Court orders reinstatement of Ekiti SIEC members sacked by Fayemi

AN Ado Ekiti High Court, on Thursday, ordered the reinstatement of the chairman and members of the state Independent Electoral Commission (EKSIEC) sacked on October 22, 2010 by Governor Kayode Fayemi, holding that the sack of the commission members was 'unlawful, unconstitutional, oppressive and ultra-vires his powers.'Chairman of the commission, Major-General Kayode Oni (retd) and four other members had approached the court to challenge their sack, contending that the action of the governor was 'unlawful, unconstitutional, oppressive and ultra-vires his powers.'In the suit with number HAD/121/2010, filed on their behalf by Obafemi Adewale, the claimants had also asked the court to set aside the purported dissolution of the commission and order their reinstatement.Counsel for the claimants had contended that the appointment of Oni and other members was constitutional and enjoyed statutory status, citing sections 197, 198, 199 and 201 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as amended.Justice Adeyeye, in his judgment, held that the governor had no powers whatsoever to sack the commission members, whose tenure is put at five years by the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.Adeyeye resolved all issues raised by the claimants in their favour and also granted their reliefs, including but not limited to their return to office, not withstanding whether the positions had been filled or whether claimants had taken other appointments elsewhere.In a reaction, the state government said it was not satisfied with the judgment, saying it would go to the Appeal Court.The state Commissioner for Information and Civic Orientation, Mr Funminiyi Afuye, who reacted to the judgment said: 'We are not satisfied with the judgment. We will immediately file a stay of execution and a notice of appeal.
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