The Abuja division of the Federal High Court has declared that the warrant of arrest it issued against the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Mahmoud Yakubu, still subsists and remains valid.
The court, therefore, insisted that the police must arrest and produce Yakubu in court on August 16, the next adjourned date.
Justice Stephen Pam had on August 1 ordered the police to arrest and produce the INEC boss in court to explain why he should not be committed to prison over alleged disobedience to order of the court.
The bench warrant against the INEC chairman followed his failure to appear before the court on three occasions to defend himself in the contempt charge brought against him by Ejike Oguebego and
Chuks Okoye, Chairman and Legal Adviser of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Anambra State respectively.
The police were supposed to produce Yakubu in court on August 8, going by the first order of court. However, the INEC chairman was not present on the said date, forcing the court to adjourn to August 14, while again affirming its earlier order of August 1.
When the matter came up yesterday, the INEC chairman was not in court to show cause why he should not be committed to prison over contempt of court allegation. His counsel did not also appear or sent a message to the court on why they were not in court.
Counsel to the plaintiffs, Kanayo Okafor, however, informed the court of the ruling of the Abuja division of the Court of Appeal on August 13, which ordered a stay of execution of the warrant of arrest as well as the proceedings at the trial court.
In a short ruling, Justice Pam held that the court was a court of record and as such would require the ruling or judgment of the appellate court, adding that there was no proof of such decision of the higher court before him to be guided by.
