Abuja, January 1, 2026 — The National Judicial Council (NJC) has formally dissociated itself from a report alleging that 34 lawyers were disqualified after failing an “integrity test” in the process of appointing judges to the Federal High Court.

In a statement issued by its Secretary, Ahmed Gambo Saleh, the Council described the report as inaccurate and unauthorised, stressing that it does not reflect the true position of events within the judicial appointment process.

According to the NJC, the issues referenced in the report occurred entirely at the level of the Federal Judicial Service Commission (FJSC), and the Council itself has not taken any decision concerning the 34 lawyers mentioned.

The Council explained that while some candidates were discontinued at the FJSC stage due to adverse findings arising from petitions, others did not progress further simply because they failed to attain the required qualifying scores to advance to the NJC interview stage.

The NJC further clarified that there is no newly introduced or separate “integrity test” whose failure automatically resulted in mass disqualification, contrary to claims circulating in the media.

Reaffirming its procedures, the Council stated that judicial appointments follow a structured and merit-based process, which includes written examinations, evaluation of performance benchmarks, background checks, review of petitions where applicable, and interviews conducted in line with established guidelines.

The NJC expressed concern that the publication of inaccurate reports could mislead the public and unfairly damage the reputation of legal practitioners who participated in the process in good faith.

To address the situation, the Council disclosed that it has commenced an internal investigation to determine the source of the unauthorised information and to safeguard the integrity of its processes.

The NJC also urged media organisations to verify sensitive institutional matters through authorised channels before publication.