Benue High Court vacates restraining order against the speaker, 21 members

Benue State

A Makurdi High Court presided over by the Chief Judge of Benue State Justice Aondover Kaka’an yesterday vacated the earlier interim order restraining the speaker of the state assembly, Titus Uba, and 21 other members from holding sittings at the assembly complex.

Justice Kaka’an who ruled on a motion brought before the court by counsels to the Speaker led by Senior Advocates of Nigeria, Sebastine Hon and Edward Ashiekaa vacated the order.

The Speaker Uba and the 21 other members had earlier in August 2018 restrained from conducting legislative business at the complex.

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While ruling, Justice Kaka’an said that by law the judicial arm of government could not restrain the Benue State House of Assembly from performing its legislative functions.

The chief judge said that the role of the judiciary was not to overheat the polity with orders capable of destabilizing same, and maintained that the court should not encourage impunity in any way.

He ruled that the interim order of August 13, 2018, which restrained the use of the Assembly complex played on the intelligence of an earlier order and the entire legal system and was a dent on the image of the judiciary.

Justice Kaka’an maintained that injunctive orders were not at the beck and call of the court to be shared and that claimants must earn them.

Justice Kaa’kan, however, transferred the substantive case to High Court 9 presided over by Justice Augustine Ityonyiman for hearing and determination on November 26th, 2018.

While reacting to the ruling, the state Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Mr Micheal Gusa, said that by virtue of the ruling, the Benue State House of Assembly under the leadership of Hon Uba could resume the conduct of legislative business at the Assembly Complex.

He said the ruling upheld the principle of Separation of Powers in a democracy.

S-Davies Wande