There’s no dull moment around Her Lordship. She works hard and makes no fuss about socials being a very important aspect of her life. And so during her valedictory ceremony on the 8th of February 2024, at the Court of Appeal Enugu Division where she retired as Presiding Justice, Hon. Justice Uzo Ifeyinwa Ndukwe-Anyawu, who exited judicial service on her 70th birthday (28 December 2023) regaled guests with hilarious tales about her exploits back in the days.
“The academic sides of my sojourn in the university was brilliant and interesting. I did not lag behind on the social aspect of university life. Driving in the university was a sina qua non. One was careful not to be bitten by the almighty BEE, a UNEC soft sell magazine that watched all the clandestine moves of students. I got lucky not to be bitten by the BEE. But it was all fun when you were not the victim of its sting.”
She also recounted her encounter as a judge with Ahmodu Ali and the famous “Ali must go strike.”
“In my 4th and final year, there was the almighty strike that had bedevilled Nigerian Educational System. In the years in the University our elders cautioned us on joining the National Strikes of NANS. The reason being that each of us had lost not less than 3 years in the war. The universities in the East tried to shield themselves from National Strike actions. However, this one was the master of all strikes. The ALI MUST GO Strike.
“Universities nationwide were shut down for weeks. We stayed at home for weeks. Universities were opened early June. Universities had only about two weeks, to finish their syllabus, do revision and then exams. It was tough but, school calendar was school calendar. Exams cannot be shifted. ALI was the then Minister of Education. No one knew who he was.
“Decades later, this man came to my Chambers to take his oath for his Code of Conduct Form. I administered the oath and we got talking. He confessed that he was that ALI the Minister under whom we went on strike. He narrated how the road in Surulere was blocked when he was going home. He was forced to come down and he immediately fizzled into the crowd shouting ALI MUST GO like everyone on the street. He was an ordinary man.
“He was not physically endowed in terms of height, so no one recognised him. He became one of the protesters on the street waving leaves. He was a very funny man. I told him in no uncertain terms what he caused me as an individual. Up till today I can’t place my hand on the issues we went on strike for. However, ALI was the face of government that kept us at home.”
A master of criminal prosecution, Anyanwu who spent 12 years doing only criminal prosecution most of which were at the Ministry of Justice in Aba, a division of Ministry of Justice in old Imo State state., now in Abia state confessed that “Criminal prosecution remains today my forte in law. Criminal matters does not fluster me.”
But this criminal law expert did not leave her love for socials behind at the university.
“The social life in Aba was very vibrant. I grew up in Enugu with me enjoying the perquisites of club membership. My father was a dedicated member of Enugu Sports Club and one-time President. I can say with glee that we grew up seeing the Club as a most appropriate place to be for socials and relaxation. My husband quickly registered us in Aba Sports Club.
“He played billiards and snookers whilst I did the badminton. Most especially I was so engrossed in the club as there were very few places to go to in Aba. I was at a certain time elected a Social Secretary for the Club under the chairmanship of Barrister Eric Obianwu of blessed memory. I used to organise monthly dance and other entertainment which also earned me the nickname of “Band boy”. Under my portfolio, I organised Christmas parties for our children. No dull moments.”
Speaking about her time at the Court of Appeal Calabar division, Her Lordship enthused: “I soaked in the beauty of Calabar and participated and enjoyed the breath-taking carnival with my whole family in December 2012. Nigeria is a very interesting place.”
Yet it is not all about fun and socials. Although judges and facilities in Nigerian courts have been blamed for the slow process of justice administration, Justice Anyanwu maintains that the disposition of a judge to do justice comes into play. “I raised the bar of speedy disposition of appeals. By the time I was leaving Ilorin in September, 2022, we were hearing 2021 and 2022 Appeals.
“When I first got to Calabar division, I insisted on seeing all the files and gave dates to all the motions. At the end of every day, I’d deal with about twenty files so by the end of two or three months I could earmark and eyeball all the motions. That was where we started because the litigation staff could be quite dubious and if you don’t understand the court, you wouldn’t know what they are doing to you.”
