A coroner's court set up to inquire into the cause of a fatal building collapse at the Synagogue Church of All Nations (SCOAN) two weeks ago in Lagos commenced sitting today.[slideshow]35504[/slideshow]
The coroner, Magistrate Oyetade Komolafe, pointed out that the inquest would not operate like a normal court. He said the inquest is not to prosecute anyone for culpability, but rather to determine how the collapse happened, towards preventing a recurrence in future.
He stressed that no one would be blamed for the avoidable collapse and death of scores people in the faulty construction, even as he emphasized that the inquest was not inaugurated for any prosecution.
Regarding modalities for calling of witnesses, he announced that all evidence must be front-loaded for all counsels to familiarize with its facts before witnesses would be asked questions regarding evidence they prepared.
Meanwhile, SCOAN has assigned two armies of counsels to protect its interests at the inquest. The first is led by a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Lateef Fagbemi, who persistently argued against the inquest's mission to visit the scene of collapse. Shortly after Fagbemi had introduced himself, another lawyer appeared, identifying that his master, Ebun Adegboruwa, was briefed by the Church to appear for it at the inquest.
The counsels argued that the Church is a corporate entity and is at liberty to nominate who would represent it, apparently moving to guard against the possible invitation to the head of SCOAN, Prophet T.B. Joshua, to testify on the collapse of the building.
When the coroner called on all interested parties, there was no representation from any family of the deceased victims in the Synagogue Church building collapse. Instead, the court was stormed by supporters of the Prophet Joshua, including persons living with disability who said they are beneficiaries of his generosity at his Church. A widely-known musician, T-Mac, was also at the court in solidarity with Prophet Joshua.
Apart from the Lagos State Government's legal representation, the Red Cross Organization and men of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) were also present at the inquest. The coroner also encouraged representatives from South Africa and other countries who may have suffered loss of their citizens in the fatal Synagogue Church building collapse to attend the inquest and help with useful information at their disposal.
After arguments by counsels to the Church failed, the coroner announced that all parties to the inquest, including the media, would visit the site of collapse on Thursday. Witnesses will begin sharing their evidences on 27th of October.