A Federal High Court in Abuja has fixed April 26 for judgment in a suit instituted against the Senate by the Chairman, Code of Conduct Tribunal CCT, Danladi Umar seeking to stop the Senate from probing him on alleged public misconduct.
Justice Inyang Ekwo fixed the judgment date after Danladi and the four defendants in the matter adopted their final processes.
The four defendants are the Senate, Senate President, Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions, and the Attorney General of the Federation AGF.
The CCT Chairman is challenging among other things, the powers of the Senate to investigate him in an alleged assault perpetrated against a security guard at Banex Plaza in Abuja.
He is also asking the court for an order of perpetual injunction restraining the Senate, its members, and agents from conducting or continuing to conduct investigations into the allegations of assault leveled against him via a petition submitted to the Senate.
Specifically, the plaintiff wants the court to determine whether the alleged case of assault which took place at Banex plaza in Abuja on March 29, 2021, formed part of the matters the Senate is constitutionally empowered to investigate, as it’s not subject to the provision of section 88 and 89 of the 1999 constitution.
At the day’s proceedings, Umar’s counsel asked Justice Ekwo to grant all the reliefs sought by his client and restrain the defendants from causing his investigation.
However, counsel to the Senate, Kafayat Suleyman urged the court to dismiss the suit insisting that the Senate has the power under section 88 of the Constitution to investigate alleged misconduct by any public officer.
