The Judge of a Kogi State High Court sitting in Koto on friday hurriedly adjourned sitting indefinitely and fled after he said there were credible intelligence that the security of the court was under threat.
Lawyers and litigants in the court premises also hurried away following alarms that thugs were set to attack the court.
Justice Alaba Omolaye-Ajileye sitting over an action brought by the State Judiciary Workers Union against the Kogi State Government seeking to restrain the government from removing the Chief Judge of the State had stood down the court for two hours to enable him rule on a motion moved by the plaintiffs.
But just as Justice Omolaye-Ajileye entered his chambers the court clerk quickly beckoned on four senior advocates waiting for the judge to immediately enter the chambers.
It was in the Chambers that the Judge revealed that the police security that were provided had all withdrawn in the course of the court deliberation. Furthermore he revealed that there was credible intelligence that the security of the court was under threat and said as a consequence the court must adjourn sine die.
The Judge quickly made for his official vehicle even as the senior lawyers and their aides also gathered their effects and deserted the court within minutes.
The court had resumed sitting on Friday with lead counsels to the parties in the suit adopting their written addresses on Motion NO. HC/KK02M/201 notifying the court of a resolution of the Kogi House of Assembly calling for the removal of the Chief Judge in spite of a restraining order of court.
The claimants/applicants in the motion had contended that the House of Assembly defied the pendency of Suit and the interim injunctive Orders of the Court, to have sat and issued a resolution in respect of the matter and therefore the order must be declared null and void.
They prayed for an order of the court nullifying and setting aside the resolution purportedly passed by the House at its plenary sitting of 2nd April, 2019 in defiance of the pendency of the suit.
The action of the Legislative Arm, according to the motion, also defied the interim injunctive Orders of Court by acting upon a report submitted to it by its Public Accounts Committee and resolving
R.A. Lawal-Rabana (SAN), Abeni Mohammed (SAN), A.M.Aliyu (SAN), Tawo E. Tawo (SAN) and and three other lawyers represented the claimants/applicants.
One of the Senior Advocates, Mohammed said that the motion was brought pursuant to Order 11, Rules 1 and 2 of Kogi State High Court (Civil Procedure) Rules, 2006.
The motion has Kogi State House of Assembly; Speaker of the House;
Hon. Bello Hassan Abdullahi, chairman of the Ad Hoc Committee; The Governor of Kogi State and the Attorney-General of Kogi State as defendants/respondents.
Mohammed, while addressing the court said the claimants/applicants filed the motion supported a 16-paragraph affidavit with Exhibits “A to G”.
Adopting their written address, Mohammed said, “We rely on the affidavit and the exhibits and urge the court to grant the prayers in particular, Exhibit A and B.
Sale Sule Esq. leading one other counsel, Yusuf Goodluck for the defendants/respondents said he had filed a counter affidavit with an eight-paragraph affidavit adding that they relied on the averments.
Justice Omolaye-Ajileye, after adoption of the addresses by the counsels went on a two-hour stand down to deliver his ruling on the motion.
It was immediately after this that the tension that led to the hurried exit of the Judge, lawyers and litigants broke.