Synagogue: TB Joshua Loses Bid To Stop Coroner's Inquest

Synagogue: TB Joshua Loses Bid To Stop Coroner's Inquest 

Attempts by the  founder of the Synagogue Church of All Nations, Prophet Temitope Joshua to stop the proceedings of the the ongoing coroner's inquest into the cause of the collapse of a building belonging to the church has failed.

This followed a ruling delivered on Friday by Justice Lateefa Okunnu of the Lagos State High Court in Ikeja, which dismissed Joshua’s application challenging the jurisdiction of the Coroner's court.

According to the judge, the application is premature and lacking in merit.

The inquest was set up by the Lagos State Government to unravel the cause of the September 12, 2014 building collapse which killed 116 people.

However, mid way into the proceedings after refusing to honour the invitation of the Coroner, Joshua ran before the high court urging it to stop his invitation and the entire proceedings.

The clergy also prayed the court to determine whether or not the witness summons served on him to appear before the coroner to testify was not a breach of his right to fair hearing when no material fact against him had been placed before the court.

He also wanted the court to determine whether the coroner had not been extending the inquest into areas beyond his statutory scope.

But the state's counsel, Akinjide Bakare, had urged the court to dismiss the application, arguing that the coroner had extensive powers to investigate the cause and circumstances of death and report to the appropriate authorities.

The lawyer also submitted that in order to determine the cause of death, the coroner has the latitude to summon any witness and investigate issues pertaining to building approval, soil testing and materials used in the construction of the collapsed building.

In her ruling, Justice Okunnu held that although the coroner's court cannot be sued, the Komolafe himself can be sued in his capacity as a coroner.

She also pointed out that the court needed to resolve the issue whether the coroner has acted contrary to the rules of natural justice by not granting the applicants a fair hearing and whether he has exceeded the scope of a coroner's court.

According to the judge, Sections 26 and 27 of the Coroner's System Law of Lagos State 2007, empowered the coroner to summon any witness to assist him in his fact-finding mission, adding that there was nothing unusual in the summons extended to Joshua.

The court held there was no evidence before the court that the coroner had been biased against the applicant and therefore dismissed the argument .

The judge further held that Komolafe as a coroner had the prerogative to take evidence from any witness he deemed relevant to reaching his conclusions.

She therefore held, "I find therefore the present application lacks merit and has failed in its entirety. It is accordingly dismissed," Okunnu said.

Meanwhile, at the resumption on the inquest on Friday, a Structural Engineer and Consultant to the Lagos State Material Testing Agency, Saheed Ariyori, revealed that he was not a professional in sub-soil investigations.

Speaking while being cross-examined by counsel to the Synagogue Church of All Nations (SCOAN), Olalekan Ojo, the witness further confirmed that he did not participate in the generation of the sub-soil investigation report already tendered before the court.

According to him, "We did integrity test on the rubbles that collapsed. The report showed that the concrete used on the collapsed building was good.

"Our investigation report did not show that there were signs of stress on the foundation of the collapsed building.

Besides, Ariyori confirmed that there were errors in his calculations made before the court on March 4, 2015.

Further hearing on the inquest has been adjourned till March 12, 2015.