Court turns down application to stop Wike's swearing-in

dimeji akinloye

May 28, 2015 12:42 AM

The judge said granting the application is tantamount to “adding insult upon the injury” of Rivers people who do not have a judiciary at the moment.

Nyesom Wike

Justice Ibrahim Buba a Lagos Federal High Court has turned down an application seeking to stop Chief Judge of Bayelsa State, Justice Kate Abiru from swearing in Rivers state Governor-elect Nyesom Wike on May 29.

The judge said granting the application is tantamount to “adding insult upon the injury” of Rivers people who do not have a judiciary at the moment, noting that the applicants have a good case nonetheless.

Buba said if he grants the application, a state of anarchy might be inevitable in the state.

“I am of the firm view that no court should make the order ex-parte to further compound the problems in Rivers State,” he said.

Three Lagos-based lawyers - Monday Ubani, John Nwokwu and Gabriel Okoro, had opposed the directive of the Attorney General of the Federation, Mohammed Adoke (SAN) who directed Abiru to swear in Wike as the state governor on May 29, because Rivers does not have a substantive Chief Judge currently.

Adoke made the decision to avoid crisis in Rivers State.

But the applicants moved against it, saying the constitution only allows the Chief Judge of the state or the President of the Customary Court of Appeal of Rivers State to swear in a Governor.

Justice Buba however adjourned to June 29 to hear the motion of notice having declined the application.

He said, “We cannot all be shallow or be shallow-minded. There shall be no room for anarchy.”

dimeji akinloye