Court Awards N183.5m To Sacked A’Ibom Councillors

For wrongly dissolving the duly elected executive of Ikot Abasi Local Government Area, in Akwa Ibom, a High Court sitting in Ikot Abasi Judicial Division has ordered the state government to pay all entitlements due to the affected officials.
The trial judge, Justice Archibong E. Archibong, held that the government did not follow the due process in the dissolution, and therefore ordered that their entitlements including salaries and allowances running into N183.5 million be paid accordingly.
It could be recalled that Governor Godswill Akpabio, had on November 16, 2009, directed the State House of Assembly to dissolve the council due to some feud among the officials.
 A care-taker committee led by Hon Archibong Umoh, was put in place to oversee the remaining tenure of the elected officials before an elected executive.
However, the affected members had challenged the matter in Court in 2010, and after the protracted legal action, Justice Archibong has finally rested the case saying the Government erred in law dissolving the Council.
Speaking in an interview at the weekend, the principal plaintiff in the matter, Hon Emmanuel Ekwere, hailed the judgement and described it as a victory for democracy and the rule of law.
He recalled that Justice Denis Okon, had earlier adjudicated on the matter, asking the State Government to pay them their entitlements during the period.
 “After about one year, the State government made no effort to comply with the Court’s decision on the matter, we had to go back to the Court again in April 2013, the result is the affirmation of the earlier judgement of Justice Denis Okon,” he said.
 According to him, the affected officials have been suffering and even begging to feed their families because of the wrongful termination of their tenure.

- Leadership

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