A Kano High Court on Monday
upheld its earlier order halting the state House of Assembly Investigative
Committee from probing the bribery allegation against Gov. Abdullahi Ganduje.
NAN reports that the court also
ordered all other parties involved in the investigation of the bribery
allegation to maintain status quo ante, pending the determination of the
originating summon filed by Mohammed Zubair, the National Coordinator of
Lawyers for Sustainable Democracy in Nigeria.
When the case came up for
hearing, counsel to the plaintiff, Kalid Abdullatif, said that going by Order
29, Rule 1 and Order 28, Rule 1 and 4 of the Rules of the Court, 2014, the
application filed on behalf of the plaintiff on Nov. 5, restraining the
defendants, Kano state House of Assembly, Baffa Babba Danagundi and the state
Attorney-General from further investigation of the bribery allegation, still
subsist.
“The application still remains an
Order of interlocutory injunction, restraining the defendants, either by
themselves, agents, privies, or officials, or other persons, whosoever, from
further inviting anybody, questioning, examining, making any further Press
Releases, releasing or playing any further video tapes, investigation or
further proceedings, with the, or any bribery allegation against Gov. Ganduje,
or anybody, whatsoever, therewith, pending the determination of the substantive
suit before this Honourable Court,” he said.
He further argued that the act of
the defendants to have constituted a Committee to investigate the bribery
allegation against Governor Ganduje remains, “unconstitutional.”
However, counsel to the Kano
state House of Assembly (first defendant) and Investigative Committee Chairman,
Hon. Baffa Babba Dan Agundi (second defendant), Mohammed Waziri, described his
clients as law-abiding citizens who would not breach the law in any way.
“I wish to state that the First
and Second defendants are law-makers and law-abiding citizens. The Order came a
day to the date slated to listen to witnesses at the Investigative Panel.
“Since then, no step has been
taken by the state House of Assembly or the Investigative Committee to breach
the law.
“This is to tell you that Kano
state House of Assembly is law-abiding.
“The Assembly has no intention
whatsoever to take any further steps until the subsisting matter is decided
upon because constitutional issues are being raised.”
The Third Defendant who is also
the state Attorney-General and Commissioner of Justice, aIbrahim Muktar did not
object to the prayers of counsel to the plaintiff.
In his ruling, the presiding
Judge, Justice Ahmed Badamasi, ordered all the parties involved in the case to
maintain the status quo ante, pending the determination of the Originating
summon.
Badamasi commended counsel to the
defendants for advising his clients wisely and adjourned the case to Nov. 21,
for hearing of the originating motion on notice.
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