Yorinde V A-G And Commissioner For Justice Oyo State (1996)
LAWGLOBAL HUB Lead Judgment Report
UWAIS, CJN
The appellant, who was and still is the Chief Judge of Oyo State, received a letter on the 22nd day of November, 1993 dated the 15th day of November, 1993. The letter bore reference No. G. 516/T/4 and was signed by the 2nd respondent. It reads as follows:-
“G/516/T/4 15th November, 93
Hon. Justice T.A.A. Ayorinde,
Chief Judge of Oyo State,
High Court,
Ibadan.
Investigation for Misconduct
I have the directive of His Excellency the Governor of Oyo State to refer to an endorsement of a letter to your goodself by the Honorable Speaker of the Oyo State House of Assembly dated the 8th November, 1993 informing you that a panel of investigation had been set up and sworn-in to investigate allegations of misconduct against you.
In the circumstances of your being under investigation for misconduct your Lordship is hereby requested to proceed on leave with immediate effect.
Signed
(I.A. Osunbunmi)
Director General
For Secretary to the State Government.”
This letter was endorsed to the Chief Registrar (4th Respondent) and the 3rd respondent. The endorsement to the latter reads:
“Our Ref. No. G. 516T/5A
Office of the Governo
Secretariat,
Ibadan.
15th November, 1993.
The Hon. Justice O. Lajide,
High Court of Justice,
Ring Road,
Ibadan.
Overleaf and above for your information, Please.
I am pleased to convey the approval of His Excellency the Executive Governor of Oyo State, Chief Kolapo Olawuyi Ishola to you of your appointment as the Acting Chief Judge of Oyo State with immediate effect.
The acting appointment will be with full 100% acting allowance.
Congratulations.
Signed
(I.A. Osunbumni)
Director-General
For Secretary to the State Government.”
The appellant further received two letters dated the 31st August 1993 and 15th September, 1993. Both letters were written by the then Executive Governor of Oyo State, Chief Kolapo Olawuyi Ishola. The first paragraph of the latter states:-
“The Government of Oyo State is looking into allegations of corruption and abuse of office against you concerning, among others, the part you played in the transfer and allocation for trial to other judges and hastily allocation to yourself and grant of bail in Suit No. HOY/MISC.5/93, Commissioner of Police v. A. Faseyitan and 13 others.
and paragraph 3 thereof reads:-
“3. In this connection, there are numerous petitions against you including one from the Islamic Propagation Centre, P.O. Box 464, Oyo State dated 3/7/93, alleging that you took a bribe of N500,000.00 from Oba Lamidi Olayiwola Adeyemi III, Alafin of Oyo. There was another petition from the Lagos Branch of Oyo Indigenes Patriots, Lagos, dated 9/4/93, in which you were alleged to have been requested to secure the bail of the suspects on the 29th April, 1993. There are many similar allegations in this vein of which you have copies and you should comment on them.”
While the second paragraph of the former letter states thus:
“2. Please be informed that in the course of your 1992 and 1993 annual leave and as a result of a large number of petitions and accusations of misconduct and abuse of office against you, you will be required to put up your defence before a panel to investigate your conduct concerning inter alia;
(a) The part you played in the transfer and allocation for trial to other judges and hasty reallocation to yourself and grant of bail in Suit No. HOY/MISC/5/93 Commissioner of Police v. V.A. Faseyitan and 3 Others:
(b) Falsification of the decision of the Judicial Service Com-mission in the application for transfer of Mr. Justice E.O. Olukole of the Rivers State High Court.
(c) Perceived collusion in the granting of garnishee orders on Government money without putting the Government on notice; and
(d) Many others to be put forward when the investigation starts.”
Consequent upon these letters the appellant instituted an action in the Federal High Court, Ibadan, Suit No. FHC/IB/23/93 against the Governor and others. A settlement was reached between the appellant and the Governor. As a result of the settlement the suit was discontinued. However, the appellant took out another writ of summons at the High Court of Oyo State, Ibadan. This was on the 21st day of December, 1993. The present respondents as well as the former Governor of Oyo State, Chief K.O. Ishola, were made defendants to the action. The writ of summons was later amended by the appellant. The claims indorsed thereof are as follows:-
“(1) A declaration that letter reference No.G.516/T/4 of 15th November, 1993 signed by the 2nd defendant purporting to suspend the plaintiff from office as the Chief Judge of Oyo State is ultra vires, illegal, unconstitutional, null and void and of no effect whatsoever.
