Sunday, November 18, 2012

BEHOLD! LAGOS NEW JUDGES


In a few weeks time, the announcement of the appointment of six new judges of the High Court of Lagos State, will be made. Their swearing in will, all other things being equal also take place almost immediately.

Informed observers of the Lagos State Judiciary are speculating on December as the month of the elevation of these appointees.

But who are these new appointees? It would be recalled that this magazine in her last edition Vol. 13 No 2 had published a short-list of sixteen “Bench seekers to wit:

1.  Ogunsanya Sedoten Sosi (Mrs.)                    Director (MOJ)

2.  Ogala Oyindamola Adesola                    Chief Magistrate I

3.  Solebo Serifat Oloruntoyin (Ms.)            Chief Magistrate II

4.  Williams Fazi Kazeem Olusegun              Private Practitioner

5.  Ipaye-Nwachukwu Arike Mutiat (Mrs.)     Chief Magistrate II

6.  Animahun Wasiu                                  Private Practitioner

7.  Bankole-Oki Folashade Janet (Ms.)                Private Practitioner

8.  Savage Michael Akintunde                     Private Practitioner

9.  Lawal Abdulfattah Olawale                     Private Practitioner

10.  Olukolu Rasil Oluyomi                         Private Practitioner/Lecturer

11.  Isaac Akintunde Olufemi                             Chief Magistrate (Admin)

12.  Safari Ganiu Ali                                  Chief Registrar

13.  Oke Senami Theodora                         Chief State Counsel (MOJ)

14.  Bashua Jubril Abisoye                         Private Practitioner

15.  Bajulaiye Adegboyega Oyewole                   Deputy Director (MOJ)

The Squib can now authoritatively reveal that out of the fifteen short-listed nominees, only six have successfully scaled the final hurdle of selection.

The six are:

1.  Ogunsanya Sedoten Sosi (Mrs.)- Ministry of Justice

2.  Ogala Oyindamola Adesola (Mrs.)- Lagos State Judiciary

3.  Animahun Wasiu- Private Legal Practitioner

4.  Savage Micheal Akintunde- Private Legal Practitioner

5.  Lawal Abdul-Fatai Olawale- Private Legal Practitioner

6.  Safari Ganiu Ali- Chief Registrar Lagos State High Court

Thus we have two female appointees as against four males, the first time in almost fifteen years in the Lagos State Judiciary where male appointees would number more than females in any appointing session.

This, as some observers contend, is an indication of the interest of the authorities to redress the sharp gender imbalance on the Lagos State Bench. However it is “not yet uhuru” for any of the six finalists as very intense lobbying still rages to  substitute some of the ‘finalists’ with others who were dropped.

Geckos have it that politicians particularly of the ruling party in Lagos State (Action Congress of Nigeria) notable monarchs, retired judges and chief judges, old and influential senior  legal practitioners as well as members of the business-elite are piling serious pressure on the Lagos State Judiciary to have a change of mind on their ‘finalists’ which the Squib learnt were drawn up when the focus of lobbyists particularly politicians shifted temporarily to the recently concluded gubernatorial contest in Ondo State.

On the other hand the lobbyists want the number of ‘finalists’ to increase by at least two more to accommodate their interests.

The Squib has also learnt that the lobbyists are waiting impatiently for the Chief Judge (Ayo Phillips .J) who alongside other judges are outside the country to return, before resuming their lobbying bombardment. The Chief Judge is the chairman of the Lagos State Judicial Service Commission.

As things stand, observers appear sure of only one nominee- Safari Ganiu Ali, of  maintaining his position on the ‘finalists’ list. As for the other five nominees, especially those of them who made the final list by the sheer force of outstanding performance in tests, examinations and surpassing credentials, it is a case of prayers and supplications.

15 JOSTLE FOR JUDICIAL APPOINTMENT IN LAGOS

For some time now, the Lagos State Judiciary has been trying to employ more high court judges. Around May 2012, it was widely believed by many observers of the judiciary that, the immediate past administration of the judiciary under Chief Judge Inumidun Akande would swear in a new set of judges before his Lordship bowed out of service in June 2012.

However the expectation failed, even though the judicial recruitment exercise had advanced greatly, at the time of Justice Akande’s exit. With a new helmswoman in charge of the Lagos judiciary, in the person of Honourable Justice Ayo Phillips, the desire to employ more Judges got a renewed fillip.

