Minna High Court Number Six has upheld the removal and dismissal of Amana Kakanda, the Village Head of Muye in Niger State, Alhaji Abdulqadir Muhammad Maigari, from the office.
The presiding judge of the court, Justice Maimuna A. Abubakar, has also ordered the payment of salary arrears due to the royal father during the period of his suspension before his dismissal from office by the government.
The village head was dismissed by the government in 2021 after the government accused him of gross insubordination by blowing royal trumpets during official outings.
He, however, approached the court in a suit filed by his counsels, N.A. Tanko and A.N. Musa, praying for the court to declare his dismissal illegal, null, and void.
The plaintiffs, including some traditional title holders and the Chief Imam of Muye, sought eight reliefs from the court to reinstate him and effect payment of his withheld salary arrears.
The plaintiffs also prayed for the court declarations that the royal father was the Amana of Kakanda, village head of Muye, and cannot be punished or sanctioned for acts or omissions not provided for in law, and that he was not given a fair hearing before his dismissal, and all these reliefs were refused by the court.
The Governor of Niger State, Lapai Local Government Council, Etsu Lapai Alhaji Umaru Bago III, and two others were listed as defendants in the matter.
In a ruling delivered on October 31, 2023, the judge dismissed seven out of eight reliefs sought by the plaintiffs but granted relief number three, which was in favour of payment of the royal father's withheld salary arrears during the period of his suspension, before final dismissal.
Justice Maimuna Abubakar held that the first plaintiff was given a fair hearing before his dismissal, having been queried on two different occasions and the queries answered while he also presented documents in his defence to the committee, adding that "the contention of the plaintiffs that the first plaintiff was not given a fair hearing by the investigative committee is false".
In the final analysis, the court held that the plaintiffs failed to establish their case to be entitled to the reliefs sought except Relief Number 3, which has to do with payment of salary arrears.
She therefore said that "consequently, reliefs 1, 2, 4, 6, 7, and 8 are hereby refused while relief 3 is granted as follows: "The court hereby directs the 2nd defendant to pay to the 1st plaintiff all his arrears of salary as the village head of Muye on grade level 07/06 from April 15, 2020, when he was appointed, until May 20, 2021, when he was removed or dismissed", the judge ordered.