapped in fire.
For a Judge is not just a man in robes. A Judge is the final arbiter in the face of injustice. He sits between God and his fellow beings. A corrupt judge does not merely break laws. He breaks people. He breaks morals. He breaks society. He breaks the future. Justice Uwais, thankfully, did none of these.
THE JUDGE WHO SAW TOMORROW
In the vast drama of Nigerian politics, an ever-rolling masquerade of power and promises, one name will never be forgotten: Mohammed Lawal Uwais. Why? Because after retirement, when he could have retreated into quiet gardens to write memoirs, he chose instead to lead a silent revolution.
President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua had called upon him to chair the Presidential Committee on Electoral Reforms. It was in 2007, and Nigeria’s democracy was haemorrhaging. Elections that brought in Yar’Adua as president had been marred by fraud, violence and brazen manipulation. And like the prophet who warns his people not out of anger but out of love, the now late Justice Uwais stepped forward and accepted the challenge.
The committee’s recommendations were not timid revisions. They were seismic. Audacious. Brave. Revolutionary.
They proposed unbundling of INEC and to emerge from its stable, three brand-new commissions to handle Electoral Offences, Constituency Delimitation, and Political Party Registration. These were responsibilities hitherto buried within INEC, that sacred cow of electoral hopes, but which has serially dashed Nigeria’s hopes.
The boldest recommendation perhaps? That the head of INEC should no longer be appointed by the President, but by the Judiciary.
It was a direct shot at the veins of partisanship, to remove it from Executive control of the president. Unsurprisingly, the corridors of power shuddered. The result? Yar’Adua rejected it. Others danced around it. But Justice Uwais stood his ground, steady as a Baobab tree.
“Let justice be done though the heavens fall,” the old Romans said. And Justice Uwais would certainly have agreed.
In time, Acting President Goodluck Jonathan did something unexpected: he dusted off the unedited Uwais Report and sent it, unaltered to the National Assembly. A rare moment of political courage. It was as though the ghost of the law had whispered in his ear: “Do not fear. Do right.” But the battle raged. Senators balked. “Separation of powers!”, they cried. “Letting the judiciary appoint INEC chair compromises neutrality!”, they argued. As if appointment by the President was not itself the greatest show of partially.
Justice Uwais watched. He did not yell. He did not rage. He let the report speak. For true men of wisdom do not throw stones. They plant seeds. And watch them grow. Today, even though the report saw little fragments implemented, its endearing impact remains undeniable. It has ever since shaped national discourse and conversation on electoral matters. It was a case of “res ipsa loquitur”. It framed new expectations. It was not just a document, it was a mirror through which we were to see ourselves during elections. And Nigeria saw herself in her full nakedness, watts and all, perhaps for the first time, without her make-belief makeup.
OF DUST, LEGACIES AND THE QUIET ROAD HOME
The Holy Qur’an says in Surah Al-Baqarah (2:286): “Allah does not burden a soul beyond that it can bear.” And surely, Allah knew what He was doing when He burdened Justice Uwais with the weight of the Nigerian judiciary. Not all men can sit on the edge of power and not be seduced by the corrosive power of power. Uwais was not. Not all men can dwell among the many rogues within the larger society and still remain robed in white. Uwais was.
UWAIS’ TENDER FEET
Justice Uwais’s formative years set the stage for his distinguished career. Born in Zaria on the 12th of June, 1936, he was raised in a family with strong roots in education and leadership. In 1950, Uwais advanced to Zaria Middle School and later attended the prestigious Barewa College in Zaria.
His legal journey took him to the Institute of Administration at Ahmadu Bello University, followed by studies in England, where he was called to the Bar at the Middle Temple in 1963 and admitted to the Nigerian Bar on January 17, 1964.
In 1973, Justice Uwais was appointed Acting Judge of the High Courts of North Central, Benue-Plateau, and North Eastern States of Nigeria. His judicial career continued its upward trajectory as he became a substantive Judge in 1974; briefly served as the Chief Judge of Kaduna State in 1976, and was elevated to the Federal Court of Appeal in 1977. At just 43, he became a member of Nigeria’s Supreme Court, where he served for 27 years and his legal acumen shone. As at today, no Justice of the Supreme Court has ever spent, close to the over 3 decades he served.
A SUPREME BAPTISM OF FIRE
Still very fresh at the court, Uwais was invited by the then Chief Justice of Nigeria, Hon. Justice Atanda Fatai-Willlams to join the panel that decided the appeal which today is a cause célèbre. This was because Justice George S. Sowemimo who later became a CJN himself declined to be part of the panel. His excuse was that he convicted Awolowo in the 1960’s in the then Western Region. Uniquely, Uwais also holds the honour of being the first Alumnus of the Nigerian Law School to have occupied the exalted position of CJN and the first Chief Justice of Nigeria to retire at 70.
As Chief Justice of Nigeria, Uwais was known for his professionalism, impartiality, and dedication to the rule of law. He was instrumental in reshaping the Nigerian judiciary and strengthening public confidence in the justice system. His efforts to establish a full complement of 16 Justices of the Supreme Court, which improved the court’s ability to manage cases efficiently, were pivotal. He also introduced new court sitting arrangements, which included special sittings at the beginning of the legal year and the swearing-in of new Senior Advocates of Nigeria.
EVEN AFTER RETIRING, UWAIS’S COMMITMENT TO NATIONAL PROGRESS DID NOT WANE
Even after retiring, Uwais’s commitment to national progress did not wane.
In 2002, he expanded the political space by allowing the registration of new political parties, an act that electrified democratic possibilities. He served as Chairman of the Federal Judicial Service Commission from 1999 to 2006, the very engine room of Nigeria’s legal bureaucracy. And in all these years, he remained untouched by scandal. Untouched by corruption. Unmoved by politics. But unyielding in character and dignity. And then came 6th June, 2025, and he breathes his final breath. But let no one say he died. Say instead he went home.
The African proverbs tell us that when a lion dies, the forest mourns for seven days. For Justice Uwais, the forest may mourn for seventy. They say in Yoruba lands, “Eni ba ku, ki a ma fi oro e se eré.” meaning ‘When a man dies, his name should not become a joke’. Let his deeds speak. Let the winds echo his memory. Let the heavens blaze forth his legacy.
Forever, Uwais’ deeds are engraved in rulings and judgements; in judicial and political reforms; in the minds of generations of Nigerian lawyers who studied his judgements the way others study scripture. And for the skeptics, the cynics who say one man cannot change a nation, I offer Justice Uwais.
He did not make speeches on podiums. He simply wrote judgements. He signed reports. He told truth to power in long lonely corridors. He was a light. Incandescent. Not flamboyant, but persistent.
HE WAS A LIGHT INCANDESCENT; NOT FLAMBOYANT, BUT PRESENT
An illuminating light in a country too often plunged into judicial darkness. While Uwais was a Judge’s Judge, he has now returned to his maker, the JUDGE OF ALL JUDGES. The One before whom robes, bibs, collars, studs and gavels are meaningless, and only sincerity and nobility stand. Sir, you served your nation faithfully with every fibre in you. Now, rest in perfect peace, unburdened by Nigeria ‘s spirally problems. May Allah forgive your earthly sins and grant you Al-Jannah Firdausi. Amin
