Forged security reports: Ajibola, Oyetibo, others tell Agagu to appeal

[Mirror]

No fewer than six notable lawyers, including Prince Bola Ajibola, SAN, have asked former governor of Ondo State, Dr. Olusegun Agagu to approach the Court of Appeal on the forged security reports that earned Dr. Olusegun Mimiko the 2007 governorship.

The 2007 Governorship Election Petition Tribunal led by Justice Garba Nabaruma relied on the security report to cede victory to Mimiko of the Labour Party (LP). In an exclusive interview with the National Mirror, Ajibola, a former Minister of Justice and Attorney- General of the Federation advised that the former governor, who is the aggrieved party, should go to the Court of Appeal and establish the facts that the documents relied upon by the Election Petition Tribunal in returning Mimiko as the elected governor of Ondo State were forged.

Ajibola said: "The position of law is simple; the aggrieved party should go to the Court of Appeal and put in all those documents that have been forged and the court will look into that as the evidence to be taken into consideration."

He added that the outcome of the deliberation at the Court of Appeal could lead to an order of a re-trial of the case and the matter would go back to the lower court. Beside Ajibola, others who canvassed similar opinion are, Messrs. Tayo Oyetibo (SAN) and former Lagos State Commissioner for the Environment, Dr. Muiz Banire.

According to Oyetibo, "as far as I am concerned, the case is over; there is nothing they can do about it. As regard the alleged forged SSS report, the aggrieved party has to file a new action and prove it beyond reasonable doubt before the law court."

Banire on the other hand corroborated this assertion saying that "the aggrieved party needs to file an action before the court and prove it." This, the former commissioner, who is the National Legal Adviser of the Action Congress of Nigeria, ACN, said was the only remedy available to the aggrieved party at the moment.

But the former Secretary of the Nigerian Bar Association, NBA, Mr. Dele Adesina (SAN), argued that for now, the allegation amounted to a mere speculation until it is proved. His words: "He who wants to prove must assert. It could be speculative for a lawyer to say if 'it could be true, this is the consequence, if it is not true, this is the consequence.' I am not given to speculation.

"The fact must be an existing fact. Is that statement from the court of law or from an individual? It is only a court of law that can assert the conclusiveness of a fact and once that is done, you will begin to look at what the legal consequences of this conclusion are.

"The law court must give its conclusion, until the law court gives its position, whatever anybody says is a mere allegation and to comment on the consequence of an allegation is like building a castle in the air. Lawyers should not do that."

Chief Niyi Akintola, SAN, declined to give an opinion on the matter, saying: "I do not want to comment on it because I don't have the facts of the matter." Dr. Abiodun Layonu, SAN, however, argued that any attempt to remove Mimiko on the basis of the alleged security reports had been foreclosed, because the state governor enjoys immunity against criminal prosecution.

He said: "It would not make any difference for an election that took place in 2007. Mimiko has been sworn into office and he has immunity, even if it's true that he forged the security reports, I have my doubts if that would remove him as governor. The only person who can say that the document was forged is either the Police or the SSS."

Wondering why counsel to Agagu failed to raise any objection to the admissibility of the alleged forged report at the time it was tendered at the tribunal, Layonu said: "He (Agagu) didn't say it was forged, so upon what evidence is he saying that the report was forged. The police will still have to investigate and confirm that it was a forged report. If it is confirmed that it was a forged report, Mimiko still has immunity as governor. So, it will not make any difference or affect the verdict of the tribunal."'

Layonu added that for the court to determine that it was a forged report, "there has to be a trial, somebody has to be tried for it and they cannot try him in court until he leaves office as governor. "The summary is that there are so many hurdles for Agaugu to cross before he can get the kind of result he desires, which is the nullification of the tribunal's verdict delivered in 2007. I do not think it is as easy as he thinks."

The first Vice-Chairman, NBA Ikeja branch, Mr. Adesina Ogunlana, equally said: "I am not aware of the development, but assuming the facts are true, it is settled law that the Appeal Court cannot stall the findings of the lower courts." He, however, said if the aggrieved party could truly adduce that the document was forged then the Court of Appeal would take a second look at it and possibly expunge the document. By so doing, this would ultimately affect the former judgement."

Early in the week, the Ondo State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, had called for the prosecution of former state chairman of LP, Olaiya Oni, for tendering and uttering forged documents during the determination of the LP petition against the election of Agagu in 2007.

The call was premised on the conclusions of the police and State Security Services, SSS, investigations into the allegation that the SSS security report presented by LP/Mimiko to the Election Petition Tribunal in 2007 were forged.

National Mirror