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Tag: Court

  • Court to hear Isara-Remo kingship tussle Nov. 10

    Court to hear Isara-Remo kingship tussle Nov. 10

    An Ogun State High Court sitting in Sagamu has fixed November 10 for hearing of a suit by Prince Adetayo Odunsi challenging the nomination of Albert Mayungbe to the stool of Odemo of Isara, Remo.

    The co-defendants in the suit number HCS/158/2013 are the head of the ruling house, Prince Obafemi Awoyade; Secretary, Remo North Local Government; Oliwo of Isara, Chief Ajibowu Ogunfowodu; Apena of Isara, Chief Jimoh Soyombo; Chief Ladipo Ogunyemi; Ogbeni Odi of Isara, Chief Olaj.

    Others are Ekeji Asipa Odi of Isara, Chief Efuwape Sotikare; Olori Emo of Isara, Chief Bashiru Awoniyi; Ekeji Olori Emo of Isara, Chief Korede Ogunwole; Asipa Emo of Isara, Chief Nosiru Sodipe; Ekeji Asipa Emo, Chief Adewole Sopitan; Governor of Ogun State; Executive Council  of  Ogun   State; the state’s Commissioner for Chieftaincy and Local Government and the state’s Attorney-General and  Commissioner for Justice as second to 18th defendants respectively.

    Hearing in the matter, which was initially fixed for last Thursday, failed to commence as the trial judge, Justice Olugboyega Ogunfowora, has been transferred to Ota from Sagamu.

    Although parties in the matter and their counsels were present in court  and prepared for arguments  and  submissions, the new judge, Justice A. A. Babawale said she would need to acquaint herself first with all case files that have gone through pre-hearing stages, consequent upon which the new adjourned date was mutually agreed on for commencement of hearing.

    In his 32-point’ statement of claim, Prince  Odunsi, who is a direct descendant of the late Oba Oyemade Mayungbe and progenitor of Erinsiba-Ayoledoye Ruling House, had averred that he is the one lawfully entitled to the stool of Odemo of Isara-Remo.

    Giving a chronological order of the Obas produced by the ruling house, he averred that their progenitor was Rosanlu, also known as Erinsiba and that “Rosanlu begat Oyetade, who in turn begat Oyemade, also known as Mayungbe alias Ayoledoye” adding that, Mayungbe had four wives of which Arobo was the third.

    The claimant averred that as at the time Mayungbe, alias Ayoledoye, married Arobo, who hailed from Akure, she came with a male child by name Ogunsakin from her earlier marriage and that when he later became king, he accommodated Ogunsakin in the palace in his lifetime.                                                          The claimant averred that when Oba Oyetade Mayungbe ascended the throne,  and “in order to differentiate Ogunsakin, his stepson and an outsider, from other children in the palace, he made Ogunsakin an “Odi” meaning a servant to the king.

    He averred that under Yoruba custom and tradition applicable in Isara-Remo, an “Odi” is not a member of a ruling house and can never qualify for nomination into the stool of Odemo of Isara-Remo” and that Ogunsakin also served as “Odi” to Oba Poke, the successor to Oba Oyetade Mayungbe.

    To buttress his claim, he averred further that “Ogunsakin begat Oyekunle, who in turn begat the first defendant and that upon the death of Ogunsakin,  Oyekunle, his son, the father of the first defendant, also served as “Odi” to two successive Obas in Isara-Remo, the late Oba Samuel Akinsanya and late Oba Adeboboye Osideinde”.

    He further averred that the selection of the first defendant as Odemo-elect “is wrongful and should be declared null and void on the ground that he is not a member of Erinsiba-Ayoledoye Ruling House, but a lineage of past Odis in Isara-Remo and thus not qualified for nomination as a candidate for the Odemo of Isara chieftaincy.

