After three hours of voting, the outgoing Minority Leader of the House of Representatives, Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila secured the nod of the All Progressives Congress (APC) members-elect to be the next Speaker.
He defeated Hon. Yakubu Dogara, who staged a walk-out with 18 members-elect.
Sensing danger, three of those who walked out later return to the venue of the shadow primaries.
The National Secretary of APC, Mallam Mai Mala Buni, said out of the 209 APC members-elect, 183 signed the attendance register, while 161 others voted at the straw poll, with about 22 others either abstaining or staging a walk-out.
Out of 161 votes, Gbajabiamila garnered 154 votes, Dogara got 3 and 4 votes were invalid.
On his part, Tahir Monguno scored 153 votes to emerge the sole candidate of the party for the position of Deputy Speaker.
Tag: Femi Gbajabiamila
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Speaker: Gbajabiamila wins APC primaries, Monguno emerges deputy
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Mongonu steps down from Speakership race
…Endorses Gbajabiamila
Mohammed Mongonu, a re- elected member of the House of Representatives would no longer contest for the position of Speaker in the 8th Assembly, it emerged on Tuesday.
Instead, Monguno,a member of the House representing Borno, North East, would contest as Deputy Speaker on a joint ticket with the Minority leader of the House, Femi Gbajabiamila as Speaker.
He spoke with journalists at a two- day retreat organised for All Progressive Congress lawmakers in Abuja.
Monguno said his decision was the outcome of broad consultation.
He said: “I will instead be running for the Deputy Speaker position on a joint ticket with Hon. Gbajabiamila.
“I am withdrawing from the race for two reasons – First, is to ensure party cohesion.
“As leaders of our great party, we can ill-afford to have a divided House, if we are to deliver on the much-needed change we promised Nigerians in the course of the campaign.
“And, secondly, Gbajabiamila stands tall amongst our peers in terms of experience and understanding of the contours and nuances of the legislative process.
“The convention in representative democracies the world over is that having served as Minority Leader, you ascend to the Speakership position should your party gain the majority.
“Besides, the position cannot be left in the hands of anyone who desires to learn on the job because managing the complexities and subtleties of a legislative process is serious business.
“Over the years, I have come to know Gbajabiamila as an exceptionally effective legislator.
“He leads by building consensus, listening to good ideas and putting the nation first. His outright rejection of a national award on grounds of principle, tells you all you need to know about his character.
“As our chamber’s next Speaker, Gbajabiamila will re-energize our institution by building the capacity we need to make our role in government more effective and more accountable to the voters.
“Today, our beloved country stands on the cusp of change, we have a unique and golden opportunity to make our legislature more vital and inclusive for all of its members irrespective of party affiliation.”
He appealed to his colleagues to vote for the Gbajabiamila/ Monguno ticket.
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Reps shift resumption to December 16
…Authentic impeachment list out soon- Gbajabiamila
The House of Representatives has extended its resumption by two weeks.
The House was due to resume on Wednesday from its recess which began on October 28.
However, the Clerk of the House of Representatives, Mohammed Sani-Omolori, in a statement on Tuesday said the House will now resume on December 16.
According to him, the postponement was necessitated by the political party activities leading to primaries to be conducted by all political parties during the period.
It reads: “This is to notify members of the House of Representatives that the resumption of the House from recess earlier scheduled for December 3, 2014 has been postponed.
“The House will now resume on Tuesday, December 16, 2014 at 10am.
“The Leadership of the House of Representatives took note of the adjustment in the calendar of the political parties and took the decision for the postponement to allow members of the House participate in the forthcoming primaries of their political parties.”
In a related development, the All Progressives Congress caucus in the House has washed its hands off a list purported to have the signatures of lawmakers rooting for the impeachment of President Goodluck Jonathan.
A statement issued by the Leader of the opposition in the House, Femi Gbajabiamila, described the list as “fake.”
A list of over 200 lawmakers from the House of Representatives, including principal officers of the House from the Peoples Democratuc Party (PDP) were published in some online platforms as those that had signed Jonathan’s impeachment list.
