INEC Chairman Challenges Arrest Order at Appeal Court

Less than 24 hours after a Federal High Court in Abuja, issued a bench warrant for his arrest on alleged disobedience to court orders, the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Mahmoud Yakubu, has asked the Court of Appeal to quash the arrest order.

Justice Stephen Pam of the Federal High Court, Abuja, had last Wednesday issued a bench warrant against the INEC chief, following his failure to appear before the court on three occasions to defend himself in the contempt charge brought against him by the Anambra State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). But Yakubu who is challenging the arrest order in a notice of appeal he filed through his lead counsel, Chief Adegboyega Awomolo (SAN), is claiming that Justice Pam acted in bad faith in the issuance of the arrest order because he had already filed a pending appeal against the order and the attention of the judge drawn to the appeal.

Among others, Yakubu claimed that up till date, no order was enrolled and served on him for his personal appearance in court as required by law.

He averred that the warrant of arrest against him was a nullity because none of the parties in the contempt case applied for issuance of bench warrant except the judge who did so on his own.

The INEC chief maintained that he had not disobeyed any court order because he was not present before the court, when the alleged order directing his personal presence was made and that Justice Pam who issued the order has no jurisdiction to punish him for the alleged disobedience of court order committed ex-facie curie (outside the court).

Yakubu in the notice of appeal predicated on five grounds claimed that the Federal High Court Judge was wrong to be a judge of his own order allegedly not obeyed outside the face of the court.

He maintained that he was no longer a contemnor at the Federal High Court under the strength of his appeal lodged at the Court of Appeal challenging the justification of the contempt charge against him.

Besides, Yakubu asserted that Justice Pam committed a grave miscarriage of justice, when he unilaterally struck out a motion on notice he filed on July 31, praying his court to adjourn the contempt charge against him, pending the determination of his appeal on the contempt charge at the Court of Appeal.