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Sunday Adebayo – Lokoja.
Contrary to the news earlier published by an online medium that a Lokoja High Court Tuesday has ordered Governor Yahaya Bello not to proceed further on the planned coronation of Chief Solomon Owoniyi as the new Obaro of Kabba pending the determination of the case, the coronation will go on as scheduled.
The said news is false as that was not the true picture of what transpired in the court yesterday before Justice M M Gwatana.
The counsel to Ilajo family, Rafiu Adeyanju Lawal-Rabana SAN, had come with an application to restrain Obaro Owoniyi not to parade himself as the paramount ruler of Kabba and also to stop the State Government not to install him pending the determination of the case.
Chief Lawal-Rabana (SAN) drew the attention of the court to the fact that the first defendant (Owoniyi) went ahead to carry out some traditional rites in spite of the court order restraining him from parading himself as the new Obaro and said this amounted to contempt of court.
While counsel to the first defendant, M A Aliu (SAN) objected to the submission of the counsel to the claimants and said his client did not at anytime disobeyed the court order restraining him, noting that the interim interlocutory injunction secured earlier by the claimants had since died a natural death after 7 days of issuance and beside the court has since ruled against them.
While the counsel to Governor Yahaya Bello and the State Anthony General, Abdullahi SAN, also argued the jurisdiction of the court to entertain the suit by the court.
Ruling on the motion, the trial judge, Justice Gwatana said: “You cannot stop a moving train” alluding that Government had already appointed an Obaro with letter of appointment. Therefore, he would not be able to give such an order.
The judge also urged the Chief Judge of the state, Justice Nasir Ajanah to re-assign the case to another court who will in turn fix another date of hearing as he was on vacation leave
It would be recalled that Governor Yahaya Bello had on July 19 appointed Owoniyi as the new Obaro of Kabba following the death of Oba Michael Olobayo in May 2016.
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