    Odunsi sought seven prayers and orders against the defendants: “A declaration  that the first defendant is not a member of the Erinsiba-Adyoledoye Ruling House and therefore not qualified to contest for the stool; that under native law and custom applicable in Isara and Remoland generally, an Odi (servant of the king) or any of his descendants is not qualified to contest for the stool of Odemo of Isara; that the first defendant’s late grandfather and father, late Ogunsakin and Oyekunle Mayungbe were Odi to the late Oba Samuel Akinsanya and late Oba Adeboboye Osideinde and therefore, not qualified to aspire or to be considered for nomination to the stool”.

    He, therefore, sought an order of the court setting aside the nomination exercise of Erinsiba/Ayoledoye ruling house held on February 21, 2011 at which meeting the first defendant emerged as one of the candidates for the Odemo of Isara chieftaincy; an order setting aside the decision of the kingmakers selecting or electing the first defendant as the candidate for the Odemo of Isara chieftaincy.

    The claimant is also seeking an order setting aside any recommendation, if any, made by the 19th defendant and generally by the 15th, 17th and 18th defendants in relation to the first defendant as the Odemo-elect of Isara-Remo and an order directing the third defendant to issue a fresh notice to the second defendant, as head of Erinsiba/Ayoledoye, to summon a fresh meeting of the ruling house for the purpose of nominating candidates to fill the vacant stool of Odemo of Isara, to the exclusion of the first defendant.

    In their statement of defence and counter claim, the first, second, sixth to tenth and 14th defendants admitted some of the averments of the claimant and denied others.

    The first defendant, Albert Mayungbe, insisted on being a “bonafide member  and descendant of the Erinsiba/Ayoledoye Ruling House and that the late Oba Mayungbe, aside from being a trader, met and married Arobo in Akure where Ogunsakin, his grandfather, was born.

    He further claimed that “Odis” in Isara are not servants to the Obas, but appointed from among the royal houses and trusted relations and that his grandfather, Ogunsakin,  rendered assistance to Oba Samuel Akinsanya and that in appreciation, he appointed his son, Oyekunle Mayungbe as his “Odi” contrary to the claims of the claimant.

    The defendants averred that the meeting of the kingmakers held March 3, 2011 for the selection/appointment of a candidate to fill the vacant stool  was held at Odemo’s palace with nine kingmakers in attendance, including the D.P.O. and O/C  S.S.S.

    The defendants claimed that the cultural law alluded to by the claimant was never part of the Isara law as claimed by the claimant and that the Paramount Ruler of Remoland, Oba Micheal Sonariwo, has no role to play in the selection process and that he is not a consenting authority for Odemo of Isara-Remo.

    They contended that there is no custom in Isara-Remo barring an Odi’s son from being crowned an Oba and sought five prayers from the court.

    They prayed the court to hold that the first defendant is a bonafide member of the Erinsiba/Ayoledoye Ruling House and for a  declaration that since he is not an Odi himself, he is entitled to contest for the vacant stool of Odemo of Isara-Remo; that the nomination exercise conducted February 21, 2011 at which he was purportedly named candidate was proper and valid; that his selection and nomination by the kingmakers at their meeting of March 3, 2011 as oba-elect was proper and valid.

    They also prayed the court for an order of mandamus compelling the 15th and 16th defendants to give approval to the appointment of the first defendant as the new Odemo-elect of Isara-Remo.

    But the claimant, in his reply to the statement of defence and counter claim of the first, second, sixth to tenth and 14th defendants contended that the first defendant is not a bonafide member and descendant of the Erinsiba/Ayoledoye Ruling House.

    The claimant further contended that even though Ogunsakin was a child of Arobo, he was not fathered by the late Oba Mayungbe and that the late monarch was never a trader who lived in Akure, but was an Ifa Priest and a pig rearer based in Isara, emphasising that there was never a time he travelled to or live in Akure.

    The claimant averred that as at the time Mayungbe married Arobo, he was already a king in Isara and married to two wives and that it was while he was on the throne that Arobo came to Isara with a child known as Ogunsakin and was accomodated in the palace because she had no place to sleep, adding that Oba Mayungbe later took interest in her and married her.

