A Federal High Court on Tuesday ruled that lawyer and Human Rights activist, Femi Falana lacks the locus standi to challenge the powers of Federal lawmakers to award jumbo salaries and allowances to themselves.
Mr Falana had filed a case challenging the members of the National Assembly of fixing scandalous emoluments for themselves in August 2010.
In the substantive suit Mr Falana sought a declaratory relief to the effect that the members of the National Assembly are not entitled to receive any payment outside the salaries and allowances determined and fixed for them by the Revenue Mobilisation and Fiscal Allocation Commission (RMAFC) pursuant to Section 70 of the Constitution.
In support of the originating summons, Mr Falana accused the Legislators of usurping the Constitutional powers of the RMFAC by taking advantage of passing Appropriation Bills into law to rank themselves the highest paid lawmakers in the world.
While relying on the case of Fawehinmi V The President (2008)23 WRN 65 Mr Falana urged the court to appreciate that the anachronistic doctrine of locus standi was discarded by the Court of Appeal when it declared illegal and unconstitutional the payment of salaries of two Ministers in dollars.
The plaintiff also submitted that his legal standing to promote good governance has been constitutionally guaranteed.
In opposing the suit, the Attorney-General of the Federation and the National Assembly through their counsels, Alex Izion and Kenneth Ikonne respectively, challenged the locus standi of Mr Falana to question the salaries and allowances of the Federal Lawmakers.
The defendants’ lawyers described Mr Falana as a busy body who has not shown that his personal interest has been affected by the jumbo pay of the legislators.
They therefore urged the trial court to dismiss the case on the authority of Abraham Adesanya V The President (1981) All NLR pg 1. Both the RMFAC and the Accountants who were joined in the action did not defend the suit.
In his judgment, the presiding judge, Justice Ibrahim Auta, held that Mr Falana lacked the locus standi to institute the case as he did not prove that he had suffered any greater injury than other Nigerian citizens as a result of the action of the lawmakers.
However, in striking out the suit the Judge said Mr Falana ought to have complained to the RMFAC and that if the body failed to act he could then sue to compel it to carry out its duty under the Constitution.
Reacting to the judgment, Mr Falana said he would study the judgment and then decide whether to lodge a complaint with the RMAFC on the illegal jumbo pay or challenge the judgment on appeal since the learned Chief Judge of the Federal High Court conceded that it is the constitutional duty of the RMFAC to determine and fix the salaries and allowances of the legislators.
The reliefs sought by the plaintiff in the suit were:
1. A DECLARATION that the 1st and 2nd Defendants are entitled to receive such salaries and allowances determined by the 3rd Defendant pursuant to Section 70 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999.
2. A DECLARATION that the allowances provided for the members of the National Assembly in the Appropriation Act, 2010 are illegal, unconstitutional, null and void by virtue of Section 70 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999.
3. A DECLARATION that the 1st and 2nd Defendants are not competent to increase the salaries and allowances of members of the National Assembly through the Appropriation Act in any manner whatsoever and howsoever.
4. A DECLARATION that the President of the Senate or the Speaker of the House of Representatives is entitled to not more than the following six vehicles:
(i) 2 official cars
(ii) 1 Pilot
(iii) 1 Protocol Press
(iv) 1 Ambulance
(v) 1 Security
5. A DECLARATION that apart from the Senate President and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, no other member of the National Assembly is entitled to an official car.
6. AN ORDER of PERPETUAL INJUNCTION restraining the 4th and 5th Defendants, their agents, privies and servants from further paying unauthorized salaries and allowances to members of the National Assembly.
7. AN ORDER directing the 4th & 5th Defendants to deduct and pay into the Consolidated Revenue Fund of the Federation the unauthorized salaries and allowances received by members of the National Assembly since May 29, 2007.
8. AN ORDER directing the 4th and 5th Defendants to retrieve all official cars from members of the 1st and 2nd Defendants apart from the Senate President and the Speaker of the House of Representatives sell them and pay the proceeds to the Consolidation Revenue Fund of the Federation forthwith.
