By Ikechukwu Nnochiri
A constitutional lawyer, Mr. Johnmary Jideobi, on Tuesday, approached the Federal High Court in Abuja for an order to compel all the immediate past Service Chiefs, to refund all salaries, allowances, emoluments and benefits they received from December 18, 2017, to January 26, 2021.
The Plaintiff, in his suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/183/2021, argued that tenures of the erstwhile Service Chiefs, were illegally extended for over four years by President Muhammadu Buhari, without the requisite confirmation of the National Assembly.
Specifically, he is asking the court to determine, “whether by the community reading and conflated interpretation of the provisions of Section 218 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 as amended and Section 18 of the Armed Forces Act, Cap. A.20, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004, the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, whose power of appointment of service chiefs is subordinated to the confirmation of the National Assembly, can validly extend the tenure of the same service chiefs, whose tenure has expired, without the confirmation of the National Assembly sought and obtained?