A group, the Abia Renaissance Movement, has called on the Legal Practitioners Privileges Committee (LPPC) to strip a former Attorney-General of Abia State, Umeh Kalu, of his rank as a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN).
The group also asked the LPPC to withdraw Kalu’s practice licence, arrest, and prosecute him over what it termed “the disgraceful conduct of Umeh Kalu in the ongoing case brought by the PDP against the Labour Party in the state’s election petition tribunal in which the Senior Advocate of Nigeria impersonated PDP’s lawyers, obtained by false pretence documents meant for PDP as petitioners in the case, thereby misleading the court during its first hearing of Tuesday, 13th June 2023.”
It made the call via a statement issued by its Convener, Comrade Ukachukwu Chukwunonso, and its Secretary-General, Comrade Maria Nwokoma, a copy of which was made available to The Star on Sunday, June 18.
The Abia Renaissance Movement called on the LPPC and the judiciary in general to “investigate, discipline, and prosecute the lawyer for his act of gross misconduct that is very unbecoming of a senior lawyer.”
Recall that during the pre-trial hearing on Tuesday, June 13, 2023, in the matter between the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as petitioners, Abia State Governor, Alex Otti, Labour Party and INEC as responders, one of the counsels to PDP, C.O. Nwaogu, informed the court that they were yet to be served with INEC’s reply to their petition.
But INEC’s legal team led by Prof J.O. Olatoke, SAN, countered by saying that they had replied the petitioners since June 6, 2023, and were shocked at the claims of the petitioners that they had not been served same as at the time of the court sitting.
Nwaogu, however, narrated the efforts made by his team, including going to Abuja to seek the reply so they could respond before the court sitting all to no avail.
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But Counsels to the 2nd and 3rd respondents accused the petitioners of lacking in diligence for not being able to respond to the INEC reply, a claim the petitioners vehemently disagreed with saying they could not have filed a response to a reply they were not served.
The Tribunal Assistant Secretary, however, revealed from their records that Umeh Kalu, SAN, came and collected petitioners’ copy and undertook to serve petitioners.
He further revealed an endorsement which purported to show that one Chika Gabriel Nwafor who claimed to be Litigation Officer at No 76 St. Michaels Rd signed for service.
Upon this revelation, counsels to the petitioners revealed that Kalu was not counsel for INEC and thus could not undertake service on their behalf, adding that there was no one by the name of Chika Gabriel Nwafor either in their Chambers at 76 St. Michaels Rd, Aba, or in their office building.
Despite these revelations, counsels for 2nd and 3rd Responders were insistent on formalising the questionable service in court, but counsel to petitoners reminded them that the “endorsement of service” was not an affidavit.
After much-heated debate, tribunal ruled that petitioners be properly served with INEC Reply and adjourned the matter to Wednesday, June 21, for pre-hearing.
Describing Kalu’s action as “a fraud on the judiciary, and an attempt to subvert justice and rape democracy”, the group demanded that he be stripped of his SAN status “as he is not worthy of such a lofty silk that represents professionalism, good character and best practices obtainable in the legal profession.”
“Umeh Kalu SAN should not only be derobed and suspended, his practice licence should be withdrawn; he should also be arrested and prosecuted for abusing his privilege as a Senior Lawyer in a matter in which he is not a party but allowed his political leanings to sway him astray.
“Misleading the court with the intent to subvert justice is criminal. He is one of the several bad eggs bringing the noble legal profession into avoidable disrepute, and this should be decisively dealt with by the LPPC,” the group added.
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