Jokolo and a date with history

The saying in the Holy Qur’an that God is the most excellent of all plotters and designers is apt in describing the recent judgment of the Appeal Court in Sokoto, which held that the dethroned emir of Gwandu, Alhaji Al-Mustapha Jokolo, be returned to his throne, and be paid all his salaries and entitlements for […]

The saying in the Holy Qur’an that God is the most excellent of all plotters and designers is apt in describing the recent judgment of the Appeal Court in Sokoto, which held that the dethroned emir of Gwandu, Alhaji Al-Mustapha Jokolo, be returned to his throne, and be paid all his salaries and entitlements for 10 years, the period he was purportedly dethroned. Technically speaking, by this judgment, what it meant was that in the face of the law, Jokolo was never dethroned.
Seven years ago, 2009 to be precise, I had predicted the controversial sacking of Jokolo, that he was set to make history, as the first emir in the history of the north who would be returning to his throne several years after he was dethroned. And one singular event that made me draw the conclusion then was his heroic return to Kebbi State in that year (2009), four years after he was removed and banished.
For me, his return to Kebbi that Monday was like a test case of the latest Appeal Court judgment. This is so because, historically speaking, it has never happened in Northern Nigeria. No dethroned emir ever returns to his domain after being banished. But Jokolo did in 2009, and now in 2016, he has made history as the first dethroned emir in the north to return to his throne.
In Birnin Kebbi, back then in 2009, an obviously elated Jokolo had told me that he was happy with the reception he received from the people, even though there was no official notice regarding his arrival, the people turned up en masse to welcome him home. He had also told me then that as a former military officer, he was a combatant person and he does not believe in giving up on a quest or when his rights were being trampled upon, insisting that he would continue to pursue the case to its logical conclusion. And this, he did from 2005, when the Kebbi State government, under Senator Adamu Aliero, in June 2005 deposed him and banished him to Nasarawa State.
But Jokolo, through his counsel, Abubakar Malami (SAN), rushed to the court to challenge government’s action, arguing among other things that the government did not follow due process in the deposition, especially because the emir was not given a fair hearing by constituting a panel of inquiry to investigate whatever allegation preferred against him as anticipated by the law guiding the operations of the emirate council. After about a year in court, April 20, 2006 to be precise, the Kebbi High Court, presided over by Justice I.B Mairiga struck out the suit for lack of merit, arguing among other things that apart from the suit being an abuse of court process, it did not comply with section 114 of the Kebbi State local government law (2000), which stipulates that a pre-action notice was required before instituting a case against any local government in the state.
In the wisdom of the trial Judge, since Gwandu Emirate is part and parcel of a local government, it ought to have been served with a pre-action notice of at least one month before action could be taken against it or joined in a suit. Unsatisfied with the decision of the Kebbi State High Court, Jokolo decided to approach the appeal court in Kaduna for a reprieve. And after about three years in court, a unanimous decision was held that Justice Mairiga of the Kebbi High court erred in law by striking out the suit based on the preliminary objections filed by the Kebbi State government. In upholding the appeal, it was argued that section 114 of the Kebbi State law could not be applicable to Gwandu emirate since it is a corporate body, distinct from a local government.
In compliance with the decision of the Court of Appeal, the Kebbi State Chief Judge assigned the matter to Justice M.S. Ambursa, thus forcing all parties involved in the matter to return to the court in Kebbi State. However the Kebbi government through its counsel, L. Okere approached the court for a stay of proceeding, but the application was dismissed. Okere’s argument was premised on the fact that there was an appeal before the Supreme Court, flowing from the decision of the Appeal court. And that to proceed with the re-trial as ordered by the Appeal Court in Kaduna would destroy the rest of the appeal. And since then, it has been back and forth, from one court to the other. But Jokolo did not give up. Ironically too, unlike what has since become a norm in other places, no life was lost throughout the battle.  
Jokolo, had in 2009 said that the battle he was fighting was not his alone but for the recognition and freedom of the traditional institution in Nigeria in order to guard against unconstitutional removal of traditional rulers by the political class. And for me, I think he has succeeded in doing just that. What is left is for the other traditional rulers to take a cue from his doggedness and courage.
Omipidan writes from Abuja.