The Federal High Court in Abuja on Tuesday declined a request by the defence in the ongoing trial of a former National Publicity Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Olisa Metuh, to order the arrest of the Director-General of the Department of State Service (DSS), Mr. Lawal Daura, for failing to produce the detained former National Security Adviser, Sambo Dasuki, in court.
Justice Okon Abang, had on October 25 directed Dasuki and former President Goodluck Jonathan to appear in court on Tuesday in respect of the trial of Metuh.
The court had earlier issued separate subpoenas on Dasuki and Jonathan upon Metuh’s application.
But, while as of October 25 Jonathan had yet to be served with the witness summon, Dasuki had been served through the Director-General of the DSS.
The judge had also issued another subpoena on the DG of DSS to produce Dasuki in court on Tuesday.
While Dauski was not produced in court on Tuesday, Jonathan’s lawyer, Chief Mike Ozekhome(SAN), appeared in court to challenge the subpoena issued on the former President.
Ozekhome noted that Jonathan had yet to be served but only read about the subpoena in the newspapers.
A court registrar confirmed, upon an enquiry by the judge on Tuesday, that the court bailiff had not been able to serve the former President, who was said to be outside the country.
But Ozekhome, after he was granted permission to speak on the Dasuki issue, despite the objection of the prosecuting and defence lawyers on record in the case, supported the call for Daura’s arrest, contending that the failure of the DSS to produce the ex-NSA in court on Tuesday amounted to taking the court for a ride. – Punch.
