Justice Adebukola Banjoko, of the Federal Capital Territory High Court in Gudu, has granted the application of counsel to former Plateau State governor, Joshua Dariye, leave to withdraw from the matter.
Garba Pwul SAN, had earlier prayed the court to grant him leave to withdraw from the case which the prosecuting Counsel, Rotimi Jacobs SAN, vehemently objected to.
Jacobs had argued that a counsel had a greater responsibility to the court not only to the client, he urged the court to dismiss the application as incompetent.
Pwul had indicated that the move does not suggest loss of his client’s confidence in him, further indicating that he would be representing Dariye at the Court of Appeal. He stated that his withdrawal was due to personal reasons.
Justice Banjoko, in her ruling, pointed out Rule 21 of the Rules of Professional Conduct in the Legal Professional which addresses circumstances surrounding the withdrawal of a lawyer from employment.
She stated that though the ground of withdrawal of the defense counsel does not display any special link in accordance with the rules of the legal profession, she would however accede to the notice of withdrawal in the interest of justice.
Dariye is facing a 21-count charge bordering on money laundering and diversion of state ecological fund. His counsel, Pwul, argued that three lawyers had represented Dariye before him, since 2007 when the trial began, and that Section 36 (6) of the 1999 Constitution supports the right of the defendant to choose who will represent him in court.
Dariye, however, who spoke for himself from the box, insisted he would need a new counsel and possibly a SAN while he stressed on how expensive a SAN can be.
Justice Banjoko, in her response, granted Dariye time to get a new counsel. She said she would have given him two weeks to get a new lawyer, but she would grant till April end.
Matter was adjourned till April 27 and 28, 2017 respectively.
Join BusinessDay whatsapp Channel, to stay up to date
Open In Whatsapp
