Supreme Court Dismisses Nyako’s Appeal Seeking Reinstatement as Governor

The Supreme Court on Friday dismissed an appeal by a former Governor of Adamawa State, Murtala Nyako, seeking an order to reinstate him into office to enable him to complete his truncated second term.

Nyako still had 10 months left to spend in office when he was removed by the Adamawa State House of Assembly on July 15, 2014.

The seven-man panel of the apex court, led by Justice Tanko Muhammad, held in its judgment that it agreed with the earlier decision of the Court of Appeal that declared Nyako’s removal from office as illegal, but that it was unable to reinstate him because of the “special facts” of the case while it was before the lower court.

The apex court explained in its lead judgment read by Justice Dattijo Mohammed that the appeal failed because Nyako’s lawyer had compromised the case at the Court of Appeal by withdrawing the prayer seeking the ex-governor’s reinstatement.

Mohammed held that a lawyer was entitled to “conduct, compromise or withdraw” his or her client’s case, but that there could be no ground of appeal when a litigant’s case was compromised by his or her lawyer.

“On that score alone the appeal fails,” Justice Mohammed ruled.