(2) A declaration that letter referred to in paragraph 1 supra purporting to appoint the 3rd defendant as the acting Chief Judge of Oyo State is ultra vires, illegal, unconstitutional, null and void and of no effect whatsoever.
(3) A declaration that the plaintiff remains and is entitled to continue to act as the Chief Judge of Oyo State.
(4) An order that the plaintiff should continue in office as the Chief Judge of Oyo State until he vacates the said office in accordance with the applicable law.
(5) An order of perpetual injunction restraining the defendants, each and every one of them, their servants, agents, and privies including anyone acting for or on behalf of all or any of them from suspending, disturbing and interfering howsoever with the plaintiff in the performance of his duties and in the enjoyment of the emoluments, perquisites, benefits and entitlements of his office as the Chief Judge of Oyo State.
(6) An order of perpetual injunction restraining the 3rd defendant from acting as or holding out himself howsoever as the Chief Judge of Oyo State.
(7) N100 million as damages for unlawful interference with the performance by the plaintiff of the duties of his office and with the enjoyment of the perquisites and entitlements of his office as the Chief Judge of Oyo State and for mental agony, embarrassment, shock, degradation.”
By a motion on notice, dated the 4th day of January, 1994, which was brought by the appellant, the following prayers were made:-
“(1) An order of interlocutory injunction restraining the defendants, each and everyone of them, their servants, agents, and privies including anyone acting for or on behalf of all or any of them from suspending, disturbing and interfering howsoever with the plaintiff in the performance of his duties and in the enjoyment of the emoluments, perquisites, benefits and entitlements of his office as the Chief Judge of Oyo State pending the determination of the suit herein.
(2) An order of interlocutory injunction restraining the 3rd defendant from acting as or holding out himself howsoever as the Chief Judge of Oyo State pending the determination of the suit herein.
AND
(3) For such further or other order or orders as this Honorable Court may deem fit to make in the circumstances.”
In his ruling, the learned trial Judge (Aderemi, J) held that on the affidavit evidence before him there was an issue for trial in the case brought by the appellant. He then considered the principle of law applicable to the application. He made the following observations:-
“It seems to me clear that it is the overall interest of the larger society that determines the way this application goes. I am equally conscious of the time-honored principle of law that if the plaintiff were to succeed at the trial in establishing his right to a permanent injunction and if he could be adequately compensated by an award of damages for the loss he would have sustained, as a result of the defendant’s continuing in the violation of that right, between the time of the application and the time of the trial; but it is clear that the defendant can pay damages, then interlocutory injunction should not be granted. Converse to that principle is that if damages will provide adequate remedy for the defendant in event of his succeeding on the trial, to establish his right to do that which was sought to be enjoined and if he could be adequately compensated under the plaintiffs understanding (sic) as to damages for the loss then there would be no reason for refusing an interlocutory injunction.”
and concluded the ruling by holding thus:-
“Can I on the face of the printed evidence say, with any confidence, that the balance of convenience tilts in favour of the plaintiff/ applicant? Why (sic My) answer is definitely in the negative … I have said that from the printed evidence before one, the plaintiff is not disturbed in the enjoyment of the emoluments, perquisites, benefits and entitlements of his office …… It is for this reason that I stoutly refuse to accede to the first prayer. ….. I have earlier cautioned myself that it is not the duty of this court, at this stage to determine the legality or otherwise of the appointment of the 3rd defendant as Acting Chief Judge; judicial authorities vindicate my stand here. It only remains for me to say that the act of appointing the 3rd defendant as Acting Chief Judge having been done, the present application is not a remedy for that act that is already done. That is trite law.
Having regard to all I have discussed above, I do not find this application to be meritorious. It is accordingly dismissed.”
