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Court Adjourns Ruling in Atiku, Keyamo Case

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The Federal High Court, Abuja, presided over by Honourable Justice James Omotosho, in Suit No: FHC/ABJ/CS/84/2023, on Tuesday May 3, 3023, adjourned for ruling, the preliminary objection filed by Prof. Mike Ozekhome, SAN, on behalf of Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, against the suit instituted against him by the Minister of State, for Labour and Employment, Mr. Festus Keyamo, SAN.

Atiku had through his counsel, Prof. Ozekhome, raised a preliminary objection to the suit to the effect that Keyamo lacks locus standi to file the suit, having not disclosed what he has suffered above other members of the public, especially as he filed the suit as a public officer using his public position. He said the Plaintiff had not disclosed any wrong done to him by Atiku, or what damage he had suffered, describing him as a busy body and meddlesome interloper. Atiku also argued that the suit disclosed no reasonable cause of action.

Atiku had, in the Preliminary Objection, urged the court to dismiss Keyamo’s suit which accused him of using an SPV to corruptly enrich himself while he was Vice President of Nigeria, as purportedly revealed in an affidavit allegedly deposed to by one Michael Achimugu. The allegation had led Keyamo to write to the EFCC, CCB and ICPC to investigate and prosecute Atiku. In addition, Keyamo filed the suit urging the court to direct the anti-graft agencies to prosecute Atiku as a public duty.

Atiku also argued through Ozekhome that the Plaintiff’s suit is incompetent having been filed without leave of the court being first sought and granted on a matter for judicial review, seeking an order of mandamus to compel public officers to perform their statutory duties.

He also argued that the Plaintiff’s suit constitutes a gross abuse of office, the Plaintiff being a public officer occupying a public office and using public funds to bring an action against a private individual to confer a private gain on himself and his political party.

Atiku also urged the court to dismiss and/or strike out the suit for not being initiated by due process of law; and the proper parties not being before the court, as the Attorney-General of the Federation who is the Chief Law Officer of the Federation vested with the prosecutorial powers of the Federation by the 1999 Constitution was not joined as a party to the suit. Ozekhome also urged the court to dismiss the case because it was statute-barred under the Public Officers Protection Act, LFN, 2004, as complaints involved allegedly took place between 1999 and 2007 when he was the Vice President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, and while he acted in his capacity as a public officer.

The entire suit, Ozekhome also contended, was instituted in bad faith; constitutes an abuse of court process; and is frivolous and vexatious; and therefore constitutes a waste of the precious time of the court and the parties.

The EFCC in its preliminary objection, filed through its counsel, Samuel Okeleke Esq, also aligned with the argument of Atiku, that the case of the Plaintiff was for judicial review, yet he failed to seek the leave of court before filing same. ICPC on its own part contended in its preliminary objection filed by its counsel, O.B Odogbu Esq, that the acts complained about by the Plaintiff were done before the establishment Act of the Commission came into effect.

When the case came up for hearing before Justice Omotosho on 3rd May, 2023, Benson Igbanoi, Esq, holding Prof. Ozekhome’s brief and leading Okueyelegbe Sylvanus Maliki and others for Atiku, informed the court that the Plaintiff did not file any response to Atiku’s Preliminary Objection which was served on him since the 20th of February 2023 contrary to order 26 rule 4 of the Federal High Court (Civil Procedure) Rules, 2019, which provides that the Plaintiff shall respond to Atiku’s objection within seven (7) days from the said 20th February, 2023, when same was served on him. He urged the court to take the Preliminary Objection as unchallenged and strike out and or dismiss the case of the Plaintiff as the purported counter affidavit filed by the Plaintiff was incompetent. However, the Plaintiff through his counsel, O.C. Uju Azu, Esq. responded that by the provisions of order 29 Rule 4 of the rules of the court, his time to respond to the objection of Atiku only started running from the time the Originating Process was served on him personally. The court however wondered whether there was any rule of court that supports this argument, that a party cannot file a preliminary objection when he has knowledge of a suit against him before he is personally served the processes. The court after hearing argument on this, reserved ruling to the 5th of June, 2023, on the competence or otherwise of the counter affidavit of Keyamo to the Preliminary Objection of Atiku which was filed belatedly without leave of court, till the time when a composite ruling shall be delivered on all the Preliminary Objections filed by parties.

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Mohbad: Sam Larry Now in Our Custody, Police Confirm

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The Lagos State Police Command has arrested controversial Lagos socialite, Balogun Eletu, aka Sam Larry, over an ongoing investigation into the circumstances leading to the death of the singer, Ilerioluwa Aloba, aka Mohbad.

