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Court Declares Sanusi’s Banishment to Nasarawa Community Illegal, Unconstitutional

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4 years ago

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Justice Anwuli Chikere of a Federal High Court in Abuja on Tuesday ruled that there is no provision in the nation’s Constitution that where a traditional ruler is dethroned, he should be banished to another place.

She therefore declared as unconstitutional, the banishment of the deposed Emir of Kano, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, to Awe, a remote community in Nasarawa State by the Kano State government.

The court held that the restriction placed on Sanusi after his deposition on March 9, 2020 was a violation of his right to freedom of movement and personal liberty.

Justice Chikere agreed with Sanusi’s counsel, Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), that his client was moved out of Kano to Abuja and later to Awe, in Nasarawa State against his wish and in contravention of his right to freedom of movement and association.

She further held that the right to freedom of liberty and personal dignity granted under Section 34 of Nigeria’s Constitution cannot be taken away as done by the Kano State Government, the Nigeria Police Force and the Department of State Services except with express order of a court of competent jurisdiction.

The judge subsequently voided Sanusi’s arrest, detention, harassment and banishment.

An Emirates Chieftain law of Kano State which empowers a governor to restrict or banish any deposed traditional ruler was also voided on account of being unlawful.

Justice Chikere agreed with Fagbemi that the country’s constitution is the supreme law and that any law which runs contrary to its provisions must not be allowed to stand.

The judge ruled, “Fundamental rights law is weighty, inalienable and cannot be wished away as done by the respondents in the instant case.

“There is no provision in the Nigeria’s supreme law that where a person is dethroned, he should be banished to another place without his consent.

“Every Nigerian citizen must be treated with dignity except where such citizen commits a capital offence.”

An order of perpetual injunction restraining the three respondents, their agents and any other deriving authority was granted in favour of Sanusi against his investigation, arrest, harassment and any form of ill treatment.

A sum of N10m was awarded to the former Emir as damages to be paid to him by the respondents.

The court also issued an order directing the respondents to tender public apology to Sanusi to be published in two major national dailies for the embarrassment caused him in the cause of breaching his fundamental human rights.

Respondents in the suit, marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/357/2020 are the Inspector General of Police, the Director General of the DSS, Attorney General of Kano State and the Attorney General of the Federation, but the name of the AGF was struck out on the grounds that no case was made against the office.

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Senate Approves Tinubu’s N1.15tr Domestic Loan Request to Fund 2025 Budget Deficit

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20 hours ago

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November 12, 2025

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The Senate has approved President Bola Tinubu’s request to raise N1.15 trillion from the domestic debt market to cover the unfunded portion of the 2025 budget deficit.

The approval followed the adoption of a report by the Senate Committee on Local and Foreign Debt during plenary on Wednesday.

The committee noted that the 2025 Appropriation Act provides for a total expenditure of N59.99 trillion, representing an increase of N5.25 trillion over the N54.74 trillion initially proposed by the Executive.

This expansion created a total budget deficit of N14.10 trillion. Of this, N12.95 trillion had already been approved for borrowing, leaving an unfunded deficit of approximately N1.15 trillion (N1,147,462,863,321).

In a related development, a motion by Senator Abdul Ningi was adopted, directing the Senate Committee on Appropriations to intensify its oversight to ensure that the borrowed funds are properly implemented in the 2025 fiscal year and used strictly for their intended purposes.

President Tinubu had on November 4th requested the approval of the National Assembly for a fresh ₦1.15 trillion borrowing from the domestic debt market to help finance the deficit in the 2025 budget.

The President’s request was conveyed in a letter. According to the letter, the proposed borrowing is intended to bridge the funding gap and ensure full implementation of government programs and projects under the 2025 fiscal plan.

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APC’s Joe Igbokwe Calls for Dismissal of Soldier Who Stood His Ground Against Wike

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1 day ago

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November 12, 2025

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A member of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Joe Igbokwe, has called for the dismissal of the soldier who resisted the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike.

The soldier had blocked Wike and officials of the FCTA from accessing a portion of land in the FCT.

The officer, claiming he was acting on instructions, told Wike that he would not be allowed into the property. Wike, however, questioned his authority, leading to a heated confrontation and name calling.

Reacting on Facebook, Igbokwe questioned who was behind the military officer in challenging the FCT Minister.

He wrote, “Who is this man in uniform? Of what meat is he fed? Who is beating the drum for him? This is unacceptable? His uniform has to be removed.”

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Senates Rejects NNPCL’s Explanation, Orders Refund of N210trn to Govt

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1 day ago

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November 12, 2025

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The Senate has rejected the explanations provided by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) regarding the ₦210 trillion outstanding against the oil firm.

It came to the conclusion on Wednesday that the money, which had not been accounted for, must be refunded to the Federation Account by the company.

The Senate Committee on Public Accounts chaired by Aliyu Wadada, which has been on the probe for months, took the decision on Tuesday after the Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO) of the NNPCL, Bayo Ojulari, failed to turn up at its resumed sitting at the National Assembly.

The session was called to give the NNPCL the opportunity to make clarifications on the answers the company provided to the 19 questions the panel asked the firm about the ₦210 trillion.

Following a review of the operations of the NNPCL from 2017-2023, the committee sighted the unexplained transaction, totaling ₦103 trillion (accrued expenses) and ₦107 trillion (receivables) in the audited financial statements of the firm, prompting it to raise the queries.

After weeks of back-and-forth between the committee and the NNPCL, the NNPCL eventually responded to the 19 questions.

However, at a resumed session, Senator Wadada frowned at the absence of  Ojulari, whom the committee said gave no reasons for staying away, consequently rejected the explanations.

The Chairman of the committee, Senator Aliyu Wadada, while speaking on the panel’s findings, said the responses were not only unsatisfactory, but were also contradictory.

“NNPC claimed ₦103 trillion as accrued expenses and ₦107 trillion as receivables -amounting to ₦210 trillion. On question eight, NNPC’s explanation on the ₦107 trillion receivables -equivalent to about $117 billion -contradicts available facts and evidence provided by NNPC itself. The committee is duty-bound to reject this,” he stated.

Wadada further questioned how the firm could pay ₦103 trillion in Cash Calls to Joint Venture (JV) partners in 2023 alone, despite generating only ₦24 trillion in crude revenue between 2017 and 2022.

“Cash Call arrangements were abolished in 2016 under the President Muhammadu Buhari administration. How can NNPC claim to have paid ₦103trn in one year, when it only generated ₦24trn in revenue over five years? Where did NNPC get that money?

“As far as this committee is concerned, that figure is unjustifiable and unacceptable. The ₦103 trillion must be returned to the Treasury. This will be concluded when the NNPCL appears before us,” he stated.

The committee said it would have been better for the current management of the NNPCL to admit that it encountered challenges in explaining what happened to the funds than giving contradictory answers to the questions.

“If the present management of NNPCL is finding it difficult to provide acceptable answers, it is better they say so. The committee will not hesitate to subpoena former officials of NNPCL and NAPIMS,” Wadada added.

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