Court fixes date for judgment in suit challenging IGP’s tenure elongation

A federal high court in Abuja has fixed April 16 to deliver judgment in a suit seeking the removal of Mohammed Adamu as inspector-general of police.

Adamu, who was appointed in 2019, had clocked the mandatory 35 years in service on February 1 and was expected to have been replaced by the president.

However, on February 4, President Muhammadu Buhari extended Adamu’s tenure by three months.

Maxwell Opara, a legal practitioner, subsequently took the IGP to court, contending that by virtue of section 215 of the Nigerian constitution and section 7 of the Nigeria Police Act, 2020, Adamu cannot continue to function as the IGP, having retired as a serving member of the force.

In his defence, the IGP told the federal high court that the new Nigeria Police Act gave him a four-year tenure, which would only lapse in either 2023 or 2024.

Supporting Adamu’s position, President Buhari and Abubakar Malami, attorney-general of the federation — who are the second and third defendants in the matter — told the court through their lawyer that the law permits the IGP to remain in office until either 2023 or 2024.

At the court session on Tuesday, Ugochukwu Ezekiel, the plaintiff’s counsel, said the hearing notice and other court processes have been served on the Nigerian Police Council (NPC), the fourth defendant in the suit.

All lawyers in the matter adopted their written addresses.

After listening to arguments made by the lawyers, Ahmed Mohammed, presiding judge, fixed April 16 for judgment.