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By Lukman Olabiyi
Justice Taiwo Taiwo of the Federal High Court has held that the tenure of Kabiru Ibrahim-led dissolved National Working Committee and National Executive Council of All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN) ended almost three years ago.
The court held that Mr. Ibrahim and his Executive, thus, ceased to be in office on June 14, 2019, when their five-year tenure expired.
The judge gave the judgment on March 22 in a suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/322/2020 filed by The Incorporated Trustees of AFAN.
Ibrahim and his dissolved National Working Committee and National Executive Council of AFAN are the first defendants, while the Inspector-General of Police is the second defendant.
Justice Taiwo held: “The issue is whether the first defendant and his executive are still in office.
“I have read the constitution of the plaintiff, particularly the article stating thus: ‘The tenure of all elected officers of all organs at all levels shall be a single term of five years, except a person appointed amongst a life member of the association and the trustees. The zonal chairmanship shall be rotated’.
“It is not before me that the first defendant was appointed amongst a life member of the association and the trustees. Although the plaintiff puts the date of the assumption as president of the first defendant and his executive at June 2013, with its expiration date at June 2018, I found that the first defendant and his executive were inaugurated on June 15, 2014.
“I refer to paragraph 2 in the affidavit, in support of the originating summons, and paragraphs 3C and D in the plaintiff’s further affidavit deposed to by Abdullahi Abdusalam on August 25, 2021.
“It appears that there is a contradiction on the actual date of assumption into office by the first defendant and his executive, but the averment of the plaintiff, in its further affidavit, tallies with the admission by the first defendant that he was inaugurated on June 15, 2014. I refer to paragraph 13 of the affidavit deposed by the first defendant himself.
“Determination of the tenure of an elected person is governed by the constitution of the organisation.
The tenure of the first defendant is, therefore, governed by the Constitution of the plaintiff.
“The tenure of the first defendant, therefore, expired on June 14, 2019. His tenure started from the date of his inauguration and ended after five years. At that point, the first defendant and his executive ceased to be in office.
“From the foregoing, the questions for determination are answered in favour of the plaintiff, herein. I hold. As regards the reliefs, I grant all the reliefs. This is the judgement of the court.”
The AFAN Incorporated Trustees had prayed the court for six reliefs, including a declaration that the first defendants had served their single term of five-year tenure which expired in June 2018.
A perpetual injunction restraining the defendants from taking any step to meddle with the affairs of the plaintiff, or parading themselves as members of Executive and an injunction restraining the first defendants from using the police to unlawfully harass, intimate, arrest or detain the members of the Caretaker Committee of the plaintiff.
When the matter came up for hearing on January 2, 2022, M.M Bakari for the plaintiff and A. O Okeya for the first defendant, and Victor I. Okoye Esq for the second defendant adopted their processes, adumbrated on same, and urged the court to grant/refuse the reliefs in favour of the parties that they represent.
