James Ngilari, who served as Deputy Governor to Admiral Murtal Nyako (rtd) won on Wednesday as the court ordered that he should be sworn-in as Governor. He had approached a Federal High Court in Abuja seeking to be sworn-in after the impeachment of his boss. Incidentally, Ngilari had tendered his resignation hours before he and the Governor were removed.
Ngilari while praying the court to compel his swearing-in as Governor asked that his resignation letter, dated July 14, 2014 be declared null and void.
Ngilari argued in the suit FHC/ABJ/CS/545/14 that his resignation letter was in breach of the provisions of sections 306(1), (2) and (5) of the 1999 Constitution because it was addressed to the Speaker and acted upon by the House of Assembly.
His counsel, Festus Keyamo too had averred that constitutionally, a Deputy Governor that wants to resign would send his resignation letter to the Governor and not the speaker of the House of Assembly.
While giving his ruling, Justice Adeniyi Ademola held that since Mr Ngilari's letter was written at a time that Governor Murtala Nyako had not been removed, the letter should have gone through him as the Governor. Justice Ademola also ruled that since the letter did not go through the governor, the resignation is rendered null and void. He therefore ruled that James Ngilari be sworn in as the substantive Governor of Adamawa State.
Meanwhile, Umar Fintiri, the Speaker of the House of Assembly had been sworn in as the Acting Governor and also emerged as the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party.
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