The Ondo State Government has refuted a media claim suggesting that the state High Court issued an order mandating the state House of Assembly and Speaker Olamide Oladiji to form a medical panel to evaluate Governor Rotimi Akeredolu’s health. Dismissing the report as false, the government clarified that it did not accurately portray the court’s proceedings.
Charles Titiloye, the State’s Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, addressed the misinformation via his Facebook page on Thursday under the title ‘Re: Fake news of court orders and court proceedings circulating on online platforms.’
Titiloye elaborated that the factual scenario during the court proceedings was the granting of permission for the applicants to seek mandamus and serve the involved parties in the case.
He said, “It should be noted that in an application for mandamus, a party must first seek the leave of court to apply for mandamus. It is thereafter that all parties will be served and heard. It is untrue that the order being sought by the applicants has been granted, as reported above.
“As of today, the Ondo State Government has not been served with the court processes or heard in the matter. The above sensational news smirks grave political desperation, and the Office of Attorney General warns those spreading fake news capable of igniting civil unrest in Ondo State to desist or face appropriate legal action.
“The Attorney General of Ondo State, as the Chief Law Officer, will not be cowed into submitting the state to anarchy or abdicating its responsibilities under glaring orchestrated blackmail by political desperados scheming to take over power through extralegal means.”
The AG warned lawyers to desist from media trials while their case had not been concluded in court, describing it as unethical to the law profession.
“Let it be known that when a dispute has been submitted to the court of competent jurisdiction, it is unethical and a grave misconduct for counsels to embark on a media war in an attempt to intimidate or blackmail the court to reach a certain conclusion on their cases.
“This matter is subjudice, and the office of Attorney General will not be dragged into a media trial of cases pending before the court of competent jurisdiction,” he added.