Gabsreal: www.channelstv.com/home/2012/05/23/court-says-falana-has-no-right-to-challenge-lawmakers-jumbo-pay/


A Federal High Court on Tuesday ruled that lawyer and Human Rights activist, Femi Falana lacks the locus standi to challenge the powers of Federal lawmakers to award jumbo salaries and allowances to themselves. Mr Falana had filed a case challenging
the members of the National
Assembly of fixing scandalous
emoluments for themselves in August
2010.
In the substantive suit Mr Falana sought a declaratory relief to the
effect that the members of the
National Assembly are not entitled to
receive any payment outside the
salaries and allowances determined
and fixed for them by the Revenue Mobilisation and Fiscal Allocation
Commission (RMAFC) pursuant to
Section 70 of the Constitution. In support of the originating
summons, Mr Falana accused the
Legislators of usurping the
Constitutional powers of the RMFAC by
taking advantage of passing
Appropriation Bills into law to rank themselves the highest paid
lawmakers in the world. While relying on the case of
Fawehinmi V The President (2008)23
WRN 65 Mr Falana urged the court to
appreciate that the anachronistic
doctrine of locus standi was discarded
by the Court of Appeal when it declared illegal and unconstitutional
the payment of salaries of two
Ministers in dollars. The plaintiff also submitted that his
legal standing to promote good
governance has been constitutionally
guaranteed. In opposing the suit, the Attorney-
General of the Federation and the
National Assembly through their
counsels, Alex Izion and Kenneth
Ikonne respectively, challenged the
locus standi of Mr Falana to question the salaries and allowances of the
Federal Lawmakers. The defendants’ lawyers described Mr
Falana as a busy body who has not
shown that his personal interest has
been affected by the jumbo pay of the
legislators. They therefore urged the trial court to
dismiss the case on the authority of
Abraham Adesanya V The President
(1981) All NLR pg 1. Both the RMFAC
and the Accountants who were joined
in the action did not defend the suit. In his judgment, the presiding judge,
Justice Ibrahim Auta, held that Mr
Falana lacked the locus standi to
institute the case as he did not prove
that he had suffered any greater
injury than other Nigerian citizens as a result of the action of the
lawmakers. However, in striking out the suit the
Judge said Mr Falana ought to have
complained to the RMFAC and that if
the body failed to act he could then
sue to compel it to carry out its duty
under the Constitution. Reacting to the judgment, Mr Falana
said he would study the judgment and
then decide whether to lodge a
complaint with the RMAFC on the
illegal jumbo pay or challenge the
judgment on appeal since the learned Chief Judge of the Federal High Court
conceded that it is the constitutional
duty of the RMFAC to determine and
fix the salaries and allowances of the
legislators. The reliefs sought by the plaintiff in
the suit were: 1. A DECLARATION that the 1st and
2nd Defendants are entitled to receive
such salaries and allowances
determined by the 3rd Defendant
pursuant to Section 70 of the
Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999. 2. A DECLARATION that the allowances
provided for the members of the
National Assembly in the
Appropriation Act, 2010 are illegal,
unconstitutional, null and void by
virtue of Section 70 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of
Nigeria, 1999. 3. A DECLARATION that the 1st and
2nd Defendants are not competent to
increase the salaries and allowances
of members of the National Assembly
through the Appropriation Act in any
manner whatsoever and howsoever. 4. A DECLARATION that the President
of the Senate or the Speaker of the
House of Representatives is entitled
to not more than the following six
vehicles:
(i) 2 official cars (ii) 1 Pilot
(iii) 1 Protocol Press
(iv) 1 Ambulance
(v) 1 Security 5. A DECLARATION that apart from the
Senate President and the Speaker of
the House of Representatives, no
other member of the National
Assembly is entitled to an official car. 6. AN ORDER of PERPETUAL
INJUNCTION restraining the 4th and
5th Defendants, their agents, privies
and servants from further paying
unauthorized salaries and allowances
to members of the National Assembly. 7. AN ORDER directing the 4th & 5th
Defendants to deduct and pay into the
Consolidated Revenue Fund of the
Federation the unauthorized salaries
and allowances received by members
of the National Assembly since May 29, 2007. 8. AN ORDER directing the 4th and 5th
Defendants to retrieve all official cars
from members of the 1st and 2nd
Defendants apart from the Senate
President and the Speaker of the
House of Representatives sell them and pay the proceeds to the
Consolidation Revenue Fund of the
Federation forthwith.