A Federal High Court in Abuja has scheduled a hearing date for a lawsuit initiated by Philip Shaibu, the impeached Deputy Governor of Edo State, against the state’s house of assembly and others.

Filed on March 27, the suit listed the Inspector-General (I-G) of Police and State Security Service (SSS) as the first and second respondents.

Additionally, it included Hon. Justice S.A. Omonua (rtd.), the Chairman, and members of the Panel of Seven Appointed by the 4th Defendant, the Chief Judge of Edo, and Prof. Theresa Akpoghome as the third to fifth respondents.

Shaibu, represented by O.A. Gbadamosi, SAN, also named President Aigbokhian, Oghogho Ayodele Oviasu, and the Edo State House of Assembly as the sixth to eighth respondents, respectively.

In the originating motion on notice, Shaibu sought a declaration asserting that the failure of the 3rd to 8th respondents to afford him a fair hearing during the impeachment proceedings instigated by the 8th respondent was unlawful, unconstitutional, and a blatant breach of his fundamental right to fair hearing, as enshrined in Section 36 of the 1999 Constitution, as amended.

Additionally, he is pursuing a declaration highlighting that the assembly’s neglect to personally serve the purported impeachment notice on him and each member of the House of Assembly, as mandated by Section 188(2) of the 1999 Constitution, constitutes a violation of his right to fair hearing.

He additionally requested a declaration stating that the appointment of the 3rd, 5th, 6th, and 7th respondents as chairman and members of the seven-member investigation panel tasked with probing allegations outlined in a purported impeachment notice against him is marred by a reasonable suspicion of bias and will lead to a breach of his fundamental right to fair hearing, as guaranteed under Section 36 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, as amended.

In additionhe sought an order instructing the respondents to refrain from taking any further actions that would infringe upon his fundamental right to fair hearing, as guaranteed under Section 36 of the 1999 Constitution.

In the same vein, he requested an order directing the 3rd, 5th, 6th, and 7th respondents to disqualify themselves from serving as Chairman and members of the 7-Man Investigating Panel appointed by the 3rd respondent, due to the potential bias against him, among other reliefs.

Shaibu provided seven grounds of argument, asserting that until now, he had never been presented with any such notice or allegations of misconduct, abuse of office, or any allegations whatsoever, whether during his tenure as deputy governor or acting governor.

He stated that he had not received any letter or notice as mandated by Section 188(2) of the 1999 Constitution, as amended. Furthermore, he emphasized that the assembly had not granted him any opportunity to respond to any purported allegations, thus lacking any justification for initiating a process aimed at his removal from office as deputy governor.

He said, “The 3rd respondent via a letter dated 25th March, 2024 was appointed by the 4th respondent as the chairman of a panel of seven persons to investigate the allegations contained in a purported impeachment notice, which is yet to be personally served on the applicant.

“The 3rd respondent is a retired judicial officer and community leader from Esan North East Local Government Area of Edo Central Senatorial District, where there is strong clamour against the gubernatorial ambition of the applicant.

“The 3rd respondent appears to have been given the hatchet job of recommending the removal from office of the applicant, in order to weaken his political ambition of becoming governor of Edo State.

“The 4th respondent being a protégé of the 3rd respondent, appointed him as chairman of the Investigating Panel, when other persons he offered the same appointment rejected it, because it was a politically motivated job.”

The case, presided over by Justice Inyang Ekwo, was scheduled for hearing on Friday, following the appearance of a team of lawyers, including Alex Ejesieme, SAN, who attended to request a date for the case.

Despite the suit, identified as FHC/ABJ/CS/405/24, not being listed on the cause list, the defense lawyers attended the court session.

Just before adjourning the session, one of the lawyers informed Justice Ekwo that the matter was initially slated for Thursday but was postponed due to a public holiday, resulting in the court’s non-sitting.

However, Justice Ekwo clarified that he could not preside over a matter not present in the file, instructing them to coordinate with the court registrar for the next adjourned date.

The hearing was subsequently rescheduled for April 19.

Recall that on Monday, Shaibu faced impeachment by the state’s house of assembly following the panel’s finding of guilt on charges of perjury and divulging government secrets.

The retired Justice Omonuwa-led panel commenced its sessions on April 3 in Benin and concluded on April 5, with neither Shaibu nor his counsel in attendance.