EGBEWOLE v. ADELEKE & ORS

MOJEED ADEKUNLE OWOADE, J.C.A. (Delivering the Leading Judgment):This is an Appeal against the decision/Ruling of the Kwara State High Court, presided over by Honourable Justice Mahmud ABDULGAFAR delivered on the 7th December, 2016.

In the said decision, the learned trial Judge dismissed the Appellant’s Claimant’s Application praying the Judge to recuse himself from further hearing of the matter on ground of fair hearing.

The Appellant is a Legal Practitioner and a Professor of Law at the University of Ilorin. He instituted this case for libel against the 1st -6th Respondents Defendants who were academic staff in various Universities in Nigeria. The 7th and 8th Respondents Defendants were sued as Publisher and the individual that reported the alleged libelous publication.

On the Writ of Summons and Paragraph 34 of the Statement of Claim on Page 22 of the Record, the Appellant Claimant subscribed the following Reliefs:-
i. An order of perpetual injunction restraining the Defendants from publishing or continue to publish any libelous material against the Claimant.

ii. General damages in the sum of N250,000,000.00 (Two Hundred and Fifty Million Naira) against the Defendants for defamation of character as contained in the press release and the publication in The Nation Newspaper of 29th July, 2013.
iii. An order of the Honorable Court compelling the Defendants jointly and severally to write letters of apology to the Claimant on account of their libelous publications.
iv. Exemplary and aggravated damages of N250,000,000.00 (Two Hundred and Fifty Million Naira) by the Defendants for the extreme ill will and malice exhibited towards the Claimant.
v. Cost of this action.
vi. Any other relief to which the Claimant may be found entitled by the Honourable Court.
Pleadings were filed and exchanged. Pre-trial conference was held and hearing commenced in the case on 18th June, 2015.
On 1st day of March, 2016, the Appellant Claimant closed his case after calling four (4) witnesses, thereafter the case was adjourned to 20th day of April, 2016 for defence. The 1st to 6th Respondents (Defendants) could not open their defence and by agreement of Counsel, the 7th to 8th
Respondents Defendants called their sole witness. The case was thereafter adjourned to 23rd of May, 2016 for continuation of defence. And, later again at the instance of the 1st to 6th Respondents Defendants adjourned to 21st day of June, 2016, for continuation of defence.
On 21st day of June, 2016, the Chambers of the Appellant Claimant wrote a letter to the Honourable Court to excuse the absence of the learned Senior Counsel due to his appearance before the Code of Conduct Tribunal in Abuja in a criminal Charge No. CCT/ABJ/01/2015: Federal Republic of Nigeria Vs. Dr. Olubukola Abubakar Saraki in which he is a Counsel to the Defendant alongside other Counsel. The Court was also notified that other Counsel in the Chambers were engaged in other Courts hence the letter which was delivered by the Chambers Clerk to the Court, according to the Appellant, the Court declined receipt of the letter. Rather, the Court insisted on a formal Motion to be able to grant an adjournment.
On the same 21/06/2016, the Court ruled as follows on Page 419 of the Record of Appeal:
Court: Claimant being absent and unrepresented, case struck out for want of diligent prosecution.”
The case of the Appellant Claimant was re-listed into the Cause List on 11th July, 2016.
Learned Senior Counsel for the Appellant Claimant claimed that upon being inundated with the events at the proceedings of 11th July, 2016, the Appellant Claimant had a heightened apprehension about his chances of getting justice before the Court, predicated among others on the unfair striking out of the case at the defence stage and what he called the verbal attack on his Counsel and himself.

He accordingly instructed that an Application to recuse the trial Court from further hearing of his case be filed.
On 21st October, 2016, the Appellant filed a Motion on Notice praying for:
I. An Order of the Honourable Court for this Court (CORAM: Hon. Justice Mahmud ABDULGAFAR) to recuse himself from further hearing of this case i.e. Suit No. KWS/312/2013; Professor WAHAB EGBEWOLE VS. AYAN ADELEKE AND 7 ORS on ground of fair hearing.
II. An Order of the Honourable Court returning the case file/docket back to the Honourable Chief Judge of Kwara State for same to be re-assigned to another Judge of the Kwara State High Court for the case to be heard de-novo.
III. And for such further or other Orders as the Honourable Court may deem fit to make in the circumstances.