A Federal High Court in Abuja has adjourned indefinitely hearing in the suit filed by Justice Peter Agumagu, who was suspended by the National Judicial Council for allowing himself to be sworn in without its recommendation. Justice Adeniyi Ademola on Monday adjourned indefinitely to await the outcome of the respondents’ appeals filed against his earlier ruling. Agumagu had filed the suit challenging his suspension by the NJC on March 18, 2014. The NJC had suspended Agumagu on the grounds of allowing himself to be sworn into office as Rivers’ CJ without being recommended by the NJC as required by the constitution. The NJC, Justices Babatunde Adejumo, Jubril Idris and Comwell Idahosa (Chairman and members of the panel set up by the NJC to investigate allegations against the applicant (Justice Agumagu) are the respondents in the suit. The suit is tagged, FHC/ABJ/CS/253/2014. At the Monday’s proceedings, Agumagu’s lawyer, Akin Olujinmi (SAN), reminded the court that the case was fixed for hearing of all pending applications. But he said his client had also filed an application on June 12 seeking an order to join three new parties in the suit. He added that two of the respondents had also applied for stay of proceedings pending the appeal they filed against an earlier ruling of the court. The court had in the ruling elected to hear both the substantive suit and preliminary objections together. Olujimi urged the court to to adjourn the case in view of the fact that the respondents had compiled records of appeal and have even filed briefs of argument. NJC’s lawyer, Wole Olanipekun (SAN), and other respondents’ counsel, Fola Shotikare (for Justice Adejumo) and Emmanuel Ukala (SAN) for Justices Idris and Idahosa, did not object to Olujinmi’s request for indefinite adjournment. Meanwhile, the Editor of an Abuja-based national daily, Nigerian Pilot, Osedebamen Isibor, and its Judicial Correspondent, Kenneth Atavti, were in court on Monday in response to Justice Ademola’s summons. The journalists were summoned by the court following a complaint by Olujinmi that the newspaper misrepresented court’s proceedings in one of its report on the case. Their lawyer, Franklin Aliuna, told the court that the newspaper, having realised its error, published a retraction of the report on June 21 and that a copy of the publication had been sent to the plaintiff’s lawyer. He apologised to the court for the error. Isibor and Atavit equally apologised to the court and pledged to avoid a repetition. The judge, while discharging them, warned them against misrepresenting the court in their subsequent publications.
Posted on: Tue, 01 Jul 2014 01:14:02 +0000
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