    He also maintained that Chief Akinola Akinsanya was never an Odi to Oba Samuel Adetayo Akinsanya, but was the first to be honoured with the Chieftaincy title of Otunba by the monarch and that Architect Pasiko Onadeko was also never  an Odi to his brother, Oba A.I. Onadeko.

    The claimant contended that the fact that the first defendant was named a surety during his search for a job does not translate that he is a prince or that they are both from same ruling house or give the first defendant the right to participate in the selection process for the vacant stool. He therefore prayed the court to dismiss the counter claim of the defendants with punitive costs.

    Meanwhile, the Akarigbo, who is one of the four witnesses listed by the claimant, has already filed an affidavit before the  Sagamu High Court, Ogun State.

    Oba Sonariwo, who is also the paramount ruler of Remoland, had in his averments, raised objections to the nomination of Mayungbe by the kingmakers, in a letter dated April 12, 2011 addressed to the Caretaker Committee, Remo North Local Government, alleging that Mayungbe is not of royal blood, in response to the enquiry of the Remo North Local Government which sought his consent on the nomination of Albert Mayungbe.

    The monarch believed he should not have been nominated and subsequently declined to give his consent to the choice of Mayungbe purportedly by the Erinsiba/Ayoledoye Ruling House.

    He referred to the objection raised by one Prince Olufemi Omoyele, who is alleging the first defendant to be an Odi, and submitted that it was “well founded”.

    The stool of Odemo of Isara, Remo, has remained vacant for eight years since the demise of the former ruler of the ancient town, Oba (Engr.) Idowu Onadeko.

     

  • Gas supply threatened as firm defies court order

    Gas supply threatened as firm defies court order

    Italian oil giant – Nigerian Agip Oil Company (NAOC) – is locked in a battle with Arco Group Plc., an indigenous oil servicing firm. The crisis may trigger shortage in gas supply nationwide as a major gas plant is threatened, reports Assistant Editor Seun Akioye. 

    It doesn’t require an expert to know  that all is not well at the Nigerian Agip Oil Company (NAOC) gas plant in OB/OB Omoku, in Ogba, Egbema, Ndoni Local Government Area of Rivers State. From the entrance, one could see a giant gas flare being accompanied by a thick, black smoke  from the three gas pipes in the plant.

    Employees at the gas plant blamed  the heavy black smoke and the unusual high flare on inadequate maintenance of the plant. For more than a year, the operation at the plant has been a subject of litigation. Locked in the legal tussle are: an indigenous oil and gas engineering company, Arco Group, NAOC and an engineering firm, Plantgeria Nigeria Limited. Plantegeria has strong Italian roots.

    In 2006, Arco Group and its erstwhile partner, General Electric International Operations Nigeria Limited (GEION), won a contract in a Joint Venture involving the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and NAOC Limited to maintain the latter’s rotating equipment, gas turbines and machines at NAOC’s OB/OB, Kwale and Ebocha gas plants in Delta and Rivers states.

    The initial contract ran from 2006 to 2011, with Arco responsible for the maintenance of the plants rotating equipment, including the turbines, the centrifugal and reciprocating compressor. The company was also mandated to do preventive, corrective maintenance and general overhaul. However, trouble began when both Arco and GEION were requested to submit a proposal. But, NAOC, a party to the joint venture deal, allegedly had other plans. It allegedly introduced a fresh company – Plantgeria – and decided to award the contract to it against the directives of the Joint Partners.

     

    Between the law and an erring company

    Arco instituted an action at the Federal High Court in Port Harcourt on January 27 against NAOC, joining the NNPC, NAPIMS and Conoco Philips Petroleum Nigeria Ltd as co-defendants. The plaintiff was seeking several declarative and injunctive reliefs against the defendants jointly and severally. It also urged the court to restrain the parties from “awarding or taking any step or steps to award to any person, company or firm, except to the plaintiff company, any contract whether designated as interim, stop-gap, 4+1 years or whatsoever described….for the maintenance of gas turbines and rotating equipment.”

