Court restrains NIESV incorporated trustees, president from sanctioning four members

A Federal High Court, Lagos, yesterday, restrained incorporated trustees of Nigerian Institution of Estate Surveyors and Valuers (NIESV) and the president from interfering with the right of four of its members from practising as licensed practitioners.
  
The court also restrained the institute, its president, privies, officers, agents or anyone howsoever described from publishing on any social media platform or forwarding to any newspaper for purposes of publishing findings/conclusions contained in the investigative report of the institute dated January 27, 2023 and the letters dated January 31, 2023 pending hearing and final determination of the motion for interlocutory injunction brought against them by the applicants.
  
The court also made an interim order against the institute, its president, agents, servants and privies from giving effect to the letters dated January 31, 2023 and issued by the institute, purportedly expelling three members pending hearing and determination of the motion on notice.

Justice Akintayo Aluko, who sat over the matter gave the order of interim injunction after hearing the motion filed and argued by Dr. Kemi Pinheiro (SAN), counsel to the applicants, in a suit marked FHC/L/CS/191/2023.
  
Four members of the institute, Richard Olodu; Oyedepo Olalekan; Afolabi Lewis Emmanuel and Abraham Akinropo initiated the action.
  
In their affidavit deposed to by the first applicant, Olodu stated that he became an Associate Member of the first defendant on March 23 2012 and is currently the Assistant Honorary National Publicity Secretary of the first defendant, while he knows for a fact that the second to fourth applicants hold or have held positions as current chairman of Kwara branch, past publicity secretary of the Lagos branch 2005/2007 and secretary, NIESV Electoral Committee 2011/2012, as well as the past assistant secretary, NIESV Electoral Appeal Committee 2016.
  
He said he knows for a fact and through his interactions with the defendants that since their admission into the first defendant as members, they have at all times demonstrated uprightness expected of honourable members without any record of disobedience or infringement on dictates of the constitution, rules and bye-laws or of any conduct likely to breach common purpose of the association.
  
Olodu averred that following the need to discuss certain issues relating to the upcoming elections of the first defendant, financial members of the first defendant forwarded a petition to the first defendant with a view to summoning an Extra-ordinary General Meeting (EGM).
 
“And that in fulfillment of the requirements, members of the first defendant, who so desired to summon the extra-ordinary meeting, collated signatures of the financial professional members of the first defendant. However, for a plethora of reasons, the EGM of the first defendant could not hold.”
  
He swore that surprisingly after attempts to hold the EGM, the second defendant, who had by then formed the view that the “EGM was an attempt to ensure free and fair election, which was not going to be in the interest of his sponsored candidates, thereby engaged in calling and threatening some members, who signed the convocation of the EGM.”

Olodu added: “Upon becoming the president of the first defendant, the second defendant instigated the Council of the first defendant to investigate the allegation of signature forgery in the cause of convocation of the EGM of the first defendant.”
  
Based on the above, the deponent stated that on July 30, 2022, the “Council of the first defendant purportedly approved the constitution and appointment of members of an investigation panel, all of whom were personally nominated by the second defendant in his inaugural speech against the Council’s known norms of nomination at the floor of the Council.”
  
He said sequel to the constitution of the supposed investigation panel, invitation letters were sent to the plaintiffs to appear before the panel, adding that following the purported deliberations by the panel on January 27, 2023, it allegedly reached conclusions/findings, expelling them as members of the first defendant. 
  
Meanwhile, Justice Aluko after granting the order of interim injunction adjourned the matter till February 23 for hearing of the applicants’ motion on notice.