The recent judgment of the Supreme Court that nullified the council election in Rivers State is generating apprehension in Kano, particularly where the ruling of Justice Simon Amobeda of the Federal High Court would swing.
In a suit filed by the All Progressives Congress (APC), the five-member panel of the apex court unanimously held that the Rivers council poll was conducted in violation of relevant laws, reports The Guardian.
In a similar dimension, the APC and two others dragged the Kano State government, the State Independent Electoral Commission (KANSIEC), and 55 others, including the 44 local government chairmen, before the Federal High Court over the “illegal conduct of the council poll in Kano.”
APC, essentially, urged the court to order the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Federal Account Allocation Committee (FAAC), Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) and Accountant General of the Federation (AGF) to stop monthly allocation to the local councils in Kano.
The applicants are seeking a declaration that the 44 council chairmen were not democratically elected and constituted according to Section 7(1) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended).
At the resumed hearing of the matter yesterday, the absence of counsel to the Kano state government, Chief Adegboyega Awomolo (SAN), however, stalled proceedings.
Justice Amobeda told the court that Awomolo had sent a letter, seeking an adjournment until after the Easter vacation. But the judge rejected the request, insisting that the case had suffered several adjournments to the detriment of justice.
Although Justice Amobeda granted a further adjournment to April 14, he ordered that all processes should be filed and served before the next adjourned date, adding that under no condition would further extension be granted.
Earlier, counsel to KANSIEC, John Baiyeshea (SAN), urged the court to adjourn the matter in the interest of justice since Awomolo was absent. Counsel to APC, Abdul Adamu Fagge, SAN, did not oppose the adjournment.
Last 2024, Justice Amobeda had restrained KANSIEC from conducting the council election, saying the appointment of members of the electoral bodywas contradicted provisions of the Constitution and extant electoral laws.
Although the court gave leverage for conduct of the council election once the state government properly constituted KANSIEC, the election was conducted by the same commission as scheduled.
KANSIEC Chairman, Prof. Sani Malunfashi, had told journalists that the October 26, 2024, council poll was conducted based on the judgment of Justice Sanusi Ma’aji of the State High Court.
