Court grants foreign medical trip for ex-Lagos Commissioner

The Federal High Court sitting in Ikoyi has granted an application filed by a former Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Lagos State, Oladipo Shasore, SAN, seeking to travel abroad for medical treatment.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission on Tuesday morning in a series of tweet, revealed that the presiding judge, Justice Chukwujekwu Aneke granted the application on Monday, January 16, 2022.

Justice Aneke, it was gathered, granted the permission following a motion filed and argued by Shasore’s team of counsel led by a former President of, the Nigerian Bar Association, Paul Usoro, SAN, and Olawale Akoni, SAN.

According to the defence team, Shasore was diagnosed with lattice retinal degeneration to both the left and right eyes as well as chronic rhegmatogenous retinal detachment to the right eye.

The defence team further presented  diagnosis reports on Shasore’s condition to the court, attached as Exhibit SS3, which was issued by a Consultant Ophthalmologist, Prof. Tom H. Williamson, at The London Claremont Clinic of St. Thomas Hospital London.

In response, the prosecution counsel, Bala Sanga, did not oppose the application, saying that “Only the living can stand trial.”

Consequently, Justice Aneke ruled that, “The application praying this court’s discretion to travel for medical treatment in London, The United Kingdom, dated 30th of December, 2022, without opposition, is hereby granted as prayed.”

The case was then adjourned till February 21 for trial.

Recall that the anti-graft agency is trying the former Attorney-General over his alleged role in inducing one Olufolakemi Adelore, into accepting cash payment of the sum of $100,000, without going through a financial institution.

The SAN is also being accused of making a cash payment of a sum to the tune of $100,000 to Olufolakemi Adelore through Auwalu Habu and Wole Aboderin.

The EFCC further accused Shasore of making a cash payment of a sum to the tune of $100,000 to one Ikechukwu Oguine without going through a financial institution; an amount the commission said exceeded the amount permitted by law.

At the time under review, Adelore was the Director, Legal, Federal Ministry of Petroleum Resources, while Oguine was Secretary to the Corporation and Coordinator, Legal Services, Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation.

According to the EFCC, their involvement concerns their alleged roles in the arbitral proceedings instituted by Process and Industrial Developments Limited (P&ID) against the Federal Ministry of Petroleum Resources.

PUNCH