The Squib authoritatively learnt that hardly had the word gone out that the judiciary was recruiting than applicants in their dozens signified their interest. Thus about a fortnight ago, when the Judicial Service Commission, held an examination for judicial applicants, no less than 60 persons turned up for the exercise.

However at the end of the day only the following fifteen legal practitioners were found possibly appointable. They are:

Ogunsanya Sedoten Sosi (Mrs.)                           -        Director (MOJ)

Ogala Oyindamola Adesola (Mrs.)             -        Chief Magistrate I

Solebo Serifat Oloruntoyin (Ms.)               -        Chief Magistrate II

Williams Fazi Kareem Olusegun                 -        Private Practitioner

Ipaye-Nwachukwu Arike Mutiat (Mrs.)      -       Chief Magistrate II

Animahun Wasiu                                        -        Private Practitioner

Bankole-Oki Folashade Janet (Ms.)            -        Private Practitioner

Savage Michael Akintunde                         -        Private Practitioner

Lawal Abdulfattah Olawale                        -        Private Practitioner

Olukolu Rasil Oluyomi                               -        Private Practitioner/Lecturer

Isaac Akintunde Olufemi                                      -        Chief Magistrate (Admin)

Safari Ganiu Ali                                          -        Chief Registrar

Oke Senami Theodora (Mrs.)                      -        Chief State Counsel (MOJ)

Bashua Jubril Abisoye                                -        Private Practitioner

Bajulaiye Adegboyega Oyewole                 -        Deputy Director (MOJ)

A careful perusal of the list shows the following realities:

All but one of the shortlisted applicants are Lagosians.

While the ladies are 6, the gentle men are 9.

The Public Bar has the least number of candidates (3) while the Private Bar has the highest (7). Interestingly only one of the seven is a lady.

Coincidentally or otherwise, there is about a 50-50 Christian – Muslim parity in the number of applicants shortlisted.

Now that the short-list of preferred candidates is out, observers say the race is now at its peak and most delicate, as only five or six out of the fifteen candidates on the short-list would eventually be picked for the certainly juicy and respectable appointments.

Many observers contend that the very best of the candidates may lose out of the hot race because at this stage of the competition, merit has ceased to be a strong propelling factor unlike influence and power of behind-the-door lobby a.k.a “long leg” or “man –know-man.”

Saturday, November 17, 2012

FAKE LAWYER BECOMES NBA TREASURER


Like other branches of the Nigerian Bar association, the Ibadan Bar is still battling with the scourge of quacks in the legal profession. In a recent move to curb the plague, the Branch in March 2012 under its chairman Seun Abimbola Esq. set up the Anti-Touting and Ethics Committee of the Branch under the chairmanship of Tunde Gade Esq.
 

The foremost term of reference of the Committee predictably is “to identify, expose and ensure the prosecution of fake lawyers or unqualified lawyers masquerading as lawyers.
 

The committee soon set to work and within a short time nine persons, including one Miss Abiodun Anne Omolayomi suspected to be fake lawyers, practicing in Ibadan were invited by the Gade Committee to forward to her, documentary proofs of their qualifications as legal practitioners.
 

Now the said Miss Abiodun Anne Omolayomi was no ordinary member of the NBA Ibadan Branch. She was the treasurer of the association by virtue of winning election a few months ago.
 

A lithe pretty chick of a lady and always attractively packaged, “the Barrister” was well known at the Bar and featured prominently at the programmes of the Branch. She was also known to be married to one Mr. Lucas, a well known staff or independent contractor with the national body of the Association.

So when the news seeped out that she was one of those the Gade Committee was investigating, many dismissed the allegation with a wave of the hand.

However concerns for the lady’s integrity rose when instead of simply furnishing the Gade Committee with the necessary proofs demanded, she resorted to filibustering.

She did this by sending a letter to the Committee to the effect that she would comply with the demands of the Committee only if the committee obliged her with a copy of the petition against her.

Undeterred by this response, the Committee formally enquired about her status from the Supreme Court of Nigeria, the custodian of the Rolls of Legal Practitioners duly called to the Nigerian Bar.

When the response came, it stated categorically that the name of Abiodun Anne Omolayomi could not be found in the said “Sacred Rolls.”

