The Plateau government says transition committee chairpersons are fully in charge of the affairs of the 17 LGAs.

This is contained in a statement issued by Governor Caleb Mutfwtang‘s media aide, Gyang Bere, on Sunday in Jos.

The governor had on June 10 inaugurated an interim transition committee following the suspension of all democratic structures in the areas. 

He said the Plateau State High Court on June 23, in suit number PLD/J257M/2023, did not rule that the former local government chairpersons should remain in office.

‘’There was no pronouncement from the presiding Judge that restrained Governor Mutfwang from sacking the 17 former chairmen on the allegation of financial embezzlement,” said the governor.

The court had adjourned until September 22 for all pending applications and substantive originating summons to be taken to enable the court for a composite ruling.

The suspended chairpersons took Mr Mutfwang to court over their suspension from office.

In the suit, they said their purported suspension was unconstitutional. They argued that the power to remove them for gross misconduct does not reside with the state assembly or the governor.

They stated that the procedure for removing a local government chairperson is explicitly set out in section 37 of the Local Government Council Law.

They specifically asked the court to invoke its interpretative jurisdiction to determine, among others, whether the governor has the power to terminate, suspend, truncate, or disturb our tenure in light of section 7 of the constitution.

They argued that the system of local government by democratically elected local government councils is guaranteed under this constitution. 

(NAN)