Chris Awhawha
A Bayelsa State High Court has issued an interim injunction, stopping the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) from conducting its state council election scheduled for October 31, 2024.
The conference was intended to elect new leadership for the state chapter of the union.
The injunction was granted in Suit No: BYHC/YHC/328/2024, where the court, presided over by Justice I.A. Uzakah, ruled in favor of the applicants, restraining the incumbent chairman, Samuel Numonengi, outgoing secretary and chairmanship aspirant Ogio Ipigansi, and another respondent, Kalabo Frank Kalabop, from taking any further actions related to the scheduled election.
The court ordered that no steps should be taken in connection with the election until the motion on notice is heard and determined. The case has been adjourned to November 4, 2024, for further deliberations.
As part of the court’s ruling, the applicants have been mandated to file an undertaking to pay damages of one million naira each to the first and second respondents if the interim injunction is later deemed frivolous or unmeritorious. The ruling was issued in Yenagoa, marking a critical moment in the leadership transition within the Bayelsa State NUJ.
The legal proceedings arose following concerns raised by members of the union regarding the conduct of the election and the role of the screening committee, headed by respondents I.A. Uzakah, Yola Amiefa, and Grace Orumieyefa, who were also restrained by the court’s order.