Court Rejects Application To Stop Constitution Of Senate Committees

A Federal High Court in Abuja, has refused to grant an ex parte order, seeking to stop the Senate President, Bukola Saraki, from constituting the Senate Standing Committees.

Ruling on the application filed by five senators opposed to the leadership of the Senate on Tuesday, Justice Gabriel Kolawole held that there was nothing urgent in the application of the plaintiffs .

The court said the Senate Standing Order 2015, as amended, which the plaintiffs predicated their application, had been in existence since June 9, when the Senate President and his Deputy were elected.

Justice Kolawole said that the issue of urgency raised by the five Senators was self inflicted.

He stressed that the plaintiffs rushed to the court, 24 hours to the resumption of the Senate to stop its proceedings.

But the court would not oblige the request .

Justice Kolawole warned that when the National Assembly has misapplied its own rules ,the courts must be wary in intervening, it should even be more wary when the intervention is sought as an ex parte.

He, however, held that the Senate Standing Order 2015 as amended, had no substantial infraction on the 1999 Constitution to warrant courts intervention.

He ordered the plaintiffs to put on notice, the defendants in the suit which include the Senate President, Deputy Senate President and the Clerk of the National Assembly.

The case was, however, adjourned to August 5 .