A Benue State High Court has issued a restraining order preventing the Benue State Government from probing the administration of former Governor Chief Samuel Ortom.
The order follows the state government’s recent establishment of a commission of inquiry to investigate the funds (income and expenditure) of Benue State from May 29, 2015, to May 28, 2023.
Justice T. T. Asua granted the order pending the hearing and determination of a motion on notice filed by Ortom. The judge ruled on a motion ex-parte seeking the court’s leave to issue a writ of prohibition against the Benue State income and expenditure commission of inquiry, barring it from acting on its terms of reference listed in the Benue State Gazette No. 17, Vol. 49 of February 27, 2024.
Oba Maduabuchi, SAN, counsel to Ortom, argued that the Auditor General already holds constitutional authority under the 1999 Constitution (as amended) to investigate the state’s finances.
Maduabuchi stated that the Auditor General had audited and certified the state’s accounts, submitting reports to the Benue State House of Assembly, which had acted upon them.
Maduabuchi asserted, “The terms of reference in the Benue State Gazette have already been investigated and probed by the Auditor General, who submitted reports to the State Assembly. These reports were published in various Benue State Gazettes, which are public documents.”
The counsel contended that, given these facts, the Governor lacks the authority to establish the commission, and the commission itself has no jurisdiction over the matters listed in the gazette.
Maduabuchi further claimed that the Governor’s actions constituted a gross abuse of office and vendetta.
Justice Asua, after reviewing the arguments, ruled in favor of the motion. He noted that Ortom had shown sufficient interest in the matter to warrant the grant of leave sought.
The court has scheduled the motion on notice for hearing within 14 days, in accordance with Order 40, Rule 5(4) of the court’s rules, and restrained the commission from further actions until the motion on notice is resolved.
