Former Chairman of Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) Ota Branch, Mr. Isaac Omuta Ogbah has expressed confidence that the Electoral Committee of the NBA (ECNBA) will dismiss the petition written against him by an Abuja based senior lawyer.

Mr. Uche Amulu had in a petition to ECNBA urged the electoral committee to bar Ogbah from participating in the forthcoming NBA Elections. Ogbah is gunning for the post of NBA Third Vice President.

Amulu alleged that Ogbah engaged in “anti-Bar, in fact anti-lawyerly (sic), activities as he is not fit to be part of us, let alone leading the Bar,” adding that “Isaac Ogbah notoriously abuses the judicial process by a wanton mix of police oppression and running for cover using police prosecutorial powers as provided by law. He cannot be allowed to lead the Bar, as the damages he will cause with any little position are better imagined than felt.”

But in a rejoinder to the CITY LAWYER report, Ogbah urged the “general public, my friends and well wishers to disregard this libelous petition now written by the same Uche Amulu of counsel.”

Placing his confidence in the electoral committee, the Bar Leader said in the rejoinder made available to CITY LAWYER: “I have no doubt that members of the ECNBA, who are men and women of impeccable integrity and character, upon reviewing the whole facts of the case will find nothing against me and would certainly clear and certify me as fit and proper to contest as one of the candidates for the post of 3rd Vice President of the NBA.”

Noting that he “was never copied nor have I been served a copy of the said Petition either by the Petitioner or by ECNBA,” the aspirant assured that he would “take appropriate steps to respond to same officially and make copies of my response to ECNBA formally in the coming days.”

The former branch chairman stated that contrary to Amulu’s allegations, there was “a formal Police Report issued in our favor clearly exonerating us of ever committing any offence known to law,” adding that “upon the conclusion of the investigative activities by the DIG’s office whether or not there was in fact any alleged offences of armed robbery, kidnapping, stealing and armed robbery as alleged by the same Uche Amulu of counsel, the Legal Advise was to the effect that Uche Amulu, Celestine Eze and His company be prosecuted for deliberately writing a false petition alleging the above named offences, when they knew was never committed.”

He said the suspects “including the aforesaid Uche Amulu of Counsel are now standing trail (sic) before the FCT Magistrate court and for which I have given my evidence in chief and with the same Uche Amulu himself having personally commenced his Cross-Examination personally and the matter adjourned to 11th May, 2022 for continuation of hearing.”

Saying that he has briefed his solicitors “to take appropriate legal steps to address the Petition in issue and make necessary demands from the law firm cum author of the petition,” Ogbah noted that there is also a civil libel suit pending against Amulu and 2 others which comes up for trial on April 26, 2022 “regarding his libelous publications he had previously made against my person and that of my clients. Hence everyone can, in their own wisdom, judge and or make their own personal opinion as to why this petition has been written and the intent it is meant to serve.”

Below is the full text of Ogbah’s rejoinder.

Today, Saturday the 23rd day of April, 2022, my attention was drawn to a Petition written by the Law Firm of Greys & Acquisition Legal Practitioners and authored by one Mr. Uche Amulu, a legal practitioner wherein he alleged several defamatory things against my person and requested that I be disqualified by the ECNBA from contesting the position of the 3rd Vice President of the NBA.

Unfortunately I was never copied nor have I been served a copy of the said Petition either by the Petitioner or by ECNBA.

While I will take appropriate steps to respond to same officially and make copies of my response to ECNBA formally in the coming days, since the said libelous petition is now being circulated by the authors of the Petition and several Press Media outlets are reaching across to me so as to get my response, I am now constrained to respond as below so as to set the records straight

1. Sequel to the unlawful infringement of our Client’s registered Trademarks by some persons we were instructed to write a Formal Petition to the Police Authorities and who in their wisdom and acting under relevant powers conferred on them by law thought it fit to investigate same.

In the course of their investigative activities 2 suspects were arrested and incriminating products evidencing their criminal activities of infringing our clients’ registered trademark taken into custody by the investigation Police officers after the suspects had been granted bail.

2. Whereas the arrested suspects secured the services of reputable lawyers based in Lagos and Abuja to represent them, with one of such lawyers being a well known and renowned Senior Advocate of Nigeria ??, attempts made by the suspects as well as their legal representatives to have the matter resolved out of court not yielding the desired results one Uche Amulu, also a lawyer, and who being very much seised of the facts of the case but who with intent to achieve whatever sinister motives of his, resorted to intentionally twist the facts of the case by writing a Petition to the Inspector General of Police (IGP) wherein he intentionally and falsely alleged that his clients, while traveling from Port Harcourt to Onitsha, were attacked by a group of about 7 armed robbers, who attacked and robbed them of their goods and personal effects as well stabbed and shot them with guns and also in the process kidnapped them until they were later released

3. They also alleged in their Petition that one of the phones alleged to have been stolen were tracked and found to be in our custody and as a result of the above said Petition the Inspector General of Police (IGP) directed that the IRT unit of the Police should carry out a discrete investigation of the said Petition, leading to my being arrested alongside one of my revered Client.

4. Upon the eventual investigative activities carried out by the various Police authorities that were involved in the whole process, below were the outcome of same, to wit:*

A. The IRT office concluded their investigation with the conclusion that none of the alleged offenses was ever committed by myself nor my clients as alleged by the Petitioners.

B. Consequently a formal Police Report issued in our favor clearly exonerating us of ever committing any offence known to law.

C. The office of the AIG Maritime also concluded their investigative activities and a formal legal advise issued to the effect that the suspects engaged in the unlawful infringement of my Client’s registered trademarks be prosecuted. They are presently standing trial before Court 6 of the Federal High Court sitting one Port Harcourt.

D. Also upon the conclusion of the investigative activities by the DIG’s office whether or not there was in fact any alleged offences of armed robbery, kidnapping, stealing and armed robbery as alleged by the same Uche Amulu of counsel, the Legal Advise was to the effect that Uche Amulu, Celestine Eze and His company be prosecuted for deliberately writing a false petition alleging the above named offences, when they knew was never committed.

All the suspects involved, including the aforesaid Uche Amulu of Counsel are now standing trail before the FCT Magistrate court and for which I have given my evidence in chief and with the same Uche Amulu himself having personally commenced his Cross-Examination personally and the matter adjourned to 11th May, 2022 for continuation of hearing.

It is also worthy of note that there is presently a civil suit of libel pending against Uche Amulu and 2 others and which comes up for trail on Tuesday, 26th April, 2022 regarding his libelous publications he had previously made against my person and that of my clients. Hence everyone can, in their own wisdom, judge and or make their own personal opinion as to why this petition has been written and the intent it is meant to serve.

I therefore sincerely urge the general public, my friends and well wishers to disregard this libelous petition now written by the same Uche Amulu of counsel. I have no doubt that members of the ECNBA, who are men and women of impeccable integrity and character, upon reviewing the whole facts of the case will find nothing against me and would certainly clear and certify me as fit and proper to contest as one of the candidates for the post of 3rd Vice President of the NBA.

Meanwhile I have briefed my solicitors to take appropriate legal steps to address the Petition in issue and make necessary demands from the law firm cum author of the petition and in the event of their unwillingness to retract and withdraw the libelous contents of the Petition now being published and circulating globally we will definitely seek legal redress from the law courts.

Once again, I remain yours and yours always.

Isaac Omuta Ogbah, FICMC