    In a string of retraining orders delivered June 30, the Presiding Judge, Lambo Akanbi, ordered “the parties to maintain the status quo” while adjourning the case to October 26.  excited by the court’s order, counsel to Arco Group, Chief Wole Olanipekun, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, (SAN), said “the judge has strengthened the key principle which ensures that the substance of a case in dispute remains intact until the case is disposed of to avoid destroying the major aspect of a matter after ruling had been obtained.”

    But, Olanipekun’s excitment was not shared by all the parties as investigations by The Nation showed that NAOC, has blatantly flouted court order by going ahead to hire Plantgeria Nigeria Limited to take over the servicing of the gas plant.

    It was learnt that on October 7,  at the OB/OB plant in Omoku, ARCO worker were denied access into the processing gates of the plant by NAOC security and Plantgeria officials.

    The Nation discovered that trouble started on July 7  when the Land Area Manager of OB/OB, instructed that Plantgeria would henceforth take over the maintenance of the gas plants, a directive that ran foul of a substantive court order, restricting all parties from further action on the matter.

    “We were told that Plantgeria would now be managing the plant and we were restricted from the process gate. But because there is a court order asking that the status quo be maintained until the court decides on the case, we have been coming to work, but they didn’t allow us to touch anything. We are restricted to our base within the premises, whatever the court says when the matter comes up is what we will abide with,” an Arco official, who pleaded for anonymity said.

     

    Threat to gas supply

    Further investigations showed  that, Plantgeria has been battling to maintain the gas plants since July. Some of its employees were seen moving around the plant and The Nation confirmed that the company has taken charge of gas maintenance   at OB/OB. A source wondered why a company, with its primary expertise in auto mechanic, generator repairs and equipment leasing was could be hired for such technical job.

    “But Plantgeria does not have the required expertise to handle the gas plants and they have been having a tough time. When we were in charge, we maintain at 97/98 per cent but what we have now since Plantgeria took over is less than 50 per cent. That is the reason for the black smoke and the huge flare that you see. It is not supposed to be like this,” a source said.

    Though claim could not be independently verified, another source alleged that the community has not enjoyed electricity supply since July.  It was learnt that the turbo generator, which generates power has not been serviced by Plantgeria. No official reason was given for this but many insisted that it was because the company lacked the expertise.

    The poor management of the OB/OB gas plant has resulted in environmental problems for the community. Apart from the unbridled gas flare which further threatens the country’s efforts at mitigating climate change, the development has further dented iNigeria’s commitment to implementing the United Nations (UN) Strategic Development Goals (SDGs).  The gas plant and many of the houses around it have blackened roofs and whenever it rains, black soot  drops on water sources and homes of the residents.

    This situation, it was learnt, has forced Plantgeria to poach Arco workers.

    “We understand that NAOC told them to go and get Arco staff if they want to succeed. They have called for me and many of our staff to come and join them. They are offering juicy incentives but there is no way we would leave our company. They know we have the experience and expertise. We have successfully maintained this plant and the others even when the foreign companies abandoned the site due to militancy, we were here working,” a source within Arco Group said.

    The OB/OB gas plant is strategic to Nigeria’s quest for a stable electricity supply, one of the cardinal promises of President Muhammadu Buhari. According to The Nation investigations, the OB/OB gas plant has an average capacity to produce 40,000,000 Metric Standard Cubic Feet (MSCF) of gas.  The average monthly gas supply to Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas Company (NLNG) Bonny is 28,000,000 MSCF.

    “If you cannot maintain the plants properly and it results in a breakdown, whatever gains Nigeria has achieved in electricity generation and distribution will be affected and this will be against the plans of the federal Government,” Denis Ayisire, Arco’s company secretary said.

    It was further gathered that NAOC may bar Arco workers from entering their own base inside the gas plant from October 20. This, according to sources, is to preempt the court ruling billed for October 26.

