Court orders arrest of INEC chairman

A federal high court sitting in Abuja has ordered the arrest of  Mahmood Yakubu, chairman, Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

Stephen Pam, the presiding judge, issued an arrest warrant on Thursday after Yakubu failed to appear before him for the third consecutive  time.

The judge asked the police to effect the arrest immediately.

Pam had on July 5 ordered Yakubu to appear before the court to show cause why he should not be sent to prison for contempt of court.

The judge had asked Yakubu to defend a case filed against him by Ejike Oguebego and Chuks Okoye, chairman, and legal adviser of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Anambra state, respectively.

However, Yakubu was absent on July 10 when the court sat to hear the case.

Adeboyega Awomolo, his counsel, had informed the court that his client filed an appeal challenging the order and another appeal before the federal high court asking for a stay of proceedings pending the determination of the appeal.

But counsel to the plaintiff said contrary to the claims by Awomolo, there was no material evidence before the court to stop the hearing.

In his ruling, Pam held that the fiat by the chief judge of the federal high court to hear the matter subsists, after which he adjourned the case till August 1.

But Yakubu failed to appear before the court on Thursday, leading to the warrant of the arrest issued on him.