But Gbajabiamila said the real list would be made public soon.
The statement reads:
“The general public is hereby advised to disregard a fake impeachment list published by some online publicists for obvious sinister intentions.
“None of our APC members in the House of Representatives is party to the fake impeachment list.
“The authentic impeachment list would be published in due course and we urge our constituents across the country to be so guided.”
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Court throws out suit against Excess Crude Account
AFederal High Court in Abuja yesterday dismissed a suit filed by the Minority Leader of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila and four other members of the House of Representatives, challenging the legality of the creation of the Excess Crude Account (ECA) by the Federal Government.
Justice Abdulkadir Abdulkafarati, in a judgment, held that the suit was an abuse of court process because about five similar suits were currently pending before the Supreme Court.
The judge, who upheld the defendants’ objection, noted that the Attorneys General of Taraba, Abia, Niger, Bauchi and Oyo states had filed similar suits, which are now awaiting the determination of the Supreme Court.
As against the argument by the defendants, Justice Abdulkafarati held that the plaintiffs have the locus standi to institute the case. He held that the suit, being a public interest case, could have been instituted by any Nigerian. The defendants had queried the plaintiffs’ locus standi (the right to file the suit).
The suit marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/30/2014 was filed by Gbajabiamila, Samson Osagie, Ismaila Kawu, Garuba Datti and Chairman of the House of Reps’ Public Accounts Committee, Solomon Adeola. It had President Goodluck Jonathan and the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) as defendants.
The plaintiffs had, in their originating summons filed on January 22 this year, challenged Federal Government’s creation of a separate account, outside the Federation Account, for the country’s excess oil revenue earning.
They argued that the creation of the ECA was a violation of the provision of Section 162(1) of the Constitution.
Section 162(1) states: “The Federation shall maintain a special account to be called “the Federation Account” into which shall be paid all revenues collected by the government of the Federation, except the proceeds from the personal income tax of the personnel of the armed forces of the Federation, the Nigeria Police Force, the Ministry or Department of government charged with responsibility for Foreign Affairs and the residents of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. “
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Bid to change House opposition leadership wishful thinking, says Gbajabiamila
The Minority Leader in the House of Representatives and the All Progressives Congress (APC) Caucus Leader, Femi Gbajabiamila, has said the attempt by some Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), Labour Party (LP) and Accord (A) members to change the minority leadership of the House is “wishful thinking”.
The lawmaker described last Tuesday’s attempt to change the status quo, spearheaded by the Deputy House Leader Leo Ogor, as laughable and a twisted logic aimed at undermining existing House rules.
Gbajabiamila, in a statement yesterday in Abuja by his aide, Wasiu Olanrewaju-Smart, rejected the efforts of some PDP, APGA, LP, and Accord members to alter minority leadership of the House.
He said: “That is wishful thinking. There will be no such thing. They should read the House rules intelligently. Besides, who is fooling who? APGA and LP make partisan democracy in Nigeria a joke.”
The lawmaker said the move to change minority leadership in the House, following the merger of the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP), and a faction of APGA into APC negates provisions of the House Rules.
“Besides, the rules are very clear: the minority elect their leaders from among themselves as an opposition group and not on individual party basis. “There were six minority parties in the House prior to now and only four minority positions. By their twisted logic, two extra positions should have then been created for the Democratic Peoples Party (DPP) and the Peoples ????? (PPN), which had only one member each. It’s laughable.”
Gbajabiamila referred the PDP, APGA and LP members to what he earlier called “strange judgment” that stopped the House from changing its leadership.
He said: “Besides, the gentleman, who raised the matter of privilege, the former Deputy Minority, now Deputy Majority Leader, Leo Ogor, did not show how his privilege was breached, as required by our rules. Perhaps, he should go back to the same court, where he got his strange judgment stopping the change of House leadership to, this time, compel the change of Minority leadership.”
He said rather than expending legislative energy on trivialities, the lawmakers should collaborate with Nigerians to ensure safe return of the kidnapped Chibok schoolgirls.
