A Federal High Court in Abuja has set aside the Corporate Affairs Commission’s (CAC) decision to withdraw the registration of the National Youth Council of Nigeria (NYCN).
The court also invalidated the commission’s move to establish an interim management committee to oversee the affairs of the youth organisation.
Delivering judgment, Justice Binta Nyako held that the CAC acted beyond its powers by withdrawing the council’s registration and altering its leadership structure while disputes relating to the organisation were still pending before appellate courts.
The ruling followed a suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/2142/2025, filed by the Incorporated Trustees of the NYCN and Ambassador Sukubo Sara-Igbe Sukubo, who serves as the council’s President and Secretary of its Board of Trustees (BoT).
The defendants in the matter were the Registrar-General of the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), the CAC, the Minister of Youth Development, and the Federal Ministry of Youth Development.
In the judgment delivered on June 5, Justice Nyako dismissed preliminary objections raised by the defendants challenging the competence of the suit and ruled that the actions taken against the organisation were unlawful.
A Certified True Copy (CTC) of the judgment was obtained by The Nation.
The judge stated:
“Having considered the processes filed by the parties, I am of the view that the central issue is not whether the first and second defendants (the RG-CAC and CAC) possess regulatory powers over incorporated trustees because they undoubtedly do.
“The real question is whether those powers extend to the wholesale displacement of the existing leadership of the first claimant (NYCN) in the peculiar circumstances of this case.
“The affidavit evidence before this court reveals that disputes relating to the trusteeship, leadership structure and administration of the first claimant have been the subject of multiple litigations before courts of competent jurisdiction.
“It is trite that where the determination of rights is already before a court, an administrative body must exercise caution so as not to assume the role of the court.”
Justice Nyako acknowledged that the powers granted to the CAC under the Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA) are regulatory in nature and that the commission is legally empowered to supervise incorporated trustees.
However, she stressed that such powers must not be exercised in a way that effectively determines issues that are already awaiting judicial resolution.
She said:
“The commission may investigate, it may supervise compliance with statutory requirements. It may make inquiries into the affairs of an association.
“What it cannot do is assume the role of the court by effectively deciding who should govern the association while the issue remains the subject of pending litigation.
“The evidence before this court shows that the defendants went beyond investigation. They purportedly withdrew the certificate of the first claimant and proceeded to constitute an interim management committee to assume control of the organisation.
“Whatever nomenclature is used, the practical consequence of that decision was to displace the existing leadership structure and install another authority in its place.
“In my view, such action was premature. It altered the status quo in a dispute that was already before the courts and had the tendency of rendering pending proceedings nugatory.
“The law does not permit a party, directly or indirectly, to achieve administratively what remains unresolved judicially.
“However, while I decline to make a general pronouncement declaring Sections 839 and 851 of the Companies and Allied Matters Act unconstitutional, the actions taken pursuant to those provisions in the peculiar facts of this case were unlawful and cannot stand.
“The court is satisfied that the intervention complained of exceeded what was reasonably necessary to achieve regulatory oversight and encroached on matters properly reserved for judicial determination. Parties are thus advised to await the outcome of the appeal.
“I consequently hold that, while the first and second defendants possess statutory oversight powers over incorporated trustees, the withdrawal of recognition and the constitution of an interim management committee in the circumstances of this case were premature and cannot be sustained.
“Parties are hereby directed to maintain the position existing before the intervention complained of, pending the determination of the disputes currently before the appellate courts.”
The ruling effectively restores the status quo that existed before the CAC’s intervention and directs all parties to await the outcome of ongoing appeals concerning the leadership and administration of the National Youth Council of Nigeria.
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