Board chair: NNPCL attorneys stage walkout in Ararume case

There was drama on Monday at a Federal Excessive Court docket in Abuja within the N100 billion go well with by Senator Ifeanyi Ararume in opposition to the President, Main Basic Muhammadu Buhari (retd), when two Senior Advocates of Nigeria, Kayinsola Ajayi, a Professor of Regulation and Etigwa Uwa, staged a walkout on the courtroom.

The 2 SANs had appeared earlier than Justice Inyang Ekwo to symbolize the Nigeria Nationwide Petroleum Firm Restricted within the go well with by Ararume difficult his removing because the chairman of the corporate.

Ajayi who led a retinue of attorneys on behalf of the NNPCL had sought to maneuver three completely different functions comprising one asking the courtroom to remain proceedings, pending the enchantment in opposition to the ruling of the Federal Excessive Court docket delivered on January 11, 2023.

After figuring out the processes filed by the NNPCL in opposition to the go well with, he argued that the movement searching for keep of proceedings should be heard individually and ruling delivered by the Choose earlier than every other movement needs to be entertained.

The Choose nevertheless knowledgeable him to maneuver all of the functions collectively and that he would ship separate rulings in every of the functions in order to avoid wasting judicial time of the courtroom.

Though Ararume, represented by Chris Uche (SAN), claimed that the movement for keep of continuing had not been served on him, Ajayi stood his floor to maneuver the appliance individually and that the Choose should give separate rulings on it in some way earlier than every other concern.

Nonetheless, following the choice of the Choose to take all of the functions collectively according to the supply of the Observe Path of the Federal Excessive Court docket, Ajayi and Uwa introduced their withdrawal from the go well with and instantly staged a walkout on the courtroom.

They have been joined by their juniors in leaving the courtroom instantly the choose ordered them to maneuver their three functions collectively.

Later throughout the proceedings, Ararume’s counsel, Uche, whereas adopting his remaining transient of argument, urged the courtroom to invoke the Corporations and Allied Issues Act to nullify the removing of his shopper as chairman of the NNPCL.

Uche knowledgeable the courtroom that Buhari acted outdoors the regulation to take away Ararume after incorporating the oil firm in his identify and was billed for inauguration within the capability.

Nonetheless, Buhari’s counsel, Abubakar Shuaib, prayed the courtroom to dismiss the go well with in opposition to his shopper on the grounds that it was statute barred on the time it was instituted.

Particularly, Shuaib argued that Ararume’s go well with offended Part 2(a) of the Public Officers Act and as such was incompetent.

Counsel for the Company Affairs Fee, which is the third defendant within the go well with, Akeeem Mustapha (SAN), requested the courtroom to say no jurisdiction in entertaining the go well with.

In response to him, his shopper didn’t play any function in Ararume’s disputed removing other than incorporating the NNPCL as a restricted legal responsibility firm primarily based on the doc submitted to it.

Mustapha nevertheless stated that Ararume’s appointment was political and that Buhari had the facility to rent and hearth, including that the appointment had nothing to do with CAMA regulation.

After taking arguments from Ararume, President Buhari, and Company Affairs Fee, Justice Ekwo mounted March 28 for ruling and attainable judgment within the go well with.

Ararume had dragged Buhari earlier than the courtroom praying it to declare his removing because the NNPC chief unlawful, illegal and unconstitutional and that it was a complete breach of CAMA regulation below which the NNPCL was integrated.

Aside from asking the courtroom to concern an order to return him to workplace, Ararume additionally demanded N100 billion as compensation for the damages he suffered nationally and internationally within the manners his removing was carried out by President Buhari.