“In the meantime, let’s try and bring back our girls and stop expending legislative energy on irrelevancies. There is much work to be done.”
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APC presents 16 bills, 23 motions in three months
The All Progressives Congress (APC) caucus in the House of Representatives presented 16 bills and 23 motion between October and December of last year, it emerged yesterday.
Leader of the caucus and Minority Leader Femi Gbajabiamila, in a statement yesterday said the modest achievement was in continuation of the party’s determination to ensure transparency and accountability in its legislative responsibilities.
He also said it was a way of reaffirming the loyalty of the APC lawmakers to Nigerians and their collective bid for change.
It reads: “In continuation of our determination to ensure transparency and accountability, the All Progressives Congress (APC) House Caucus hereby unveils Bills and Motions presented by its members.
“The APC House Caucus members presented 16 Bills and 23 Motions between October and December last year.
“The crux of some of these value- laden Bills is to provide timeframe of not exceeding two years within which casual or temporary job employment shall be regularised to permanent status; to include National Security Agencies and Nigeria Police in the first line charge of the Consolidated Revenue Fund.
“Another was, to make mandatory for immediate issuance and release of certificates to graduating students in all tertiary institutions in the country; and to ensure non-parallel requirement for candidates aspiring to join the House of Representatives and Minister in certain ministries requiring technical expertise contrary to provisions of Section 147(5) of 1999 Constitution amongst many other citizens-centered provisions in Bills presented.
“Our members also put forward 23 Motions which addressed issues of security, economy, probity and accountability.
“Among those motions are the legislative instrument mandating the House to investigate the alleged lopsidedness in admission and recruitment into Nigeria Defence Academy, Kaduna; investigate the NCAA over the alleged purchase of bullet proof cars for the former Aviation Minister; passage of the 2014 – 2016 Medium Term Expenditure Framework and Fiscal Strategy Paper amongst others.
“With the release of two quarterly editions after making our intention public during our press conference in 2013, members of APC House Caucus do reaffirm their loyalty to Nigerians in our collective bid for change.”
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‘We won’t debate flawed budget’
The House of Representatives has been embroiled in a supremacy battle between the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). The two parties are making claims and counter-claims about numerical superiority. The Minority Leader and APC Caucus Leader, Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila, spoke with VICTOR OLUWASEGUN and DELE ANOFI on the claims, the controversy over this year’s budget and other issues.
Why do you think that the PDP is trying to use the courts to frustrate the APC in its bid to effect a change in the leadership of the House of Representatives?
I don’t want to cast aspersions on what the court is doing. Apart from being a lawyer, I have to respect the judiciary. But, I just find it very strange that something that is settled in law; that you cannot interfere in operations of another arm of government; the court is not just interfering, but delaying the dispensation of justice. And you know it is said justice delayed is justice denied. The case has been adjourned again until February 14 and the PDP has been known for using the court system but in this instance, I want to give the judge and the court the benefit of doubt so we will continue to tarry.
What were the issues discussed at the meeting of the APC leadership and governors that met with the lawmakers recently?
There were a lot of issues on how to move the party forward. But, I do not have to expose them for the other side to counter what we decided. We had a good talk.
It seems the APC is losing steam in the House because, in the last one week, more members have defected from the APC to the PDP?
It was actually one or two members. But that is the time they wanted to defect and, like I said, it is the season of defection. Defections are not over yet.
Which party controls the majority in the House? You reinstated recently that the number of APC lawmaker’s is between 172 and 174. What is the exact number?
Yes, because the defections are ongoing- people defect today others tomorrow and all that. But I just want people to wait because I believe by the end of this month; all the defections should have been over either way. By the end of this month, we will be able to present the accurate number. It is a season of defection, so we just have to wait until such a time when everything would have been settled.
The House spokesman has said that, even when the leadership is going to change, none of the presiding officers will be affected. Is this the position of APC and why is it so?
The change of leadership involves just the parties, whereas changing of the presiding officers involves the whole parties and it also requires two third of the House to change the presiding officers. These are some of the reasons why we do not talk about changing the presiding officers. But more importantly, the presiding officers enjoy the compliment of the entire House across board. So, we do not have problem with that and we are only talking about conforming to our rules, which say that the majority shall produce the majority leadership and the minority shall produce the minority leadership.
