A Federal High Court sitting in Sokoto has dismissed a suit filed by a former governor of Zamfara State, Bello Matawalle, over the ownership of vehicles he took away on leaving office in May 2023.
In June, the police went to houses belonging to Matawalle to take possession of the vehicles as ordered by the court.
A statement issued on Monday by Sulaiman Bala Idris, the spokesperson of the current governor of the Northern Nigerian state, Dauda Lawal, stated that the Federal High Court rejected Matawalle’s claims over the ownership of the vehicles.
According to the statement, the immediate past governor of Zamfara, who is the current Minister of State for Defence, along with members of his cabinet, had taken away all official vehicles belonging to the state government, leaving the administration of Governor Lawal with nothing to use.
The statement recalled that “in June, the Zamfara State government gave the former governor and his deputy five working days to return all official vehicles taken away. All demands for the return of the said vehicles proved abortive and, as a result, the Zamfara State government resorted to obtaining a court order to retrieve them.
In June, the police went to houses belonging to Matawalle to take possession of the vehicles as ordered by the court.
Sulaiman Bala Idris, spokesperson of Governor Dauda Lawal, said that the Federal High Court rejected Matawalle’s claims over the ownership of the vehicles.
According to Idris in a statement, the immediate past governor of Zamfara, who is the current Minister of State for Defence, along with members of his cabinet, had taken away all official vehicles belonging to the state government, leaving the administration of Governor Lawal with nothing to use.
The statement recalled that “in June, the Zamfara State government gave the former governor and his deputy five working days to return all official vehicles taken away. All demands for the return of the said vehicles proved abortive and, as a result, the Zamfara State government resorted to obtaining a court order to retrieve them.
“In pursuit of that order, a total number of over 50 vehicles were recovered by the police. After the vehicles were recovered, Bello Matawalle quickly rushed to the Federal High Court in Gusau.”
Gusau is the capital of Zamfara State.