S’ Court Reinstates Kwara Chief Judge

MusdapherABOUT 32 months after she was removed as the Chief Judge of Kwara State, the Supreme Court yesterday reinstated Justice Raliat Elelu-Habeeb, on reasoning that the state governor lacked the constitutional authority to remove her from office without deference to the National Judicial Council (NJC).

In a unanimous verdict of a seven-man panel of Justices, the apex court held that the NJC had a vital role to play before a governor could remove the Chief Judge of the state from office.

Delivering the lead judgment, Justice Mahmud Mohammed held that when all the relevant provisions of the constitution were read together, it would crystal clear that a governor could not remove a Chief Judge from office without having recourse to the NJC.

He said: “It is not difficult to see that for the effective exercise of the powers of removal of a Chief Judge of a state by the governor and House of Assembly, the first port of call by the governor shall be the NJC.”

According to him, the council is equipped with the personnel and resources to investigate the inability of the Chief Judge to discharge the functions of his office, the subject of disciplinary action of removal through the committees of the council.

Citing sections of the constitution, Justice Mohammed also held: “From these very clear provisions of the constitution, which are very far from being ambiguous, the governors of the states and the Houses of Assembly of the states cannot exercise disciplinary control touching the removal of Chief Judges of states or other judicial officers in the states.”

Justice Elelu-Habeeb was sacked in 2009 by then Governor (now Senator) Bukola Saraki.                                                                She consequently dragged the Kwara State Government to the Federal High Court, challenging the power of the state’s House of Assembly and the governor to initiate disciplinary action against her.

The case was heard by  Justices Walter Onnoghen, Christopher Chukwumah-Eneh, Muhammad Muntaka-Coomassie, Olufunmilola Adekeye, Mary Peter-Odili and Olukayode Ariwoola.

The case before the Supreme Court was an appeal from the decision of the Court of Appeal sitting in Ilorin, which was delivered on July 2, 2010.

The Federal High Court had earlier granted judgment in favour of the removed CJ, but the government of Kwara State appealed to the Court of Appeal in Ilorin, Kwara State, which ruled that the state chief executive could not remove a judicial officer/cum Chief Judge without an input from the NJC.

But the appellate court further ruled that the case ought to have been instituted at the State High Court and not the Federal High Court, as in the instant case.

The Supreme Court yesterday held that since the NJC, a federal agency was involved, she was right to have commenced her case at the Federal High Court.

In the suit filed at the Ilorin Division of the Federal High Court by Chief Adegboyega Awomolo (SAN), Justice Elelu-Habeeb said only the NJC has the power to initiate disciplinary proceedings against her, in respect of her duty as the CJ of the state, among others.