“Her Case Is Dead On Arrival”, Member, NBA-NEC, Sunny Emuveyan Comments On Joyce Oduah’s Case Against The NBA

*Says Failure Of Suspended Acting Gen. Sec To Challenge The Powers of NEC To Suspend Her Amounts To Conceding

A member of the NBA National Executive Committee (NBA-NEC), Sunny Emuveyan Esq has commented on the case brought against the NBA by recently suspended General Secretary of the Association, Mrs. Joyce Oduah, saying the case lacks merit and is dead on arrival.

In a statement titled: “Joyce Oduah Concedes That The National Officers Have Power To Suspend Her, Emuveyan stated that when he came across the news of the suit brought by Joyce Udah, he examined the originating processes and issues raised by the suspended General Secretary, with the purpose of depicting her argument on the lack of powers of the NEC to suspend her as her and her sympathersizers had claimed.

However, he stated that it was surprising that Joyce Oduah, did not contend as an issue the powers of the NEC to suspend her as General Secretary of the NBA, but was only contending the process. He stated thus: ” Curiously, nowhere in the originating processes did she challenge the power of the executive committee to suspend her. Rather, she is challenging the procedures followed by the National Officers in suspending her. She contends in the originating summons 2 main issues ie 1. that the issue of suspension was not on the agenda of the meeting; and 2, that she was not given a fair hearing at the meeting.”

He went to opine thus: “It is trite that the issue of lack of fair hearing arises only where there is power to hear; where there is no power to hear, the issue of fair hearing is totally immaterial.”

Reacting to celebration of some members of the legal profession about Oduah dragging NBA to Court, Emuveyan viewed that it is one thing to bring a case to court, but the question remains; what are the issues before the court? In his words: “Some of us have been celebrating the fact that she took her Association and co National Officers to court, the fact however remains that it is not about approaching a court, the question will ultimately be; what are the issues submitted for adjudication?”

Still remarking on the failure of Joyce Oduah to raise as an issue the powers of NEC to suspend have after arguing vigorously on many occasions, Emuveyan viewed this as conceding on the part of Oduah that indeed NEC has powers to suspend her. “It is really very curious that the suspended General Secretary who had submitted vigorously that the National Executive Committee lacks the power to suspend her, failed to put the interpretation of Section 9(6)d before the court. It follow therefore that Joyce Oduah has conceded (against her initial vociferous claim) that indeed the National Executive Committee has the power to suspend her.” He stated.

He went on to thrash the issue of lack of fair hearing she raised in the case, saying thus: “Now, what did she submit for adjudication? Simply that she was not given fair hearing by the National Officers before she was suspended. If I may ask can the issue of fair hearing be brought under originating summons? Inevitably, evidence to determine what transpired in the meeting which she admitted she attended must be led at trial.”

He summed up his view point with the conclusion thus: “Her case is dead on arrival.”