Court reinstates impeached Plateau Speaker after 18 months
After more than 18 months, Justice Nafisat Lawal Musa of the Plateau State High Court reinstated Abok Ayuba as Speaker of the state House of Assembly on Monday.
Ayuba, who represents the Jos East constituency, was impeached by some members of the state assembly on October 28, 2021, under controversial circumstances, and replaced by Yakubu Sanda, who represents the Pengana state constituency.
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Two members of the House, Gwottson Fom, representing Jos South State constituency, and Tyem Pirfa Jinfa, representing Langtang North North Constituency, petitioned the court for redress because they were dissatisfied with the process that led to Abok’s impeachment.
They sought, among other things, a declaration that the sitting of the Plateau State House of Assembly on Thursday, October 28, 2021, between the hours of 6:00 a.m. and 7:00 a.m. was unparliamentary and in violation of the provision of Order 6 Rule of the Plateau State House of Assembly Rules 2021, and thus unlawful, void, and voidable.
The claimants also requested that the court declare that the procedure adopted for the removal of the “Defendant (Nuhu Abok Ayuba)” violated the provisions of section 92 (2) (c) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999, as amended, and Order 7 Rule 4 of the Plateau State House of Assembly Rules 2021, and was therefore unconstitutional, null, void, and of no effect.
Another relief sought by the claimants is the removal of the Defendant (Nuhu Abok Ayuba) as Speaker of the Plateau State House of Assembly by less than a two-thirds majority or 16 members of the Assembly in violation of section 92 (2). (c).
Mr. Chuwang Isiah Paul, counsel for the claimants, stated that the judge considered all of his clients’ prayers and the fact that the defendants did not defend any of the reliefs sought or file anything to indicate that they intend to defend the suit, and granted all ten reliefs requested by the claimants.
Justice Musa reinstated Abok Ayuba as the speaker of the Plateau State House of Assembly and issued an injunction prohibiting the current speaker, Yakubu Sanda, from posing as the Speaker of the Assembly.
In addition, the court ordered that the claimants be awarded N20 million in exemplary damages and ordered that the re-instated Speaker be paid all of his emoluments, salaries, bonuses, and allowances from October 28, 2021 until the end of his term as speaker of the Assembly.
In addition, the judge ordered that the sum of N1.5 million be paid as the cost of appearance in favour of the claimant’s counsel and that the sum of N138,350:00 be paid as the cost of filing the lawsuit.
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