Court halts attempt to remove Bayelsa community’s monarch

Tension had mounted in the community since some of the indigenes mooted the idea of removing the paramount ruler, Ibiware Gambia Kponisei Kaiko, over alleged wrong selection and undue nomination to occupy a throne. The attempted removal had set the supporters of the monarch and his opponents against each other, resulting in apprehension in the community. The classified second class monarch was dragged before the state High Court in suit BHC/06/2018 by members of the Sangana National Council of Chiefs led by Chief Owolo Oweiga, Chief Endurance Didiri and Chief Iwoine Igboigboi. The claimants had sought five prayers from the court, including an order that the recognition of the traditional ruler by Governor Seriake Dickson was unlawful due to the alleged undue selection and presentation to the Sangana National Council of Chiefs for their acceptance and his installation as Amanayabo of Sangana as required by the Akassa Native Law and Customs. But the presiding judge, Justice Okara, in his ruling, struck out the suit, declaring that the claimants lacked the locus standi to challenge the emergence of the Amanayabo. Speaking after the judgement, the counsel for the paramount ruler, Fedude Zimughan, praised the ruling and charged the monarch to go back to his kingdom and reach out to those aggrieved and accommodate them. Zimughan urged Kaiko to have a large heart in order to bring peace to his troubled domain and make peace possible. Kaiko, in his remarks, described the ruling of the court as ‘no victor, no vanquished’, saying that the kingdom needed peace for development to take place. He said, “I’m calling on the indigenes of Sangana to come and assist in the socio-economic and infrastructural development of the kingdom. “Our kingdom is facing various developmental challenges, including erosion, poor power supply, poor health facility and lack of water, and we need our people to come together to solve these challenges. “I also call on the oil companies operating in the area to come forward to assist us since normalcy has return to the community.”]]>