Alhaja Kudirat Ijaiya Ibiyeye & Anor V. Abdullahi Gold & Ors (2012)

LawGlobal-Hub Lead Judgment Report – COURT OF APPEAL

OBANDE OGBUINYA, J.C.A. (Delivering the Lead Ruling)

By motion on notice, dated and filed on 29/02/2012, the appellants/applicants prayed this court as follows:

“1. AN ORDER of interlocutory injunction restraining the Respondents from taking any step or acting in anyway under the judgment of your Lordships delivered on 07/12/2011 pending the determination of the Applicants’ appeal filed against the said judgment.

2. AN ORDER staying all the executory orders in the judgment of this Honourable court delivered on 07/12/2011 which executory orders:

(a) Awarded the sum of N100, 000.00 to each of the Respondents against the 1st Appellant/Applicant.

(b) Ordered the Appellant/Applicant to tender a public apology to the Respondents.

3. AND for any order or further orders which this Honourable Court may deem fit to make in the circumstance.

GROUNDS FOR THE APPLICATION

(1) The Applicants have filed an appeal against part of the said judgment of your Lordship delivered on 07/12/2011.

(2) The Notice of Grounds of Appeal contains arguable and substantial grounds raising recondite issues of law and circumstances exist warranting the grant of this application.

(3) The appeal would be rendered nugatory if this application is refused and the appeal eventually succeeds.

(4) The Applicants’ constitutional rights of appeal will be crippled if this application is refused.

(5) It will be equitable for parties to maintain the status quo pending the determination of the appeal as it is impossible to retract a public apology after publication.

(6) The Applicants will prosecute the appeal diligently and timeously.”?

The application stemmed from the judgment of this court delivered on 07/12/2011. Some time ago, the first appellant, now the first applicant, made a written report to the second appellant (now the second applicant) against the respondents. A resume of the report was that the respondents issued post-dated dud cheques to the first applicant, a licensed money lender, as security for a loan transaction and for threatening to kill the first applicant and to destroy her property. The agents of the second applicant acted on the written report by arresting and detaining the respondents for reasons of investigating the complaints therein. Eventually, the agents of the second applicant released the respondents from the police detention. The respondents were not arraigned in court instead the agents of the second applicant advised amicable settlement of the dispute between the parties.

It appeared that contrary to the advise for peaceful settlement, the respondents sued the applicants, under the fundamental rights procedure, for their unlawful detention and illegal seizure of their chattels (two motor vehicles) in the lower court, Federal High Court, Ilorin, on 09/03/2010 in suit No. FHC/IL/CS/10/2010. The matter was duly heard by the lower court. The lower court, in a judgment, delivered on 02/11/2010, found for the respondents and awarded N200, 000.00 to each of them for their detention and N150,000.00 for the detention of each of their chattels against the first applicant. It, also, ordered her to tender a public apology to the respondents in two local newspapers circulating within Kwara State.