The immediate past Imo state Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice Barr COC Akaolisa who was recently slammed with a 5 years ban by the Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee may have been a victim of the raging Oil Wells disagreement between Rivers state and Imo state, the Big Truth can authoritatively gather. It was however discovered that the panel that sat and found him guilty of a matter involving the bail of a man one Mr Paulinus Nwanochie who was alleged to be standing a Murder case was headed by one Barr Emmanuel Ukala (SAN). Barr Ukala, it was found out hails from Asaba but lived in Rivers state and was the lawyer that filled the controversial suit challenging the ceding of 17 Oil Wells to Imo state from Rivers state on behalf of Rivers State government. The present Governor Rivers state Nyeson Wike was said to have done his law internship at Barr Ukala’s Chambers at Akiri Road, Port Harcourt Rivers State many years ago and has a very close relationship with Barr Okala till date. The suit was initiated by the Rivers state government at the federal High Court Abuja during the short lived administration of Rt Hon Emeka Ihedioha. So when Governor Uzodinma came, the then Attorney General of Imo state Barr Akaolisa inherited the case which eventually gave a judgment pronouncing a 50/50 sharing arrangement between Rivers and Imo states. Akaolisa as the then AG filed an Appeal at the Appeal Court against the judgment contending that the 17 Oil Wells belong to Imo state in full. Okala is still the counsel to Rivers state in the matter till date.
Barr Okala, it was alleged filled an Appeal at the supreme Court even while the matter is still pending at the Appeal Court, a development which legal minds described as abuse of court proceeding. This is even as the 50/50 sharing formula judgment is still subsisting.
Our correspondent who monitored the matter said that Barr Akaoilsa as the Imo state Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice was representing Imo state against the Attorney General of Rivers state at the Court leading to the eventual release of the contentious Oil Well to Imo state.
Apparently angered by this development, Rivers state government singled Akaolisa out destruction as it filed a disciplinary action few days later against Akaolisa using a petition written against Barr Akaolisa in the case of Nwanochie as an instrument. It also at the same time quickly applied a motion to the supreme Court for an exparte injunction to get the Supreme Court to stop the federal government through the Accountant General of the Federation and the Revenue Mobilization, Allocation and Fiscal Commission from directing the release of over 28 billion to the Imo state government. At the Supreme Court, Justice Mary Odili adopted the application exparte and granted the relief of Okala SAN against the AG of Imo State.
It is suspected that the grand plan of Okala was to get Akaolisa out of the legal equation in order to have the matter to his favour. Meanwhile, it was further discovered that the matter was granted exparte without the notice to Imo state government as the Imo state government did not have any legal representation at the supreme court which Imo state is currently working to redress what the state government perceived as legal heist
Barr Okala presided over a case of alleged unprofessional conduct in a matter before a Judge of competent jurisdiction who granted a suspect Mr Nwanochie bail. The question in the lips of observers was whether Akaolisa was the Judge that granted the bail or whether granting of a bail is not the discretion of the Judge? Incidentally, the judge who was handling the matter of Mr Nwonochie traveled abroad for vacation and was there when Corona Virus broke out and therefore she could not return again. The acting Chief Judge of Imo State Honorable Justice Ijeoma Aguguo then reassigned the matter to another judge Justice Ikpema, a well known highly incorruptible Judge who just retired from the Bench to handle. Retired Justice Ikpeama heard the matter together with other Judges who equally heard the matter of all those Suspects who absconded from the Prison during the Prison break and granted the suspect Paulinus Nwanochie bail.
Barr Akaolisa, it was gathered was among the delegation together with the deputy Governor Prof Placid Njoku representing Imo state at the boundary Commission and made case to the Commission to justify that the 17 Oil Wells actually fall within Imo state territory and It was Akaoilsa who filed the suit against Rivers State at the Appeal Court.
However, the current matter at the Supreme Court was between the Attorney General of Rivers State and Attorney General of Imo state.
Legal pundits have continued to question how a supreme Court Judge be allowed to decide a matter involving her home state and another state wondering why she did not recluse herself on such a matter. Again, how can Barr Okala who has a case with another of his professional colleague be allowed to sit on a matter and determine a profession fate of the same Lawyer standing in a matter against him? Should he not also have recluse himself if found in such a judgmental seat?
All these point to a case of vendetta against Barr Akaolisa as he is clearly a victim of Oil war between the two states of Rivers and Imo which he has little or no control over. This is one case begging for redress.
