The Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Olukayode Ariwoola, has stepped in to address conflicting federal and state high court interim injunctions in the ongoing fierce emirship tussle between Emir Muhammadu Sanusi II and the deposed 15th Emir Aminu Ado Bayero.
The serene ancient Kano City turned into a hotbed for protests and conflicts after Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf officially reinstated Muhammed Sanusi II as the 16th Emir on Friday, May 24.
The Kano state government had earlier repealed an Emirate Law that led to his dethronement and balkanisation of the Kano Emirate under the former governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje.
Conflicting orders
However, while congratulations were coming in orders for the former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) from his supporters including Kingsley Moghalu OON, a former presidential candidate, a Federal High Court in Kano virtually gave an interim injunction stopping Sanusi II’s supposed historic return to the throne and maintained Ado Bayero’s rulership.
The order given by Justice A.M. Liman of the FHC was later intensely criticised by Nigerians and some of his learned colleagues who claimed that he didn’t follow the National Judicial Council (NJC) Guidelines for Virtual Court Proceedings (2020) which states that virtual hearings can only be held in a case where the judge, parties, and legal representatives are within the country.
Countering Justice Liman’s order, the Kano State High Court, presided over by Justice Amina Adamu Aliyu, issued an injunction inhibiting Ado Bayero from parading himself as an Emir and also asked that he vacate the palace which he has refused to leave over what he considered as his unconstitutional dethronement.
Unexpectedly, shortly after Justice Amina Adamu Aliyu’s order, another Federal High Court in Kano, presided over by Justice S. A. Amobeda, ordered that Muhammadu Sanusi should be evicted from the Kofar Kudu Palace and that the state government should give the 15th Emir of Kano, Aminu Ado Bayero, the necessary support.
The two courts have adjourned their final judgement on the case till June, but observers have said the unharmonious orders given by the federal and state high courts in the emirship battle in Kano expose the protracted decay in Nigeria’s judicial system. They say as a legal body, the two courts are supposed to work in harmony for the good of the people of Kano.
Sad reality
“The events in Kano State are unfortunately another sad reflection of the level of decay and rot in our judicial system. We have only one judiciary in Nigeria and judges at all levels are expected to function as part of one coherent and harmonious system. Instead, contradictory and conflicting court orders are flying all over the place,” Prof. Damilola Olawuyi (SAN) said.
Expressing his disappointment in the conduct of the FHC and the SHC in Kano, the President of Nigeria Bar Association (NBA), Mr. Yakubu Maikyau, SAN, said, “I must say, without any equivocation, that the conducts of counsel and the Courts in the handling of the proceedings which culminated in the orders issued by the Federal High Court, the Kano State High Court and again the Federal High Court, in circus, have brought utter disgrace and shame to the profession – have exposed the entire legal profession in Nigeria to public ridicule and opprobrium.”
Over the years, some have alleged the Nigeria judicial system of abetting corrupt politicians and leaders whose activities have impacted the country negatively. With the Kano back-and-forth court orders, Mr. Yakubu Maikyau, SAN, said “The damage would take the legal profession a long time to recover from. It is unfortunate and was totally uncalled for.”
