- Odinkalu says Justice Liman’s elevation to the Court of Appeal is a blot on Justice Olukayode Ariwoola as CJN
The Court of Appeal in Kano has set aside the order of Hon. Justice Abubakar Liman of June 20 nullifying the steps taken by the Kano State Government under the Kano State Emirate Council (Repeal) Law 2024, including the appointment of Sanusi Lamido Sanusi as the 16th Emir of Kano.
In a judgment on Friday, a three-member panel of the Court of Appeal, Kano, which sat in Abuja, held that the order nullifying the steps taken by the Kano State Government by Justice Liman then of the Federal High Court, kano was without jurisdiction.
The intermediate court found that the fundamental rights enforcement suit filed by an aggrieved king maker – Alhaji Aminu Babba Dan Agundi – on which basis Justice Liman issued the June 20 order, was not only invalid, the Federal High Court lacked the jurisdiction to hear it
The judgment was on an appeal by the Kano State House of Assembly and its Speaker marked: CA/KN/140/2024 against Agundi and others.
The Kano State House of Assembly enacted the Kano State Emirate Council (Repeal) Law 2024 on May 23 last year, which the state governor assented to on the same date.
Under the new law, the Kano State Government among others, removed Aminu Ado Bayero as Kano Emir, reinstated Mohammed Sanusi as Emir, and reversed the creation of five new Emirates by the preceding administration of Umar Ganduje.
In his June 20 ruling, Justice Liman voided all the steps taken by the Kano State Government according to the 2024 Emirate Council Law because they were taken in violation of his earlier order made on May 23, 2024, directing parties, in Agundi’s fundamental rights suit, to maintain status quo.
In several tweets shared via his X (formerly Twitter) handle, law teacher and rights advocate, Prof. Chidi Anselm Odinkalu said: “In its judgment just delivered, the CourtOfAppealNG confirmed what we had said: that in assuming jurisdiction over the matter, Abdullahi Liman unilaterally overruled the @SupremeCourtNg.
“For those who did not read it, here is what we said about what Abdullahi Liman did: Abdullahi Liman, and the making of a judicial scandal
“Very specifically, @CourtOfAppealNG ruled that Abdullahi Liman had no business dabbling into the matter that relates to Kano State Emirate Council law. The principal reliefs sought were outside the scope of fundamental human rights claim & gave him no basis for doing so.
“he court also held that issues in the case has bn settled by @SupremeCourtNg in Tukur v. Gov of Gongola State & Abdullahi Liman was wrong to have distinguished the #KanoEmirate case from Tukur’s case & failed to abide by the decision of the Supreme Court.
“Abdullahi Liman did tremendous damage to the standing of the judiciary. In his intervention in the #KanoEmirate matter, he was either wilful or wilfully heedless. His promotion to the bench of @CourtOfAppealNG in the aftermath of that is blot on Olukayode Ariwoola as #CJN.”
