Leaders of the Kano Igbo community in Kano have maintained that the judgment of the Court of Appeal, Kano Division, in Appeal No. CA/KN/64/2020 remains the subsisting judicial pronouncement on the long-running dispute surrounding the Eze Ndi Igbo of Kano stool, pending the final determination of the matter by the Supreme Court of Nigeria.
The position was contained in a statement made available to journalists in Kano, where the community leaders said recent developments and continued public discussions surrounding the stool had made it necessary to clarify what they described as the prevailing legal position on the matter.
According to the leaders, the Court of Appeal found that the constitutional procedures prescribed under the Constitution of the Igbo Community Association (ICA) for the emergence, installation and recognition of an Eze Ndi Igbo of Kano were not complied with in the process relied upon by Chief Boniface Ibekwe in asserting entitlement to the stool.
They stated that the appellate court consequently set aside the judgment and legal foundation upon which those claims had rested and directed that the constitutional procedures governing the emergence of an Eze Ndi Igbo of Kano be complied with in accordance with the provisions of the ICA Constitution.
The leaders further noted that, as of the date of the statement, no judgment of the Supreme Court of Nigeria had reversed, varied or set aside the judgment delivered by the Court of Appeal in Appeal No. CA/KN/64/2020.
They argued that the appellate court’s decision therefore remains the subsisting and binding judicial pronouncement on the dispute pending the final determination of the appeal before the apex court.
According to sited copy of the Certified True Copy of the Appeal Court and the statement, until the Court of Appeal judgment is set aside by the Supreme Court, the process found by the appellate court not to have complied with the constitutional requirements of the ICA cannot serve as the basis for claims of judicial recognition as Eze Ndi Igbo of Kano.
The leaders urged members of the public, government institutions, traditional rulers, security agencies, corporate organisations and other stakeholders to independently verify representations relating to judicial recognition concerning the office of the Eze Ndi Igbo of Kano against the subsisting judgment of the Court of Appeal.
They stressed that the clarification relates strictly to the leadership dispute surrounding the stool and should not be construed as commentary on any unrelated civil, commercial or criminal proceedings involving any individual or party.
Speaking on the present leadership of the community, the leaders stated that HRM Igwe Ikechukwu Oliver Akpudo continues to perform the functions and responsibilities associated with the office of Eze Ndi Igbo of Kano and enjoys broad acceptance and recognition across significant sections of the Kano Igbo community.
They added that the monarch remains actively involved in community affairs and continues to discharge the traditional, cultural and representative responsibilities associated with the office while the legal process continues before the Supreme Court.
The leaders expressed confidence that the eventual decision of the Supreme Court would bring finality to the dispute and strengthen unity within the Kano Igbo community