A Federal High Court sitting in Kano, presided over by Justice Simon Amobeda, has ordered that two Kano judges, Justice Farouk Lawan Adamu and Justice Zuwaira Yusuf, resign from their newly appointed roles within 48 hours.
These judges were appointed by Kano State Governor, Abba Yusuf to chair the Judicial Commission of Inquiry for the Recovery of Misappropriated Public Properties and Assets and the Judicial Commission of Inquiry to Investigate Political Violence and Missing Persons, respectively.
The order was issued during the judgment of a case filed by former Governor Abdullahi Ganduje, who sought to halt Governor Yusuf’s probe into his administration.
Justice Amobeda emphasized that if the judges fail to comply within the given timeframe, the National Judicial Council (NJC) would cease the payment of any remuneration, allowances, and benefits intended for judicial officers from the Consolidated Revenue Fund of the Federation.
Justice Amobeda stated that the judges should refrain from performing executive functions assigned by the Governor of Kano State in courtrooms meant for adjudicating disputes.
He highlighted that the Governor’s action of establishing the commission of inquiries without appealing an earlier judgment by Justice Abdullahi Liman, which ruled that only the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) or the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC) could investigate Ganduje, was an abuse of office and undermined the judiciary’s sanctity.
According to Justice Amobeda, “By the combined provisions of Sections 153(1)(i) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999, and other relevant sections, the Governor of Kano State has no power to appoint the 4th and 5th Defendants and administer another oath of office on them to serve as Chairmen of the Commission of Inquiry constituted by the Governor of Kano State.”
He further declared that the appointment of the judges as chairmen of the commissions of inquiry with quasi-judicial powers was illegal and a violation of the Constitution. He asserted that the judges, by accepting these executive appointments, had abandoned their judicial functions and turned their courtrooms into places for performing executive functions.
The court reiterated that the actions of the Governor in appointing the judges to these commissions encroached upon and undermined the judicial arm of government, breaching the separation of powers doctrine.
The respondents in the suit include the National Judicial Council, the Revenue Mobilization Allocation and Fiscal Commission, the Attorney-General of Kano State, and Justices Farouk Lawan Adamu and Zuwaira Yusuf.
