Nigeria’s first female chief justice

ABUJA – Nigeria’s president Goodluck Jonathan on Wednesday nominated Aloma Mariam Mukhtar as the next Supreme Court chief justice, the first time a woman has been named to the post.

Jonathan submitted her nomination to the senate, requesting an ‘expeditious’ confirmation process.’I have the honour to forward the nomination of Honourable Justice Aloma Mariam Mukhtar for confirmation as Chief Justice of Nigeria,’ said the presidency letter.The 68-year-old Mukhtar, who already sits on the top court, has for several weeks been tipped as a likely successor to Chief Justice Dahiru Musdapher, who is retiring this month.In a report released last week, the British Council and Department for International Development (DFID) warned that Nigerian women ‘have significantly worse life chances than men and also sisters in comparable countries’.Mukhtar was born in Kano state in Nigeria’s mainly Muslim north, where gender inequality is most acute, according to the report. – Nampa-AFP

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