He accused the minister of disobeying court orders and judgements affirming Alhaji Faruk Abubakar as the Managing Director of Abuja Markets Management Limited (AMML).
A lawyer Faruk Khamagam has called on the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, to toe the path of honour and respect court orders.
He accused the minister of disobeying court orders and judgements affirming Alhaji Faruk Abubakar as the Managing Director of Abuja Markets Management Limited (AMML).
Khamagam, who was Abubakar’s counsel, made the call on Friday at a press briefing in Abuja.
He said the minister, who is not just a lawyer but a life bencher, ought to respect judgments and orders coming from the same bench he is a member of in the interest of the integrity of the judiciary and the rule of law.
He reminded the minister that an Abuja Federal High Court (FHC) and National Industrial Court (NIC) had on various occasions decided on the controversy surrounding the leadership of the AMML in favour of his client.
A suit numbered FHC/ABJ/CS/499/2023, on July 10, reaffirmed Abubakar as the MD of the company apart from an NIC judgement in a suit marked: NICN/ABJ/62/2023 which also validated Abubakar’s position as the valid and substantive MD and chief executive officer of AMML.
Khamagam equally reminded that following the purported meeting of July 17 wherein Abubakar was removed as MD, he said the same NIC, on July 26, made an interim order, restraining the defendants, including the FCT minister, from giving effect whatsoever to the purported removal.
He said, “However, despite the subsistence of these judgments and orders, subsequent events have shown total disregard and lack of respect for the judiciary and judicial processes on the parts of FCT Minister, FCT General Counsel, and their foot soldiers including but not limited to Mohammed Abbas Yakubu, the Commissioner of Police FCT, among others.”
He said to set the record straight, “our client remains the valid, substantive and authentic managing director and chief executive officer of the AMML, based on the valid and subsisting judgments and order of the court”.
He condemned the alleged harassment and intimidation of the staff and forceful takeover of the AMML office by armed policemen on the orders of the minister through the General Counsel, Salman Y. Dako and FCT Commissioner of Police.
He said, "On 10th November 2023, the onslaught on our client was extended to all the staff of AMML who have remained loyal to and respectful of court orders by recognising and working with our client as MD & CEO of AMML, wherein the same police locked up the office of AMML with lock and chain, preventing the entire staff of AMML from having access to and carrying out their legitimate duties in AMML, still under the instruction and close watch the FCT Minister through his General Counsel and the Commissioner of Police, FCT. This onslaught has remained in force till date.
“Our client, Alh. Abubakar Usman Faruk, the Managing Director of AMML and the organisation’s Secretary and Legal Adviser of AMML, Mr. Abu Felix Edache were specifically targeted in the brazen threat by the police who repeatedly notified them that they were acting on the instruction of the Commissioner of Police, and were instructed not to allow them to set their foot in the business premises of AMML any longer.
“Hence, our client and the Company’s Secretary and Legal Adviser of AMML were forced out of the business premises of AMML, and prevented from performing their legitimate duties as Managing Director and Company Secretary/Legal Adviser of AMML respectively.”
"This purportedly happened on the instruction of the FCT Minister through his General Counsel, who wrote a letter dated 1st November 2023 to the Commissioner of Police, directing the latter to ensure that our client and the Company Secretary/Legal Adviser are not granted any form of access to the premises of AMML The lawyer added.