NAN-H-97
Document
By Martins Odeh
Abuja, June 8, 2019 (NAN) The Federal High Court on Thursday in Abuja reserved ruling to unspecified date on application for admissibility of a document in the trial of Prof. David Iornem.
Justice A.R Mohammed reserved the date when parties could not agree on a date.
Mr E.A Shogunle, counsel to the prosecution, had objected the admissibility of an article written by a prosecution witness, Prof. Ishak Oluyode entitled “Diversity of Higher Education Models: An Implication for the South”.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the argument ensued when Oluyode, Registrar Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB), maker of the article was being crossed examined.
Mr Chris Alachi, counsel to the defendant had applied to tender the document through the witness.
Iornem is standing trial on allegation of operating unapproved Commonwealth University in the country.
The EFCC had also accused Iornem of money laundering and possession of property in London from unsubstantiated proceeds.
Alachi, who relied on Section 83 (1b) of the Evidence Act submitted that the document was listed in the defendant’s response and also deposited with Register of the court.
He said the witness had not denied he made the piece, adding that the document would guide the court to arrive on a sound decision.
However, Shogunle urged the court to dismiss Alachi’s submission as according to him, listing and depositing the document with the court was meaningless without the prosecution being served.
He said the witness had not unequivocally agreed to be the maker of the article.
Shogunle further said Oluyode had hinted the court on the need to read through the 30-page article in order to decipher whether the piece was his or not.
The witness, who was a staff of University of Ilorin, Kwara State when listed as witness, said he was only invited by the defendant to deliver an academic paper in the main campus of the University in Switzerland.
He also said the process of his invitation started in Nigeria, adding that he was unaware of the existence of the campus of the institution in the country.
Oluyode further said there were however, rooms for the establishments of different kinds of universities including virtual universities, provided they were backed by laws.
NAN reports that the defendant had denied any wrong doing, adding that he had approval to run the virtual university in the country. (NAN)
OMO/EEE
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Edited by Ese E. Ekama