    The disregard for court orders by the multinational oil companies will have dire consequences for indigenous companies, who are being muscled out of the sector by bigger players.

    “Where is the local content law here which is supposed to protect an indigenous company like Arco? The disregard for court orders and impunity which is being carried out here must be checked because it has consequences for other indigenous companies in Nigeria. If this is allowed, then our country has shown that local companies do not have the support of their own government,” Ayisire said.

    Arco currently has about 131 workers working on the gas plants and over 400 on its payroll.  According to an employee, if the company loses the battle, what will happen to Nigerians with the required skills who will be thrown into the job market?

    “We will be affected, our wives and children, the chain effect on the economy. What will be the lot of other indigenous companies in this sector and others? What is the rationale for pushing us out, we have been the ones doing the job and we have not been found wanting,” the source said.

    When The Nation contacted the Corporate Affairs section of Plantgeria at the company’s headquarters on Danjuma Road, Trans Amadi Industrial layout, Port Harcourt, the company declined comment on the matter. “We do not attend to such enquiries,” the company said. Also efforts to get NAOC to comment were abortive, but in a previous interview, Taju Adigun, Manager, Government & Institutional Relations, said:  “Why do you want to write about it. Are you aware the case is in court? The ethics of journalism as I know it stipulates you can’t write about a case already in court and I think you should know that.”

    The fate of Arco and other indigenous companies in the face of fallout with a multinational company remained unknown. But as industry watchers have noted, this will be one case that will test the resolve of President Buhari on cleaning up the oil and gas industry and empowering competent indigenous firms.

  • Court jails rapist, cultist 21 years

    A middle aged man, Super Ojo from Akaba in Yenagoa Local Government Area, Bayelsa State, has been sentenced to 21 years in prison for conspiracy, gang raping and belonging to a secret society.
    Ojo popularly known as Bestman was convicted by a state High Court sitting in Yenagoa, on Friday.
    The High Court 2 presided over by Justice Margaret Akpomiemie found Ojo guilty of conspiracy, actual rape and being a member of secret cult known as the Bobos.
    On the count of conspiracy, Ojo bagged five years in prison; 21 years for rape and two years for being a member of the Bobos. The sentences would run concurrently.
    The convict and nine other members of his gang raped a lady at a bush in Akaba and forcefully initiated her into their secret cult.
    On the fateful day, Ojo and four other persons who were armed with matchetes and guns stormed the home of the lady and accosted her and her brother.
    When neighbours came out to intervene, the convict who was reportedly dreaded in the community ordered them back to their house.
    They dragged the lady into a nearby bush where five other persons were waiting, blinded-folded her and each of them took turns on her.
    As they raped her, they made her to shout a slogan of their cult group and later gave her a matchete cut at the back as a symbol of the initiation.
    The rapists later took her to a place where she took her bath and they later asked her to go home.
    But she collapsed on her way home and was rescued and rushed to the hospital by a Good Samaritan.
    The young lady who spent many weeks in the hospital and at a point attempted suicide later reported the matter to the police who laid a trap for the rapists and arrested Ojo.
    Members of Ojo’s gang threatened to kill the brother of the victim if he failed to secure Ojo’s freedom and few days later the brother was attacked and killed with matchetes.

  • Messi, father to appear in court on tax fraud charges

    Messi, father to appear in court on tax fraud charges

    Argentine forward Lionel Messi and his father Jorge have been ordered to appear in court on charges of defrauding Spanish tax authorities.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the amount involved is worth more than four million euros (about $4.5 million; about N990 million).

    Spain’s public prosecutor has recommended a jail sentence totaling 18 months and fines of more than two million euros for Jorge Messi.

    This is for allegedly defrauding the state of 4.2 million euros for the years 2007-2009.

    The prosecutor has however argued that Lionel Messi should not have to answer the charges as his father oversaw his finances.

    But a court document published on Thursday showed the judge in the case had ruled that the FC Barcelona player must still appear as a defendant.

    The hearings will take place at a court in Vilanova i la Geltru, near Barcelona, the document said.

