Kogi House of Assembly recommends sack of state chief judge

The Kogi State House of Assembly yesterday recommended sacking of the state’s Chief Judge, Justice Nasir Ajanah over alleged gross misconduct.

The lawmakers adopted the report and recommendations of the House Committee on Public Accounts, which indicted the Kogi State High Court and Kogi Hajj Commission for financial misdeeds.

In its recommendations, it said alternatively, Ajanah could step aside pending his appearance before the committee to defend allegations against him in the Auditor General’s report.

“The Chief Registrar should be referred to the Kogi State Judicial Service Commission for disciplinary actions over misconduct,” it stated.

It also recommended sanctions for those indicated to serve as deterrent to others and directed the state government to urgently resume payment of salaries of all judiciary staff.

Disagreements between Governor Yahaya Bello and Ajanah over payment of judiciary workers salaries culminated in an industrial action, which has kept the courts in the state shut for almost eight months.

The crises came to a head when Bello reported the matter to the National Judicial Council (NJC), but failing to get a favorable response, he now resorted to the House of Assembly to achieve his aim.

The committee had cited the state Auditor General’s annual report on Kogi State Judiciary for the year ended December 2016, which contained the indictments.

“The High Court was reported to have spent its budget above approved limits provided in some subheadings as contained in the 2016 appropriation law amounting to N7.5 million without approval of virulent application.