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Justice Okon Abang, the judge handling the 400 million Naira fraud trial against the former Peoples Democratic Party [PDP] spokesman, Chief Olisa Metuh, has threatened to strike out the case.
Justice Abang made the threat on Monday after the Prosecution Counsel took side with the Defence Counsel, agreeing that Chief Metuh deserves medical attention.
Recall that Metuh had collapsed during trial in court when he collided with his personal aide who wanted to render him help.
The court registrar had invited Metuh to mount the dock but the Judge intervened by ordering that the defendant to go back.
As he tried to manoeuvre his way back, his personal aide who unknown to him was moving to call his attention ended up getting entangled with his walking aide.
He resultantly fell on the rug covering the floor of the court room and momentarily blacked out.
The court registrar at once rushed out to get the medical doctor attached to the high court to assess the defendant .
The doctor said the man need urgent medical attention from primary examination and requested that the defendant be allowed to be attended to, using proper medical facilities.
While this medical checkup was still ongoing, with Chief Metuh lying prostrate on the floor of the court, the judge called for the matter to resume .
The defendant counsel, Emeka Etiaba (SAN) drew the attention of the judge to the state of his defendant Olisa Metuh and asked for time.
This was refused by the judge who insisted that matter must continue and ordered that the defendant witness should mount the witness box .
Etiaba requested that the doctor give the court a prognosis of what she has seen so far so as to know the state of his client but was refused by the judge.
The judge rather insisted that the matter must continue .
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The consequent altercation eventually led to Emeka Etiaba withdrawing his services from his client and from the matter.
Again, the Judge overruled the Learned Counsel and rejected his withdrawal from the case .
Hell was let loose when the Judge asked prosecution counsel his opinion regards Doctor ‘s suggestion for medical attention by the defendant .
Several more altercations between the judge and the Counsels forced the judge to adjoin the matter to the next day for the defendant to seek medical attention.
At that point, the embarked on angry-fit-infested diatribe against the prosecution counsel denigrating him for not objecting to the plea of the defence counsel to be allowed medical treatment.
He berated the prosecution lawyer for not refusing the plea so that he can stand on that and insist that the matter continue.
He then threaten that if the prosecution lawyer exhibits such tendency again he will strike out the case for unseriousness on his part.
He was also quoted to have said: “This is not the only court of law; if I give my judgement there is still the court of appeal and the Supreme Court as available avenues for appeal or redress.”
Even the first defendant Counsel Chief Onwubufo (SAN) was not spared the judge’s angry diatribes.
Contributions by Kamen O. Chuks and Ikechukwu Emeka Onyia