    The court had previously ruled that Messi could have known about it all.

    It also said he could have approved the creation of a web of shell companies which were allegedly used to evade taxes on income from image rights.

    Revenue had been hidden using companies in Uruguay, Belize, Switzerland and the UK, according to the prosecutor’s office.

    Previously, Messi and his father paid five million euros to the tax authorities as a “corrective payment’’ after they were formally charged in June 2013.

    The footballer has been resident in Barcelona since 2000 and gained Spanish citizenship in 2005.

    He is 10th on Forbes Magazine’s list of the world’s highest-earning athletes over the past decade with income of $350 million.

  • Benue varsity builds basketball court

    Benue varsity builds basketball court

    The Speaker of the Benue State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Terkimbi Ikyange, has commissioned a Basketball Court built by the Benue State University (BSU). The court, located behind the College of Medical Science, was built for medical students for them participate in extracurricular activities.

    Speaking at the event, state chairman of Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), represented by Dr Sam Sule, said he was elated by the development, encouraging students to always take part in exercise and sport.

    He said: “I am pleased with the development. NMA believes medical students should demonstrate fitness to represent their medical college in major competitions. So, I encourage the students to participate in sports just as they take their studies seriously.”

    President of Benue State University Medical Students Association (BESUMSA), Moses Agbulu, promised to mobilise students for sporting activities. The Students’ Union Government (SUG) president, Martins Orjime, praised the school management for providing the facilities to help students discover their potentials.

    He said: “Students, who have flare for basketball, can now train on the campus. I will advise the medical students to maintain the facility and use it to develop their talents.”

    Msonter Anzaa, a 400-Level Medicine and Surgery student, hailed the management and BESUMSA for the project. “As we now have a basketball court in the college, who knows if the school will produce the world champion in the game?” he said.

    After court was commissioned by the Speaker, one-minute silence was observed in memory of the late Nicholas Idoko Ejugwu, a medical student, who died in a car accident recently.

     

  • Terrorism suspect Okah attempts suicide in court

    Terrorism suspect Okah attempts suicide in court

    Security operatives attached to Justice Gabriel Kolawole at the Federal High Court, Abuja, yesterday prevented Charles Okah, the alleged mastermind of the 2010 Independence Day bombing from committing suicide in court.

    Okah, who is standing trial on charges of terrorism, had sought the permission of the judge to speak on what he termed “endless trial”, as his counsel was absent in court.

    The judge granted the oral application and permitted Okah to speak for about five minutes.

    Okah said: “I have been incarcerated for about five years now and I have a family to cater for.

    “My children would grow up without feeling the warmth of their father and I am tired of this endless trial.

    “I really do not know what I have done to be treated this way.

    “Is it not better to die than to wait and be messed up this way?”’ he asked.

    Immediately after Okah ended his speech, he grabbed a chair in the court and quickly moved toward a window on third floor of the five-storey building and attempted to jump down.

    He was immediately pulled back by security operatives, lawyers and other litigants from embarking on the action.

    Consequently, Kolawole adjourned the case to Oct. 20 for continuation of trial.

    Others charged in the case are Obi Nwabueze and Edmund Ebuware.

    The fourth accused, Tiemkemfa Osuvwo, died in Kuje prison, while Ebuwari has been jailed for life as his case was separately decided.

    However, Okah and Nwabueze have been facing long trial as a result of the introduction of numerous injunctions from both the prosecution and defence teams.

     

  • Court dissolves 26-year-old marriage

    An Ado-Ekiti Customary Court has dissolved a 26-year-old marriage between a bricklayer, James Kayode Oguntuase and his wife, Felicia.

    Oguntuase (75) had dragged Felicia (53), a trader, to court accusing her of adultery, stealing, stubbornness and denying him sex, allegations which the respondent denied.

    In his evidence before the court, the petitioner claimed that he had caught the respondent with three different men, adding that she had aborted three pregnancies for her lovers.

