A member of the Osun State House of Assembly, Kanmi Ajibola, has taken the Nigerian military to court over the recent allegations of a coup attempt to oust the democratic government and remove President Bola Tinubu.
Ajibola, a lawyer and former Chairman of the Nigerian Bar Association, Ilesa Branch, filed the suit on Thursday at the Federal High Court, Osogbo. He listed the Nigerian Army, the Air Force, the Navy, and the Attorney-General of the Federation as defendants.
In his 23-paragraph affidavit, the lawmaker insisted that there is “nowhere in the Constitution or any Act of the National Assembly where the military is empowered to take over civil rule.”
He argued that Section 217(2) of the 1999 Constitution clearly outlines the functions of the armed forces, and none of them permits intervention in governance.
Ajibola is asking the court to issue an order permanently banning the military from forcefully taking over power, governance, or control of Nigeria by way of coup d’état or any other means not provided for in the Constitution.
Describing the last reported coup allegation as “a bad omen and a slap on the face of true democrats,” Ajibola said he believes some officers still hold the erroneous view that they can take power by force.
He added that, as a lawyer and citizen who has discharged his civic obligations, he has the right to bring the armed forces before the court to prevent any attempt to undermine Nigeria’s democracy.\
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