In the ongoing election petition, the Court of Appeal election petition tribunal subpoenaed the chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Mr Mahmood Yakubu as a key witness and he is yet to appear before the court. This act is not just dishonourable to the court it is also contemptuous and criminal.
The whole news that the INEC chairman was subpoenaed by the court of appeal’s presidential election tribunal and he has regularly and vehemently refused to honour the subpoena, rather sending his subordinates to appear on his behalf is getting embarrassing.
The INEC chairman should be informed that a subpoena is not an invitation that you choose to honour if you wish or will or refuse to honour if you don’t feel like it. It is a command, or a court order and failure to appear or honour it is contempt of court and contempt of court is punishable with jail term.
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A subpoena is defined as a command issued to a named person to appear before a specified court on a specified date and at a specified time. It is addressed to a specific person and the person it is addressed to cannot delegate or relegate it to another person. It is a command and not an invitation and that is why the service of Subpoena must be effected personally on the person who is been invited to the court so as to be 100% sure that the person received it except the court makes an exception or gives the order for substituted service ie for the person to be served through WhatsApp or email or by any other substituted means other than personal service. Once service is effected, attendance is mandatory, it is not voluntary, failure of which incurs the wrath of the court.
Subpoena is only issued by Superior Courts of Record i.e. the Federal High Courts, State High Courts, the National Industrial Court, the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court. The lower courts or the inferior courts of record like the Magistrate Court cannot issue a Subpoena. They issue witness Summons in place of subpoena.
The content of a subpoena may read;
“To Mr John Doe. You are expected to appear before the so-so court on the so-so date by 9 am”.
It is the civic responsibility of any responsible citizen to honour a subpoena once it is issued to him so as to aid the course of justice. Once you are dodging or avoiding without any consequential reason it then cast suspicion on you that there is a skeleton hidden in your cupboard; if you do not have anything to hide then there won’t be a reason for you to hide or refuse or wait to be coerced before you appear before a court when subpoenaed.