Catholic Priest, Others
Catholic Priest, Others Lose in Court over Illegal
Dissolution of Idoma Community EXCO
A Catholic Priest, Rev Father Patrick Agbo of the Catholic
Diocese of Lafia, who is also the Parish Priest of Saint Aloysius
Catholic Church, Doma, in Doma Local Government Area of Nasarawa
State, has lost in Court over a case brought against him for his
unilateral and illegal dissolution of the executive members of
Saints Peter and Paul Idoma Catholic Community (SSPPICC) Keffi
Branch.
Joined as losers and Co-defendants are; Mr. Emmanuel Akor and
Mr. Sunday Agada as 2nd, 3rd defendants respectively.
The plaintiffs, Mr. Ferdinand Idoko and Mr. John Olekwu had
filed their suit no. NSD/MG167/18 filed on November 07, 2018 before
Hon. Justice Daniel D. Adeck of the High Court of Nasarawa State in
the Mararaba Judicial Division.
In his judgement, the Judge ruled that the reliefs sought by the
plaintifs are hereby granted, adding that the tenure of the office
of the Excos of the Isoma catholic Community had not expired and
there has not been any vote of no confidence passed on them by the
house neither has any of them tendered resignation letters, just as
none of them is dead to warrant the declaration of their office
vacant as being done by Rev. Father Patrick Agbo.
The Judge also held that the purported setting up of the
caretaker committee by the unilateral decision of the 1st defendant
be declared null and void to the extent that it is inconsistent to
article 6 of SSPPICC constitution.
The court also restrained the 1st, 2nd and 3rd defendants from
setting up any electoral panel to conduct election into the office
of the executive position of Saints Peter and Paul Idoma Catholic
Community Keffi Branch.
The Honourabke court also ruled that the newly created branch by
the initiation and act of the 1st defendant be declared null and
void for same having fall short of the provisions of Article 13 of
the constitution of the association.
It also ordered all the caretaker committee members to vacate
their positions having been set up against the constitution of the
association.
PRNigeria[1] recalls that on the 11th
day of August 2018, a meeting was called by the Catholic Bishop of
Lafia Diocese in order to reconcile grievances by the warring
groups, most especially the undue interference by Rev Father
Patrick Agbo in the affairs of the Association and his penchant for
aligning with corrupt former executive members of the association.
After the Bishop has chastised his children and ordered them to be
of one mind and thought and finally left the venue of the meeting,
Rev Father Patrick Agbo, the chaplain of the association
unilaterally dissolved the exco and immediately constituted another
caretaker committee with Mr Emmanuel Akor as Chairman which ran
contrary to article 6 of the association’s constitution 2017
currently in force without reason or reasons adduced for such
dissolution. In an affidavit to support the originating summons,
the plaintiffs averred among other things that the association’s
constitution spelt out facts which may be responsible for the
removal of any executive member from office which are in article
6(d)1 of the constitution of SSPPICC 2017. They further averred
that members of the executive cannot be disbanded by any unilateral
decision of any member, patron, Bishop, Rev Father or any other
person without proper recourse to the constitution of the
association, stressing that the executive members were elected in
line with the constitution and they must leave office in accordance
with the constitution. The plaintiffs are also praying the court to
grant the restraining order of interlocutory injunction on Rev
Father Patrick Agbo and his collaborators, so that he will not
carry out his dastardly act of impunity of forcing the present Exco
out of office for no reason, adding that the present Exco should be
allowed to finish their tenure and to allow them to recontest if
they so wish.