It was the time for the police to move in. However the smart alec of a lady who had paraded herself for years as a qualified Barrister and Solicitor of the Supreme Court of Nigerian avoided apprehension by the expedience of doing a disappearing act till date, from Ibadan and all her other known locations.

The Squib authoritatively learnt that the fake lawyer’s husband was terribly gutted at the exposure of his wife as a quack. The poor man never knew the ‘lawyer’ he married was a liar!

 

Monday, July 16, 2012

NBA 2012 ELECTIONS …. SQUIB ANALYSIS AND PREDICTIONS


There are fourteen offices, to wit-: in the Executive Committee of the Nigerian Bar Association, but only nine are open to contest in the 2012 election. Despite the importance of the office of Financial Secretary none of the over one hundred thousand members of the Association has considered it worth their while. The clearly innocuous posts of Assistant Financial Secretary, Assistant Publicity Secretary and Legal Adviser attracted only one qualified candidate each. Rather surprisingly, there is also just one candidate for 2nd Vice-President position; Stephen T-Abar the out-going 1st Assistant Secretary of the association.

 Thus the following offices are the only ones under contest:

(i) President, (ii) 1st Vice-President, (iii) 3rd Vice-President (iv) General Secretary

   (v) The 1st Assistant Secretary, (vi) The 2nd Assistant Secretary (vii) Treasurer

   (viii) Welfare Secretary and (ix) Publicity Secretary

 PUBLICITY SECRETARY
Mr. Afam Obi of the Onitsha Branch and Mr. Gbolahan Gbadamosi of Lagos Branch are contesting the post. Though Obi is the out-going Assistant Publicity Secretary, the odds of winning the election are not in his favour. His rival Gbolahan Gbadamosi a.k.a G.G a former veteran journalist and also a former Assistant Publicity Secretary is far more popular and has enjoyed more visibility during the campaigns than Obi.

VERDICT: Gbadamosi, excepting an unlikely upset, will win this election.
TREASURER

 There are only two candidates here and both are ladies. Joyce Oduah from the Lagos Branch and Ganiat Tutu Siyonbola of the Ijebu-Ode Branch. If Siyonbola wins this election, it will certainly be an upset for Joyce Oduah appears set to win the elections very easily.

 Apart from having the support of tribal heavy weights in the association, the gregarious and imposing Oduah, has enjoyed more presence in the SMS world than the relatively diminutive and soft spoken Siyonbola.

VERDICT: Oduah should win

WELFARE SECRETARY

Two candidates are slugging it out: - Masud. M. Alabelewe and Kelvin Ezinna. Both men contested for the same post in 2010 but lost out to the incumbent Usman Sule.

This year both men are relying on regional and tribal support to win. Alabelewe may have an edge though because being a Westerner (Yoruba) he practices in the North (Kaduna) and as such has reasonable hopes of getting many votes from the West and other zones. Kelvin Ezinna an Easterner may excel only in the East.

VERDICT: Alabelewe should win.

1ST AND 2ND ASSISTANT SECRETARY POSTS

Due to the fact that virtually all the contestants here have no notable or outstanding names and are contesting in the so called “innocuous posts,” the Squib would not proffer much analysis here. Of the lot only Gabriel Opayinka of Ikeja Branch and Benjamin Isetin of Agbor Branch can be said to have done some level of reasonable campaigns and both are contesting the same position- 2nd Assistant Secretary. Opayinka may have the edge. He had a decent showing the first time he contested the position in 2010 and may leverage on the support of the Young Lawyers Forum of which he was a pioneer national Chairman to garner valuable votes. Isetin however stands a good chance of winning too for he is a regular face at NEC meetings and is respected for his reserved nature and proper comportment. Expectedly much of the votes from the Mid-West Forum (Edo and Delta States) will go to him.

VERDICT: Opayinka more likely to win but nothing is certain.
3RD VICE-PRESIDENT

Since both candidates, S.H Garun-Gabas and Francis Ekwere have decided to be sparing in their campaigns for this important office we shall devote no analysis on their contest.

1ST VICE-PRESIDENT

This office attracted the highest number of contestants- four. Three of the four, Foluso Fayokun (Lagos) Awoniyi Alabi (Osogbo) Osas Justy Erhabor (Ilesa) are from the West while the last, Caleb Dajan (Jos) is from the North. All the four men were at one time or the other past Chairmen of their various Branches.

