Tambuwal’s constituency stalls contempt proceedings against IG

The people of Keb­be/Tambuwal Fed­eral Constituency of Sokoto State and three members of the state House of Assembly yester­day brought the proceed­ings in a suit filed by their representative and Speak­er of the House of Repre­sentatives, Alhaji Aminu Tambuwal to a halt.

They came with separate applications asking the court to stay proceedings in the matter in view of their notices of appeal filed at the registry of the Abuja division of the Court of Appeal against the ruling of the trial court excluding them from participating as defendants in the suit.

The development stalled hearing of Tambuwal’s application seeking to jail the Inspector-General of Police, Suleiman Abba, for allegedly flouting an order of the court.

Tambuwal had filed the suit before Justice Ahmed Mohammed of the Federal High Court in Abuja to stop the declaration of his seat vacant on account of his defection from Peoples Democratic Party, the party which sponsored his election to the House.

One of the two applications seeking to join the applicants as parties in the suit were jointly filed on behalf of the people of Kebbe/Tambuwal Federal Constituency by Chairman of Kebbe Local Government Area, Bala Konkani, and Chairman of Tambuwal Local Government Area, Sambo Modo. The other application was filed in the name of the constituents by three members of Sokoto State House of Assembly – Abdussamad Dasuki, Suleiman Hantsi and Shuaibu Umar – representing Tambuwal East, Tambuwal West and Kebbe constituencies respectively.

The applicants opposed Tambuwal’s removal as speaker and declaration of his seat vacant on the grounds that removing him would deprive them representation in the House of Representatives.

Interestingly, Tambuwal had himself, through his lawyer, Mr. Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), opposed their applications to be joined in the suit on the grounds that he (Tambuwal) did not make any claim against them and as such they could not be accommodated as defendants in the suit.

The court had, in dismissing the applications, upheld Fagbemi’s contention and also held that their interest in the suit was contrary to that of the existing co-defendants on record.