Court Bars Former Minister Pauline Tallen from Public Office over Contemptuous Comments
The Federal Capital Territory High Court in Abuja has delivered a verdict prohibiting former Minister of Women Affairs and Social Development, Pauline Tallen, from holding any public office. The court’s decision, pronounced on Monday, stemmed from Ms. Tallen’s disparaging remarks about a Federal High Court decision in Adamawa State last year.
The Federal High Court in Yola had nullified the candidacy of Aishatu Dahiru, widely known as Binani, as the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate for the recent general election. Discontented with the verdict, Ms. Tallen labeled it a “Kangaroo judgement,” urging Nigerians to reject it.
Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) President Yakubu Maikyau, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), demanded an apology from Ms. Tallen for her comments, threatening legal action. Unyielding, Ms. Tallen’s stance prompted the NBA to file a suit at the FCT High Court.
In Monday’s judgement, the court condemned Ms. Tallen’s statements as “unconstitutional, careless, reckless, disparaging.” It deemed her call to disobey the court’s judgement “contemptuous of the Federal High Court of Nigeria.” The court granted an injunction restraining Ms. Tallen from holding any public office unless she published a personally signed apology letter in two national dailies within 30 days.
“The court also granted among other reliefs an injunction restraining Dame Pauline Tallen (the Defendant) from holding any public office in Nigeria, unless she purges herself of the ignoble conduct by publishing a personally signed apology letter to Nigerians and the Judiciary on a full page of the Punch and Guardian Newspapers,” the statement said.
The background of the case dates back to the nullification of Binani’s APC candidacy, which Ms. Tallen criticized, alleging the marginalisation of women in Nigerian politics. The NBA’s persistent demand for an apology went unanswered, leading to the legal proceedings.
Source: Premium Times
