Barr. MBA Ukweni (SAN) has threatened to take the Cross River State Attorney General, Mr Ededem Ani, to court if, within one week, he refuses to retract a statement he made on Màrch 12 regarding the cocoa estate in Etung local government of the state.
MBA Ukweni had earlier inaugurated a task force committee to enforce a court order regarding the Government-owned Cocoa Estate in Etung local government area of the state.
However, the Attorney General placed a Public Notice which he circulated titled, “Re: constitution of illegal taskforce by Mba Ukweni SAN to enforce a court order in respect of Etung cocoa estate” and described Ukweni’s action as i”llegal, alleging that Ukweni had no power to inaugurate the taskforce committee.
In reaction to the public notice in a media chat with newsmen, Ukweni said: “I am giving them a 7-day ultimatum to retract the statement and apologise to me. If he doesn’t, it means he’s not honest with whatever discussions they’re going to have with me.”
Ukweni explained that the taskforce committee, which he Inaugurated was for farmers with like minds called “Team Obey Court Order”, which he said “is meant to protect themselves from violent individuals who used to attack them in their farms.”
He cited a case where one of the allottees was killed while working in the farm he rented from the government-owned Cocoa Estate, wondering why the killers were yet to be prosecuted.
He emphasised that the cocoa farmers were trained to work as a team so as to scare their killers from launching attacks.
“The court had earlier restrained the Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice from evicting allottees from their farms, as they had legitimately paid money into the state government’s coffers,” Ukweni said.
Ukweni warned that if the Attorney General, who happened to be a party in the case, doesn’t meet the two conditions, which include retracting the statement with an apology, “there will be no basis for any discussion, we’ll react.”
Ukweni further stated, “If we react, whoever is bruised by our reaction, the blame should be on him, because he knows what to do. I mean the Attorney General, who I know is also a lawyer and knows exactly what to do.”
He disclosed that he would prepare a report to the governor should the Attorney General fail to advise those pushing him to disobey the court order.
Ukweni averred that as Attorney General, it’s his duty to obey the court order. “He’s a party in that case, and having acknowledged that there was an order of court, which he’s fought severally to upturn, he has a duty to obey,” Ukweni said.
The senior lawyer stressed that his law firm is ready to take necessary actions to protect its clients’ interests and uphold the rule of law.
An effort to get the Attorney General to react to the warning failed as his telephone line was not reachable at the time of going to the press.
