Daily Independent Online.
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Monday,July 19, 2004.
Ibori: Counsel
addresses court today on procedure for issuing summons on witnesses
By Rotimi Fadeyi
Senior
Correspondent,
Abuja
Legal argument regarding the procedure for
issuing a subpoena on a witness will be canvassed before Justice Husseini
Murktar of an Abuja High Court as hearing in the case against Delta State
Governor, Chief James Onanefe Ibori, continues today.
The case was instituted by two chieftains
of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Mr. Goodnews Agbi and Mr. Anthony
Alabi.
At the hearing of the case last Tuesday,
there was heated argument on the knotty issue of whether a witness, including
the Chief Judge of the Federal
Capital Territory (FCT), Justice Lawal
Gummi, could be subpoenaed without first seeking the leave of the court.
The matter became an issue when the lead
counsel to the plaintiffs, Chief Gani Fawehinmi (SAN), told the court that he
wanted to call the Chief Judge as his second witness after the Bwari Upper Area
Court Judge, Mohammed Awwal Yusuf concluded his evidence as the Certified True
Copy (CTC) of the two statements he made to the police were admitted in
evidence as exhibits E1 and E2.
Ibori’s lead counsel, Paul Milton
Ohwovoriole (SAN) faulted the subpoena issued on Gummi on the grounds that
Fawehinmi had not complied with section 229 (1) of the Evidence Act, which made
it mandatory to seek the leave of court before a witness could be summoned to give
evidence in court.
The heated argument that followed made
Justice Murktar to direct both counsel to prepare to address him on section 229
(1) of the Evidence Act today. They are to prepare the address in writing but
at liberty to expatiate on what they have written.
