A High Court in Kano has reaffirmed Abdullahi Abiya as the authentic chairman of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) in the state, nullifying the earlier dissolution of the party’s leadership.
The court ruled that the party’s National Working Committee (NWC) acted beyond its constitutional powers when it dissolved the state, local government, and ward executives without involving the National Executive Committee (NEC).
Abiya had taken the NWC to court before Justice Nasiru Saminu, challenging the decision and accusing the party leadership of denying him and others a fair hearing.
He also asked the court to stop Hashimu Suleiman Dungurawa from parading himself as a parallel chairman in Kano.
In his judgment, Justice Saminu set aside the dissolution and issued a perpetual injunction preventing the party and its agents from interfering with the tenure of the duly elected executives at all levels in Kano State.
The court also upheld the expulsion of Dungurawa from the NNPP, ruling that the action taken by his ward and ratified by higher party structures followed due process and complied with the party’s constitution.
In a specific order, the court restrained Dungurawa, “whether by himself, his agents, privies, servants or any person acting through or under him, from further parading himself as the Kano State Chairman of the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP) or performing any functions attached to that office”.
Abiya had urged the court to declare “that the purported dissolution of the duly elected Kano State, Local Government and Ward Executive Committees of the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP) by the Defendant, acting through its National Working Committee, is ultra vires, unconstitutional, null and void, same having been carried out outside the powers conferred by Article 10.3 of the Constitution of the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP).”
He also argued that “the Defendant’s reliance on Article 10.3(e) of its Constitution to effect a blanket dissolution extending to Local Government and Ward Executive Committees, and without the involvement of the National Executive Committee (NEC), constitutes an abuse of discretionary power, and is therefore unlawful, ultra vires and void ab initio.”
On fair hearing, Abiya maintained that “the dissolution of the duly elected Kano State, Local Government and Ward Executive Committees of the Defendant without notice, hearing, or opportunity to be heard violates the Plaintiffs’ right to fair hearing guaranteed under section 36(1) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended) is unconstitutional, unlawful, null and void.”
He further sought “a declaration that any action taken by the Defendant, its organs, agents, committees or privies pursuant to or founded upon the said purported dissolution is illegal, ineffective and of no legal consequence whatsoever.”
The court granted all the reliefs sought by Abiya and awarded N500,000 in costs against Dungurawa and the NNPP National Working Committee.
