Court Refuses TB Joshua Bid To Stop Proceedings Of Coroner Inquest

Court Refuses TB Joshua Bid To Stop Proceedings Of Coroner Inquest 

The founder of the Synagogue Church Of All Nations, Prophet Temitope Joshua yesterday lost it bid to stop the proceedings of the Coroner inquest conducting an inquest into the collapsed of a building belonging to his church.

The Coroner, Magistrate Oyetade Komolafe dismissed the application filed by the embattled Prophet seeking a temporary suspension of the inquest, holding that the application it as an abuse of court processes.

The coroner held that the proceeding before the coroner's court is a judicial inquiry  into the cause of the collapsed guest house and that there is no party before the court

He also stated that all the authorities cited by counsels while adopting their written addresses has nothing to do with coroner proceedings.

Joshua had urged the court for an order to stay further proceedings on issues relating to calling of witnesses in respect of the building approval or material tests of the collapsed building.

He also asked for an order to suspend further action on the invitation issued to him to appear before the inquest to give evidence.

According to him the request of stay of proceedings is pending the determination of another suit he had filed against the coroner before Justice Lateefat Okunnu of an Ikeja High Court.

But in his ruling the coroner said that since there were no parties such as applicants and respondents or plaintiffs and defendants in the coroner's court but only  witnesses and interested parties, Joshua  had no premise upon which to bring the application for stay of proceedings.

Magistrate Komolafe stated that granting such request would amount to him acting beyond his statutory power.

He also held that the application for stay of proceeding did not conform with Order 40 Rule 6 of the Lagos State Civil Procedural Rules, 2012.

The coroner upheld the argument of Lagos State Government that filing an application before a higher court did not automatically amount to an order to stay proceedings at the lower court.

Komolafe held, "From the order made by the High Court of Lagos State, there is no part wherein it was stated that the proceedings of the coroner should be stayed as provided for under Rule 40 Order 6, paragraph (a) of Lagos State Civil Procedural Rule, 2012.

"It is for this reason of avoiding this kind of abuse of processes of the court that the lawmakers provided for Order 40 Rule 6, paragraph (a) of the High Court of Lagos State Civil Procedural Rules, 2012 for cases of judicial review."

Magistrate Komolafe held that if Justice Okunnu had intended to give an order to restrain the proceedings of the coroner court, she would have done it at the point when she gave Joshua the leave to ask for a judicial review of coroner's inquest.

The Coroner has adjourned proceedings to till Friday, December 12.