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Tag: Abuja High Court

  • Adamawa Guber: Abuja High Court adjourns Aisha Binani’s suit till July 24

    Adamawa Guber: Abuja High Court adjourns Aisha Binani’s suit till July 24

    A Federal High Court, sitting in Abuja the Federal Capital Territory on Tuesday adjourned the suit of the 2023 All Progressives Congress, (APC) governorship candidate, Senator Aishatu Dahiru, also known as Binani, till July 24, 2023, to take the substantive matter pending before the court

    TheNewsGuru.com reports that on July 10, 2023, an interim order stopping the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from prosecuting the suspended Adamawa Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC), Hudu Ari, pending the respondents to show cause why the application should not be granted.

    The court noted that it could not entertain the motion because the defendants were not served.

    Justice Donatus Okorowo adjourned the matter to 24 July for a hearing of the originating summons served on the defendants in the open court.

    Binani had, in a suit marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/935/2023, sued INEC, the Inspector-General (IG) of Police, and the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) as 1st to 3rd, respectively.

    In the suit, the applicant is seeking the interpretation of Section 144 of the Electoral Act, 2022, and a preservative order seeking the maintenance of the status quo in the matter pending the determination of the suit.

    Binani’s counsel, former Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice Chief Michael Aondoakaa, in the ex-parte motion earlier filed, drew the attention of the court to the fact that the matter was before a tribunal and it was time-bound.

    He, however, said that the star witness to his client, Hudu Yunusa Ari, was being harassed and prevented from giving evidence before the tribunal which if continued, would jeopardize the case of his client at the tribunal.

    He then urged the court to halt the harassment of the star witness in the petition before a governorship election petition tribunal challenging INEC’s declaration of the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Adamawa Governor, Ahmadu Fintiri, as the winner on Sunday, April 16, 2023.

    Aondoakaa told the court that according to the relevant laws, since Binani had been declared by the INEC, the declaration could only be legally and authentically reversed, by a court of competent jurisdiction or a tribunal, adding that all parties have joined issues at the tribunal on the legality of the declaration of the Plaintiff initially, and its subsequent cancellation by INEC.

  • Okorocha seeks court’s permission to travel for medical treatment

    Sen. Rochas Okorocha has sought an order of a Federal High Court, Abuja, granting him leave to travel to the United States (U.S.) for medical treatment.

    Okorocha, through his lawyer, Daniel Alumun, made this known on Thursday when the matter came up before Justice Inyang Ekwo.

    Alumun, however, informed the court, shortly when the case was called, that he was unable to serve the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), the complainant/respondent, with the motion.

    Newsmen reports that the EFCC counsel was not in court.

    Justice Ekwo consequently adjourned the matter until July 6 for a hearing of the motion.

    In a motion on notice marked: FHC /ABJ/CS/28/2022 dated June 22 and filed June 27 by Okey Amaechi, SAN, Okorocha sought an order granting him leave to travel outside Nigeria for medical treatment; and return before Nov. 7, being the next adjourned date for his trial.

    The senator representing Imo West Senatorial District also sought a consequential order for the release of his Nigerian international travel passport booklet, which was deposited with the court registrar in partial fulfilment of the conditions for the bail granted to him.

    He further sought for “a consequential order that reliefs(1} and (2) above be communicated by the registrar of this honourable court to the Nigerian Immigration Service, to facilitate the passage of the applicant.

    “An order directing the 1st defendant/applicant to return his international passport to the registrar of the honourable court upon his return to Nigeria.”

    The lawmaker, who gave three grounds why the reliefs sought should be granted, said he was admitted to bail pending trial in charge number: FHC/ABJ/28/2022.

    He said he has duly complied with all the terms of the bail including depositing his travel documents with the registrar of the court.

    He said prior to his arraignment, he had “undergone medical surgery at the Ambulatory Surgery Centre, Texas, the U.S. for distal femur fracture, which he sustained in an accident.”

    According to Okorocha, he has been on regular/scheduled care and treatment at the same Ambulatory Surgery Center, where he has been scheduled for further medical tests, observation and treatment on July 19, 2022 or immediately thereafter.

    He was alleged to have laundered the funds while serving as governor of Imo.

    Others arraigned are Anyim  Chinenye, Naphtali International Limited, Perfect Finish Multi Projects Limited, Consolid Projects Consulting Limited, Pramif International Limited, and Legend World Concepts Limited as 2nd to 7th defendants respectively.

  • NBA dragged to court over disciplinary action bid

    NBA dragged to court over disciplinary action bid

    An Abuja High Court has been approached by a legal practitioner, Bartholomew Okafor—Oyilo, to set aside the findings of the Nigerian Bar Association, NBA, which recommended him for disciplinary action based on a legal opinion he rendered as Special Assistant to the Deputy Governor of Anambra State.

     

    The plaintiff in a writ of summon against the NBA and the Secretary of the NBA Disciplinary Committee, Emeka Onyeaka, said he was not given fair hearing before the association made the findings against him.

