The Court of Appeal sitting in Ado-Ekiti, the Ekiti State capital, on Monday granted an Interim Order staying execution of all orders granted by the Federal High Court, Ado-Ekiti restraining the Dr. Eddy Olafeso-led Southwest Zonal Executive from functioning.
The three-man panel led by Justice Ahmad Belgore stopped all proceedings at the Federal High Court presided over by Justice Taiwo Taiwo pending the determination of the appeal.
In granting the application for stay of execution of Justice Taiwo’s orders, the appellate court took cognizance of the pending application to commit Olafeso and his exco to prison for contempt scheduled to be heard at the Ado-Ekiti Federal High Court on 6th December.
The court frowned at a letter dated 30th November, 2017 addressed to the Presiding Judge for the Ado-Ekiti Division, Justice Belgore, written by a factional Zonal Chairman, Chief Makanjuola Ogundipe, seeking the postponement of the hearing of the motion for a stay of execution brought by Olafeso.
While Olafeso belongs to the Senator Ahmed Makarfi’s National Caretaker Committee, Ogundipe belongs to the sacked Senator Ali Modu Sheriff-led faction.
The Supreme Court had on 12th July affirmed Makarfi-led exco as the authentic leadership of the party and removed Sheriff from office as the national chairman.
Justice Belgore ruled: “All the orders and rulings of the lower court delivered on October 17, October 23, November 8 and November 27, 2017 have been stayed in the interim, meaning that those orders and rulings are of no value as from now and cannot be used anywhere having been rendered null and void and that all the proceedings at the Federal High Court have been stayed pending the interlocutory appeal that is before the Appeal Court.”
The court, subsequently, adjourned further hearing on the appeal till 15th January, 2017.
Ogundipe had in a suit number FHC/AD/CS/18/2017 averred that the Supreme Court judgment did not invalidate his executive claiming the verdict only affected the national body led by Sheriff.
Source: The Nation