An FCT High Court on Thursday dismissed the objections filed by Speaker of the Federal House of Representatives, Hon Aminu Waziri Tambuwal and former Chairman of the House’s ad hoc Committee on Fuel Subsidy Probe, Hon. Farouk Lawan to the N250bn Otedola suit for lacking in merit.
Mr. Femi Otedola, the Lagos-based oil magnate had brought the action after a $620,000 bribe scandal between him and Farouk resulted in harassment, intimidation and threats to re-enlist his business outfit among the blacklisted companies by the law makers.
Ruling on the objection, Justice Peter Kekemeke said Speaker Tambuwal and Farouk cannot use the House immunity as escape route to shield themselves from legal action for wrongful acts committed against the plaintiff outside the floor of the House.
The judge agreed with the submission of the plaintiff’s counsel, Chief Babajide Koku (SAN), that it was not part of the terms of reference of Farouk Committee to source bribe from anybody and as such cannot hide under the immunity conferred on them on the floor of the House to void the case.
Justice Kekemeke also refused to void the suit on the claim of being in a wrong court, saying the complaints of Otedola were against alleged harassment, intimidation and acts of arbitrariness by the defendants while demanding for $3m and not an attack on the Federal Government revenue or any of its agency that it should warrant going to a Federal High Court.
The court also rejected the claim by Tambuwal and Farouk that the case was baseless because no white paper had been issued yet on the probe, adding that the plaintiff did not need to wait for any white paper before suing them, since he was not attacking the probe report.
Justice Kekemeke further ruled that the case of the plaintiff before his court was the demand for $3m dollars through phones calls harassment and intimidation and should not be misconstrued as a challenge on the probe report.
He said that from the totality of the issues before the court, the objections of Tambuwal and Farouk to the suit lacked merit and accordingly dismissed them.
The judge further ruled that from the document before the court, there is sufficient cause of action established against Tambuwal and Farouk, and so ordered them to file their defence immediately.
Tambuwal and Lawan had objected to hearing of Otedola’s case on the ground that they are protected by House Immunity and cannot be taken to court for either civil or criminal matters on any of their actions on the floor of the House.
Raising the objection, they asked the court to dismiss the suit for being too hasty because the House has not adopted the report on the subsidy probe and that there has been no white paper yet on it.
The two defendants also contended that being agents of the House, they can only be sued at a Federal High Court because the House is an organ of the Federal Government and as such no Abuja High Court has jurisdiction on the suit.
Their objections were argued by Chief Mike Ahamba (SAN) who represented Tambuwal and Kehinde Ogunwumiju for Farouk, wherein they claimed that Otedola freely gave out the bribe and cannot turn around to allege harassment and intimidation against them.
They had also claimed and attempted to persuade the court that Otedola’s case cannot be sustained since he did not join the National Assembly and Clerk of the National Assembly as defendants.
Hearing of the substantive suit has been adjourned to 20th March 2013.
Otedola is claiming from the two lawmakers, the sum of N250bn as general and exemplary damages for acts of intimidation, harassment, loss of goodwill, patronage, and oppressive and arbitrary actions against him.
