A Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Jubril Okutepa has challenged any lawyer to cite any part of the Court of Appeal judgement that ordered the reinstatement of the sacked Osun council chairmen.
Speaking on Arise TV News Night on Tuesday night, the SAN stated the judgement that sacked the council chairmen was upheld by one other Court of Appeal judgment which dismissed an enchantment filed by the APM and the APC..
In a robust declaration, the authorized practitioner affirmed that nobody can get up and say he doesn’t respect APP judgement as a result of a null and void judgment till it’s put aside stays a judgment of the Court.
Okutepa clarified additional that the Osogbo High Court order that directed the holding of Osun native council polls was to implement the Supreme Court ruling which had directed that caretaker committee ought to not occur on the native authorities ranges, declaring that the courtroom order obeyed by Osun electoral fee gave impact to the Supreme Court ruling and is subsequently authorized and constitutional.
Below is an extract from the NewsNight interview:
Arise TV: This Osun state of affairs is wanting like a basket case that refuses to go away and once you take a look at it, the Rule of Law is the primary casualty, whichever facet you belong to. There is the problem of whether or not it was correct for the Governor Adeleke to go forward with the election contemplating the truth that the tenure of the “Reinstated” Local Government Chairmen is but to lapse.
Jubrin Okutepa SAN: When you used the phrase “reinstated” native authorities Chairmen of the thirty Local Government in Osun State, I’m questioning the place you derive your authority from that proposition?
Interviewer: Were they not reinstated by the Appeal Court ?
Jubrin Okutepa SAN: No courtroom ordered reinstatement of the council chairmen. I’ve taken my time to learn the judgment of the Court of Appeal and there may be nowhere the reinstatement of the chairmen was ordered by the courtroom.
For us to grasp this matter, there’s a want to grasp the historic context. Sometime in 2022, two political events, PDP and APP went to Court to problem the association for Local Government election. They had been two separate fits, PDP case was filed earlier than the promulgation of Local Government Election Law of 2022. In each of this instances , the Federal High Court determined and held that the method, process resulting in the election performed by the then authorities of Governor Gboyega Oyetola was flawed, declared the election null and void and of no penalties and eliminated the individuals who had been presupposed to have been elected by means of that flawed election.
Indeed, the case was pending in Court when the stated election was performed and beneath the disciplinary energy of the Court, the Court noticed that, that conduct was an affront to the Rule of Law, the method pending earlier than the Court and so in each two instances, the Court nullified and ordered that those that had been purportedly elected vacate the workplace.
Now there have been appeals; one Appeal by APC, one other Appeal by APM towards the 2 units of judgment. Now within the first case involving APC V PDP, the courtroom of Appeal regarded on the entirety of the case, there have been 4 points for dedication formulated in that case, the Court of Appeal resolved concern 1 and concern 2 and stated; (1) the modification granted by the Federal High Court when the case was pending was flawed; (2) the second order made by the Court Appeal in that course of was the case itself was untimely and that there was no reason for motion and consequently resolved that concern 3 and 4 turned educational.
So the Court of Appeal got here to the conclusion that the trial courtroom lacked jurisdiction to have entertained the matter within the first place after which struck out that case that was stuffed by PDP and made NO ORDER.
In the 53-page judgment that I’ve learn, there isn’t any the place an order was made by the Court of Appeal and it’s important for us as lawyer and common public to not learn into judgment what will not be there contained .
There was NO PRAYER earlier than the Court of Appeal by any particular person for reinstatement and even when there have been, prayer 3 and 4 was described by the Court of Appeal as educational and so they ought not to enter it.
Fast ahead, there may be additionally one other enchantment, you recognize there have been two separate judgments wherein the purported election performed by Governor Gboyega Oyetola had been nullified. This time round, the second case, was the case that APM, one different particular person and APC had been the appellants. Now after they filed the enchantment, they went to sleep, they didn’t compile a report of enchantment, they didn’t plead an argument.
