By Godwin Ajom
The Federal High Court, Calabar Division has fined Gender and Development Action (GADA) the sume of twenty thousand (20,000) Naira for ‘blatant disregard”.
GADA is also fingered of “stalling the hearing” of a suite initiated itself against Nigerian University Commission (NUC), University of Calabar (UNICAL); the Vice Chancellor of UNICAL Professor Florence Ob and the embattled suspended Dean of the Faculty of Law Professor Cyril Osim Ndifon, who are joined as first, second, third and forth respondents respectively.
Justice Ijeoma Ojukwu awarded the cost in Calabar, while presiding on the matter with suite number FHC/CA/FHR/10/2024, initiated by GADA, who are preying the Court to compel the respondents to make stringent rules to guide lecturers and other Staff at tetiary institutions against abuse of their subjects especially female students.
The cost is awarded to the counsels of the first to fourth defendants.
With the matter suffering several adjournments, there have been some lukewarm approaches to the processes. Announcing the cost, Justice Ijeoma Ojukwu had earlier yielded to the prayers of the defending counsels Barrister Jonas Abuo and Barrister Ogbiji Ogbiji, for asking the court to fine the applicant.
Justice Ojukwu held that, “the applicant has decided to stall the hearing of this matter: The applicant counsel informed the court during the last adjourned date that they had already prepared their processes but was only awaiting the electronic signature of the dependent. The Court adjourned the matter for hearing to enable the applicant to serve the respondents.
“But the applicant in blatant disregard of the court decided to serve their processes after two weeks and in open court. Applicant is to pay a cost of N10,000 to each of the respondents on or before the next adjourned date.”
The matter was consequently adjourned to September 26, 2024 for hearing.
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