The APC lawmakers stopped the debate on the 2014 budget on the floor. Is this part of your compliance with the directive by the leadership to shut down the budget?
Let me put it this way. The matter that we raised on the floor, you can call it filibustering; it was not really delay, but was done absolutely on legal grounds. We are ready to meet the PDP on the intellectual turf. The law is very clear on the matter that was raised. The Fiscal Responsibility Act, which we passed, is the most important financial instrument that guides our financial dealings. The budget, as it is, is inchoate. It says that you must attach the budget estimate of corporations listed in the Fiscal Responsibility Act and that has not been done. The summary is by no way an estimate. And, if you look at the rules of the House under Order 12 Rule 97; which says you shall attach the details and this has not been done. So, it’s time we started doing things properly. Some of the members argue that it has always been like that and the Chairman, Appropriation; John Enoh, actually brought this argument on the floor. And I was very surprised because, if something has been done before and it is later found out that it was not right do we perpetuate the illegality. I am sure we will not allow the PDP members to go away with it. This is a fundamental flaw of the budget and we are now saying we are not going to debate the budget. So, we are saying that you should take the budget back and return it properly to us. It is not properly before us and we cannot consider something in a vacuum; where the details of the NNPC, CBN and other 22 other corporations that are listed in the Fiscal Responsibility Act are not there. And, if we were not doing it right, the $10.8 billion that is missing point to the fact that we were not appraised with the details of that budget last year. So, we don’t want that to repeat itself. Yes, we have achieved what we set out to do as a party and it sends a very clear message.
Last week, during the voting on the constitution amendment, you alleged that the Majority Leader, Hon. Mulikat Akande-Adeola, was voting by proxy (for the Deputy Speaker) and it was later taken as a joke. But we received a statement from you confirming that. What exactly happened? Did you see her voting by proxy?
Yes, she was voting by proxy, which is not allowed by our rules. And that is why the first thing I said when I stood up was to set the foundation by asking the Speaker, if we are allowed by any law to vote for anybody. And the Speaker said no and I made my case that the majority leader was voting for the deputy speaker and I did not understand why she was doing that. If you realize the deputy speaker was sitting with the speaker, which it should not have been. He is entitled to vote, but somebody else was voting for him, indicating that she knew what she wanted to do. I said it casually, but for me, it carries a lot of implications. Immediately I said that she handed his (Ihedioha’s)card to him where he was sitting. But it is an unchartered territory; it’s new; we never envisage this. Ideally, in other parliaments, perhaps the matter should have been sent to the Ethics and Privileges Committee to look into it and come out with an appropriate report. But, I said it in a jocularly manner and it was corrected and I think that will not happened again.
What is your take on the refusal of the Senate leadership to allow the 11 PDP senators to defect to the APC?
Well, the Senate is an independent chamber. But, let me say that you cannot stop anyone from defecting. Politics and associating is part of the constitution. Chapter 4 of the constitution guarantees that and you can associate with anybody. A lot of noise is being made about reading a letter and I don’t know of any law that requires a letter for it to trigger defection. Defection is an end defection of defection and communication can be oral, written or even by conduct in some cases. So, it is wishful thinking for anyone to think that refusal to read a letter would stop defection.
What is your reaction to the defection of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar from the PDP to the APC?
Well, we’ve heard this coming from the people who do not wish well for the party. We’ve heard he would tear the party apart from the time that we were forming the party when they said it would work or it won’t work. Strange bed fellows, these are buzz words we hear all the time. Oh no, they would not be registered. Then, they brought fake APC to come and register. A lot of hurdles have been placed our way, people have said this would not work, but, we are where we are today, it worked beyond the imagination of those naysayers.
So, we are not perturbed. Atiku coming into APC is a plus, it’s not a minus. He has his ambition, everybody has ambition but we will test their strength and find out who is the popular candidate on the field. He’s not coming to destroy the party, he has no such intention. He’s a good and perfect gentleman and we have rules and regulations that guide us as a political institution. I am of the opinion that APC is more than a party, it’s a movement. And one individual, man or woman cannot stop anybody from defecting from one party to the other.
