Some suspected party thugs yesterday disrupted court proceeding in Ado Ekiti and chased away the judge and lawyers from court room with dangerous weapons.
The trial Judge, Justice Segun Ogunyemi, who narrowly escaped being lynched by the suspected thugs was presiding over a case filed by a socio-political group, E-11 challenging the eligibility of the Governor-elect, Mr Ayodele Fayose to contest the June 21 governorship election in the State.
The thugs were angered over what they described as the desperation of the judge to hear the case before Fayose would be sworn in on October 16, this year.
A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Chairman of Ado West Local Government Development Authority, Mr Sunday Ibitoye and one of the plaintiffs, Mr Adeniyi Ajakaye were severely beaten and chased out of the Court promises, thereby leading to abrupt termination of the hearing of the case.
The thugs, who brandished dangerous weapons like clubs, cudgels and stones, neither allowed Justice Ogunyemi to commence the hearing of the case or give adjournment date, as they overwhelmed the police and stormed the Court in commando-like style , which makes court officials, including Lawyers to run in different directions.
A socio-political pressure group, E-11 and one Adeniyi Ajakaye, are challenging the eligibility of Fayose , who was the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to contest the election on the basis of his impeachment on October 16, 2006 by the then House of Assembly over alleged gross misconduct.
The trial, which had earlier began peacefully in the morning by the presiding Judge, later turned violent, after the Judge had dismissed the application brought by Fayose, challenging the jurisdictional powers of the Court to hear the case.
The Judge also struck out the application brought by the defendant, which sought the reversal of the earlier ruling delivered by Justice Ogunyemi , which granted the plaintiffs’ request for the abridgement of days by which the defendants must reply to issues raised in the substantive suit.
After the early morning ruling, Justice Ogunyemi had adjourned till 12noon for the commencement of the hearing of the substantive suit and entertainment of other pending issues, when the thugs, who had hanged around the Court premises despite the heavy presence of anti-riot policemen, had besieged the Court and chased out the Judge and Lawyers.
Sensing danger, policemen who tried to put the thugs who arrived the court premises in over 200 commercial motorcycles, at bay had gone to the inner chambers of the Court, where Justice Ogunyemi was preparing for the afternoon session and ferried him through the backdoor to prevent being molested by the visibly livid youth.
They called the trial judge all sorts of unprintable names, alleging that Justice Ogunyemi must have taken bribes for exhibiting what they called desperation for expeditious trial of the case.
They were also irked by the favourable rulings that gone the way of the plaintiffs, describing it as a conspiracy against the Governor-elect.
Delivering his ruling on the jurisdictional power of the Court to try the case, Justice Ogunyemi, said the PDP and Fayose failed to prove beyond reasonable doubt the reasons why the Court cannot hear the substantive suit.
He also said the ruling given by him, abridging the days by which the defendants must reply to the issues contained in the substantive suit is functus officio, having been painstakingly determined by the court, saying the judgement is not a contravention of the Section 32 of the1999 constitution, contrary to the position canvassed by the PDP.
In his reaction to the drama, the PDP Publicity Secretary in the state, Pastor Kola Oluwawole, asked Justice Ogunyemi to steer clear of the case in the interest of justice.
But the PDP said: “The Judge openly demonstrated in his ruling that he has jurisdiction on the matter and simultaneously commence hearing of the matter without giving the respondent the opportunity to signify the appeal on it.
“The PDP also condemned the barbaric action of the APC thugs who attacked voters that voluntarily voted for Ayo Fayose in the last Governorship election”
Interim Chairman of APC in the state, High Chief Jide Awe said ”we are back to Idi Amin era in Ekiti where judges and lawyers are being attacked in the face of the court. This is terrible”
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