On September 26th 2006, the Nigerian Court of Appeal in Benin City adjourned Shell and NNPC's jursidiction appeal in relation to the Iwherekan case, after the case had been wrongly adjourned by court staff to 10th October 2006, without any notice to the applicant Mr Jonah Gbemre or his lawyers. The leading judge said that the reason for this would be investigated and the person responsible disciplined.

A report of the proceedings from The Vanguard is posted below.

Nigeria: Benin Court Registrar Under Investigation
Vanguard (Lagos)
September 27, 2006 Posted to the web September 27, 2006
Gabriel Enogholase Benin

The Court of Appeal sitting in Benin yesterday said that it was investigating circumstances under which the court registrars adjourned a case involving Iwherekan Community in Ughelli South Local Government Area of Delta State and Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) to October, 2006 without the knowledge of the Justices of the court.

The court's investigation which was announced yesterday by the presiding Justice of the appellate court, Justice P.O. Aderemi is sequel to an observation by Counsel to Iwrekan Community, Chief B.I. Iwafor (SAN) who had noted that the court had at the last hearing adjourned the matter to 26th September, 2006 and not 10th October, 2006.

The counsel had discovered to his surprise that the matter which was to come up yesterday, was not on the court list, prompting him to raise his observation.

Consequently, Justice Aderemi went through the records of proceedings of the court on May 23, 2006, when the matter was last heard and found that the court indeed adjourned the matter to September 26, 2006 and not October 10, 2006.

The presiding Justice who later apologized to the parties said the court would investigate the circumstances in which the matter was fraudulently adjourned to October 10, warning that any court official found to be involved in the illegal adjournment would be dealt with.

At the last hearing the court of Appeal had vacated an order of the Federal High Court in Benin requiring some officials of the NNPC and SPDC to appeal before it on May 31, 2006, following an appeal filed by SPDC at the appellate Court. Shell Petroleum Development Company had in the appeal challenged the Jurisdiction of the Federal High Court.

Meanwhile, Justice Aderemi has asked parties in the case of appear before the Appeal Court on 10th October for hearing of the matter. The Iwrehan Community had sued SPDC to enforce the Federal Government loan on gas flaring in their community. At the court yesterday were international observers from Europe, America and Sweden.

They are Elizabeth Bast (FOE USA), Peter Roderick (Climate Justice Program, UK), Paul de Clerk (Friends of the earth, Europe) and Lars Johansen (Independent film maker, Sweden).

http://allafrica.com/stories/200609270179.html