A Federal High Court judge in Lagos has recused himself from a N2billion fundamental rights enforcement suit filed by an expectant mother, Nneka Ogbonna, against Air Peace Ltd and four others.
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Justice Chuka Obiozor made the decision following his discomfort with a petition by Ogbonna’s counsel, Mr Ngozi Akandu.
He returned the case file to the administrative judge for re-assignment to another judge.
The petition was titled ‘RE: Attempt by Inspector Danjuma Obii and Joseph Nwadike (Esq), to subvert and pervert the course of justice and to occasion a miscarriage of justice in an on-going purely civil court proceedings in favour of Air Peace Ltd, urgent petition for intervention and investigation.’
The judge further recused himself for ‘personal reasons’ from entertaining a criminal charge filed against Ogbonna by the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) through his counsel, Joseph Nwadike.
Air Peace, the IGP, Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) and Captain Horace Millar-Jaja, a pilot with the airline, are the defendants in the suit marked FHC/L/CS/1206/2020.
Ogbonna, the applicant, had alleged that the defendants accused her of being a terrorist and hijacker.
She sought 15 declarations and 16 reliefs including an order directing Air Peace Ltd, NCCA, FAAN and Captain Millar-Jaja, to pay her N500million each, totalling N2 billion and another N5.5 million, as damages.
According to her, this was for the multiple infringements, violations and/or breaches of her fundamental human rights including her right to dignity, freedom of movement and dignity of her human person, protection of the family and discrimination against her, who is an expectant mother and for cost of instituting the suit.
She further prayed the court to direct the airline, NCCA, FAAN and Captain Millar-Jaja, to pay post-judgment compound interest on all sums awarded by the court at the applicable Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Minimum Rediscount Rate (MRR) (or at such other commercial interest rate) to be applied from the day of the judgment until final payment.
Air Peace, in a counter-affidavit deposed to by one Judith Obi, prayed the court to refuse the applicant’s reliefs, for being malicious, frivolous, vexatious and gold-digging in “a desperate move to make a fortune from nothing. Obi further debunked all the claims of the Applicant in her counter affidavit.
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