By Jonathan Ugbal
The Presiding Justice of the Calabar Division of the Court of Appeal, Hon. Justice Raphael Chikwe Agbo died on Tuesday, aged 69.
Justice Agbo was billed to retire in October shortly after the resumption of the Courts from vacation at age 70.
He is said to have been rushed to a medical facility in Calabar on Tuesday where he passed on.
Until his death, He was the second most senior Justice of the Court of Appeal after its President, Hon. Justice Monica Dongban-Mensem.
This means Justice Jimi Bada who presides over the Lagos Division of the Court will move to Number 2 while Justice Oyebisi Omoyele who is also of the Calabar Division will be the third most Senior.
Findings by CrossRiverWatch reveal that Justice Agbo had battled health challenges recently with Justices Omoyele and Bilikisu Aliyu often hearing most of the appeals and reading the judgments, especially in pre-election cases.
His last known major judicial activity was about a fortnight ago when his panel upheld the conviction of the Akwa Ibom State guber Candidate of the Young Progressives Party, Senator Bassey Akpan for fraud but also offering him an option of a fine.
Called to the bar in 1978, Justice Agbo was appointed as a member of the Court of Appeal in 2005.
In December 2022, the former Governor of Enugu State, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi named the Multi-Door Courthouse after the jurist who hails from the Southeastern State.
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