Federal Appointments: Why We Dragged President Buhari To Court – HURIWA

BY GRACE ANYANWU, ABUJA – The Civil Rights Advocacy group on the aegis of Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has said that the persistent violations of the Federal Character principle as enshrined in the Nigerian Constitution by President Muhammadu Buhari formed the nucleus of its going to Court to challenge and get the matter properly addressed.

HURIWA has dragged President Buhari before the Federal High Court of Justice, Abuja over violations of the Federal Character Principle as provided for in the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.  

The Human Rights Group in a statement by its National Coordinator, Comrade Emmanuel Onwubiko and National Media Affairs Director, Miss Zainab Yusuf told the Court that the purported appointment of the Board of Trustees of the Police Trust Fund is in breach of the principle of federal character.

It noted that President Buhari appointed a seven man Board of Trustees of the Police Trust Fund out of which four (4) are from the Northwest zone alone, stressing that among the four (4) from the Northwest zone, two are the principle officers of the Board being the Chairman in the person of Mr Suleiman Abba (Jigawa State) and the Executive Secretary, Mr Aliyu Sokoto (Sokoto State).

It noted that this is in addition to the Secretary and the Minister of Police Affairs, Mr Muhammad Maigari Dingyadi that both hail from the same Sokoto State.

In the words of HURIWA; “This is a gross violation of the principle of federal character entrenched in the Constitution and subsidiary legislation. The combined effect of Sections 14(3) & (4) and 42 (1)(a)&(b) of the Constitution is that appointment should be strictly in line with the federal character principle and not reflect “predominance of persons from a few States or from a few ethnic or other sectional groups in that Government or in any of its agencies”.

Accordingly, HURIWA is specifically praying the Court to nullify the Police Trust Fund Act or the sections that are inconsistent with the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as amended.

Alternatively, HURIWA is asking the Court for a nullification of the purported appointment of the Trustees of the Board by the President for being in breach of the Federal Character principle.

The summary of issues in the suit with Reference Nnumber: FHC/ABJ/CS/534/2020 which was filed on May 27, 2020 and schedule for hearing on July 6, 2020 before Justice A. I. Chikere, HURIWA insists that the core provisions of the Nigeria Police Trust Fund (Establishment) Act (the Act) violates several provisions of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended).  

It noted that the Act establishes a Trust Fund as a juristic person and also a Board of Trustees with wide powers for the management and administration of the trust fund.

HURIWA noted that Sections 3, 7 and 12 of the Act also establishes a Trust Fund Implementation Committee headed by the Minister of Police Affairs and provides for the Board to identify funding needs through the Ministry of Police Affairs (sections 13 and 15).  

The Human Rights organization further noted that the Constitution establishes the Nigeria Police Council for the administration, management and supervision of the Nigeria Police Force and all related matters except the operational use of the Force which is the function of the Nigeria Police Service Commission. (Section 153(1)(l) and (m) of the Constitution as well as items 27, 28, 29 and 30 of the 3rd Schedule to the Constitution.

It said the Act arrogates to the Trust Fund as source of funds “an amount constituting 0.5% of the total revenue accruing to the Federation Account” (See section 4(1) of the Act.)

HURIWA further said; “That provision of the Act violates section 162(3) of the Constitution which provides that money standing to the credit of the Federation Account shall be distributed among the federal, state and local governments.

“It also usurps the powers of the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (see section 153(1)(n) and Item 31 of the 3rd Schedule to the Constitution as well as section 6 of the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission Act).

“To this end, section 153(1)(c) of the Constitution establishes the Federal Character Commission empowered under Item 8(a) of the 3rd Schedule to the Constitution and section 4(1)(a) of the Federal Character Commission (Establishment) Act to work out an equitable formula for distribution of appointment.

“Pursuant to same, section 4 of the Federal Character Commission (Establishment) Act Subsidiary Legislation provides that where positions available cannot go round the federation, it shall be distributed on zonal basis and where there are only two positions, it should be zoned to the North and South,” HURIWA declared.