The strong presence of tribal politics in the NBA also known as politics of “regional adoption” or “anointed candidacy” will strongly affect the outcome of the race. As at press time, the two leading candidates appear  to be Justy Erhabor and Caleb Dajan. Justy Erhabor has a lot of things going for him, though he is a rather lazy campaigner. He is the incumbent 2nd Vice-President and has been the “supervising prefect” of the North since 2010. Thus he is not an unknown quantity there. Secondly he, an Edo man but married to a Yoruba and practising in the West, has a good leg in the Mid-West Forum and has again been adopted by the tribal jingoists of the West, “Egbe Amofin” as their preferred candidate. Since the East is having no candidates is up for the grabs, the reality O.J’s incumbency may help him get some votes there too.

Caleb Dajan, if he wins, will really have his region to thank for that as he is virtually unknown outside the North nor has he taken the trouble to do much of SMS campaigns.

Foluso Fayokun of Lagos Branch may put up a good showing in this election if he has help from older colleagues in the profession. Supported fully by his branch, the big Lagos branch and having support from other Lagos State branches like the progressives and activists of Ikeja Bar, Ikorodu and Badagry, Fayokun will share the West with Erhabor but may not perform too well in other zones, except for last minute rallies and miracles.

As for Alabi Awoniyi of Osogbo branch, his fate may not differ much from Fayokun’s. His biggest weakness is losing the Western turf of the “Egbe Amofin” to Erhabor and not being charismatic and energetic enough in his campaigns elsewhere. He is not helped in the fact that he is from a relatively small and even provincial branch.

Prediction: - O.J Erhabor most likely to win but Dajan may clinch it if Fayokun and Awoniyi do sufficient damage to Erhabor’s hold in the West. A Fayokun or Awoniyi upset is likely but it just may happen.

  GENERAL SECRETARY

This promises to be the toughest and tightest race in the 2012 election. The candidates appear to be attractive to the electorate for different reasons. For example the oldest of the contestants Emmanuel Akowe Haruna at 54 comes across as mature, stable, humble and easily accessible. The toughest and the comeliest, Emeka Obegolu (39) reflects an engaging, charming and cosmopolitan brightness and comes across as an info tech gizmo. The last but not the least, Olomuyiwa Olowokure (49) presents a quick thinking, earnest, efficient and organized persona, who can’t wait to get things done.

However the battle may rage more fiercely between Haruna and Olowokure. Olowokure is Kaduna based and a Yoruba and has been adopted by the regional conclavists of the West, “Egbe Amofin” while Emmanuel Haruna an Igala from Kogi State has been adopted by the Northern irredentist group, the Arewa Forum as their General Secretary candidate.

Haruna may come first simply because he has the longest presence in the NEC of the NBA and is known to many important Bar men for almost two decades now. His draw back is a certain link with J.B Daudu S.A.N the unpopular incumbent and out-going President of the association.

Emeka Obegolu can only win if the other candidates cancel themselves out and leave him largely unscathed. Without any regional backing, the candidate who most believe has performed creditably well as the out-going publicity secretary of the association, would really work much harder. As a new comer to NBA national politics, in 2008, he became noticeable for his overt use of the SMS forum. This year his opponents have  matched him text for text ,“message for message” and could be said to have campaigned physically to diverse places more than him. Also this year Obegolu may well be a victim of the obnoxious tribal politics of NBA in that it may be considered not politic at a time the NBA presidency is zoned to the East, that an Easterner should also become the General Secretary.

 VERDICT: Too close to call! Either Haruna or Olowokure most likely to win the race with Haruna having the edge. But don’t be surprised at an Obegolu miracle win.

 PRESIDENT

 The three candidates, Okechukwu Wali, Emeka Ngige and Blessing Ukiri are in two classes. The first class is the “No-hope” category and is exclusively and firmly occupied by Blessing Ukiri. Interestingly, Ukiri is the only candidate of the trio that could be regarded as having any cognate experience for the job.

He was in 2002 -2004 the 3rd Vice-President of the NBA. He was in 2006 – 2008 the 2nd Vice-President of the NBA and presently is the out-going 1st Vice-President.

Ukiri, a Mid-Westerner but practising in Port-Harcourt has been much unlike his usual strong and expressive political self in this race. So sparse, so desultory and clearly half- hearted has been his current campaign that he is way far behind his opponents. In fact until very lately most people did not know he was in the race. Expecting an Ukiri win in this election, save a mighty miracle, is worse than waiting for Godot.

