By Correspondent in Lokoja.
A businessman, Alhaji Abubakar Oba-Suleimon, whose articulated vehicle was involve in what he described as minor accident,on Friday, pleaded with Chief Magistrates’ Court to order the police to release his vehicle.
Oba-Suleimon had through his Counsel, Mr Nyenke Joseph, dragged Commissioner of Police before Magistrate I.B. Obaka of Chief Magistrate Court, Lokoja, Kogi over the continuous detention of his vehicle.
He said though his vehicle was involved in ”minor accident”, no life or property was lost, adding that the police seized his vehicle since Sept 9 and kept it in their custody and refused to release it to him, even though no person had any case against him.
The counsel to Oba-Suleiman said he brought the case before the court, as motion, in pursuance to Section 44 of the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria as amended.
He therefore, pleaded with the court to compel the Kogi Commissioner of Police to release his client’s vehicle, with registration number KSA 698 XY without further delay.
The counsel as unfortunate,a developmnt where for over two months, the police seized his client’s vehicle over a minor accident and refused releasing it for reasons best known to them.
“It’s also pertinent to point out to this court that the respondent in paragraph five of his counter affidavit has conceded to our submission that the accident, in which the truck was involved in, was but a minor one, where no life or property was lost,” Joseph argued.
He also told the Court that the applicant, being a businessman, was loosing a lot of income over the continuous detention of his articulated vehicle and had filed an affidavit of urgency for the speedy hearing of the case and for the release of his vehicle.
Joseph urged the court to grant his client’s applications and order the police to release the vehicle without further delay to save his client’s business from crumbling.
In his response, the Counsel to the Police, ASP Samuel Idowu, objected to the applicant’s application, describing it as “deceptive and misleading”, adding that the owner of the truck was not in any case with the police.
“My Lord, I vehemently object to the application raised by the claimant and have filed our counter affidavit of only 10 paragraphs.
“It will interest your lordship to know that the police is not in Court with the applicant, nor at anytime arrested him for any offence, but with his driver, who for his dangerous and reckless driving,had caused a minor accident that resulted to a traffic gridlock on the highway on Sept 9.
“It’s not true that we conceded in our counter affidavits that the accident involving the truck was minor, considering the gridlock it caused motorists and commuters on that faithful day.
“My Lord, in exercising your discretion in this matter, we should look at the party involved in this matter, whether he is in any Court or is there any annexure before this court?
“It is clear that the answer to these questions is ‘no’, therefore, we urge this court to dismiss the application for lack of merit, ” Idowu urged.
After listening to the two parties, Adoka fixed Tuesday, Nov 23, for ruling on the matter.
Edited by Dada Ahmed.
