Drama as Ondo Assembly lawyer rejects judge demand for impeachment

On Monday, there was a small amount of drama before the Federal High Court in Abuja when F. E. Emodamori, the attorney for the Ondo House of Assembly, denied writing the petition against Justice Emeka Nwite that was submitted to the National Judicial Council (NJC).

In his appearance on behalf of the state assembly and its speaker, Olamide Oladiji, Emodamori denied the accusation made against him by Lucky Aiyedatiwa’s troubled Deputy Governor’s attorney, Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa, SAN.

According to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), Justice Nwite prevented the Ondo State parliament and its speaker from impeaching Aiyedatiwa on September 26 due to alleged gross misconduct while the interlocutory application was being heard and decided.

Read Also:Ondo Assembly brings Judge to NJC for ex-parte order, leading to impeachment

Shortly after Kayode Adewusi, the attorney who represented Aiyedatiwa, brought the ex-parte motion, the judge issued the interim order.

On the basis of a resignation letter allegedly written or signed by Aiyedatiwa, the judge further prohibited Gov. Rotimi Akeredolu from proposing a new deputy governor and sending the name of the same to the lawmakers for confirmation as the state’s new deputy governor.

The Inspector-General of Police and the Department of State Services (DSS) were sued by the deputy governor in an ex-parte motion with the file number FHC/ABJ/CS/1294/2023.

Gov. Akeredoku, the Speaker of the House of Assembly, the Chief Judge of Ondo State, and the House of Assembly have also joined the lawsuit as first through sixth respondents, respectively.

Aiyedatiwa requested four reliefs in the application, which was dated and submitted by Adelanke Akinrata on September 21.

The judge set today’s hearing on the motion on notice after granting the reliefs.

Adegboruwa updated the court on the situation when the hearing was resumed yesterday.

He claimed that to resolve the disputes, the All Progressives Congress (APC) established a reconciliation committee on October 6 under the leadership of the former governor of Katsina State.

“It is our humble view that the court allows and encourages the reconciliation effort as the continued prosecution of this suit may be hostile to those efforts,” he added. “In line with extant practise and procedure of this honourable court to encourage parties to promote settlement, we respectfully submit that the court allows and encourages the reconciliation effort.”

Additionally, the appeal to the NJC “accusing this very court of compromise and deploying all manner of unprintable epithets against the court,” according to Adegboruwa, was submitted on October 3 by the speaker and the assembly (the fourth and sixth defendants).

He stated that the NJC is still considering the petition.

“That petition has the effect of expressing lack of trust in this honourable court.

And, he said, “God forbid, if the allegations are looked into and confirmed to be true, the result will be that this court may not be in the position to proceed on the resolution of this suit.”

Therefore, the senior attorney requested that the court order the speaker and the assembly to serve the aforementioned petition on all parties involved in the lawsuit so that they may also react through their counsel, Emodamori.

Additionally, he pleaded with the court to order them to cease attacking the judge.

He added, “I saw news on television where they called my lord ‘a certain judge.

Adegboruwa claimed that the insulting statement was also supported by a letter written by Emodamori to the state’s top judge on September 29.

In order to wait for the results of the APC’s efforts at reconciliation and the petition submitted to the NJC, he urged the court to adjourn the case sine die (indefinitely).

Ondo State was not a one-party state, according to Kassim Gbadamosi (SAN), counsel for Akeredolu, who opposed to the indefinite adjournment.

According to him, the APC’s action simply served to make things right between Akeredolu and Aiyedatiwa and had no bearing on the other political parties that made up the assembly.