By Jude-Ken Ojinnaka
Justice Tijjani Ringim of a Federal High Court sitting in Lagos has ordered the Lagos State Attorney-General, the State Transport Commissioner and the Head of Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) to appear before his court over alleged continuing disobedience to two court orders.
Also ordered to appear before the court on the alleged contempt is another LASTMA official Mr. I. A. James.
Justice Ringim made the order compelling the appearance of the aforementioned alleged contemnors, after listening to Adeniyi Komolafe Esq. who moved an application to commit them to prison, for wilfully disobeying two orders made by Justice O. E. Abang, in a suit numbered FHC/L/CS/653/2011, and Justice J. T. Tsoho, in suit numbered FHC/L/CS/83/12, respectively, filed against them by Mr. Jonathan Ademola Odutola.
Odutola, had gotten the two judgements against the alleged contemnors over his confiscated vehicles.
However, due to the alleged contemnors wilful disobedience to the two orders, the judgement creditor, Odutola through his counsel Komolafe, had filed Form 49 against the alleged contemnors.
While moving the Form 49, Komolafe told the court that the application to commit the alleged contemnors on to prison, was filed pursuant to Section 72 of The Sheriffs And Civil Process Act Cap. S6 Laws Of The Federation Of Nigeria, Order 9 Rule 13 of the Judgement Enforcement Rules and Under the Court’s Inherent Jurisdiction.
The judgement creditor in affidavit in support of the contempt application deposed to by Azeez Badru, a Chief Litigation Officer in the law firm of Kehinde Osibona & Co., Solicitors to the Plaintiff, stated that the Court in a judgement delivered on September 16, 2011, restrained all the respondents whether by themselves, its servants, agents or otherwise howsoever called from continuing arrest and detention of the Plaintiffs vehicles and further violation on the Plaintiffs right to own properties.
The deponent averred that all the respondents participated fully at the proceedings of the Court and were aware of the said orders of the Court. He added that the respondents had deliberately and arrogantly refused to obey the said orders of the Court and have continued and still continues to violate the right of the Plaintiff and failed to release the detained vehicles as ordered by the Court.
The deponent further averred that despite the fact of the respondents awareness of the said orders, the Plaintiff caused to be served on the Respondents Form 48 (Notice of Consequences of Disobedience to Order of the Court) on the first and second contemnors on the February 14, 2022 and the third contemnor was equally served on the February 10, 2022.
He stated that the alleged contemnors still refuses to comply with the said orders and had continued to disobey the subsisting orders of this Honourable Court thereby rendering them nugatory, adding that office of the fourth respondent blocked all the access possible for the Plaintiff to reap the dividend of the judgements by refusing to release two of the vehicles apprehended.
He therefore urged the court to grant the prayers sought on the Motion paper and to commit the respondents to prison for wilfully disobedience two court orders.
After listening to the judgement creditor’s counsel, Justice Ringim ordered all the alleged contemnors to appear before the court on November 15, 2023, while also ordered that hearing notice be issued and served on all the alleged contemnors.