Supreme Court has struck out a suit filed by Lagos Attorney General challenging virtual court sittings.
In a unanimous judgment by the Court, Justice Olabode Rhodes-Vivour declared that as at today, virtual court sitting is not unconstitutional.
The 7 member panel of the court held that the suit filed by the attorney general of Lagos state is speculative and the court does not act on speculation
The Attorney General of lagos State had asked the court for an interpretation of section 274 of the constitution which empowers the Chief Justice of Nigeria and heads of court to give practice directives to the court.
((The bill to pass virtual court proceedings into law has scaled through the 2nd reading at the senate.
But the Attorney General described that as an infringement on section 274 of the constitution, insisting, section 39 of the constitution gives every citizen of Nigeria, the right to fair hearing.
The court submitted that
section 9 of the constitution empowers the National Assembly to amend the constitution.
The Court added that though the bill has gone through the various States house of Assembly, it is yet to be read at the House of Representatives.
The suit was pronounced preemptive and premature.
Justice Amina Augie maintained that in fundamental law the court does not act on speculation.
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The case was withdrawn by the Attorney General and struck out by the Supreme court.
Meanwhile, theSupreme Court also struck out a similar suit filed by the Attorney General of Ekiti State, Olawale Fapohunda against the Attorney-General of the Federation, Attorney General of Lagos and Ogun State.
((Olawale Fapohunda in his suit, asked the Court to determine whether the directive issued by the Attorney-General of the Federation, on 20th of April, 2020 in the conduct of virtual proceedings is a violation of the federalism provisions of the 1999 Constitution.
He withdrew his suit for the same reasons earlier stated by the court and the case was thereby struck out. ))
