It was yet another victory for purportedly impeached Imo State Deputy Governor, Prince Eze Madumere, when an Owerri High Court presided over by Justice Benjamin Iheaka, on Monday refused to vacate the Order restraining the Chief Judge of Imo state, Paschal Nnadi, from swearing in the state’s Deputy Governor designate, Calistus Ekenze.

The Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Militus Nlemadim, at resumed hearing yesterday had notified the court that he had filed necessary processes to enable the Court hear his application for the vacation of the Experte Order stopping the swearing-in of the Deputy Governor designate.

He argued that the Order which was issued in July would have been vacated because “it was not a perpetual Order”.

But counsel to the impeached Deputy Governor, Ken Njemanze, SAN, accused the commissioner of justice of playing pranks with the court.

Njemanze, informed the court that Nlemadim only served him with the processes of his application for vacation of the order on Friday afternoon.

He maintained that the counsel to the state government knew that there was no way he could have replied his application ahead of the Monday court sitting.

Njemanze, therefore, urged the Court to take notice of how the Commissioner for Justice was frustrating the hearing into the originating summon from commencing.

He further told the court that the four respondents who had yet to be served on the last adjourned date had been properly served through substituted means as ordered by the court.

But the commissioner for justice raised an objection that the respondents were not served on time.

Nlemadim said that according to the law, the respondents ought to have been served at least seven days to the court sitting.

He said that the impeached Deputy Governor’s counsel served the respondents on August 16, which was not up to seven days to the court sitting as required by the law.

In his ruling, the presiding Judge urged all parties to properly serve themselves before the next adjourned date.

The court ruled that there was no way it could go on to entertain the originating summon or motion for the vacation of the order stopping the swearing-in ceremony of the Deputy Governor designate when all the parties had not been properly served.

He adjourned till September 3 for further hearing.

•Adapted from a report by The Nation.

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