Court Bans LG Chairman From Operating From Another Council Area After Abandoning His Own, Awards N50,000 Against Him

Williams Iko-Ojo Obiora, the Ibaji Local Government Area Chairman, has been banned from operating outside his area council.

The Kogi State High Court sitting in Idah, the Idah Local Government Area headquarters on Wednesday passed a judgment restricting the Ibaji Local Government Area Chairman, Williams Iko-Ojo Obiora, from operating from Idah Council Area where he relocated to.

SaharaReporters had reported in 2021 how the Ibaji Progressive Youth Foundation, a group in the Ibaji Local Government Area filed a suit against Obiora for violating their rights and moving the Ibaji Liason Office to Idah Council.

In a judgment delivered by Justice M. M. Gwatana Idaho, the court declared the said relocation as unconstitutional and therefore ordered the chairman, Obiora to forthwith cease from carrying out the administrative functions of the Ibaji Council from the office at Idah Council.

The court ordered the chairman to move his office back to Onyedega, the constitutional headquarters of Ibaji Council forthwith.

The court also awarded N50,000 cost in favour of the Ibaji Progressive Youth Foundation led by its National President, Comrade Apeh Kelvin Abuchi.

Reacting to the judgment in a statement made available to SaharaReporters, Abuchi said, “In August 2021 the Ibaji Progressive Youth Foundation sued the Ibaji Local Government Chairman for relocating the local government day-to-day activities/statutory functions to another local government (Idah).

“Tope Temokun chamber took up the case to offer pro-bono, on behalf of the youths and people of Ibaji, in Kogi State, with Suit No: IDHC/11/2021, to ask the Court to declare as unconstitutional the reckless act of the chairman of Ibaji LG, relocating and running the business of the Ibaji Local Government Area from a liaison office located in Idah, another local government area entirely, 50km away from the people. And the people from Ibaji who are workers in the secretariat had to travel daily to Idah to resume their official duty, with the attendant costs of transportation, overwhelming their monthly earnings.

“Today, the 13th of July 2022, the High court in Idah, Kogi state declared the said relocation as unconstitutional and ordered the chairman to forthwith cease from carrying out the administrative functions of the LG in the office at Idah and to move back to Onyedega, which is the constitutional headquarters of Ibaji LGA forthwith. 

Congratulations to the Ibaji people for insisting on their constitutional right and refusing to be intimidated by the threat of sack and other forms of victimization.”