The Hope Class
Emeka Ngige SAN and Okechukwu Wali SAN are in this category. Until about five weeks ago, the presidency of the NBA seemed signed, sealed and delivered to Wali, the amiable and gentle looking Senior Advocate from Port-Hartcourt Branch. This was because he was the only visible campaigner. His pace was not fast and furious but rather slow and steady. So extensive has been his on-ground campaigns that it can be said of him without much exaggeration that he has been  “everywhere”. Adopted in the East, the West and the North by the regional irredentist conclaves, Wali appears unstoppable and so strong is he that even in Ngige’s very backyard (Lagos) Wali is known to have made in-roads.

However winning the presidency may not be so easy for Wali as Emeka Ngige, though coming late in the campaigns has made strong and impressive impact. His campaign pace has been fast and furious and he has successfully cast himself as a viable alternative to the hitherto all conquering Wali.

Ngige’s campaign style is to make direct criticism of the state and the dynamics of the NBA under the incumbent presidency of J.B Daudu which many see as imperial, oppressive and exploitative. In casting himself as ready to redress the many wrongs in the association and to champion agendas that will make the branches richer, see that the marginalization of the silent majority is sharply reduced and as well lessen the heavy financial burden placed on the ordinary members of the association, Ngige has gained much ground quickly and famously and in such a short while.

So effective really has been his campaign, that the Wali camp was forced to shift from its customary staid and pro-establishment perspectives to a more proactive and populist agenda. Knowing that he had lost valuable ground much earlier in the race Ngige is throwing all of his energies into the last leg of campaigns. Already he has won the war of the SMS messages and appears very determined to gain crucial ground in the last three days before the election. A lot of horse trading is expected, but he may just find that Wali’s generals are too many and too diverse to be overwhelmed by his own numerous foot soldiers.

VERDICT: Wali should win but Ngige is not going to suffer any disgrace in the contest. Besides he may cause an upset.

'TWINS' IN POWER IN IKEJA BAR; BUT WILL IT LAST?

At exactly 4.30pm on Thursday 28th June 2012, by a superb motion moved by Mr. Dele Adesina S.A.N and seconded, the very eventful and successful regime of Adebamigbe Omole, Esq of the Nigerian Bar Association Ikeja, came to an end.

          After the dissolution of the Omole led executive, the next stage was the swearing-in into office of the successor administration led by Monday Onyekachi Ubani as Chairman. The other officers are Adesina Ogunlana – 1st Vice Chairman, Carolyn Ibeh – 2nd Vice-Chairman, Adesina Adegbite – General Secretary, Carolyn Ibharuneafe – Treasurer (returned unopposed) Segun Fatoki – Financial Secretary (returned unopposed) Samson Omodara – Welfare Secretary (returned unopposed) Meimuna Esegime – Publicity Secretary, Titi Osagie – Social Secretary, Nelly Silver Ajalaye – Auditor.

          This seemingly simple task- suddenly became sticky, difficult and clamorous. The problem was deciding who would conduct the swearing in ceremony for the officers – the Electoral Committee or the Branch Chairman.

          When the out-going or rather out-gone Chairman declared that he was ready to do the swearing in ceremony, there was an uproar in the meeting place as supporters of both the in-coming chairman, Monday Ubani and the Electoral Committee which had become exposed as involved in the partisan struggle for power in the Ikeja Bar began loud, even tumultuous agitation for the Electoral Committee to conduct the inauguration.

          The tumult did not move Adebamigbe Omole, one inch. He proved on this occasion perhaps more than at any other time in his chairmanship that he indeed is an Omole (TOUGH CHILD).

          He insisted that the Electoral Committee, having refused to participate in the amicable settlement of suit no: ID/345M/2012 Yinka Farounbi v Dosu Ogunniyi and 8 ORS brought by Yinka Farounbi the 1st runner-up in the chairmanship election against the Electoral Committee and all the winners of the Election and that the Committee not being a signatory to the terms of settlement before the court (see cover story exhibit) as well as being under the restraint of court by way of a still subsisting injunction, can not swear in all those elected in the 9th May 2012 elections conducted by her pending the determination of the Motion on Notice (which is yet to be moved). According to an unyielding Omole the Electoral Committee cannot take advantage of Section 19 of the Bye Law and standing Orders of the Branch which provides thus “The chairman or any member of the Electoral member of the Electoral Committee or the out-going Branch Chairman shall swear-in all newly elected officers by administering the Oath of office contained in the first schedule to this Bye-Law immediately after the dissolution of the Branch Executive Council at the conclusion of the Annual General meeting”.

