Plateau Court Rules Four-Year Tenure for LG Chairmen

The Plateau State High Court delivered a landmark judgment affirming that local government chairmen in Plateau State are entitled to a four-year tenure. The court struck down the two-year tenure provision prescribed by the Plateau State Local Government Law, deeming it unconstitutional.

The ruling was delivered by Hon. Justice David Gwong Mann in a suit filed by Hon. Anani Hamisu Moham, the chairman of Wase Local Government Area, who argued that the two-year tenure conflicted with the provisions of the Electoral Act and the 1999 Constitution. The court agreed, stating that the two-year tenure undermined the constitutional framework for local government administration.

Consequently, the court declared that the tenure for the chairman of Wase Local Government Area would be four years, beginning on October 9, 2024, the date of swearing-in. The judgment also restrains the Plateau State government and PLASIEC from conducting fresh local government elections until the expiration of the current chairmen's terms, aligning with a growing national judicial trend to reinforce democratic stability at the grassroots level.