By Charles Pemu 
ABUJA – The National Industrial Court in Abuja on Wednesday declared the purported removal of the Chief Judge of Benue State, Justice Maurice Ikpambese, by the Benue State House of Assembly as unconstitutional, null, and void.
Delivering judgment in suit NICN/ABJ/68/2025, Justice Osatohanmwen Obaseki-Osaghae nullified the recommendation made by Governor Hyacinth Alia and the state Assembly for Justice Ikpambese’s removal. The court found that the defendants violated Section 292(1)(ii) of the 1999 Constitution, alongside specific rules of the Standing Orders of the Benue State House of Assembly, 2023.
The court also invalidated a press statement issued on February 18, 2025, by 13 members of the House, which had announced Ikpambese’s removal.
A perpetual injunction was issued, restraining the defendants from taking any further administrative or plenary steps aimed at removing or suspending the Chief Judge without due constitutional process. Furthermore, the court restrained the National Judicial Council (NJC) from acting on any petition submitted by the Benue Attorney General or the Governor seeking to investigate or discipline Justice Ikpambese.
Justice Obaseki-Osaghae dismissed the defendants’ objections challenging the competence of the suit, stating that the court was inclined to grant all reliefs sought by the claimant. The judge emphasized that the removal of the Chief Judge by the Benue State House of Assembly, whether through its Speaker or on the recommendation of the Governor, without prior investigation and concurrence by the NJC, is unconstitutional, null, and void, based on a combined interpretation of relevant sections of the 1999 Constitution. The court also cited the failure to afford the Chief Judge a fair hearing as an additional reason for invalidating the entire process.