What does the defection portends for the party and the polity in general?
For me, it is good. Politics is a numbers game whether it is developed or advanced democracy or developing democracy. You cannot wish away Atiku Abubakar in Nigerian politics. People argue that he is a spent force but he is one extra person and he brings a lot to the table. We are happy to have him. One less person in PDP is one more person in APC and whatever way you look at it, he is going to bring in a lot of people.
The police in Rivers have banned political rallies. The APC’s registration exercise is ongoing. Don’t you think it will affect the party?
Police placing embargo on political rallies does not affect registration. It is a constitutional right to register; to associate with people. How do you associate with people? You register. So, the police can’t stop that they have no power to do that.
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Commotion in the House
•The uproar in the House of Representatives over leadership ought to be resolved now in the interest of democracy The House of Representatives is always in the news, with crises always defining its character since the resumption of civil rule in 1999. Lately, the delicate political equation in the House has thrown up new possibilities and threatened peace in its operations. While the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) that has a firm grip on the executive arm of government, and has controlled the leadership of the Lower House, is unwilling to accept that the All Progressives Congress (APC) to which scores of erstwhile members of the ruling party have defected should now take control, the APC is insisting that legislative norm frowns at the minority controlling the majority. The House nearly exploded last week, as the leader of the APC, Femi Gbajabiamila, who is designated Minority Leader, referred to Leo Ogor, known as the Deputy Majority Leader, as Deputy Minority Leader. Members of the PDP, led by Ogor, frowned at what they regarded as a surreptitious move to effect a change of leadership. They argued that a court of competent jurisdiction had bound the parties to maintain the status quo in the House, pending the determination of a motion before it. But, the APC found the court’s ruling a violation of a democratic norm that forbids any arm of government from interfering in the affairs of another. The party told a press conference that the rule all over the world is that the majority should take charge of affairs. The matter is still before the court. It is gratifying that the tension was doused when the APC opted to await a motion to vacate the order, despite its reservation on its propriety. The role played by the Speaker, Aminu Tambuwal, is also deserving of commendation. He expertly and maturely made the combatants sheathe their swords and urged all to defer to the court in the interim. He managed to bring the situation under control and ensured that the House sat to consider the business of the day. We call on all parties to the crisis to put the interest of the nation above personal and partisan interests. True, the scenario is unprecedented in the country. Since the introduction of the presidential system in 1979, the same parties have always controlled the executive and the legislature. In the Second Republic when the ruling National Party of Nigeria (NPN), despite being the single largest party in the Senate, lacked the clear majority it needed to ensure smooth passage of executive bills, as it held only 36 of the 95 seats to the Unity Party of Nigeria’s (UPN) 28, the Nigerian People’s Party’s (NPP) 16 and the 15 shared between the Great Nigeria People’s Party (GNPP) and People’s Redemption Party (PRP), the ruling party had to enter into an accord with the NPP that morally allowed it function as majority party. In that wise, the NPN provided the Senate President, and the NPP the Deputy Senate President. The same sharing formula applied in the Lower House. But the PDP’s attempt to block takeover of leadership by the new majority party cannot stand and it should realise this. It stands logic on its head and is a recipe for intractable crisis. This is a democracy and, while the minority could have its say, the majority should have its way. At any rate, why is the PDP now crying wolf when it had benefited from similar defection in the past, when notable members of other parties defected to it and still retained their seats? The parties and the House leadership should realise that national interest is paramount. The needful should be done as soon as possible to reflect the true status of the parties in conformity with democratic norm. It could be argued that the APC has not demonstrated its numerical strength and neither did Gbajabiamila follow established procedure. He said he made the remark in good humour since the matter was in court. But the joke seemed on the PDP counterparts who read gloomy portents in the words of the minority leader. If such a mere mention could threaten to blow the roof, what would have happened if Gbajabiamila had moved a proper motion , or seized the opportunity offered by Motion of Urgent Importance to table the matter?
