Rivers tribunal orders pasting of papers on Wike’s gate, PDP office

For evading service of court process by bailiff, Rivers State Election Petitions Tribunal, on Wednesday, ordered the pasting of papers on the gate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate in the April 11 election, Nyesom Wike, or at the gate of the office of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Port Harcourt, the state capital.
The order followed a complaint by the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, Dakuku Peterside, through his counsel, Rotimi Akeredolu (SAN).
At its inaugural sitting on Wednesday, Tribunal Chairman, Justice Muazu Abdulkadir Pindiga, ruled that substituted service be effected on the defendant either by pasting the court process on his gate or at the office of the PDP secretariat in Rivers State.
Akeredolu had alleged that Wike had been evading service of court process in the petition challenging his elections.
The tribunal was also told that all attempts by the bailiff of the court to effect service on Wike have been futile, due to alleged non-cooperative attitude of his aides in the house.
Peterside, through Akeredolu, had approached the tribunal, challenging the election of the PDP candidate on grounds of irregularities and massive rigging.
At the inaugural sitting, Akeredolu moved a motion ex-parte praying the tribunal to grant an order for substituted service on the defendant.
“The court bailiff had, on several occasions, visited Wike’s house to effect service but was on all the occasions turned back at the gate upon discovery that he is a court bailiff” .
In an affididavit deposed to by the bailiff and tendered by the petititioner, the tribunal was told that neither the governor-elect nor his agent was ready to receive any court process from anybody.
However, Akeredolu said in fairness, he could not establish whether it was Wike who instructed his agents not to accept service.
He, however, urged the tribunal to allow him paste the process on the wall of the house in the interest of justice and to avoid unnecessary delay of proceedings.
Justice Pindiga granted the prayer and said the panel would communicate the parties in the petition as to the next adjourned date.
He had earlier appealed to the parties and the media to be co-operate with the three-member tribunal in the discharge of its duties, without any hindrance.