Tobias Sylvester
The Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Olukayode Ariwoola has reportedly been sighted pretending to be a physically-challenged old man in London, United Kingdom.
According to Peoples Gazette, Supreme Court sources said CJN Ariwoola disguised himself in a wheelchair for a secret meeting with President-elect, Bola Tinubu.
Ariwoola’s movement was exposed to The Gazette as Tinubu was arriving in London for what his team claimed was a relaxation trip after a hectic campaign that preceded his declaration as Nigeria’s president-elect last month.
But Tinubu kept his trip to London secret until it was exposed on Wednesday afternoon by Sahara Reporters, which said the trip was a medical emergency.
It was learnt that Ariwoola departed Nigeria on March 11 via Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja. He was pushed in a wheelchair through the terminals to board a British Airways flight.
Upon arrival in London, Ariwoola, 64, was also wheeled into a hotel downtown, where he has remained ever since. But immediately after checking into the hotel, Ariwoola abandoned his wheelchair and started moving around the facility unaided. The Supreme Court head is not known with any physical disabilities.
“He has been moving about in the hotel without any wheelchair. He was standing on his own in the elevator just yesterday,” a source familiar with the CJN’s activities at the London accommodation told The Gazette.
The Gazette learnt that Mr Ariwoola repeatedly picked up food ordered via delivery services at a mid-level lobby, including Uber Eats and Deliveroo. It was unclear whether or not he placed the orders by himself or how he paid.
With Mr Tinubu now in Europe, he would be meeting Mr Ariwoola in a secret arrangement to discuss issues unknown to Nigerians, our sources said.
“The CJN deliberately left the country more than a week ahead of Tinubu to avoid any suspicion about why both of them disappeared at once. That is why he travelled secretly and Tinubu also travelled secretly,” a source familiar said.
Shortly after Tinubu’s trip was reported, his media aides issued a statement saying he was going to be in Paris and London briefly before heading to Saudi Arabia for prayer rites. His return date was not disclosed.
But many Nigerians expressed immediate doubt about the statement’s credibility, especially as it was not volunteered before the trip was uncovered.
“They thought that they could secretly move the president-elect abroad without anybody knowing about it. That’s one of the several mistakes they made on this matter, asides from the belief that they could allow the Chief Justice of Nigeria to move about in a London hotel for several days undetected after going through the trouble of disguising him in a wheelchair,” a source said.
The Gazette has temporarily withheld the CJN’s photos and the specific hotel he stayed in to protect a source central to this story.
A Supreme Court source said Ariwoola wanted to meet Tinubu to discuss issues that may arise from the budding legal challenge to the declaration as president-elect, including whether or not he should be worried about the petitions recently filed by opposition parties.
“The CJN would either assure Tinubu of victory in court or tell him that he should be worried about the dimension the petitions may take through the court stages. But we may never know what they actually discussed after their secret meeting,” the source said under anonymity to avoid facing administrative action for divulging privileged information to reporters.
“I am reluctant to start thinking about their meeting right now. But any fair-minded person will easily admit that both of them meeting in a foreign corner to discuss something that Nigerians will not know about is highly suspicious and should be unwarranted,” the source added.
Festus Akande, a spokesman for the Supreme Court, abruptly hung up when The Gazette requested comment about Ariwoola’s secret trip to London.
The National Judicial Council declined comments about Ariwoola’s suspicious activity. Mr Tinubu’s spokespersons also declined comments on Thursday afternoon.
KanyiDaily recalls that Peter Obi and Atiku Abubakar had this week filed petitions against Bola Tinubu’s emergence as president-elect, saying the process that led to the decision was fraudulent and unconstitutional.