          While the Ubani Group were shouting and clamouring for the EC to conduct the inauguration, the committee members were in disarray. While the Secretary of the Committee Mrs. Funmi Falana the de-facto ruler of the EC sat perched near Femi Falana her husband and counsel in court on the second row, Mr. Dosu Ogunniyi the de-jure leader of the Committee maintained a lonely, needle-in-the-haystack existence at the back of the hall while Mr. Reginald Ugwuadu the 3rd member and the Houdini act of the EC was simply lost in the crowd.

          All entreaties to Omole from elders of the Branch like Olalekan Yusuf and Dele Adesina S.A.N to persuade Omole to allow the Electoral Committee to conduct the Swearing-in ceremony or at least have the honour of calling out the in-coming Executive Committee members, for the Swearing-in to be conducted by Omole himself, fell on deaf ears.

          “I will not allow it. I will not allow it. We have to follow the Bye-Law or there is no swearing-in. The Electoral Committee will not do the Swearing in. Any one who is interested in being sworn had better come out now” insisted Omole emphatically while waving the Bye Law in the air.

          In the face of an un-budging chairman, the ball was played squarely into the Ubani camp: either follow the Electoral Committee and not get sworn-in or ditch the Electoral Committee and get sworn in.

          After a while, the tension lessened and the clamour went down. Constitutionalism, though standing virtually alone, but upheld by a steely, unwavering resolve had prevailed.

The winners of the 9th May 2012 election (expecting Meimuna Esegine who was absent at the AGM) as well the officers returned unopposed stepped out and were inaugurated by Adebamigbe  Omole Esq in line with the Bye-Law and Standing Order.

Thus the Monday Onyekachi Ubani led administration started its life. The new leader of the Branch, Ubani gave an acceptance speech for himself and on behalf of his co-leaders. It was a short and reconciliatory speech, in the expected “no victor, no vanquished” mode but he did not forget to thank the umpire of the hugely controversial election for “a job well done”.

Though on the surface all seems well now with the Ikeja Bar, with the existence of a new administration, keen observers however are adopting a wait and see attitude to know whether the rendering crisis engendered by the circumstances of the 9th May 2012 elections have been truly and finally settled.

          The first fact of interest to observers is the continuous existence of suit no ID/345M/2012. As had earlier noted not all the parties to the suit participates in the Terms of Settlement.

          The bone of contention still remains:- whether or not the Electoral Committee 1st Defendant in the suit acted in accordance with the provisions of the Branch Law to prevent otherwise qualified voters from voting in the said election for failure to pay practising fees for the year 2012 or failure to pay same on or before 31st March 2012?

          The Farounbi suit a.k.a the Practising Fee case is now before Honourable Justice Idowu of the Ikeja High Court who is the third judge in less than two months to handle the matter.

          The first trial judge, Honourable Justice Toyin Taiwo presided over the matter twice. At her first sitting the judge granted Farounbi’s prayer for interim injunction restraining the winners of the election from parading themselves as such while also restraining the Electoral Committee and the 2nd defendant (the out-going chairman as at then) from swearing in the winners of the election until the determination of the motion on notice for interlocutory injunction.

          Till date, the motion on notice is yet to be taken while the order of injunction is yet to be discharged. For no officially stated reason, Honourable Justice Taiwo withdrew from the matter, which was transferred to Justice Opeyemi Oke for determination. Geckos however inform the Squib reliable that the Honourable Judge withdrew from the case to stop the insinuation that she was taken side with the claimant in the matter whom the Ubani group claimed had the support of Mr. Taiwo Taiwo the chairman of NBA Lagos and Husband of the trial judge.

          Oke J. was about to hear and determine the plethora of preliminary objections in the matter from the 1st, 3rd, 7th and 8th defendants, when the 3rd defendants fired a petition via the chambers of Messers Okey Ogbu and Co to Philip J. the new Honourable Chief Judge of Lagos State, accusing the learned trial judge of bias and working to the end of ensuring that the 3rd defendant was not sworn in into office on the 4th of June 2012.