Then, those that had been respondent within the enchantment now introduced a movement earlier than the Court of Appeal , as a result of fairness aids the vigilant, not the Indolent. There are procedures beneath the Court, that when you file an enchantment, you compile the report of enchantment inside a sure variety of days, file your transient of argument inside a sure variety of days. That your failure to take action, the implications of that failure is a DISMISSAL of the enchantment. And so the Court of Appeal within the second enchantment dismissed the APC enchantment filed by those that had been aggrieved by the choice of the Federal High Court that nullified and put aside the election.
This means in legislation that the judgement of the Federal High Court which was appealed towards however which enchantment was not pursued and which enchantment had now been dismissed stays a judgment of the Court. So there may be NO ORDER in any of the judgments that those that had been dismissed or eliminated or election declared null and void by the Federal High Court within the second case that was filed later in time have been ordered to be restored.
So when anyone subsequently involves say that there’s a DISOBEDIENCE to Court Order, I ponder which Court Order?
My view, with profound respect, is that politicians will do nicely by studying to abide by the implications of their actions.
ARISE TV: Politicians on all sides?
Jubrin Okutepa SAN: Yes, on all sides. You know what I all the time say in any society the place the Rule of Law is bastardized , then you might be more likely to face the state of nature when the mighty grow to be proper.
So my view subsequently is that reasonably than going public to insinuate what will not be contained within the judgment and giving political coloration and interpretation to it to go well with political functions, they need to return to the processes, return to the proceedings after which advise themselves.
But let me inform you it doesn’t lie within the mouth of anyone, together with myself, to say that the Judgment of the Federal High Court which had been, by implication of the dismissal of the enchantment courtroom, affirmed by a Court of Appeal, stays a judgment. And nobody can get up and he doesn’t respect it as a result of a null and void judgment till it’s set apart stays a judgment of the Court.
ARISE TV: Thanks in your clarification, however why is it that Senior Advocates can not agree on a matter and what’s the hope of Nigerians making an attempt to grasp what’s lawful and what’s not, is it not the doing of judiciary, your colleagues?
Jubrin Okutepa SAN: No! Let me say this, we should make a distinction between once we seem right here to say one thing and take a look at the background, and whether or not or not what we’re saying will be defended from what’s earlier than the Court.
There is a political interpretation and there may be unbiased authorized interpretation.
What I’ve given to you is a authorized opinion and I problem any lawyer to return right here and level to me the place within the Court of Appeal’s judgments.
The inference I gave for the following dismissal of the case signifies that nothing has touched the second judgment of the Federal High Court. As as to if or not the Federal High Court has jurisdiction to deal with the matter, will not be an argument that I can proffer right here as a result of the legislation that I do know is that whoever is aware of {that a} order of courtroom order towards her or him is null and void one has the obligation and accountability to return to that courtroom and ask that, that order be put aside.
My suggestion subsequently, is that earlier than you even invite us right here, it isn’t misplaced so that you can choose a replica of the judgment to learn.
ARISE TV: There are a number of judgements, there may be an Appeal Court judgment, there’s a Federal High Court Judgment and there may be State High Court Judgment that has ordered the election to go on and there may be one other enchantment continuing that has now been reenlisted to be revived
Jubrin Kutepa SAN: Why do they file separate fits?
ARISE TV: We ought to ask the politicians
Jubrin Kutepa SAN: That is why I stated politicians ought to learn to play by the foundations of the sport.
ARISE TV: Is it just like the Judiciary is aiding them?
Jubrin Kutepa SAN: No, I don’t agree with you, the judiciary had decided the case, the Federal High Court decided the 2 fits, nullified the election of the Yes/No chairmen.
ARISE TV: Will or not it’s truthful to say that the state authorities of Osun simply cherry picked the judgment that fits her by following the High Court Judgment that ordered them to proceed with the election?
Jubrin Kutepa SAN: With profound respect, I’m not from Osun however it is going to be uncharitable to say that the Osun State Government select and choose which order to comply with.There was an order from the State High Court commanding the Osun State Independent Electoral Commission (OSSIEC) to go on and conduct the election.
For me that judgment is in step with the selections of the Supreme Court that at any explicit time the Local Government should be democratically run and never with caretaker. I don’t see how the judgment that instructions obedience to constitutional provision will be described as cherry choosing or unlawful.