‘Ohuabunwa Ordered My Beating After Petitions Were To Served Him ‘- Bailiff

A female court bailiff in Umuahia, Abia State capi­tal has deposed an affida­vit where she alleged that Senator Mao Ohuabunwa of

the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), first respon­dent in a petition brought to the tribunal by Chief Orji Uzor Kalu of Progressive Peoples Alliance (PPA), shouted at her when she went to serve him docu­ments of the petition in Arochukwu stadium and even ordered his boys to beat her up.

In her affidavit, the fe­male bailiff deposed that she met the respondent, Ohuabunwa at Arochukwu stadium on March 28, 2016, by 10.30 am, the day he was holding his thanks giv­ing service and served him and on noticing that it was a petition, he rejected it and shouted at her.

She stated further that when he refused to take the service, she had to drop the document in his front as the law demands and then he ordered the boys around him to beat her up. The in­tervention of some of the people there, some of who recognised her as the bai­liff at the tribunal, saved her life as she was rescued and assisted in finding a vehicle back to Umuahia.

According to her, it was after her nasty experience that she deposed a second affidavit, stating what her experience was with the Senator.

She stated that in her first affidavit, it was only a form that she had to fill, affirming that she had served, but that her experi­ence made the second affi­davit necessary.

Ohuabunwa, in his de­fence denied ever seeing the bailiff that day.

Counsel to Dr Orji Uzor Kalu, Perfect Okorie who spoke with newsmen said: “ We are lawyers, our duty is to state the law the way it is, the court is there to look at both ways in the interest of justice.

“All we know is that the account we gave is what transpired, we did not have any relationship with the bailiff so as to say that she is coming to court to lie against the respondent.

“We presented the law and we hope that the tribu­nal will look at the law we presented and rule in our favour,” he said and won­dered why the respondents came to the tribunal if they were not served.

The tribunal was made up of three members, with Justice J.O. Abunda­ga as the Chairman, U. Abubarkar as member and I. J. Gantsa as another member.

The tribunal chairman adjourned to Monday, April 18, 2016 for ruling on the motion and looking into another motion.