The leadership of the Labor Party has urged the Legal Professionals Disciplinary Committee (LPDC) to sanction a Nigerian lawyer, Monday Mawah, for allegedly misrepresenting Court of Appeal rulings on the party leadership fight.
Labor Party faction chairmen Lamidi Apapa and Julius Abure are in a legal duel for the party’s soul. Peter Obi, the party’s presidential candidate, and other leading party figures recognize Abure as national president.
In a petition dated August 29 and addressed to the LPDC chairman, Labor Party national publicity secretary Obiora Ifoh accused Mawah of misleading the public on Channels Television in connection with two appeal court decisions on the crisis. party leadership.
‘How Mr Mawah misled the public’
On August 24, the Court of Appeal handed down a contentious judgment on two lawsuits, one of which was filed by a certain Basil Maduka against the Labor Party. The other is an appeal against Mr. Maduka.
Ifoh said that Maduka, an Abuja-based lawyer “who is not a lawyer in the matter and was not in court when the sentences were handed down, went on air on Channels Television” to comment strongly on the sentences.
The petitioner alleged that while Mr. Mawah was on the television programme, he “falsely” said that the Court of Appeal had affirmed “the faction of the Labor Party led by Lamidi Apapa… as the authentic leadership of the Labor Party”.
According to the Labor Party complaint, Mr. Mawah further stated “that the (Appeals) Court had ordered that the names of the candidates who were the winners in the alleged primary elections held by the Lamidi Apapa faction be forwarded to the INEC so that the impeached as the Labor Party candidates for the 2023 gubernatorial election set for the end of the year.”
Two unusual gubernatorial elections are scheduled for November in Kogi and Imo states.
“The aforementioned Mr. Monday Mawah falsely stated in the interview that the Court of Appeals had upheld the decision of the trial court, which the court never did,” the petitioner also wrote.
The petitioner also maintained that the appeal court dismissed the appeal and held that Mr. Maduka, who filed the appeal, lacked the right to do so.
“In the Labor Party appeal, the Court held that the appeal was not necessary as the lower court decision was in its favor and that the lower court judge’s mere comments in his judgment did not constitute an appealable decision and they were to be discarded. the petition said.
Citing some provisions of the Rules of Professional Conduct, the party official prayed to the disciplinary committee “to immediately begin the process of disciplining Mr. Monday Mawah for egregious conduct that violates the provisions of the Rules of Professional Conduct.”
It added that Mr. Mawah’s alleged misconduct bordered on “publicity of trial, instigation of controversy and litigation”.
“…it is quite improper for a lawyer of Monday Mawah’s apparently mature years in bar to be allowed to continue practicing law in Nigeria after publishing such rampant lies, which have now had the far-reaching ripple effect of painting power judiciary as a confused institution”.
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