A Lagos High Court on yesterday commenced hearing in the
objection filed by the Founder, Synagogue Church of All
Nations, Prophet T.B. Joshua, against the coroner’s inquest
into the circumstances surrounding the collapse of the
church’s six-storey guest house.
About 116 persons, mostly South Africans, died in the
September 12, 2014 tragedy.
The Lagos State Government had inaugurated the coroner’s
inquest to determine the cause of the victims’ death but
Joshua had asked the court to conduct a judicial review of the
coroner’s inquest since it began on October 13, last year.
The prophet, through his lawyer, Chief Lateef Fagbemi, SAN,
specifically asked the court to determine whether the witness
summons served on him to personally appear before the
coroner was not a breach of his right to fair hearing.
He also wanted Justice Latifa Okunnu to determine whether
the coroner had not been extending the inquest into areas
beyond his constitutional bounds.
Canvassing arguments in favour of Joshua’s application on
Thursday, Fagbemi submitted that under the provision of the
Lagos State Coroner’s Law, 2007, Komolafe’s inquest was
limited only to the determination of what was responsible for
the victims’ death “and nothing more.”
The senior lawyer stressed that the law did not empower the
coroner to inquire into what was responsible for the building
collapse.
Fagbemi further submitted that the witness summons served
on Joshua to personally appear before the coroner was an
infringement on his right to fair hearing and did not conform
with sections 32 and 33 of the Lagos State Coroner’s Law,
2007.
He therefore urged the court to restrain the coroner from
further acting outside his constitutional authority and to
declare null and void such portions of the proceeding already
conducted outside the limit.
Responding, counsel for the Lagos State Government, Mr.
Afeez Owokoniran, however, maintained that the coroner had
the backing of the law to embark on an extensive
investigation in his mandate to determine what killed the
victims.
He argued, “In order to determine the cause of death, the
coroner has the latitude to investigate issues pertaining to
building approval, soil testing and materials used in the
construction of the collapsed building.”
Owokoniran submitted further that the coroner operated within
the bounds of the law when he issued a witness summons on
Joshua.
“In doing in his job, the coroner has all the powers of a
magistrate to summon and compel the attendance of
witnesses, including medical examiners, and require them to
give evidence, produce documents or present other relevant
materials,” he added.
The matter has been adjourned till February 17 for further
hearing.
