Yusuf A. Madaki V. The Governor Of Nasarawa State & Ors. (2011)

LawGlobal-Hub Lead Judgment Report – COURT OF APPEAL

KUDIRAT MOTONMORI OLATOKUNBO KEKERE-EKUN, J.C.A.: (Delivering the Leading Judgment)

This is an appeal against the judgment of the High Court of Nasarawa State, sitting at Lafia delivered on 4/8/06 dismissing the appellant’s claims and holding that the said claims were statute-barred.

The Appellant who was the plaintiff before the trial court, by paragraph 31 of his Amended statement of claim sought the following reliefs:

A. “A declaration that the plaintiff is the District Head/Osuko of Obi in Obi Local Government of Nasarawa State.

B. A Declaration that the indefinite suspension of the Plaintiff by the Defendants is a violation of his constitutionally guaranteed right of access to justice and fair hearing.

C. A Declaration that the purported appointment of the 4th Defendant by the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Defendants to act in the office of Osuko of Obi is illegal, null and void and contrary to the native law and custom of the people of Obi in Obi Local Government of Nasarawa State.

D. A Declaration that the refusal of the Defendant to upgrade the plaintiff to the status of a 3rd class chief is discriminatory and contrary to the constitutionally guaranteed right to freedom from discrimination.

E. AN ORDER of perpetual Injunction restraining the 4th Defendant by himself, his agents, representatives privies or proxies from holding himself out or parading himself or causing himself to be paraded or held out as a traditional Kingmaker or Maduachi and/or representative of the Osuko of obi, or howsoever interfering with performance of the functions of the Osuko of Obi, Obi Local Government Area of Nasarawa state of Nigeria.

F. AN ORDER of perpetual Injunction restraining the 4th Defendant from attending any public or private meetings or occasions or ceremonies or functions as a traditional Kingmaker or Maduachi of Obi and/or representative of the Osuko of Obi, Obi Local Government Area of Nasarawa state of Nigeria.

G. AN ORDER of perpetual Injunction restraining the Defendants particularly the 1st Defendant either by himself, agents, servants, representatives, privies and/or proxies from appointment, approving the appointment of, constituting, confirming, ratifying or recognizing any person other than the plaintiff as the Osuko of Obi or otherwise taking any steps inconsistent with the position of the Plaintiffs as the Osuko of Obi’”

The parties duly filed and exchanged pleadings and the suit proceeded to trial. The plaintiff called a total of six witnesses, PW1 – PW6, The 1st – 3rd Defendants called two witnesses who testified as DW1 and DW2. The 4th Defendant testified as DW3. Several Exhibits were tendered in the course of the trial and they were marked as Exhibits 1 – 31B.

The facts of the case as gathered from the pleadings and evidence before the lower court are as follows: sometime in 1960, one Alhaji Ibrahim Atanyi was elected as the Osuko of Obi, a village in the present day Nasarawa state of Nigeria. His area of jurisdiction was limited to Obi village areas. In 1983 the Stool of Osuko was upgraded to a 4th class chieftaincy by the Government of the then Plateau state, upon the creation of the new chiefdom in 1983, five additional village areas were added to the territory namely, Adudu, Agwatashi, Deddere Assakio and Riri. Assakio later opted out of the chiefdom. Alhaji Atanyi Ibrahim continued to use the title of Osuko of Obi over the new chiefdom. According to the appellant a vacancy was created by Ibrahim Atanyi’s appointment as 4th class chief of the new chiefdom. An election was conducted in 1985. He emerged the winner of the exercise and was installed as Village Head of Obi.

It is the appellant’s contention that village head and Osuko mean the same thing. That while village head is the English version, its equivalent in Alago dialect is Osuko.

Later there was complaint by the other village areas that the 4th class status, which Alhaji Ibrahim Atanyi occupied, was meant for rotation among the village areas. They took exception to the use of the title Osuko, which is meant for Obi village area alone. This prompted Government to set up a commission of enquiry in 1986 to look into the issue. The panel after receiving memoranda from various parties concerned made its recommendations. The Government issued a white paper (Exhibit 18) based on the commission’s recommendations by designating the title of the Stool and its occupier as Osagye.