Sylvanus Viashima, Jalingo
A Federal High Court sitting in Jalingo has issued a warrant of arrest on the Managing Director of Taraba Investment and Property Company limited, Mr. Ezekiel Iliya, and two others, Mr. Chris Apaji and Veronica Musa, for contempt of court.
Justice Stephen Pam, who issued the warrant of arrest on Monday, ordered the three persons to be brought before the court on January 16.
The arrest warrant was in pursuance of an ex-parte motion brought before the court by the plaintiff, Mr. Benjamin Orume, and eight others on December 2, 2019.
In the ex-parte motion, the certified true copy of which was also obtained by our correspondent, the plaintiff, Mr. Benjamin Orume and eight others, who are the Directors of Taraba Micro Finance Bank), prayed the court to restrain the defendants (Iliya, Musa and Apaji) from interfering with the activities of the bank, pending the determination of the case before the court.
The court, after reading the affidavit in support of the motion sworn to by Mallam Nasiru Baba of Taraba Micro Finance Bank, and hearing the application from Ganki Hassan in support of the motion paper, granted all the three reliefs sought by the plaintiffs.
In spite of the order of the court, the defendants allegedly broke into the bank.
In a warrant of arrest marked FHC/JAL/CS/24/2019 and charge no. FHC/JAL/M/83/2019 signed by Justice S.D. Pam and certified by B. Bakari, the court ordered the arrest of Iliya, Musa and Apaji, and to produce them in court on January 16, for contempt of court against the order of the court on December 2, 2019.
Meanwhile, the Taraba State Police Command has temporarily sealed the premises of the Taraba Micro Finance Bank Limited.
The command’s spokesman, David Misal, who confirmed the development to our correspondent, said that the action of the command was in compliance with an executive order given to the command by the state government to forestall a possible breakdown of law and order on the property.