- Chief justice (CJ) of the Federal High Court has barred judges from granting ex-partes ahead of 2019
- He said the directives will help reduce the controversy generated by political matters
- He also charged judges on upholding the spirit of fairness and truth in court
In his bid to forestall crises that come with political matters, the chief judge of the Federal High Court, Justice Adamu Abdu-Kafarati, has given an order barring judges in various high courts across the country from granting ex-parte motion on political matters.
Justice Kafarati gave this order, according to a report by The Punch, on Monday, September 17, during a special court event to mark the beginning of the Federal High Court’s new 2018/2019 legal year.
NAIJ.com gathers that Kafarati also added that the decision to give the directive is a necessity given the ripple of controversy generated by political cases in the court. And given the fact that the blames put on court by political party can be drastically reduced.
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He said: "In an attempt to forestall any hiccups and the blame on the court by the political gladiators, I have during this vacation issued a circular that interim orders ex parte shall not be granted in any political case brought before the court.
“I believe that controversies, especially in political cases, can be reduced when the court takes a decision after hearing all the parties in the case.
“It is also extremely important that all political cases that may affect any of the parties which are still pending in any of our courts be concluded without further waste of time to afford all candidates the opportunity to pursue their political ambitions.
“Honourable judges before whom such cases are still pending must endeavour to conclude them before the end of October 2018.”
Also speaking at the event is the president of the Nigerian Bar Association, Paul Usoro (SAN). He warned that as the 2019 elections draw nearer, judges should resist the temptation of monetary gifts from the politicians as this will help in stopping the respected men of the sacred bench from being dragged into the murky pool of public criticism.
He said: "Given the imminence of our 2019 national elections, this legal year would be anything but ordinary, particularly given the tendency of our politicians to reduce the quest for office and positions as do-or-die affairs.
“Attempts are sometimes made to drag Your Lordship’s courts into these murky waters of politics and in the process embarrass the justice sub-sector.
“Happily, Your Lordships have always, in the main, resisted these attempts and it is our hope that Your Lordships will maintain this stance and position in the coming weeks and months, starting from the imminent cases that would be filed before Your Lordships in regard to parties’ primaries and pre-election matters and right up to the election petitions and other ancillary post-election matters.”
Also present at the events were top personalities from the judiciary including the attorney general of the federation, Abubakar Malami who was represented by the solicitor-general of the federation and permanent secretary, federal ministry of justice, Dayo Apata.
They all called on the judges to uphold the spirit of fairness and uprightness, and the love of the nation in their delivery of service, adding that court is the hope of the society.
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Meanwhile, NAIJ.com previously reported that a Federal High Court in Abuja has fixed September 25, this year for the hearing of the suit challenging the eligibility of Ekiti state governor-elect, Kayode Fayemi, for the last governorship election in the state. The suit was filed against Fayemi by Segun Oni.
It was also reported that Oni’s lawyer, Anthony Adeniyi, told the court that his client had complied with the order for substituted service on the defendants.
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Source: Naija.ng