The Lagos State Police Command Public Relations Officer, SP Benjamin Hundeyin, confirmed the development to The Punch in a late Thursday night telephone interview.

“Yes, Balogun Eletu aka Sam Larry is now in our custody. He is currently assisting with the ongoing investigation,” Hundeyin said.

The police had earlier invited Sam Larry and singer, Azeez Fashola aka Naira Marley, for questioning over Mohbad’s demise.

The police, last week, also confirmed that pathologists had concluded the autopsy conducted on Mohbad, while they await the result.

He said, “Autopsy has been concluded. Awaiting results.” This development followed the exhumation of Mohbad by a combined team of the Nigeria Police Force and health officials.

The police had also arrested the nurse who reportedly injected the deceased singer before his demise on Tuesday, September 12.

The Punch

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Kaduna: Tribunal Affirms Sani’s Election, Dismisses PDP’s Petition

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The Kaduna State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Kaduna has dismissed petition brought by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its candidate in the 2023 election, Isah Ashiru, against the victory of Governor Uba Sani of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

However, in a dissenting judgment of two against one, delivered on Thursday, a three-member panel headed by Justice Victor Oviawie dismissed the petition on the ground that the pre-hearing notice was filed out of time, and therefore deemed to be abandoned.

The tribunal chairman and another member held that the appeal brought by PDP and Ashiru against the dismissal of their petition at the preliminary stage by the first and second defendants was not meritorious because the filing of the pre-hearing notice was abandoned and out of time, and therefore had dealt the entire petition a fatal blow.

The tribunal, however, noted that if the petition had not been dismissed for lack of merit, it would have ordered a supplementary election in 22 polling units within 90 days in the substantive judgment.

Senator Sani, during the election polled a total of 730,001 votes to defeat his closest rival, Ashiru of the PDP, who scored 719, 196 votes.

The Labour Party (LP) candidate, Jonathan Asake, came third with 58,283 votes, while Suleiman Hunkuyi of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) scored 21,405 votes.

While the Labour Party and NNPP accepted the outcome of the election, the PDP and its candidate rejected the results, alleging that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared the wrong candidate winner of the election.

Besides, the PDP and Ashiru alleged that there were massive irregularities and manipulation of results in favour of Governor Ubah in some local governments by INEC. According to them, the APC candidate did not score the highest number of valid votes cast in the election and ought not to have been returned winner of the election by INEC.

In June 2023, PDP and Ashiru, however, filed a petition at the election petition tribunal to challenge the election of Governor Uba.

At the last sitting of the court on September 3rd, all parties presented their final written addresses before the tribunal, with APC’s legal team led by a former Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Bayo Ojo (SAN), arguing that the petitioners had helped in proving he won the election free and fair, pointing in particular to the admission of a star witness for the petitioner, Bonett Gwazah, a senior system analyst in the VR/ICT department of INEC in Kaduna State.

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NiMET Alerts FCT, Edo, 23 States of 48-Hour Downpour

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The Nigerian Meteorological Agency has notified the residents of the Federal Capital Territory, Edo, Kwara, and 22 other states of 48-hour downpour beginning on Thursday.

In its weekly heavy rainfall forecast bulletin released on Wednesday, the agency told the residents to also expect flash floods.
Other states listed are Katsina, Kano, Jigawa, Bauchi, Gombe, Plateau, Borno, Adamawa, Taraba, Kaduna, Niger, Nasarawa, Kogi, Enugu, Delta, Bayelsa, Abia, Anambra, Akwa Ibom, Cross River, Ebonyi, Kwara, and Benue.

The bulletin reads: “Moderate to heavy rainfall is expected within the forecast period (Thursday 28th and Friday 29th, September 2023) over parts of Katsina, Kano, Jigawa, Bauchi, Gombe, Plateau, Borno, Adamawa, Taraba, Kaduna, Niger, Nasarawa, Kogi, Enugu, Edo, Delta, and Bayelsa.

Other States are: “Abia, Anambra, Akwa Ibom, Cross River, Ebonyi, Kwara, Benue State and the Federal Capital Territory.”

On the likely impact of the rains, NiMet warned: “The expected moderate to heavy rainfall is expected to cause some flash flooding over their areas of occurrence.

“Strong winds should accompany the rains with the strongest winds expected over parts of Adamawa, Borno, Gombe, Bauchi, Yobe, Jigawa, Kano, Katsina, Zamfara, Sokoto, and Kebbi State.”

The agency cautioned residents against driving through surface runoff waters, as they have strong undercurrents.

It identified slippery road surfaces and reduced visibility as other hazards that may be triggered by the downpour.

The Punch

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