The High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja has been urged to commit the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiale or any other person heading the bank to prison for alleged contempt.
The prayer is contained in a motion filed by an aggrieved lawyer, Sunday Essienekak who won a N5,300,000 judgment debt on July 9, 2019, which the court ordered the CBN to defray.
Essienekak had sued the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN) over a failed admission process and was awarded the N5,300,000 in damages, which the school was ordered to pay the plaintiff.
He initiated a garnishee proceedings to recover the sum, and on November 13, 2019, the court granted an order absolute, directing the CBN to pay the N5,300.000 in a suit marked: FCT/HC/CV/349/l2.
By the order of the court, the CBN was to deduct the judgment debt from any money standing to the credit of the UNN in its custody and pay to the judgment creditor.
Essienekak, in the fresh motion, said the bank and Emefiele refused to obey the order despite being aware of it and having been served subsequent notice of consequences of disobedience to court order (Form 48).
The lawyer is praying the court for “N3,000,000 as damages for the continued disobedience of the court” and “an order of court awarding cost of N2,000,000 against the respondents for the cost of this proceedings.”
He stated, in a supporting affidavit, that “I have spent so much money, resources and energy including payment of legal fees, filing of court processes, legal consultation to cause the respondents to obey the order of court.
“I have been informed by my lawyer, C. Marshall that the CBN has the attitude and history of not obeying court orders, except it is compelled to do so….
“The court cannot condone this radical behaviour of agents of government, who take great joy in disobeying a valid order of court.
“It will be in the interest of justice to grant this application in order to give effect to the well-considered judgment of this honorable court,” he said.
5-2019
