The National Judicial Council (NJC) has asked the Acting Chief Judge of Ondo State, Justice Oluwatoyin Akeredolu, to explain the rationale behind the disengagement of some magistrates from the judiciary system in the state.

SaharaReporters gathered that the NJC, in a letter addressed to the office of the Acting Chief Judge, sought to know why and how the magistrates were sacked as a result of “perceived irregularities in their appointments” in the state's judiciary.

On September 14, 2017, some magistrates in the judiciary system of the state were disengaged over alleged irregularities in their appointments.

An impeccable source at the Ondo State High Court reached SaharaReporters in a phone chat in Akure and disclosed that the letter was directly addressed to the Acting Chief Judge.

The source said the letter was written by the National Judicial Council (NJC) after the sacked magistrates wrote a petition to kick against their "unjust and illegal" removal from the state judicial system.

"The letter was seen today and was directly addressed to the Acting Chief Judge, Justice Oluwatoyin Akeredolu.

"The copy of the letter which some of us saw asked Justice Akeredolu to explain by giving the details and the rationale for sacking the magistrates from service.

"The Acting Chief Judge was being queried in the letter to give full report and explain her own side of the issue, why and how the magistrates were disengaged from the service," the source said.

SaharaReporters had reported that the aggrieved magistrates petitioned the National Judicial Council following their sack from the state judiciary system.

The aggrieved magistrates, in the petition, complained that their disengagement from the service by Justice Akeredolu was "unjust" while their benefits were being diverted into private pockets.