    Oguntuase also alleged that Felicia stole his N35, 000 meant for the purchase of carpentry materials.

    He revealed that he had dragged his wife to court sometime in 2013 on account of her alleged sexual escapades.

    He prayed the court for the custody of the children, promising to be responsible for their upkeep.

    The union was blessed with six children, namely Caroline (25) who had been married, Peter (23), Akin (18), Ife (15), Rachel (12) and Tolulope (6).

    The respondent urged the court not to dissolve the union, even as she denied allegations of adultery and stealing. She told the court that she denied the petitioner sex on grounds of ill-health.

    In his judgment, Court President, Joseph Ogunsemi dissolved the union; saying the marriage had broken down irretrievably as the two parties failed to avail themselves of the opportunity given to them to settle the dispute amicably.

    The court also awarded custody of the children who are below the age of 18 to the petitioner while Peter and Akin who are above 18 years are free to decide where to live on the grounds that they are adults.

    The court also ordered the petitioner to arrange for an alternative accommodation for the respondent; the cost of which should not be more than N60, 000 and not less than N48, 000 per annum.

    The court ordered that the petitioner should pay for rent of two years for the new accommodation for the respondent and he is also expected to bear the cost of transporting her luggage to the new place of residence.

    The court ordered the respondent to always assist the petitioner in the upkeep of the under-age children while she should be allowed access to them between 7:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. on the day she chooses to visit.

    Any party aggrieved with the judgment is expected to file an appeal within 30 days the verdict was delivered in line with Ekiti State Customary Court of Appeal Law.

     

  • Ekiti gets industrial court

    The National Industrial Court of Nigeria will soon commence sitting in Ekiti State. The state has provided temporary site for the court and accommodation for the Judge.

    Besides, government is expected to provide land to  serve as the court’s permanent site within the next three months.

    Before now, those who have cases at the court used to travel to Akure, the Ondo State capital but the latest development is expected to give them relief.

    Governor Ayo Fayose has pledged to do everything possible to support the court to function well and bring justice nearer to the people.

    He spoke while receiving the President of the National Industrial Court of Nigeria, Justice Babatunde Adejumo, who visited him.

    Fayose said: “When I got the wind of your court coming to Ekiti, I did not waste time to take advantage of the visit.

    “Everybody can manage infrastructural development, but not all can manage human resources. We are saving a lot of resources by bringing the court here.

    “We will look for land for permanent site for your court within three months and we have shown you the accommodation for the Judge that will be here.”

    Responding, Adejumo expressed satisfaction with the temporary site provided for the court and the judge’s residence.

    Adejumo said: “Lawyers and litigants having matters relating with us have been going to Akure but that is not tidy and safe enough. Thank you for the quick approval of our requests.

    “We will be asking for a land for us to build our court complex. Within the next two months, we will start operating. We will do justice to all manner of people. We are to ensure industrial harmony in the country.”

    The Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Owoseni Ajayi, said the court already had divisions in 26 states of the federation.

     

     

     

  • Ogbe-Ijoh kingship tussle: Go to court, Deputy Governor advises aggrieved party

    Ogbe-Ijoh kingship tussle: Go to court, Deputy Governor advises aggrieved party

    Amidst the controversy generated by the crowning of Chief Couple Oromoni as the new Pere of Ogbe-Ijoh, Warri Kingdom,  the Deputy Governor of Delta State, Kingsley Otuaro, has charged aggrieved persons to seek legal redress.

    Although it was gathered the process leading to the crowning of the new Pere of Ogbe-Ijoh Warri Kingdom, Pere Amakosu  Mobene III, was concluding before the new administration, Otuaro is accused of influencing the process.

    The apparently unimpressed deputy governor, in a statement by his Senior Special Assistant on Communication and Press, Mr Bulou Kosin, cautioned against unfounded allegations, mudslinging and other acts capable of creating bad sentiments.

    The deputy governor denied the allegation and frowned at the antics of his accuser, which a section of the parties believed is aimed at arm-twisting him.

