in favour of the Plaintiff and the defendant being dissatisfied with the decision
appealed to the Court of Appeal, Abuja Division.
8. The Applicant further averred that while the matter was pending at the Court
of Appeal, the then Minister of the Federal Capital Territory without regard to
rule of law divided the subject matter into 3 plots and allocated them to other
persons including the Defendant judgment debtor. The Appeal Court affirmed the
judgment of the Trial Court on the 19th day of January, 2011, recognising the
Plaintiff in that matter as the legitimate owner of plot 505 which was divided by
the Honourable Minister.
9. However, on the 18th of April, 2011, one U.L.O Consultants Limited filed
Suit No FCT/HC/CV/4594/11 and joined the Plaintiff/Judgement Creditor in the
original suit as Defendant claiming ownership of Plot No 1953 which is part of
Plot 505 which the Minister divided and allocated. In the interim, the Supreme
Court struck out a motion for stay of execution of the judgment of the Appeal
Court affirming the Plaintiff in the original matter as the legitimate owner based
on which a warrant of possession was issued.
10. The Applicant further submitted that said the U.L.O Consultants Limited and
HATLAB Ice Cream- one of the parties allocated part of the divided disputed
land, having failed in their bids up to the Supreme Court to overturn the decision
of the Trial Court, wrote a petition against the Applicant to the National Judicial
Council, (NJC) dated 9th February, 2017 and same was referred to the Applicant
for comments.
11. The Applicant continued that he was invited by the National Judicial Council
(NJC) to appear before an investigation committee where he made his
presentation. That the Investigation Committee despite the overwhelming
evidence of abuse of Court processes by the Petitioners, having not properly
evaluated the evidence reached an unfair and unjust conclusion and
recommended that the Applicant be issued a warning letter, which was announced
on television and it occupied all the media space; print, electronic and the internet.
Subsequently on the 26th of March, 2018 the Applicant received a warning letter
from the NJC through the Hon. Chief Judge of the High Court of the Federal
Capital Territory while placing him on its watch list for 9 months.
12. The Applicant asserted that he has never in his 36 years of service been found
wanting in the discharge of his duties thus the conduct of the NJC amounts to
victimisation which exposed him to needless public ridicule.
4