A Federal High Court sitting in Kano has ordered the Kano State Government to pay the sum of N10 million as damages to deposed Emir, Alhaji Aminu Ado Bayero, for violating his fundamental rights.
The court, which assumed jurisdiction to hear Bayero’s
rights violation suit, also ordered the Kano State Government to guarantee the
deposed emir’s right to movement and personal liberty.
In a ruling on Friday, the presiding judge of the Federal
High Court 3, Justice Simon Amobeda, noted that he was duty bound to resolve
the issue of jurisdiction of the court to determine the case before delving
into the main matter of the case.
According to him, without jurisdiction, any proceeding is nullity.
Justice Amobeda while declaring the jurisdiction of the
court to hear the case, insisted that the issue did determination fell under
abuse of fundamental human rights of the applicant, adding that the
Constitution had granted the Federal High Court the powers to preside over the
matter.
He noted that Bayero was seeking, among others reliefs,
payment of N5 billion as damages from the Kano State Government for breaching
his fundamental human rights.
The judge also noted that the applicant also asked for the
enforcement of his rights to movement and personal liberty.
In his ruling, the judge said, “It is the duty of the court
to protect the rights of every citizen but that protection cannot be done in
vacuum, a person crying over violation of his fundamental human rights must
provide cogent and vital evidence to that effect to which the applicant have
successfully provided.”
He noted that in 2019, the then government of Kano State
used the Kingmakers to select a new Emir, but surprisingly, on Friday, May 23,
2024, the Governor of Kano State, Abba Yusuf, used the social media to
propagate that he had deposed the applicant (Bayero) and ordered the Police to
arrest him after giving him 48 hours to vacate the palace.
“To this end, I so hold that without any lawful
justification, the applicant was threatened, and his fundamental rights to
liberty as guaranteed in Section 35(1) of the 1999 Constitution, was breached.
“Similarly, the action of the government which had forced
the applicant into a house arrest, preventing him from going about his lawful
business, constitutes a flagrant violation of his fundamental rights to freedom
of movement as guaranteed under Section 41(1) of the 1999 Constitution,” the
judge added.
The court also ordered that the 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th
Respondents – including the Police and the DSS – are either by themselves,
their agents, servants, privies or any other persons or authority forthwith
restrained from arresting, detaining or harassing Bayero.
Justice Amobeda further ordered that the Government of Kano
State should pay the sum of N10 million for breach and likely breach of
Bayero’s fundamental right to personal liberty and freedom of movement, as
guaranteed in the 1999 Constitution.
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