From: GODWIN TSA, Abuja
The quest by former Adamawa State governor, Murtala Nyako to return to Government House failed yesterday as the Supreme Court dismissed his appeal for lacking in substance.
The former governor, still had 10 months left to spend in office when he was impeached by the Adamawa State House of Assembly on July 15, 2014, had approached the apex court seeking an order reinstating him to office to enable him to complete his tenure.
His application was premised on the grounds that the Court of Appeal quashed his impeachment on the grounds that it was unconstitutional and illegal.
But delivering judgment on the case yesterday, a seven-man panel of the apex court led by Justice Tanko Muhammad held that it agreed with the earlier decision of the Court of Appeal that declared Nyako’s removal from office as illegal, but cannot order his reinstatement because of the “special facts” of the case while it was before the lower court.
The apex court further explained that the appeal had to fail because Nyako’s lawyer had compromised the case at the Court of Appeal by withdrawing the prayer seeking the ex-governor’s reinstatement.
Justice Dattijo Mohammed, who delivered the lead judgment held that a lawyer was entitled to, “conduct, compromise or withdraw” his or her client’s case, but that there could be no ground of appeal when a litigant’s case was compromised by his or her lawyer.
“On that score alone the appeal fails,” Justice Mohammed ruled.
He further held that the remedy approved by the appeal court by ordering the payment of salaries and other entitlements accruable to the ex-governor for the period he was illegally removed from office, was in order.