The Supreme Court has confirmed Alhaji Muhammad Ilyasu-Bashir as the rightful Emir of Gwandu, ending a long legal fight over the traditional throne in Kebbi State.
In a split decision of three to two, the court ruled on Wednesday, June 4, that the deposed Emir, Al-Mustapha Haruna Jokolo, did not follow the correct legal process when he filed a case to challenge his removal.
The court said that Jokolo failed to serve a pre-action notice to the Governor of Kebbi State before taking the matter to court — a step that is required by law.
Because of this error, the Supreme Court said the trial court had no right to hear the case from the start.
“The deposed Emir of Gwandu, Al-Mustapha Haruna Jokolo, did not begin his case the proper way,” the court ruled. “He was supposed to first inform the Governor of Kebbi State in writing, but he did not do that. This made the whole case invalid.”
Due to this, the Supreme Court threw out the previous judgments made by both the trial court and the Court of Appeal, which had earlier supported Jokolo’s reinstatement.
With this final ruling, the apex court has restored Muhammad Ilyasu-Bashir as the legally recognised Emir of Gwandu.
The legal representatives in the case included Sylvester Imanobe for Jokolo, Y. C. Maikyau (SAN) for the Governor of Kebbi State, and Hussaini Zakariya (SAN) for Bashir.
The judgment ends years of courtroom battles over who should occupy the Gwandu throne and brings peace to the emirate.
Residents and royal watchers across the state are now expected to accept the ruling as final, since decisions from the Supreme Court cannot be challenged.
