Court orders Ayade's govt to pay ₦50m emotional damage fee to monarch

Presiding over the case, Justice Elias O. Abua said the compensation is to assuage the emotional and psychological trauma which the monarch suffered throughout the time of his suspension by the state government.

The court also ordered that the monarch be reinstated with all benefits accrued to him during the period, effective immediately.

The monarch was suspended from office by the state governor in May 2021, without any benefits to him, for allegedly misappropriating cocoa funds.

“The suspension was done in breach of the provision of sections 5, 17(1), 21, (1) and (2) 27, 28 (2), 29 and 30 (2) of Traditional Rulers Cap T4 Vol.6 Laws of Cross River State 2004," the judge said.

"Therefore, the suspension was illegal, unlawful, arbitrary, wrongful, null and void. The claimant was never given fair hearing as far as the matter was concerned."

In addition, the court ordered the state government to desist from issuing any certificate of recognition to anyone as paramount ruler of Etung LGA as HRM Oru Ojong was never dethroned nor his certificate of recognition withdrawn.

The court further nullified every act done, every document signed by the sixth defendant, Ntufam Raphael Ekuri Agbor, in his capacity as acting paramount ruler of Etung LGA.

HRM Ntui Atue Oru Ojong expressed gratitude for the court’s decision, "I thank God that the court which is the last hope of the common man still exists.

"I have forgiven all those who conspired and framed me up for reasons best known to them. I was framed that I took the royalty money meant for Cocoa Landlord Communities of Etung.

"Today, the state government has begun to make payments to beneficiaries. So where did I misappropriate the cocoa fund?”