Court of Appeal Reserves Judgment on Elrufai’s Order That Scrapped Friday Work and School Days in Kaduna
By Steven Kefas
A significant legal battle over the constitutional validity of a controversial executive order that effectively eliminated Fridays as a working and school day in Kaduna State moved a step closer to resolution on Wednesday, as the Court of Appeal, Kaduna Division, reserved judgment in the matter of Gloria Mabeiam Ballason v. Governor of Kaduna State and 3 Others, Appeal No: CA/K/104/2023.
The three-man panel, comprising Hon. Justice Onyekachi Aja Otisi, Hon. Justice Abimbola Osarugue Obaseki-Adejumo, and Hon. Justice Sybil Onyeji Nwaka-Gbagi, heard arguments from both sides on 11 March, 2026, before reserving the appeal for judgment.
The case centres on an executive order issued by former Kaduna State Governor, Mallam Nasir Ahmad Elrufai, which took effect on 1 December, 2021, reducing the official working and schooling week from five days to four. Under the order, Fridays ceased to be working days for civil servants and school days for pupils across the state. Remarkably, despite El-Rufai’s departure from office, the policy has remained in force to this day, making it over four years since Kaduna residents lost the Friday workday.
Gloria Mabeiam Ballason, a prominent human rights lawyer and the appellant in this matter, argues that the executive order is unconstitutional and has caused measurable harm to workforce productivity, school children’s education, and her own professional legal work. Appearing in person to argue her case, Ballason adopted her filed briefs and urged the appellate court to allow the appeal and set aside the ruling of the lower court, which had previously ruled against her position.
Appearing for the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Respondents was Dr. J.A. Kanyip, the Attorney General of Kaduna State, who was accompanied by a legal team including A.A. Aku Esq., S.M. Gamaliel Esq., M.P. Danjuma Esq., and Koni Tauna Esq. The respondents similarly adopted their briefs and urged the court to uphold the lower court’s ruling and dismiss the appeal.
Notably absent was any representation for the Minister of Interior, named as the 4th Respondent in the suit, despite evidence presented to the court confirming that the Minister’s office had been properly served with hearing notices. The court took note of this absence.
Background to the Matter
When Elrufai announced the four-day work week in late 2021, it was one of several sweeping administrative decisions that defined his controversial second term as governor. The order applied to civil servants and public schools across Kaduna State, with Fridays effectively becoming a non-working day. Proponents of the policy argued it could reduce overhead costs for the state government and offer workers an extended rest period. Critics, however, raised immediate alarm about the impact on service delivery, the disruption to children’s schooling calendars, and whether a sitting governor possessed the executive authority to unilaterally restructure the working week without legislative backing.
Ballason’s case strikes at exactly that question of constitutional authority. Her suit contends that an executive order of this scope, one altering the fundamental structure of public employment and public education, exceeds the powers of a state governor acting alone, and that the policy as implemented violates applicable constitutional provisions.
What makes the case particularly striking is its longevity. Elrufai left office in May 2023, and yet his successor’s administration has allowed the four-day order to stand, meaning the policy has now outlasted the man who created it. Workers, schoolchildren, and professionals across Kaduna State continue to operate under an arrangement that was never subjected to legislative debate or public consultation.
With judgment now reserved, the Court of Appeal’s decision will carry far-reaching implications, not only for Kaduna State, but potentially setting a precedent on the limits of gubernatorial executive power across Nigeria’s northern states.
Middle Belt Times will report the judgment as soon as it is delivered.