Nigeria’s Eboe-Osuji Emerges President, International Criminal Court

The judges of the International Criminal Court (ICC) on Sunday elected Judge Chile Eboe-Osuji as President of the court.

The Imo State-born judge was elected during a plenary session by the judges.

He is expected to be President of the Court for three-year term tenure and his emergence takes immediate effect.

Eboe-Osuji was elected alongside Judge Robert Fremr (Czech Republic) who was elected First Vice-President and Judge Marc Perrin de Brichambaut (France) Second Vice-President.

The announcement was which was available made in a statement posted on ICC website on Sunday stated that the Presidency, consisting of the President and the two Vice-Presidents, plays the key role in providing strategic leadership to the ICC as a whole.

Eboe-Osuji, the statement read further expressed deep appreciation for his election to the honourable position.

“I am deeply honoured to have been elected by my peers as President of the International Criminal Court. As I take up my duties, I feel encouraged that I am able to rely on the wide experience of the two Vice-Presidents, Judge Robert Fremr and Judge Marc Perrin de Brichambaut, both of whom I have closely worked with previously.

I look forward to working together with them as well as with all the judges, all the officials and the staff of the Court in a spirit of collegiality.

“I also look forward to collaborating with the Assembly of States Parties, civil society and the international community at large, acting together to strengthen and reinforce the Rome Statute system, the 20th anniversary of the adoption of which we celebrate this year”, President Chile Eboe-Osuji stated following the election,” Eboe-Osuji said.

This is the first time a Nigerian would be elected as the President of ICC.

Meanwhile, Nigeria’s Foreign Affairs Minister, Geoffrey Onyeama has congratulated Eboe-Osuji in a tweet using his official Twitter handle @GeoffreyOnyeama.