LAGOS State health and safety officials have decided to sue Synagogue Church of All Nations (Scoan) founder Pastor TB Joshua and his board of trustees for neglect in response to the collapse of a six-story building last year.
On September 12 2014, Scoan's six-storey guest house collapsed in the Ikotun area of Lagos, killing 116 people. A coroners' inquest has been ongoing into the tragedy since and now that it has submitted its findings, Lagos State health and safety officials believe the church has a case to answer.
Today, the church's trustees will be arraigned before Justice Lawal Akapo alongside the engineers that constructed the collapsed building. Bola Akingbade, the deputy director, of public affairs in the Lagos State Ministry of Justice, confirmed the scheduled arraignment of the accused.
Justice Ibrahim Buba of the Federal High Court in Lagos had dismissed the fundamental human rights enforcement suits filed by the engineers who constructed the collapsed building, as they sought to stop their planned trial. Engineers Oladele Ogundeji and Akinbela Fatiregun, had filed two separate suits before Justice Buba seeking an order restraining the police from inviting, arresting or prosecuting them over the victims’ death.
On August 7, 2015 the coroners' inquest chaired by Magistrate Oyetade Komolafe, had indicted the engineers and recommended them for investigation and prosecution for criminal negligence. However, the engineers had specifically rejected the coroner’s verdict, describing it as unreasonable, one-sided and biased.
In his ruling, however, Justice Buba, held that the engineers had not made out a case of infringement on their fundamental rights even on the merit of the application and dismissed their applications. He noted that the Coroner Law was an enactment of the Lagos State House of Assembly, which is constitutionally empowered to make laws in the state.
Comments
Post a Comment