The Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja has ruled that the Federal High Court in Kano lacks jurisdiction to handle the ongoing legal dispute surrounding the Kano Emirate.
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Delivering the lead judgment, Justice Gabriel Kolawole emphasized that the Federal High Court has no authority to hear chieftaincy-related cases.
He stated, “The Federal High Court does not have jurisdiction over chieftaincy matters,” and ordered that the case be referred to the Kano State High Court, which he deemed the proper forum for such disputes.
Presiding Justice Mustapha Mohammed and another member of the panel agreed with Justice Kolawole’s conclusion regarding the Federal High Court’s lack of jurisdiction. However, they expressed disagreement with the directive to remit the case to the Kano State High Court. Instead, they recommended that the case be struck out entirely, arguing that it should not be transferred to the Kano State judiciary.
In their majority decision, the court ruled that matters pertaining to chieftaincy affairs in Kano State are exclusively within the jurisdiction of the Kano State High Court. As a result, the proceedings initiated at the Federal High Court were struck out, reaffirming that the court had no jurisdiction to entertain the case from the outset.