    He said: “The Deputy Governor of Delta State, Barr. Kingsley Otuaro wishes to state that he is in no way party to the alleged selection/appointment of Chief Couple Oromoni, or anybody for that matter, as Pere (King) of Ogbe-Ijoh-Warri Kingdom, against a subsisting court order as claimed in recent media reports.

    “As leaders believed to be respectable, Chief Alfred Yola and Sele Banni and their sponsors, ought to have done the responsible thing by initiating contempt proceedings in court against whoever may have defied such court order, instead of resorting to hurling unsubstantiated allegations, sentiments and blackmail at the Deputy Governor.”

    The leaders of Perebiri Quarters in Ogbe-Ijoh said the Deputy Governor “sent over 200 of his (Otuaro’s) policemen and aides to Ogbe-Ijoh Warri Kingdom…against the court directive”.

    But the deputy governor said:  “One wonders where the leaders of Perebiri quarters in Ogbe-Ijoh got their ridiculously staggering number of over 200 security details and aides to the Deputy Governor which he allegedly sent to the said Ogbe-Ijoh event.

    “To begin with, the Deputy Governor does not have such weird number of security details and aides and the entire story is indeed the figment of imagination of mischief makers bent on tarnishing the good reputation of the Deputy Governor. Informed leaders everywhere know that people who have one occasion or the other to celebrate do not need a Deputy Governor before seeking and getting police protection.

    “Despite insults hurled at him, the Deputy Governor, Barr. Kingsley Otuaro, wishes to appeal to the generally good people of Ogbe-Ijoh-Warri Kingdom to embrace peace necessary for the enjoyment of democratic dividends under Governor Ifeanyi Okowa’s SMART agenda of prosperity for all Deltans.”

     

  • Court orders Zamfara to pay Ecobank N3.1b

    Court orders Zamfara to pay Ecobank N3.1b

    The Federal High Court in Lagos yesterday ordered the Zamfara State government to pay Ecobank Nigeria Ltd N3.1billion.

    Justice Okon Abang directed the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), the Ministry of Finance and Accountant-General of the Federation to deduct the amount from the money accruable to the state from the Federation Account and remit it to the bank.

    The state is also to pay interest on the amount at 30 per cent per annum from March 1, 2013 when the suit was filed, until yesterday (when judgment was delivered).

    In addition, the state must pay 10 per cent interest on the judgment sum until it is finally liquidated.

    The judge awarded N50,000 to the bank as cost of prosecuting the suit.

    He directed the Attorney-General of Zamfara, its Finance Ministry, Minister of Finance, Accountant-General, Attorney-General of the Federation and CBN “to ensure the full and effectual compliance with the judgment.”

    Justice Abang held that N3,159,017,740.71 was the outstanding indebtedness on a facility of N1.5billion extended to Zamfara State by Oceanic Bank Plc, which was consolidated with Ecobank.

    Ecobank, in its claims, said the state’s Executive Council passed a resolution authorising its Finance Ministry to accept the loan on Zamfara’s behalf.

    It said the major security for the disbursement of the loan facility was a conditional Irrevocable Standing Payment Order (ISPO) from the state’s Value Added Tax (VAT) account domiciled with First Bank, Gusau branch.

    Ecobank said the facility suffered a setback when First Bank “stopped the warehousing of state Federation Account Allocation Committee

    (FAAC) and consequently declined further remittance for the payment of the indebtedness that arose from the subject facility.”

    An agreement was subsequently reached to restructure the debt in November 2010, after which the state “honoured rentals for a few months”.

    “However, the rentals to date were not being paid by the Zamfara State government despite that same having fallen due,” the bank said.

    The plaintiff added that despite complaint letters to the state, it “failed and neglected to liquidate the indebtedness, leaving a huge sum outstanding.”

    Ecobank said the state’s refusal to pay the debt was injurious to its business as a custodian of third party funds.

    Zamfara had filed a preliminary objection to the suit, saying the court lacked jurisdiction to adjudicate on it.