Sokoto government to revoke Sultan’s authority to appoint district heads

Sokoto State said on Tuesday that the Sultan of Sokoto, Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar III, has no authority to appoint district and village heads in the state.

The state Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Muhammad Nasiru Binji, stated this at a public hearing on the proposed amendments to the Sokoto State Local Government and Chieftaincy Act 2008 at the state House of Assembly.

Governor Ahmed Aliyu has been criticized over an alleged plot to remove Sultan, who is a leader of Nigeria’s Muslim community.

At an open hearing, the commissioner said the law giving the Sultan the power to appoint anyone was contrary to the 1999 Constitution.

He added that the state government had sent an executive bill to the Assembly to correct the inconsistencies.

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Binji said: “Section 5(2) of the constitution provides that the executive power to appoint state officials is vested in the governor directly or through his deputy, commissioner or government agent appointed by the governor.

“So, there is no authority given to the sultanate council to appoint.

“Section 76(2) of the Sokoto Local Government and Chieftaincy Act empowers the sultanate council to appoint district and village chiefs in the state, but with the approval of the incumbent governor.”

“Giving authority to the Sultanate Council to appoint officials is contrary to the provisions of this article. Therefore, it is now proposed to the Honorable Assembly to amend this article to return to the tradition and decisions of the council that have existed for a long time, where the Sultanate Council recommends to the governor the people who will be appointed as regents, the people who will be appointed as village heads, and not the other way around.

“In the proposed amendment, the Sultanate Council, as stated in Article 76 (1), will continue to have the function of providing recommendations to the governor, while the authority to appoint is now in the hands of the governor.”

Sokoto Govt to revoke Sultan’s power to appoint district chiefs first appeared on Latest Nigeria News | Headlines from Ripples Nigeria.