A court in Kano has mandated the Kano State Government to pay a total of ₦1 million in costs as part of a legal dispute involving former commissioners over the official vehicles they were assigned during their time in office.
The National Industrial Court in Kano, presided over by Justice Mahmood Abba Namtari, issued this order on Tuesday after the state government requested additional time to prepare its defense in the case.
This case was initiated by five former commissioners who are seeking a court injunction to prevent the Kano State Government from repossessing the official vehicles they utilized during their tenure.
During the hearing, Barrister S. U. Jibril, representing the Kano State Government, informed the court that the government was not prepared to proceed with the case.
He explained that he had only been notified about the matter on Monday afternoon and had not been given sufficient time to compile the necessary documents.
“We were briefed yesterday around 2:30 p.m. by the office of the first defendant. We tried to get our papers ready but could not complete them. We are asking for another date,” he said.
Conversely, Suraj Sa’ed (SAN), the legal representative for the former commissioners, indicated that he had no objections to the request for an adjournment.
However, he requested that the court award costs to his clients, arguing that the government had already received the court documents earlier and should have been prepared with its response.
Sa’ed sought ₦1 million in costs for each case, contending that the delay had caused inconvenience to the claimants.
In response, Jibril opposed this request, asserting that the government was still within the legally allotted time to submit its documents.
“My lord, we should not be asked to pay costs. All the respondents were served on March 3, and we are still within time to file our papers,” he said.
Nevertheless, Justice Namtari pointed out that court records clearly showed the defendants had actually been served earlier, on February 26.
The judge subsequently ordered the respondents to pay ₦200,000 in costs for each of the five related cases, totaling ₦1 million. The court also adjourned the case until April 28, 2026, for further hearing.
The former commissioners who filed the suit include Dr. Yusuf Ibrahim K/Mata, AVM Ibrahim Umar (Rtd), Nasir Sule Garo, Adamu Aliyu Kibiya, and Mustapha Rabi’u.
They had petitioned the court to prevent the Kano State Government from reclaiming the official vehicles assigned to them during their time in office.
The defendants in this legal action are the Attorney General of Kano State, the Governor of Kano State, and the Kano State Public Complaints and Anti-Corruption Commission.
Earlier, the court had rejected an urgent request from the former commissioners for an immediate order to halt the government from retrieving the vehicles.
The judge ruled that both parties must first present their arguments before any temporary order could be issued.
This dispute is part of an ongoing legal battle concerning whether former Kano commissioners are entitled to retain the official vehicles provided to them while in office.
