The Community Court of Justice also known as ECOWAS, Court, has ruled against removal and replacement of former Commissioner for Internal Services, ECOWAS Commission, Prof. Nazifi Abdullahi Darma, before the expiration of his tenure.

Giving its decision on October 7, in a case number ECW/CCJ/APP/54/25 between Darma and the immediate past President, ECOWAS Commission, Dr Omar Alieu Touray, the Court held that his removal was unlawful,

Speaking outside the court on the judgment, Darma said the Court found that actions taken against him by Touray and the Council of Ministers failed to comply with the legal procedures governing the removal of a commissioner.

The dispute stemmed from a memorandum issued on October 30, 2025, by the then President of the ECOWAS Commission, which withdrew delegated authority previously exercised by Darma and allegedly raised concerns about his conduct and performance.

Darma told the media that the Court rejected arguments that the memorandum was merely an administrative measure.

“It held that the memorandum was based on adverse allegations which significantly affected my responsibilities and formed part of a process aimed at my replacement”, he said.

The Court had further observed that the actions were taken without prior notice or an effective opportunity for the Darma to respond.

According to Darma, said the Court also clarified that the managerial authority of the President of the Commission does not extend to transferring or extinguishing powers assigned by Community law to another statutory office.

The former Commissioner said the Court went on to declare his removal and replacement unlawful because the legal conditions required for terminating a commissioner’s mandate had not been met.

As relief, the Court ordered the payment of outstanding salaries, allowances and accrued financial benefits due from the date his tenure was unlawfully terminated until its expiry, less any sums already received.

The Court also awarded him general damages of $50,000 for what it described as the non-pecuniary harm arising from the procedural unlawfulness and premature termination of his tenure, while directing the ECOWAS Commission to bear the costs of the proceedings.

Since his tenure expired on August 31, the Court did not order his reinstatement.

“This judgment is not a personal victory. It is a victory for the rule of law, institutional integrity, accountability and due process within ECOWAS”, Darma said, reflecting on the judgment, adding that the ruling reinforces the principle that Community officials can only be removed through lawful procedures and on legally recognised grounds.

According to him, institutional reforms within ECOWAS had consolidated responsibilities previously handled by four commissioners under his office, effectively placing him in charge of key financial, procurement, human resources and grants management functions, alongside the Commission’s Rules of Procedure.

The dispute arose after he raised concerns about what he described as irregularities in the Commission’s administrative and management processes, including participation of non-management personnel in management meetings, absence of objective and consistent assessment procedures in the recruitment of senior officials and assignment of responsibilities belonging to the Department of Infrastructure, Energy and Digitalisation to a non-statutory official following the departure of the commissioner from Niger.

He said the concerns were formally communicated to the then President of the Commission and, in some instances, the Chair of the Council of Ministers but were not adequately addressed.