Court orders restoration of suspended Edo council chairmen

From Tony Osauzo, Benin

A High Court sitting in Benin, Friday, ordered the restoration of the suspended chairmen and vice chairmen of the 18 local government councils in the state.

The court, presided over by Justice Efe Ikponmwonba, granted the order in a suit filed by the affected chairmen and vice chairmen.

The order also restrained the defendants, including Governor Monday Okpebholo, and Edo Government among others, from acting on the resolution of the state House of Assembly, suspending the claimants.

The court ordered that the status quo ante bellum, as at Dec. 12, be maintained pending the hearing and determination of the motion on notice filed on December 12, 2024.

The judge adjourned to Feb 17, for hearing and ordered that a hearing notice is to be issued and served on the defendants.

Reacting to court ruling, the Edo State Government, while noting that the suspension of local government chairmen in Edo State has sparked an intense debate, said a closer examination of the Constitution and the Federal Attorney General’s comments, reveal that the decisions by the Edo State House of Assembly, vis-a-vis, the Governor of the State, Senator Monday Okpebholo, are entirely justified.

In a statement signed by Fred Itua, Chief Press Secretary to Governor Monday Okpebholo, the government said: “From a legal perspective, the Governor’s request to the House of Assembly to suspend the chairmen was done within his constitutional powers.

The House of Assembly had the right to turn down the request but opted to act on it. It is therefore unfair to blame the governor. If the governor had the powers to suspend the council chairmen unilaterally, he would not have resorted to drafting a letter to the House of Assembly.

“The concept of autonomy is often misunderstood, and in this case, it does not mean that council chairmen can not be over sighted.”