Court Strikes Out Suit Seeking to Stop Kogi Council Polls

By Emmanuel Oluwakorede, Lokoja

A Kogi State High Court sitting in Koton Karfe has struck out a suit seeking to stop the conduct of the State Local Government Council Election scheduled for 17th of October 2026.

The Court also dismissed the prayer challenging the tenure of local government administration in the State.

Delivering judgment, Justice Aminu Eri held that the Kogi State Electoral Law does not conflict with the Electoral Act or the 1999 Constitution as amended.

A former councillor in Ibaji Local Government Council, had approached the Court to challenge his removal after two years in office and relief of the Court to stop the planned Local Government Elections.

He asked the court to interpret Section 50 of the Kogi State Local Government Law 2023, and Sections 25 and 26 of the Local Government Law as amended in 2025.

His lawyers, led by J.A. Akubo, SAN, argued that the two-year and three-year tenures in the state laws violate Section 7 of the Constitution. They said the tenure should be four years, in line with the Electoral Act 2026, which provides four years for Area Councils in the Federal Capital Territory.

But the defendants, namely the Kogi State Government, the State Independent Electoral Commission and the State House of Assembly, countered that the Constitution empowers the House of Assembly to make laws on the conduct of local government elections.

Justice Eri said the claimant failed to establish any inconsistency between the state law, the Electoral Act and the Constitution, adding that his arguments were based on assumption and on the tenure applicable to FCT Area Councils.

The Court ruled that “Section 7(1) of the Constitution guarantees a system of democratically elected Local Government Councils, but does not prescribe a uniform four-year tenure for all Local Government Chairmen and Councilors in Nigeria”

The judge also held that the Constitution does not expressly state the tenure of council chairmen, vice chairmen and councillors, and that the power to legislate on the matter rests with the State House of Assembly.

“The Constitution expressly prescribes four-year tenure for certain offices. including the President and Governor, but contains no corresponding provision expressly prescribing a four-year tenure for State Local Government Chairmen and Councilors.

“Section 112 of the Electoral Act, 2026, which provides for dissolution after four years, concerns an Area Council and does not by its wording prescribe a four-year tenure for the Local Government Councils of Kogi State

“Section 153 of the Electoral Act, 2026 extends the procedure regulating elections to State Local Government elections but does not extend the substantive four-year tenure provision in section 112 to State Local Government Councils.

“The Electoral Act. 2026 therefore does not constitute a general Federal statute prescribing the tenure of all Local Government Chairmen and Councillors in Nigeria.

“The substantive tenure of Local Government Chairmen and Councillors in Kogi State must be determined by the applicable Kogi State legislation, subject to the Constitution and valid Federal law.

“The Claimant has failed to establish that sections 27 and 28 of the Kogi State Local Government Law, 2023 are invalid merely because they prescribe a two-year tenure.

The court therefore dismissed the suit for lacking merit.

Reacting, counsel to the House of Assembly, S.A. Abbas, and Dr. Abdulwahab Zakari, welcomed the judgment. They said it reinstates the powers of the Assembly on tenure of council chairmen, vice chairmen and councillors.

Counsel to the claimant said they would study the judgment before deciding on the next step.