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House leadership: We will abide by court’s order – APC
The All Progressives Congress’ (APC) caucus in the House of Representatives, on Tuesday said it would abide by the court order restraining it from effecting a change in the leadership of the House.
The leader of the caucus and Minority Leader, Femi Gbajabiamila (APC-Lagos), told journalists in Abuja that the decision to abide by the order was deliberate.
He added that the APC would always fight to change the culture of impunity through the rule of law.
He stressed that effecting a change in the leadership of the House would only be delayed but was inevitable.
Samson Osagie (APC-Edo), the Minority Whip said members of the party would continue to reaffirm their confidence in the leadership of the House under Aminu Tambuwal.
“We will not allow the culture of impunity to go on in this country,” the News Agency of Nigeria quoted the Minority Whip as saying to journalists.
Ali Ahmad (APC-Kwara) said that the court had no jurisdiction to grant the order restraining the House.
NAN reports that a Federal High Court in Abuja, on January 20, restrained the House from changing its leadership pending the determination of a suit filed by the Peoples Democratic Party.
Meanwhile, four members of the House switched parties on Tuesday.
Ganama Titsi and Francis Hannaniya, both from Adamawa, left the APC to join the PDP.
While Emmanuel Jime, (PDP-Benue) and Yahaya Kwande (DPP-Plateau), defected to the APC.
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Defections: PDP sues Tambuwal
•Speaker to court: dismiss case
In what seems a pre-emptive move, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has asked a Federal High Court in Abuja to restrain the House of Representatives from altering the composition of its leadership.
PDP, in a suit it filed on January 7, urged the court to, among others, restrain House of Representatives’ Speaker Aminu Tambuwal, other principal officers and defecting members from taking any step “to alter or change the leadership of the first defendant (PDP).”
The suit has the House, its Speaker, the Deputy Speaker Emeka Ihedioha and other principal officers and former PDP members, who defected to the All Progressives Congress (APC), as defendants.
An officer of the PDP, Nanchang Ndam, said in a supporting affidavit that while the defection of some of the defendants was still a subject of litigation before Justice Mohammed, the defendants, particularly the Minority Leader, Femi Gbajabiamila, have issued threats to change the leadership of the House.
PDP also urged the court to declare that the defecting lawmakers, who are plaintiffs in the earlier suit before Justice Ahmed Mohammed of the same court, “are not competent to sponsor, contribute or vote on any motion calling for the removal or change in the leadership of the House or the removal of any principal officers of the House.”
It prayed the court for an order of perpetual injunction restraining the defendants from altering or changing the House’s leadership.
The PDP equally filed an application for interlocutory injunction restraining the defendants from altering the leadership of the House pendinga the determination of the substantive suit.
One of the defendants’ lawyers, Sebastine Hon (SAN), has urged the court to strike out the suit for want of jurisdiction.
In a notice of preliminary objection he filed yesterday for the 11th to 30th defendants, Hon claimed that the plaintiff lacked the locus standi to institute the suit; that the suit is not justiceable; that the court lacked the jurisdiction to dabble in the internal affairs of the House, and that the case amounts to an academic or hypothetical exercise.
He also filed a counter-affidavit to the plaintiff’s application for interlocutory injunction, challenging the competence of the application.
Last Friday, Justice Adeniyi Ademola refused an ex-parte application by the PDP, in which it sought to restrain the defendants from among others, altering the House’s leadership. He ordered the party to put the defendants on notice and adjourned till yesterday.
When the parties returned to court yesterday, defendants’ lawyers, Mohammud Magaji (SAN), James Ocholi (SAN) and Eric Apia objected to the move by the plaintiff’s lawyer, Yunus Usman (SAN), to argue his application for interlocutory injunction.
The lawyers argued that they were served last Friday and were entitled to 48 hours to reply. They sought for time to respond.
Justice Ademola granted the defendants’ request. He gave them up to January 16 to file their responses and serve the plaintiff. He adjourned the matter till January 20 for hearing of the application for interlocutory injunction.