SAN FRANCISCO, March 19, (THEWILL) – A suit filed by the suspended governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Malam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, to challenge his suspension as well as the objection filed by the Federal Government challenging the jurisdiction to entertain the suit, would come up at a Federal High Court sitting in Abuja on April 8.
Presiding judge, Justice Gabriel Kolawole , on Wednesday, fixed April 8 for the commencement of the hearing of the suit.
But the counsel to the Federal Government, Chief Mike Ozekhome, (SAN), who had argued that his objection be taken first, was not happy with the decision of the court.
Ozekhome , who said he would challenge the trial court’s decision on appeal, had argued that the issue raised by Sanusi bordered on employment and that only the National Industrial Court had the jurisdiction to hear dispute between employer and employee.
The Federal Government had suspended Sanusi on February 19 over report by the Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria (FRCN) which accused him of financial recklessness . But Sanusi , through his counsel, Kola Awodein (SAN), had challenged his suspension by President Goodluck Jonathan, by dragging the President and two others before the court.
When the case came up for hearing on Wednesday, counsel to Federal Government, Ozekhome brought a preliminary objection challenging the jurisdiction of the court.
But the counsel to the plaintiff, Awodein, prayed the court to take both the preliminary objection and the substantive suit together.
Ozekhome and counsel to other defendants however objected to the prayer,arguing that the court had no jurisdiction to entertain the substantive suit.
They further submitted that by hearing both applications, the court would have entered jurisdiction which the constitution did not vest on it.
They therefore urged the court to hear the objection first.
In a short ruling he delivered, the presiding judge, Justice Gabriel Kolawole, held that the court would take both the objection and thesubstantive suit together, saying it would be a disservice to hear the objection first.
He maintained that it was judicially expedient and in the interest of justice to hear both the objection and the substantive suit together.
He however gave the parties 10 days to exchange their processes as he adjourned till April 8 for hearing of both applications.
Reacting to the ruling after the court session, Ozekhome said he had applied for the ruling to enable him file an appeal.
On February 26, Justice Kolawole had turned down an ex parte motion filed by Sanusi seeking to set aside his suspension.
The court instead ordered that President Jonathan should be put on notice as he adjourned for both sides (Sanusi and Jonathan) to argue the motion.
In the motion filed on February 24, Sanusi asked the court to reinstate him, and also make an order of interlocutory injunction restraining the President, the Attorney-General of the Federation and the Inspector-General of Police from stopping or preventing him from performing the functions of the CBN governor and enjoying in full, the statutory powers and privileges attached to the office.
Urging the court to immediately grant the motion, Sanusi argued that any delay might cause irreparable and serious damage and mischief on him in the exercise of his statutory duties as the CBN governor.
However ruling on the ex parte motion,Justice Kolawole directed Sanusi to put the defendants on notice to enable them appear before the court to explain why the application should not be granted.
The court noted that he felt hesitant and constrained to grant Sanusi’s ex parte motion as Justice Kolawole explained that it was unsafe to grant far reaching interim orders which had all the attributes of a mandatory injunction without giving the defendants a hearing.
Justice Kolawole also said once the defendants were served with the originating summons and motion on notice, the court would need to determine whether, considering the third Alteration Act No. 20 of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, the Federal High Court still had the jurisdiction to entertain the suit.
