Breaking: Court orders reinstatement of suspended Kwara lawmaker, directs payment of entitlements
A High Court sitting in Ilorin has ordered the reinstatement of Hon. Saba Yisa Gideon, lawmaker representing Edu constituency, months after he was suspended by the Kwara State House of Assembly over alleged contempt and breach of legislative privilege.
The court also directed that all salaries and allowances due to the lawmaker from the period of his suspension be paid in full, effectively nullifying the three-month sanction imposed by the Assembly.
Background
Hon. Gideon was suspended in December 2025 after the House accused him of secretly recording a closed-door pre-plenary session in the Speaker’s office and sharing the audio with an unauthorised person.
The motion for his suspension was moved without notice by the Leader of the House, Hon. Abdulkadir Magaji, who cited Order 4, Rule 14 of the House Rules and Section 14(2) of the Legislative Houses (Powers and Privileges) Act, 2017.
Reading the resolution at plenary, Speaker Yakubu Danladi-Salihu said the unauthorised recording and circulation of the meeting’s audio was capable of bringing the legislative institution into disrepute.
An ad hoc committee was subsequently constituted to investigate the matter. According to a counter-affidavit deposed to by the Clerk of the House, Kareem Ahmed Olayiwola, Gideon initially denied recording the meeting but later admitted to the act and to forwarding the audio to Ambassador Yahaya Seriki.
The Assembly maintained that the suspension followed due process and was unrelated to any political calculations ahead of the 2027 governorship race.
Gideon’s Reaction
However, Gideon rejected the suspension, describing it as unconstitutional, unlawful and politically motivated.
Addressing journalists in Ilorin after the suspension, he alleged that the action was linked to internal alignments within the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) ahead of the 2027 governorship election.
He claimed that 21 members of the Assembly had taken an oath to support the Speaker’s alleged governorship ambition.
Gideon further alleged that pressure was mounted on him to endorse the Speaker’s aspiration, including being asked during a meeting to pray specifically for the Speaker to become governor in 2027, a request he said he declined.
He denied ever suggesting that a motion be moved against the mining activities of Ambassador Yahaya Seriki to weaken his political prospects, arguing that mining regulation falls under the exclusive legislative list of the Federal Government.
Feeling politically isolated and targeted, Gideon said he recorded the meeting for his own protection after being excluded, along with two other lawmakers, from a WhatsApp group allegedly formed to advance the Speaker’s ambition.
Legal Battle
Gideon subsequently approached the High Court of Justice of Kwara State, Ilorin Judicial Division, challenging his suspension in Suit No: KWS/11/26.
In his originating summons, he argued that the suspension violated constitutional provisions and deprived his constituents of representation.
In response, the Assembly, Speaker, and the Leader of the House filed a counter-affidavit insisting that Gideon was afforded fair hearing, admitted to the misconduct, and that the House acted within its powers under the Legislative Houses (Powers and Privileges) Act, 2017.
The respondents also dismissed claims that the suspension was politically motivated, describing such allegations as “false” and products of the applicant’s imagination.
Court’s Decision
In its ruling, the court held that the suspension was unconstitutional and ordered Gideon’s immediate reinstatement to the Assembly.
The court further directed that all outstanding salaries, allowances, and entitlements withheld during the period of suspension be paid to him.