     

    Okafor-Oyilo, in an affidavit he deposed to, obtained by journalists on Tuesday, said he wrote a legal opinion to the then Deputy Governor of Anambra State, who was also the Chairman of the State’s Boundary Committee on a land dispute between Ukpo and Abba communities in Anambra State.

     

    According to him, the legal opinion was leaked to one of the parties in the land dispute (the applicant for boundary demarcation).

     

    He said, “On June 24 2019, the applicants for the boundary demarcation through their solicitors, wrote to me to recount my legal opinion with veiled threat against my person.

     

    “Owing to my refusal to recount the said legal opinion, the said party through their legal representative, on August 6, 2019, filed a petition to the NBA Headquarters against me and two other lawyers alleging, amongst others, that we filed a motion to re-litigate a matter already concluded by the Supreme Court.”

     

    Okafor-Oyilo said the NBA asked him to respond to the petition and that he filed his response.

    However, the lawyer said he did not receive any invitation from the association to enable him attend any hearing against him, only for him to read in newspapers that he had been invited to face the NBA’s Disciplinary Panel.

     

    He, therefore, asked the court to declare that the findings of the defendants and recommendation as ultra vires, illegal, null and void and of no effect.

     

    He also sought a declaration that he was entitled to own an opinion on a decision of the Supreme Court and such opinion is protected under Section 39 (1) of the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended).

     

    Okafor-Oyilo asked the court to hold that he was denied fair hearing by the constitution of the committee and non-service of the notice of hearing of the committee.

     

    While asking the court to set aside the findings and recommendation of the NBA, he also asked the court to award him damages in the sum of N10m against the defendants.

  • DCP Abba Kyari,others to get judgment on Monday in Abuja

    DCP Abba Kyari,others to get judgment on Monday in Abuja

    The fate of DCP Abba Kyari and four other who were involved in the 25kg cocaine deal will be decided by Abuja division of the federal High court.

    The NDLEA has filed multiple applications before the court bordering on the incident preparatory to charging them to court.

    Sources from the court informed Saturday Sun that the court is expected to rule on some of the decisions, including the one seeking an abridgement of time which was filed on Thursday by lawyers from the agency.

    The motion for accelerated hearing is to fast track the determination of the preliminary issues which are conditions precedent for the official filing of charges against the suspects.

    Others to be charged alongside Kyari are ACP Sunday J. Ubua; ASP Bawa James; Inspector Simon Agirgba and Inspector John Nuhu.

    They are currently in the custody of the NDLEA where they are being investigated on allegations on involvement in a drug deal.

    Besides the application for the abridgement of time, the agency has equally filed an application seeking a warrant to detain the suspects in its facility beyond the statutory period of 48 hours.

    The 1999 Nigerian constitution clearly states that persons arrested or detained shall be brought before a court within a “reasonable time”.

    According to the constitution, the reasonable time means a period of 24 hours when a court of competent jurisdiction is within a radius of 40 kilometres to the police station or a period of two days in any other case. The NDLEA had on Monday February 14, declared Kyari wanted for aiding and abetting drug pushing and running his own cartel.

    Five hours after the declaration, the Nigerian Police Force handed over the suspended DCP Abba Kyari, and four others to the anti-narcotic agency for interrogation.

    The suspects have been in the custody of the agency since Monday, a period exceeding the constitutional time limit for charging an accused person to Court.

    The application by the agency for a detention warrant of the suspects is to make their detention beyond the constitutional period legal.

    NDLEA’s Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi confirmed to Saturday Sun that a team of lawyers from the legal department of agency have filed necessary applications including the proof of evidence containing the statements extracted from Kyari and other suspects in the 25kg cocaine saga.

    Babafemi disclosed that NDLEA has equally sought for a warrant that would enable it keep the suspects beyond the statutory period of time pending the conclusion of investigations on the matter.

    He explained that a reasonable time is needed to allow the agency to critically examined the exhibits and other evidence that would be used to strengthen it’s case against the suspects.

    Recall that DCP Abba Kyari was arrested by NDLEA for his involvement in a cocaine deal .

  • EndSARS: Abuja Federal High Court shutdown

    EndSARS: Abuja Federal High Court shutdown

    The Federal High Court (FHC), Abuja, was, on Thursday, shutdown amidst the ongoing #EndSARS protests across the country.

    When the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) visited the court, the gate was under lock.

    One of the private guard officers manning the gate told NAN that the office did not open for the day’s work.

    Some of the visitors and litigants who came around were not allowed access into the building.

    NAN reports that judges and staff were directed to close for the day’s activities on Wednesday.

    The instruction, which might not be unconnected with the nationwide protests by young Nigerians against the police brutality, made everybody within the vicinity of the court to hurriedly packed their personal effects and vacate the building.

    It would also be recalled that hoodlums, on Wednesday, attacked some structures in Lagos during which some buildings were torched, among which was the state’s High Court.