BREAKING: APPEAL COURT REINSTATES ADHA LEGISLATOR, ORDERS PAYMENT OF HIS ENTITLEMENTS

The Court of Appeal sittting in Yola, Adamawa state on Friday, ordered for immediate reinstatement of Hon. Joseph Ayuba Kwada, to his seat as member representing Michika constituency at the House of Assembly. NEWS PLATFORM.

The court ordered that Hon. Kwada(Depolis) who was sacked by the House of Assembly on the 27th April, 2022, be reinstated to enable him complete his 4 year tenure expected to end in June, 2023.

It further ordered the state government to settle all the salaries and other financial emoluments and all other entitlements due to him as member of the Assembly since April last year to date.

Hon. Justice Muhammed Lawal Abubakar, of the appellate court issued the orders while delivering judgement in an appeal instituted by Hon. Depolis.

Justice Lawal reversed the removal of the legislator for lack fair hearing, saying that the Assembly and its Speaker, Rt. Hon. Aminu Iya Abbas, have breached the fundamental rights to fair hearing guaranteed to the appellant by the 1999 Constitution.

Hon. Depolis filed the appeal against the decision of the Federal High Court, Yola Judicial Division delivered on the 12th October, 2022, by Abdulazeez M. Z. Anka, J, where he dismissed appellant's suit and upheld House of Assembly's resolution.

Apparently dissatisfied with the decision of the court, Hon. Kwada through his Counsel, Chief Oluwole Afolabi, filed his appeal on the 27th October, 2022, which contained a single ground for determination.

He told the appellate court that he was not served a notice of the allegations against him, and that he was not given the opportunity to defend himself or confront his accuser before his seat was declared vacant.

He asked the court to determine whether the Speaker could have validly declared his seat vacant when he relied on information provided to him by a member of the Assembly without affording or given him the opportunity to confront him and the Assembly to defend himself.

According to him, it was due the grave injustice and utter misapplication of the law that formed the fulcrum of his case, and upon which he urged the court to allow his appeal and grant the reliefs being sought.