NERC BOSS RISKS JAIL TERM FOR CALLING JUDGES 'IGNORANT'

This is hardly strange in a society that is the right
to speak freely is still a crime.

A Lawyer, Toluwani Adebiyi has filed contempt
proceedings against Nigeria Electricity Regulatory
Commission (NERC) Chairman Dr Sam Amadi on his
claim that judges were frustrating reforms in the
electricity sector.
The NERC chair made the claim in an August 7 letter to
the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, Justice
Ibrahim Auta.
Amadi, who noted that the judges were ignorant of the
sector, accused them of handing out improper
injunctions, which could discourage investments.
His comment follows a ruling by the Federal High Court
in Lagos, which restrained NERC from increasing tariff,
following an ex-parte application by Adebiyi, who
sought an injunction to stop NERC from raising power
consumption bills without steady power for 18 hours a
day.
Adebiyi filed the Form 48 yesterday, which requires
Amadi to appear in court to justify his statement or risk
a jail term, The Nation reports.
The application is entitled: “Notice of consequence of
derogatory, unlawful, misguided accusations of Federal
High Court Judge, same which is contemptous of the
integrity of the court as contained in contemnor’s letter
to the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court and
published on page 12 of The Nation newspapers of
18th august 2015.”
It reads: “Take notice, that unless you can substantiate
and justify your accusation as contained in your letter
to the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court dated 7th
August, 2015, published in The Nation Newspaper of
18th August, 2015, of which you contemptuously in a
very insulting and derogatory manner accused the
court, casting aspersions in a way so prejudising, in a
matter pending before the court, you will be guilty of
contempt of Court and will be liable to be committed to
prison.”
Amadi had stated that such injunctive reliefs against
legitimate business operations of licensed electricity
companies were not well considered.
“My Lord, permit me to bring to your notice a subtle
threat that can undermine the success of the power
sector reforms. This threat is in the form of an
increasing spate of seemingly reckless and
inconsiderate interim injunctions that have been issued
against the commission and electricity distribution
companies at the instance of consumers, who have not
made out clear case meriting such intervention by the
court,” Amadi wrote.
Adebiyi said that the accusation that judges were
granting “reckless and inconsiderate injunctions” was
contemptuous.
He further accused the NERC chair of derogatorily
directing the judges to always exercise restraint and
defer to his commission in the exercise of their judicial
power, an act that cannot be separated from an
intention to subjugate, undermine and intervene with
the Judges’ lawful responsibility.
Amadi is expected to appear before Justice
Mohammed Idris, who gave one of the restraining
orders, on September 23.