- Declines joinder application by House Ethics C’ttee chair
Alex Enumah in Abuja
The Federal High Court in Abuja thursday fixed April 28 to hear suit filled by former Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Appropriation, Hon. Jibrin Abdulmumin, challenging his continued suspension from the House.
Justice John Tsoho adjourned to the above date after he declined to join the Chairman of House Committee on Ethics, Hon. Nicholas Ossai, and the lawmaker who moved the motion that led to the plaintiff’s suspension, Hon. Orker-Jev Emmanuel, as interested parties in the suit.
The two lawmakers had in a joint application they filed before the court, sought to be allowed to file processes against the suit.
The suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/Bl2/2015, listed the Speaker of the House, Hon. Yakubu Dogara, the House itself and its Clerk, as the 1st to 3rd defendants respectively.
Both Ossai and Emmanuel had before the commencement of hearing approached the court, seeking to be joined as co-defendants in the matter.
They prayed the court to order Jubrin to amend the originating summons to include their names, saying their conducts as House members have been impugned and called into question in the suit.
“The applicants have the constitutional right to be heard in this suit because of the allegations made against them by the plaintiff.
“The applicants interests as members of the House and the interests of their constituents will be affected by the outcome of the present proceedings if the allegations made by the plaintiff are not challenged by the applicants,” they argued.
However, in his ruling, Justice Tsoho held that the matter could be effectively determined without participation of the applicants.
According to Tsoho the applicants are agent of the House which is a principal party in the suit, adding that the two lawmakers could not disclose personal injury they stood to suffer or sufficient interest in the suit to warrant their inclusion as a party in the proceeding.
Consequently, he dismissed their application and adjourned for the plaintiff to move his originating summons, as well as to hear preliminary objections the defendants filed to challenge the competence of the suit.
Jubrin, in the suit apart from challenging his alleged illegal suspicion from the House, is also praying the court to award N1billion against the defendants as punitive and general damages for his suspension.
In the suit filed on his behalf by his lawyer, Mr, Chukwuma, the plaintiff is equally praying the court to declare that his suspension amounted to a violation of his fundamental human right to freedom of expression.
As well as to declare that the resolution the House passed to suspend him was in breach of section 68 of the 1999 Constitution, as amended.
Besides, Jibrin wants the court to issue an order of injunction restraining the House from preventing him from participating in the committees of the House or accessing the legislative chambers to perform his legislative duties.
Jubrin was suspended on September 28, 2016, for 180 days, following corruption allegations he raised against the principal officers of the House.
He had among other things, alleged that the officers, including the Speaker, Dogara, surreptitiously padded the 2016 budget with about N40billion.