The appellant appealed from the ruling to the Court of Appeal. The court below (Mukhtar, Salami and Nsofor JJ.C.A.) in dismissing the appeal held as follows, as per Mukhtar, J.C.A. (with whom Salami and Nsofor H.C.A. agreed):
“Given all the facts of this case and the documents before this court I am not convinced that there is a triable issue, and find that it is unnecessary to go into detailed analysis of the Decree and law that gave or did not give the then Governor of Oyo State the power to direct the appellant to proceed on leave. Moreover the substratum of this application is the same as in the substantive suit. In addition, I cannot with all certainty say that a cause of action exists …………….. Against the background and the circumstances that led to the litigation, it will be inconceivable to say that the balance of convenience does weigh on the side of the appellant.
I am guided by the above proposition of the law. In view of my findings on balance of convenience, I believe the status quo that shall be maintained is the one existing at the time of the institution of this action. Moreover, the act which the appellant was seeking remedy had already been done i.e. the appointment of the 3rd respondent to act as the Chief Judge of Oyo State. See John Holt Nigeria Ltd. & Anor. v. Holts African Workers Union, (1963) 1 All NLR 379 and Commissioner for Works Benue State v. Devcom Ltd. (sic) I also believe that whatever damage the appellant would have suffered can at the end of the day be adequately compensated by payment of damages ………. I am satisfied that the learned trial Judge exercised his discretion judicially and judiciously. …………..
The end result is that the appeal fails in its entirety.”
The appellant, aggrieved by this decision, appealed from it to this court. 7 questions were postulated in the appellants’ brief of argument for our consideration. The questions state thus:-
“(i) Whether the court below was correct in law in regarding the two questions argued before them as properly embraced in the following single question, namely –
Whether in the special circumstances of this case the learned trial Judge exercised his discretion judiciously and properly when he refused to grant the interlocutory injunction against the defendants (respondents)
(ii) Whether it was open to the court below at this stage of the proceedings to hold that the decision conveyed by the Civilian Governor to the plaintiff in the letter dated 15.11.93 (P.46 of the record) only had the effect of directing the plaintiff to proceed on leave and definitely not a decision suspending the plaintiff from office.
(iii) Even if (which is not admitted) the answer to Question (ii) is in the affirmative, whether it necessarily follows that the application for interlocutory injunction in favour of the plaintiff to restrain the Oyo State Government from interfering with him in the exercise of the functions of his office as the State Chief Judge or to restrain the 3rd defendant from acting in the said office must necessarily fail.
(iv) Whether matters pertaining to the reasons or justifications why it is necessary or expedient for the Civilian Governor of Oyo State to take the actions which he took in writing the letter of 15.11.93 are relevant in determining the plaintiff’s application for interlocutory injunction to restrain the defendants from interfering with him in the exercise of his functions as the State Chief Judge.
(v) Whether the court below was correct in upholding the decision of the High Court that “if balance of convenience is in favour of any side it is (the) larger society, the ultimate beneficiary of the duties discharged by the plaintiff and the defendants put together.”
(vi) Whether the court below was correct in holding that “the status quo that shall be maintained is the one existing at the time of the institution of this action.”
In their joint brief of argument, the respondents adopt questions (i) and (ii) in the appellant’s brief of argument and added the following two questions for our determination –
“(iii) Whether the reasons for the action taken by the Governor is relevant in considering the application for interlocutory injunction.
(iv) Whether in the circumstances of this case the balance of convenience should be in favour of the appellant.”
At the time of our hearing this case on the 5th day of December, 1995 it was reported to us by learned counsel for the respondent that the 3rd respondent died sometime last year after the judgment of the Court of Appeal was delivered. Consequently, the second prayer for an interlocutory injunction to restrain the 3rd respondent from acting as or holding out himself as the Chief Judge of Oyo State becomes otiose. This is common ground as between the parties. Therefore, all the considerations that will follow hereafter will relate only to the first prayer of the application before the trial court.
Now in an application for interlocutory injunction the first issue to be determined is whether there is a question of law or legal right or serious issue to be determined in the substantive action- see Montegomery v. Montgomery (1965) P. 46; Egbe v. Onogun (1972) 1 All NLR (Pt.l) 95 at P.99; Ojukwu v. Governor.
Other Citation: (1996) LCN/2733(SC)
