Ogun State Independent Electoral Commission (OGSIEC) Chair Alhaja Riskat Ogunfemi yesterday urged the Federal High Court in Lagos to dismiss a suit seeking to commit her to prison for alleged contempt.
The state Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) faction under the leadership of Adebayo Dayo is praying Justice Ibrahim Buba to jail her and five others for violating a court order.
The judge yesterday refused to entertain an ex-parte application by the plaintiffs to serve the contempt charge on the alleged contemnors by substituted means.
The plaintiffs’ counsel, Mrs. Ifeoma Esom, had prayed the court to grant the ex-parte application, saying she was only able to serve OGSIEC.
But the judge refused the application because, according to him, he could not ignore the alleged contemnors’ pending preliminary objection.
Justice Buba held: “The preliminary objection already filed shall be adjourned to be heard.”
Dayo and Semiu Sodipo are suing for themselves and on behalf of Ogun PDP’s executive committee.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), PDP, factional chairman Ali Modu Sheriff, the faction’s secretary, Prof Wale Oladipo, Tunde Alekuwodo and the Inspector-General of Police are the defendants in the substantive suit.
The applicants, on September 30, began committal proceedings against Mrs. Ogunfemi and others for an allegation of “aiding and abetting” the alleged commission of contempt by the defendants.
The PDP executives said the alleged contemnors, including OGSIEC, recognised another faction of the PDP and its list of candidates while the suit was pending.
The Dayo-led executive is challenging OGSIEC’s decision not to accept the list of its chairmanship and councillorship candidates.
Those listed for committal are Mrs. Ogunfemi, Mutiu Agboke, Chief Akinlola, Alhaji Lawal, Sirikulai Ogundele and Tolu Bankole.
But Mrs. Ogunfemi, Agboke, Akintola and Lawal, through their lawyer, Wahab Ismail, in a notice of preliminary objection, said the applicants “have failed woefully” to fulfill the conditions preceding the initiation of committal proceedings.
They said the motion for committal was not served on them, adding that they were not parties to the suit that produced the order relied upon in the committal application.
Justice Buba adjourned until November 1 for hearing.