Ex-Bayelsa Chief Judge, Abiri, dies at 65

Immediate past Chief Judge of Bayelsa, Retired Justice Kate Abiri, is dead, according to reports.

Chief Registrar at State Judiciary Headquarters, High Court, Mr Amaebi Orukari, in a statement issued on Thursday in Yenagoa , said that the former chief judge died on Thursday during a brief illness at the age of 65.

“With a deep sense of loss, the Honourable Chief Judge of Bayelsa State, Hon. Justice Matilda Abrakasa Ayemieye, announces the demise of Hon. Justice Kate Abiri, CON, whose sad event occurred on the 3rd of August, 2023.

“The Hon. Justice Kate Abiri passed on after a brief illness at the Glory Land Hospital, Yenagoa, Bayelsa State.

“Until her death, she was the immediate past Chief Judge of Bayelsa State,” he said.

Orukari said that the state judiciary would miss the late jurist’s pioneering efforts in information technology, infrastructural development, contribution to the legal community and the state in general.

According to him, the burial arrangements will be announced after consultation with the family.

Recall that Abiri retired from the state judiciary on Jan. 13, after serving as chief judge for 15 years and clocking the mandatory retirement age of 65.

Newsmen also reports that the deceased was appointed chief judge by former Gov. Timipre Sylva in 2008 after a protracted battle, led by Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Yenagoa branch.

NBA had demanded for Abiri’s appointment, following the recommendation by National Judicial Commission (NJC).

According to reports, late Abiri was the first female judge in Nigeria’s history to swear-in the highest number of state chief executives, even beyond her state, as a chief judge.