Supreme Court Sacks Taraba State Governor

 Taraba State’s acting governor, Garba Umar has been sacked. This happend yesterday when The Supreme Court ordered that Umar be sacked and Abubakar Danladi, (a former deputy governor who was impeached before Mr. Umar took over) be reinstated.

 

According  to Premium Times, Mr. Danladi was the first deputy governor who ran on the same ticket with Governor Dantata Suntai. He was impeached shortly before Mr. Suntai took ill after an air crash. The acting governor who was removed on Friday, Mr. Umar, was appointed the deputy governor after the impeachment of Mr. Danladi.

 

After Mr. Suntai became ill, Mr. Umar took charge as acting governor.The acting governor has been locked in a bitter power struggle with the associates of Mr. Suntai, who insist the ailing governor has recovered enough to return to work.

 

In a unanimous decision Friday, the Supreme Court nullified the impeachment of the first deputy governor, Mr. Danladi, and ordered he be sworn in as governor immediately. The court said Mr. Danladi was denied fair hearing and that it was illegal for 19 members of the state House of Assembly who prepared the impeachment notice to have sat at a Guest House belonging to the majority leader.

 

Justice Sylvester Ngwuta described the impeachment panel as a “kangaroo panel” and said that there was a conspiracy between the impeachment panel and the lawmakers.