A Rivers State High Court presided over by Justice Adolphus Enebeli has adjourned to July 4 for hearing of fundamental rights suit filed by the widow of late Dr. Ferry Gberegbe.
Ronke, according to the prosecuting counsel, filed the fundamental rights suit to seek justice on the death of her husband.
Late Dr. Ferry Gberegbe was allegedly shot by officers of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) at INEC Collation centre in Bori in Khana Local Government Area of Rivers State on 10th of March, 2019 in the Governorship and House of Assembly Elections in the state.
The presiding judge adjourned the case to July 4 after he granted request for adjournment by the counsel to defendants in the case, Essiene Edet.
The defendants in the suit are the Rivers State Commissioner of Police and the then Commander of SARS in Rivers State, Akin Fakorede.
When the court sat over the matter on June 21, 2019, counsel to the claimant in the case, Barrister Lezina Amegua, served court processes on the defence counsel. However, the defence counsel asked for an adjournment to enable him have time to look at the processes served on him and respond at the next sitting by the court. The court will sit over the matter on Thursday, July 4.
The widow of late Dr. Ferry Gberegbe filed a fundamental rights suit against the Commissioner of Police in Rivers State and the then Commander of SARS in the state, Akin Fakorede, for alleged violation of the right to life of her late husband and is asking for N800million in damages.
When the court sat over the case on Friday, June 14, the defendants’ counsel, Essiene Edet, who is a legal officer in the Nigeria Police Force, made his first appearance for the defendants in the case.
He told newsmen after the case was adjourned to June 21 that he filed his response by way of a motion for an extension of time which he said the court had “graciously granted”.
At an earlier sitting by the court before that adjournment, the court ordered that a hearing notice be served on the defendants, who were absent in court and were also not represented by any counsel.
Counsel to the claimant, Barrister Lezina Amegua, said in an interview that justice would be done in the case.
He said that his client filed the fundamental rights suit against the defendants and is asking for N800million in damages from them because of the alleged violation of the right to life of her late husband by the defendants.
The then Commander of SARS in Rivers State, Akin Fakorede, has, however, denied that SARS operatives killed the late Dr. Ferry Gberegbe.
While addressing members of a Joint Committee on Army, Police, Human Rights and Justice from the House of Representatives who were in Port-Harcourt on the matter, Fakorede said that the late Dr. Ferry Gberegbe died from food poisoning.
The late Dr. Gberegbe was a collation agent for the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Khana Local Government Area of Rivers State in the 2019 Governorship and House of Assembly Elections in the state.
