The Court of Appeal, Kano, has upheld the death sentence imposed on Abdulmalik Tanko, the killer of young Hanifa Abubakar.
Justice A. R. Muhammad dismissed Tanko’s appeal and affirmed the ruling of the Kano State High Court, which had sentenced him to death by hanging.
The appellate court held that the trial court acted properly in law and in its evaluation of the evidence placed before it.
Justice Muhammad ruled that the arguments advanced by the appellant lacked merit, describing the prosecution’s case as compelling and convincing. He said the Court of Appeal found no justification to overturn or interfere with the lower court’s decision.
The judge further urged the appropriate authorities to ensure that the judgement is carried out once the convict has exhausted all legally available avenues of appeal.
Hanifa Abubakar, who was five years old at the time, was abducted in December 2021 by Tanko, the proprietor of Noble Kids Academy in Nassarawa Local Government, Kano State, where she was a pupil.
After demanding a ransom of ₦6 million from her family, Tanko gave the child rat poison, leading to her death.
The case sparked nationwide outrage, not only because of the tender age of the victim, but also due to the profound breach of trust involved, as the crime was committed by the owner of the school entrusted with her care.
Tanko was arraigned on January 24, 2022, alongside Isyaku Hashim and Fatima Jibril, on charges including criminal conspiracy, kidnapping, unlawful confinement, and culpable homicide.
However, on July 28, 2022, the Kano State High Court, presided over by Justice Usman Na’abba, sentenced Tanko and Hashim to death by hanging, while Fatima Jibril was sentenced to two years’ imprisonment.
Judges appointment: NJC says screening processes conducted by FJSC
From Godwin Tsa, Abuja
The National Judicial Council (NJC) said it has not taken final action on the 62 legal practitioners whose names were published by the Federal Judicial Service Commission (FJSC) as nominees for appointment as judges of the Federal High Court.
NJC, therefore,clarified that all the qualification processes leading to the shortlisted 28 applicants were carried out by the FJSC.
Specifically, a statement by the NJC Secretary, Malami Ahmed Gambo Saleh said reports that 34 of the lawyers failed integrity test and subsequently dropped from consideration for appointment were not unauthorized by the Council.
The statement said the reports, which have been circulating on both social and conventional media, did not reflect what actually transpired in the judicial appointment process.
According to the NJC, all the processes referred to in the report took place entirely at the level of the Federal Judicial Service Commission, FJSC, stressing that no decision or action has so far been taken by the Council in respect of the candidates concerned.
The Council explained that while a few candidates were discontinued at the FJSC stage due to adverse findings arising from petitions submitted to the Commission, others did not progress further because they failed to attain the required qualifying score to move to the interview stage before the NJC.
It also clarified that there is no stand-alone or newly introduced “integrity test” that automatically disqualified candidates in bulk, as suggested by the reports.
The statement said: “Rather, the judicial appointment process remains structured, merit-based and multi-layered, involving written examinations, performance benchmarks, background checks, consideration of petitions where applicable, and interviews conducted in line with established guidelines.”
The NJC expressed concern that the publication of inaccurate and speculative information could mislead the public and unfairly damage the reputation of candidates who participated in the process in good faith.
As a result, the Council disclosed that it has commenced internal investigations to identify the source of the unauthorised press statement, adding that it will take appropriate steps to safeguard the integrity and credibility of its procedures.
The NJC reaffirmed its commitment to transparency, fairness, due process and the highest standards of judicial integrity.
