A Federal High Court on Tuesday dismissed the suit of the indigenous ethnic group of the Federal Capital Territory challenging its exclusion in ministerial appointment.
In his judgment, Justice John Tsoho held that the plaintiffs’ main relief was not in tandem with the provision of Sections 229 and 14 of the constitution.
Tsoho further held that the plaintiffs should not hinged the suit on breach of the community’s fundamental rights.
He said the territory had the status of a state but was not created to recognise any ethnic group as sole owner of the enclave.
He held: “I do agree that the plaintiffs, like all Nigerians, have the locus to approach the court for the interpretation of the law on this matter.
“I will not accept that the suit is academic but should be viewed as a serious legal process that requires interpretation.
“However, having gone through the final submissions of the parties, I have come to the conclusion that the suit is misdirected and it hereby dismissed.”
The group had approached the court claiming further damages for the takeover of their ancestral land.
They also urged the court to compel the Federal Government to complete their settlement.
The plaintiffs further prayed the court to mandate the Federal Government to allot them all the benefits enjoyed by the rest 36 states of the federation forthwith.
They argued that the central government had not appointed anybody from the ethnic group into the cabinet since democratic returned of the country in 1999.
The plaintiffs, therefore, sought the intervention of the court to enforce all the presumable breaches of their rights.
The Federal Government, however, argued that appointment of ministers into the cabinet was mere privilege and not rights.
It argued that the territory had been treated equally with the rest 36 states, adding that the FCT had not been without a minister.
According to the Federal Government, the creation of the FCT is to defray the syndrome of ethnicity and tribalism within the country’s capital.
The respondent also challenged the locus of the plaintiffs to initiate the process.
It, therefore, urged the court to dismiss the suit for lacking in merit.
Speaking to newsmen after the sitting, Usman Baba, Counsel to the plaintiffs, said they would appeal against the decision of the court.
NAN.
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