In a bizarre turn of events, the Registrar of the Chief Judge of Taraba State, Martin Joshua Forchi, has been found to have acted as Nominal Complainant, Prosecutor and Registrar of an Area Court while seeking an arrest and detention order against Rev. Ande Emmanuel, a respected clergy member. The controversial court order, which bears no Applicant, Respondent, suit number or motion number, has raised serious concerns about the impartiality and credibility of the state’s judicial system.
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Although the order purportedly originated from the Criminal Area Court Taraba State, it concluded by stating it was issued by the High Court of Justice, Jalingo Taraba State. Curiously, the registrar’s roles shifted throughout the document – beginning as the Registrar of Taraba State High Court No. 1 (the Chief Judge’s Court) but ending as the Registrar of the Area Court, in addition to being listed as the Complainant.
Sources indicate this peculiar order stems from the ongoing conflict within the United Methodist Church in Nigeria (UMCN) in Taraba State. The formation of a new congregation called Global Methodist Church (GMC) has led to a split, with some members remaining loyal to Rev. Ande Emmanuel in UMCN while others aligned with Rev. John Wesley of GMC.
Tensions escalated when Rev. Ande shared a Facebook post asserting that the church remains united under UMCN with its CAC registration intact. Allegedly, the GMC faction, intolerant of this post, sought out Martin Joshua Forchi to obtain an order for the DSS to detain Rev. Ande, claiming he had stolen a court exhibit despite no pending lawsuits.
Acting on this questionable order, DSS agents forcibly entered Rev. Ande’s home in Jalingo on November 14, 2024, with the intention to arrest him. During the raid, his young children, aged 4 and 6, were reportedly manhandled and property was damaged.
Rev. Ande expressed shock that he was targeted for arrest and detention without any formal invitation or petition against him. He questioned how the office of the Chief Judge and the DSS could stoop to such levels, orchestrating an embarrassing court order when an official invitation could have sufficed if serious allegations existed.
Meanwhile, lawyers are calling for an immediate investigation into the matter, emphasizing the need for transparency, due process and the separation of powers within the state’s judicial system.
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Authored by Ben Ijeoma Adigwe Esq., ACIarb (UK), LL.M, Dip. in Artificial Intelligence, Director at the Delta State Ministry of Justice, Asaba, Nigeria.
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