FCT CJ signs rule against political cases

The Chief Judge (CJ) of the FCT, Justice Ishaq Bello, has re-affirmed a ban placed on ex parte injunctions and restraining orders in political cases.

Justice Bello made this known while inaugurating the newly elected nine-member executive of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Abuja chapter.

He said he had signed a new practice direction for lawyers and judges which regulated the process of filing political cases outside the jurisdiction of the court and that the decision was to encourage natural growth of democracy and for political actors to resolve disputes internally without resorting to courts unless it became exceedingly necessary.

Justice Bello said, “We want to foreclose the window for window shopping or forum shopping and then conflicting judgements on the same matters.

“We deemed it desirable that we have to sanitise the situation. And the practice direction has now directed the transfer of all such cases back to their places of origin, even if they are part-hear matters, and we will no longer continue to entertain such cases.”

In her acceptance speech, the Chairman of the Abuja branch of NBA, Hauwa Shekarau, assured that she would work hard with others to achieve her 10-point agenda which would reposition the bar.

Earlier, former Chairmen of the branch, Ikechukwu Ezechukwu (SAN) and Joe Kyari Gadzama (SAN), pledged support for the new executive and expressed confidence that the inauguration had ended protracted factionalisation of the association.

Members of the new exco are Hauwa Shekarau (chairman); Chioma Onyenucheya-Uko (vice chairman); Prince Adebiyi Adetosoye (secretary); Chinelo Ofoegbunam (assistant secretary); Adedeji Emmanuel Adewale (treasurer); Ngozi Agubalu (welfare secretary); Ikemefuna Onyeka (publicity secretary); Jude Okey Ugwuanyi (legal adviser) and Princess Frank-Chukwuani (NEC representative).