Zamfara State Chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has accused the state government of allegedly using the judiciary as a tool to intimidate constitutionally elected members of the State House of Assembly for performing their legislative duties.
In a statement issued by the party’s Publicity Secretary, Malam Idris Gusau, described the development as disturbing and embarrassing.
The statement claimed that Chief Magistrate I, Halima Jaafar Mikaila, has issued an order for the arrest of the lawmakers without any prior summons or formal charges, despite an ongoing case at the Court of Appeal in Sokoto and petitions submitted to several national authorities, including the Inspector General of Police, the Director-General of the DSS, the National Security Adviser, and the National Assembly.
“Even though a case is pending in the Court of Appeal, and despite petitions written by the affected lawmakers—who include members of both the PDP and APC—the Magistrate Court proceeded to issue an arrest order without charge or summons,”
The statement further on the members to petition the Judicial Service Commission against the politically motivated court order illegally granted by the Magistrate in order to serve as a lesson to other judicial officers .
The party also called on Governor Dauda Lawal to put an end to the alleged harassment and engage the affected lawmakers in dialogue to resolve the impasse amicably.
According to the statement, the APC in Zamfara remains committed to the rule of law and will not allow judicial officers to be politicized or used against the public interest.
The party says it will not resist any attempt to intimidate lawmakers simply for raising concerns about the security situation in their constituencies, which the state government has failed to address,” the statement concluded.
REL/AMINU DALHATU
