Date Published: 11/11/09

Ekiti Group slams Appeal Court President, Fashola, Tinubu over reception

The Ekiti Patriots (TEP) has lashed out at the trio of Appeal Court President, Justice Umaru Farouk Abdullahi, Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babatunde Fashola and former governor of the State, Mr. Bola Tinubu over the reception held recently for the Appeal Court President by the Lagos State government, saying; “Their relationship goes beyond the ordinary and there is no guarantee that there will not be a likelihood of bias against opponents of the Action Congress (AC) in the election petitions cases handled by the Court of Appeal.”

Reacting to the recent reception held for Justice Abdullahi at the Sheraton Hotels, Ikeja, Lagos at the instance of the Lagos State government, TEP, in a statement signed by its National Coordinator, Comrade Kayode Adekunle queried the rationale behind the spending of several millions of naira of tax payers money that would have gone into developmental projects on the reception.

“It is quite unfortunate that at an era of global economic meltdown when several States are groaning under severe economic pressure, Lagos State government could be lavishing millions of naira to organise a reception for a man who has little or no importance to the economic and social well-being of Lagosians.

“The only reason such a lavish reception could have been organised for Justice Abdullahi was for Governor Fashola, Tinubu, and other Action Congress members and lawyers to say ‘THANK YOU’ to the Appeal Court president for a job well done.

“This reception to us is not only preposterous but a gratis in another form. This is in consideration of the fact that AC and its candidates had been able get most of their favourable judgements at the Appeal Courts.

“From the red-biro inclined judgement on Ekiti State, award of Ekiti Central Senatorial seat to the AC, retrial of Osun State governorship election petition to the recent nullification of Senator Iyiola Omisore’s election, the Appeal Court under Justice Abdullahi has remained an avenue where AC candidates get electoral victories they were unable to get at the polls.

“This to say the least is absurd and a clear signal that our judiciary is not immune from manipulation by desperate politicians.

“If Fashola and his mentor want us to believe that the reception was not a political gathering of those who had benefitted from the goodwill of Justice Abdullahi, we would have seen a sprinkling of politicians of other political parties. But what we saw were AC chieftains and lawyers who had represented the party at the various election petitions tribunals and Election Appeal cases.

“We would have been convinced that some people had noble intentions of honouring a man who has worked meritoriously for his country if civil organisations or even the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) had honoured him with such a reception, not politicians who are constantly looking for ways to curry the favour of the judiciary.

“We wonder what the AC would have said of the reception if it had been organised by a Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governor like Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola of Osun State,” TEP said.

The group called on the judiciary to be mindful of being used by political money bags, who are desirous of purchasing electoral victories at the courts, adding that; “Our democracy is at risk of judges, who are arbiters in election cases wine and dine with politicians as done by Justice Abdullahi in Lagos.”