Court adjourns Abubakar/Wada case till after election

James Azania, Lokoja

KOGI State High Court sitting in Lokoja on Wednesday adjourned a case seeking the disqualification of the candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Musa Wada, from contesting the November 16 governorship election, to November 27 for defence.

One of the aspirants that participated in the PDP governorship primary, Abubakar Idris, who is the son of former governor Ibrahim Idris, had dragged Wada, his brother in-law, to court on the ground that he was not properly elected at the shadow election.

He urged the court to disqualify Wada and declare him (Idris) the winner of the party primary.

Last Friday, the court adjourned the case to Tuesday (yesterday), after all the witnesses of the claimant had testified and cross-examined by the counsel.

When the case came up for defence, counsel to the first defendant (PDP), Kola Olowookere, told the court that the counsel handling the case was indisposed and had, therefore, handed over the case to him, but pleaded that he needed time to  obtain records of proceedings from the court registry, to study it.

He said that the case file was handed over to him less than 24 hours earlier and that he needed time to study it.

He, therefore, asked for an adjournment of five working weeks.

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He said that for justice and fair hearing to be dispensed to all parties, enough time must be given for the trial judge to “hear all the hearable and see all the seeable.”

Counsel to Abubakar Idris, Rowland Otaru, SAN, objected to the plea for adjournment, arguing that the counsel to the first defendant (PDP), did not need any extra time to study a case which had reached defence level.

He said the court must be mindful that the issue in contention was 11 days away and of public interest.

He accused the defendant of employing delay tactics to prolong the case, and reminded the trial judge that he promised to give expeditious hearing and, therefore, urged the court to overrule the plea.

Counsel to the second defendant (Wada), Prof.  Joas Amupitan, SAN, while supporting the plea for adjournment, said that no one should be allowed to stampede the court into arriving at a decision that would not be fair to all the parties.

He said that the case, being a pre-election matter, the court is constitutionally allowed to adjudicate in the matter within 180 days.

Justice Richard Olorunfemi in his ruling said he would not be pressurised or stampeded into doing anything outside the law.

He noted that he had read on social media how some insinuations were made against him, and that he remained undaunted, because he had made a “covenant with God not to take bribe from anyone.”

According to him: “None of you can buy me over, whether it is APC or PDP or anybody. I have made a covenant with my God precisely on May 18, 1999 that if I up turn justice for any monetary gain or favour, that God should remove me from where I am, because my being a judge is by his Mercy.”

He said the court must not be made to embark on “neck breaking speed,” when there is still much time to hear all sides of the case, adding that to avail all the parties of the principle of fair hearing and justice, no one should be deprived of being adequately heard.

He, therefore, adjourned the case to November 27 for defence.