Nigeria, Feb. 23 -- The National Judicial Council (NJC) has commenced a discreet but far-reaching investigation into some highly placed judges in the country, including heads of courts, insiders at the council have told PREMIUM TIMES.

The NJC is the constitutional body responsible for appointing, promoting and disciplining judicial officers in Nigeria.

The 24-member council, led by the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Kudirat Kekere-Ekun, derives its authority from Paragraph 20 of Part One of the Third Schedule to the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended).

Our sources said the ongoing "extraordinary investigation" was triggered by a wave of "damning and disturbing petitions" filed against some unnamed "very s...