An Abuja High Court has dismissed a criminal summons issued on September 12 by a magistrate’s court against Senator Monday Okpebholo over alleged certificate forgery.
The ruling was delivered on Friday by Justice Charles Agbaza, who declared that the proceedings before Magistrate Abubakar Mukhtar of the Wuse Magistrate Court were void, citing jurisdictional overreach and legal errors.
Justice Agbaza concurred with the argument presented by Okpebholo’s defence that the summons and associated proceedings were unconstitutional, illegal, and violated the senator’s fundamental right to a fair hearing, as enshrined in Section 36 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended).
The original summons required Okpebholo to appear in court on September 20, shortly before the Edo governorship election, following accusations by an indigene, Aginbatse.
The allegations involved inconsistencies in the dates of birth stated on Okpebholo’s nomination forms submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
Defence counsel Andrew Emwanta, in a motion dated and filed on October 21, argued that the case was politically motivated, aimed at disqualifying Okpebholo from participating in the September 21 election.
Emwanta contended that the magistrate lacked jurisdiction, emphasizing that pre-election matters fall under the purview of the Federal High Court as stipulated by Section 29 of the law.
Justice Agbaza’s judgement sided with Emwanta, stating that the magistrate failed to consider the evidence presented by Okpebholo before issuing the summons. Consequently, the court prohibited Magistrate Mukhtar from proceeding with the case.
However, Justice Agbaza noted that the magistrate retained the discretion to set a hearing date for any related matters still within his jurisdiction.
