Speaker Tambuwal wants ‘biased’ judge changed as Court grants PDP permission to declare his seat vacant

The Speaker of the House of Representative, Aminu Tambuwal, has yesterday petitioned the National Judicial Council, NJC, after a member of the House, Abiodun Akinlade, filed a suit asking a Federal High Court in Abuja to sack him as speaker and member of the House.

The suit has been assigned to Court 8, presided over by Justice E.S.J Chukwu, a judge, whose antecedents, the speaker said, cannot guarantee fairness.

However, Mr. Tambuwal’s cites divisions in the PDP as reason for his recent defection to APC, a claim the ruling party rejects and wants him sacked; said Justice Chukwu’s ruling portends bias and asked for the suit to be reassigned to a neutral judge.

“I humbly urge my Lord to re-assign the said Suit No. FHC/ABJ/CS/871/2014 to a neutral judge, who has not made any judicial pronouncement on the issue, or made public his own opinion on the issue at hand,” Mr. Tambuwal said.

Meanwhile, a Federal High court in Abuja yesterday, Dec. 1st gave PDP permission to apply for a mandatory order compelling either the Speaker or Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, to declare the Kebbe/Tambuwal seat being held by Hon Aminu Tambuwal vacant following his recent defection to APC from the PDP.

The presiding judge granted the PDP: "leave to apply, by way of judicial review, for an order of mandamus compelling the Speaker or Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives to give effect to the provisions of Section 68(1)(g) of the Constitution by declaring the Kebbe/Tambuwal federal Constituency seat vacant.”.

via: The Nation, Premium Times