From Ahmad saka,Bauchi
Bauchi State High Court Number 5 Presided over by Justice Mu’azu Abubakar has granted an interim injunction, restraining the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) from evicting residents of 270 housing units of the National Housing Programme (NHP) in Bauchi State.
Counsel to the Plaintiff Barrister Alkassim Mohammed filed a motion experts in a Suit No. BA/158M/2025, before the State High in which he asked the court as a matter of urgency to stop the Airforce from violating the fundamental human right of the occupants.
Plaintiffs in the case, Mukhtar Aminu, Ya’u Aliyu, Abubakar Muhammad, Ibrahim Musa, Abdulrahman Haruna, and 183 others, had dragged the federal government to court over the decision to hand over the estate to the NAF.
Respondents in the case include the Nigerian Air Force, the Nigerian Armed Forces, the Air Officer Commanding (AOC) Special Operations Command, Bauchi, the Chief of Staff of the Command HQ, Bauchi, the Commander of the Command HQ Bauchi, and the Attorney-General of the Federation.
Alkassim told the court that the houses were originally built to support low-income earners and should not be allocated to the Air Force, which already has its own housing schemes, and accused the government of sidelining ordinary Nigerians who had earlier expressed interest in the scheme.
The Presiding Judge after he listened the plaintiff counsel granted an order in which
ordered all parties to maintain the status quo pending the determination of the substantive motion.
IJustice Abubakar said, “An interim order of injunction is hereby made restraining the respondents, whether by themselves, agents, privies, or cohorts, from further threat, harassment, or doing anything that is likely to breach the applicants’ constitution right under chapter IV of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria pending the hearing and determination of the motion on notice.”
The Court directed the 1st – 5th respondents to maintain status quo or stay all action pending determination of the motion on notice and adjourned the case to September 11, 2025, for further hearing.
You would recalled that there was tension when the the federal government through the Federal Ministry of Housing last Wednesday officially handed over the housing units to the Nigerian Air Force, and the residents’ protest against their action and bet President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Bauchi State Governor Senator Bala Abdulkadir Mohammed to intervene.
