It appears Yahaya Bello is not on the good side of the law at the moment as the court has ordered him to honour its invitation.
The Former Governor of Kogi State, Yahaya Bello, has been slammed by The Federal High Court sitting in Abuja.
The court accused him of attempting to truncate the criminal case that was initiated against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC.
In the ruling that was delivered by Justice Emeka Nwite, in court on Friday, it restated the order made on April 17.
Also, the order directed security agencies to arrest and produce him before it to answer to the 19-count charge that is pending against him.
According to the court, Yahaya Bello, by briefing lawyers to challenge its jurisdiction to try him, while he remained in hiding, showed that he “has no atom of respect and regard for the court.”
The court held that Bello’s decision to file the application “is clearly showing his intention not to present himself for trial.”
Also, the court stressed that he ought to have made himself available upon becoming aware of the order of arrest that was issued against him.
“Furthermore, the law is settled that he who disobeyed an order of court and shown disrespect to the court cannot expect a favourable discretion of the court.
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“In addition, the honourable thing the defendant would have done was to obey the order of court by making himself available.
“Section 287 of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, mandates all persons and authority to give effect to orders of court.
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“Also, he has wilfully disobeyed the order of this court. An order of court of competent jurisdiction, no matter how it was obtained, subsists until it is set aside.
“A party who refuse to obey an order of court after becoming aware of it, is in contempt of court.
“Also, he is not entitled to be heard or granted a favourable discretion.
“However, the refusal of the defendant to make himself available is solely to truncate the arraignment and prevent the court from proceeding further in this case.
“In addition, refusal of the defendant to make himself available in an attempt to truncate this court and make it practically impossible for the court to assume jurisdiction in this criminal trial.
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“He ought to make himself available. He cannot sit in the comfort of his home to file applications before this court.
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