COURT ADJOURNS SITTING OVER CLERGY OKUNERERE’S ORAL EVIDENCE ON LAW DEGREE CERTIFICATE FORGERY

By Emeka Amaefula COURT ADJOURNS SITTING OVER CLERGY OKUNERERE’S ORAL EVIDENCE ON LAW DEGREE CERTIFICATE FORGERY   A Port Harcourt High Court Presided over by Honourable Justice C. Nwogu of Port Harcourt judicial Division was unable to sit on Thursday, 19th day of May, 2022 over taking of Oral evidence to be called for the alleged Law Degree certificate forgery of one Philip Madu alias Okunerere the General overseer of Adoration Family Ministries located at Elimgbu Port Harcourt Rivers state capital.   The Ear Witness reporter was present at the courtroom early in the morning hours of Thursday, 19th, May, 2022 as at 10:25am information was passed around to waiting counsels that His Lordship Honourable Justice C. Nwogu will not be able to preside on the day’s matter and most Counsels were asked to take new date for their matters. And the court official relayed to Barrister N.E Ofoegbu Principal Counsel of Iheoma Chambers Rumuomasi Port Harcourt about the 23rd of June, 2022 adjournment.   The alleged Law Degree Certificate verification issue which Rev. Bro. Philip Madu deposed in his affidavit was raised upon trial of ongoing litigation on ownership of 7-plots of land in suit no.  PHC/ 4450/CS/2020 with George Oparanozie and Bernard Oparanozie are claimants/Respondents while Rev. Bro Philip Madu is the Defendant/Applicant. It was observed that the defendants addressed himself in his Affidavit as a Learned Lawyer which attracted much attention and he was asked by the Presiding Judge in one of the previous Court sittings to proper address himself with the presentation of copies of Originals of his Nasarawa state University Kerfi Law degree and Nigerian Law School issued Certificate of Call to  the Bar signed by the Chairman of Body of Benchers. The alleged discrepancies in all the certificates presented through his Counsel Biobele W. Georgewill Esq indicate irregularities in names that are inappropriate .    It was observed that printed in the Nasarawa State University Kerfi Law Degree certificate is the name Francis Philip Madu while in the Law School issued Call to Bar Certificate the printed name is Philip Francis and in his Deposed Court affidavit, he stated that his name is Rev. Bro Philip Madu. The three names when cross checked through thorough investigation from 2014/2015 and 2015/2016 graduation list from Faculty of Law in the aforementioned year of graduation as he stated all the three names could not be found, a situation that makes his claims bogus and forgery open to be identified as an impostor for having obtained a law degree from Nasarawa state University Kerfi, Nasarawa state in 2015. It is based on these findings that the court wanted to conduct oral evidence by Philip Madu who has never made any physical appearance in the matter that concerns him as a defendant but always represented by his counsel. In the documents made available to our reporter, entitled ‘Further Affidavit in support of the motion stay of proceedings,’ deposed on 16th of March, 2022 he averred that “Contrary to paragraph 2 of the Claimant /Respondents’ Counter Affidavit, I verily believe that no oral evidence is require to resolve the proposition that I undertook legal training. Exhibit herewith and marked as Exhibit DA are my LLB and BL Certificates.”   However, on the 23rd of June, 2022 Justice C. Nwogu will take a stance on taking oral evidence from Rev. Bro. Philip Madu General Overseer of Adoration Family Ministries Elimgbu by Eneka Road Port Harcourt with a branch at Oyigbo town Rivers state. If that goes it will be the first time he will make appearance in person in more than two years that the matter got to the High Court Port Harcourt judicial division.

When contacted the lead Counsel Barrister Nnamdi E. Ofoegbu stated “In paragraph 2 of the Affidavit in support of stay of execution of proceedings in High Court he said that he is a trained lawyer so, I challenged him on that and said you should show us your certificates. And he tendered copies of his certificates.“ When asked if he has doubt about the credibility of the certificates as tendered by Rev. Bro. Philip Madu, Barrister Ofoegbu said “We have 5^th Convocations combined ceremonies of Nasarawa State University Kerfi, Nasarawa State where he said that he attended and graduated in 2015. And that he went to Law School in 2017. So, his name doesn’t appear there. That is why we are convinced that he is using a fake name. So, he cannot answer two names or three or four names. We knew him as reference to exhibit DA attached to further Affidavit in support of motion he has the name Francis Philip Madu, issued by Nasarawa State University Kerfi dated 27/08/2015 and exhibit DA his Call To- Bar Certificate dated 13/07/2017 with the name Philip Francis. The defendant’s name in this suit is Reverend Brother Philip Madu. That is what he introduced himself to us as. The defendant introduced himself to Claimant’s Counsel as Reverend Brother Philip Madu A. In the Corporation processes the defendant wrote his name as Prince Philip Maduabuchi. This is another name different from all these names that I have. So, what is his name? The Court would want to know?”

“Meanwhile he is in the Court of Appeal as he had perfected every document for the court not to hear this thing in the lower court being the High Court by filing the whole process to the Court of Appeal. And upon hearing that this matter is now in the Court of Appeal the High Court should withdraw from hearing the case. But it is not possible because the case is in the High Court now. And it is being pursued as he is being charged with impersonation. It is not the case in the Court of Appeal. They are different things. But if the Court of Appeal will hear the case, they will dismiss this case because of the challenge that I have set up in the Counter affidavit to his Motion of Stay of Proceedings. So, that is the case.”

It is evident that Rev. Brother Philip Madu is avoiding being present in court to give Oral evidence as his Counsel averred in his Reply on Points of Law said “We submit that being that the defendant having adequately answered the denial of the Claimants that the Defendant is also a lawyer by training by exhibiting Exhibit DA, if there is a conflict in the affidavit: We submit that the documents exhibited will adequately resolve such conflict and the provision of section 116 of the Evidence Act is therefore inapplicable. In the case of Akpan V. Ubong (2013) LPELR 201418(CA), the Court of Appeal per Garba, JCA (now JSC) on how conflict in affidavits should be resolved by the Court had this to say ‘’’I would agree with the learned counsel that the general position of the law is that where there is an irreconcilable conflict in the affidavits of parties in cases that are determined entirely on affidavit evidence, then a  Court should call for oral evidence in order to resolve such a conflict before relying on any of the affidavits to decide the case. However, the law is now known that it is not in all cases where such a arises that the need to call oral evidence for the resolution of the conflict would exist. For instance where in addition to the depositions in the affidavits, there are documents attached to the affidavits which are capable of resolving the conflict in the depositions one or the other, the duty to call for oral evidence to resolve such a conflict would abate and not arise. In such a situation, the court can suo motu  use the relevant documents to resolve the conflict in the depositions contained in the affidavits.”

Continuing Counsel to the defendant wrote “We urge the Honourable Court not to be tempted to invoke its inherent powers or exercise its discretion by Ordering Oral evidence on an issue that can be resolved by reference to documentary evidence.”

By inference Defendant’s Counsel is asking the court not to grant order for Oral evidence as the exhibited documents speak for the records which is not the subject of the matter that is being tried as the defendant is challenging the locus standi of claimants and the competence of the suit.

Therefore, come June 23^rd, 2022 the court will take into records the observation of identity of the sole defendant Rev. Brother Philip Madu alias Okunerere whose name is missing in the 2015 graduation list of graduates of Law from Nasarawa State University Kerfi, Nasarawa state.