The immediate past chief judge of Bayelsa State, Justice Kate Abiri, has dead at the age of 65.
OsunDailyNG reports that Justice Abiri’s death was confirmed on Thursday in Yenagoa in a statement issued by the Chief Registrar at the State Judiciary Headquarters, High Court, Amaebi Orukari.
The former chief judge had reportedly died on Thursday after a brief illness.
According to the statement, “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.”
Orukari, however, said that the burial arrangements of the former chief judge will be announced after consultation with the family.
Abiri retired from the state judiciary on January 13, 2023, after serving as chief judge for 15 years and reaching the mandatory retirement age of 65.
She was appointed chief judge by former Governor Timipre Sylva in 2008 after a battle led by the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Yenagoa branch.
NBA had demanded Mrs Abiri’s appointment, following the recommendation by the National Judicial Commission (NJC).