          The petition however failed as the Chief Judge saw no merit in it but Justice Oke who felt grossly insulted by the murky content of the petition, returned the file back to the Chief Judge for assignment to another judge. Thus on the 27th June 2012 when the matter was to come up before Justice Oke and the parties and counsel reported to the court, they were confronted with a shocker.

          The judge announced his lordship’s withdrawal from the case “to let all of you know why I have withdrawn from the matter since I am not sure the petitioner (the 3rd Defendant) made available to other parties copies of his petition against me to the Chief Judge” Further said the judge – “I do not expect any lawyer to be a liar and to suppress material facts. A person who complies a record of proceedings in this matter and yet did not include the order of Justice Taiwo which states that her order of interim injunction remains effective until the determination of interlocutory injunction in his petition to the Chief Judge can only be up to mischief.

          It’s only a desperate person who can do such and a desperate person can do anything. However Lagos has the most populous number of legal practitioners and in that huge number there will be the type of the third defendant.

          I have handed him over to my own advocate, the almighty God, to judge. I am withdrawing from this case so that the 3rd defendant, should he lose in this case, will not be able to claim that he lost because the judge was already biased against him.”

          Thus it was only before Honourable Justice Yetunde Idowu, whom the Chief Judge transferred the matter to from Justice Oke that the Terms of Settlement between the claimant and the 2nd – 9th defendants was entered.

          The Squib reports that even getting the terms signed by the claimant (Yinka Farounbi) and the 3rd defendant (Monday Ubani) was problematic. Initially meant to be an all inclusive settlement, the 3rd defendant in the morning of 27th June 2012 stated that he would execute the document, if only the 1st defendant (Electoral Committee) signed. Incidentally, the 1st Defendant (Dosu Ogunniyi) was not prepared to sign the document as it was. As for the claimant, he was simply no where to be seen in the morning of 27th June 2012. Not only that he was in communicado even to leading members of his political group, the Progressives. Even long after the terms were amended to exclude the Electoral Committee as party to the Terms of Settlement, Farounbi was still out of reach. While the leaders of the Progressive group were simply embarrassed at Farounbi’s absence, the Ubani group firmly believed that the progressives were hatching another plot against their interest.

          Eventually at about 2.00pm the claimant “surfaced” and the Terms were eventually signed by the claimant and the 3rd Defendant after some drama about who would sign first.

          The pendency of the practising fee case is a real threat to the Ubani administration, for in the view of some legal experts, the claimant’s case challenging the validity of the May 9 2012 election is a strong and credible one, with the strong possibility of a legal triumph in the court of law.

          The second consideration for “worry” about the future of the Ubani administration is the nature of its composition, split as it were unevenly into two parts. The first part comprises of the Chairman himself, the Publicity Secretary and the Social Secretary, all who are either in the same camp or are strong allies.

          The second group comprises the 1st Vice-Chairman, the 2nd Vice Chairman, the General Secretary, the Treasurer, the Financial Secretary, the Welfare Secretary and the Auditor, all who are of the Progressive Group.

          Quite an interesting political situation, this is. According to observers because the apex control of the Ikeja Bar belongs to a member of the minority group which has only three portfolios, to its counter-part’s seven and which group controls the very crucial portfolios of the Secretariat and the entirety of the Financial Department.

          This clearly rather delicate situation which would test the political and administrative sagacity of the new regime is made much more acute by the quality of the personalities of the two most senior members of the team-Chairman Monday Ubani and 1st Vice Chairman Adesina Ogunlana.

          Whether by mere sheer coincidence or a certain mystical arrangement, both leaders are born in the same date, day, month and year (Monday 27 July 1964) and as such according to the ‘science’ of astrology are Leos. The 1st Vice Chairman had claimed rather dubiously however, that while he was born 12.00am in the morning, the Chairman was born late in the evening at about 10.00pm.

          Both share some similar character traits of being hardy, colourful, expressive, tempestuous, daring, assertive, gregarious, organized and engaging.

          It would be seen in a few weeks how the combination will work out. If the duo jells, the Ikeja Bar surely would be in for dizzying times of achievement, but if they fall out, all the troubles of the past few weeks could be a child’s play.

          Time, will surely tell.