Chief Oba Maduabuchi, Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), had a taste of tonguelashing from the justices of the Court of Appeal, hearing the petition of Peter Obi, presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), challenging the declaration of Bola Ahmed Tinubu as the winner of the February 25 presidential election.
Maduabuchi, apparently briefed by Lamidi Apapa, the self-acclaimed National Chairman of LP, who caused a drama on Wednesday, when he went to the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal (PEPT), to “assert my authority,” had announced his appearance for the party.
But the tribunal seemed not to take kindly to his move, saying that as a senior lawyer, he ought to know that the procedure before accepting the brief, which was being handled by another lawyer, ordering him to either sit down quietly and observe proceedings or leave the court.
The senior lawyer had stood up when lawyers were asked to announce their appearances, to declare that he was briefed to represent the LP, shortly after Awa Kalu another SAN, who appeared alongside five others, had already announced his presence as counsel for the petitioners.
After Justice Haruna Tsammani, heading the five-member panel of the court declined to record his appearance, saying that two lawyers could not appear one party in a case, adding: “Let the person that filed the petition make an appearance,” another member of the panel, Abba Mohammed, added: “As a learned silk, you should know better and should have advised whoever it is that briefed you that there cannot be two counsels for the petitioner.”
Taking a cue from the obvious chastisement of the justices, Maduabuchi, said he would go back and relate what happened in court to his client, to which Tsammani retorted: “That is not our business. You can either leave the court or sit and observe the proceedings.”
Apapa, who had in the Wednesday’s drama, had demanded that Akin Osuntokun, Director General of the Obi-Datti Presidential Campaign Organisation (ODPCO), vacated his seat for him as the leader of the party, surprisingly was seen sitting at the back of the courtroom on Friday.
Obi, who had been attending virtually all the court proceedings physically, was also present at Friday’s session alongside Julius Abure, the embattled National Chairman of the party and other key LP members.