HOW CHIEF JUSTICE WALTER S. N. ONNOGHEN AND CHIEF VICTOR NDOMA-EGBA SCUTTLED UNICAL'S 28TH JULY, 1995 SUG ELECTIONS.

TheScribe is on it again— unearthing fact from the archive. It pleases us in bringing the past closer to the present. That's why we're bringing the above your way. The present and the future are phases of life that rests heavily on the shoulder of history. The role (s) played by actors in the past are often forgotten; though recorded by time and somehow unearthed by sundry vicissitudes as TheScribe stumbled on the aforesaid. Let it roll!

In 1995, the election into the nine offices of the Students' Union Government (SUG) in the University of Calabar was scheduled for 28th July, 1995 by the then electoral umpire, the Calabar University Electoral Commission (CUECO) and approved by University's authority.

Few days to the D-day, the commission disqualified one of the acclaimed frontline contenders aspiring for the Union's top job as president.  He was a 300Level student of the Faculty of Law. An indigene of Cross River State by the name: Eja, Esege Elemi. Enraged by his disqualification on alleged low CGPA and other flimsy grounds, he sought for legal redress beyond the precinct of the University.

The legal luminary, Chief Victor Ndoma-Egba was retained as his counsel. On July 26th, 1995, counsel to the plaintiff filed an application by way of motion ex-parte in the High Court Registry of the Cross River State, holden at Calabar with suit number : c/385/95 before the Chief Judge, W. S. N Onnoghen.

Upon hearing the submissions from the defendant (University of Calabar) and that of the plaintiff ( Chief Victor Ndoma-Egba for Eja, Esege Elemi), the celebrated Chief Judge,  granted the orders as prayed by counsel to the applicant on 28th July, 1995:

1. The Defendant / respondent is hereby restrained by itself, agents, servants, it proxies from holding or conducting any election into the vacant offices of the Students' Union Government of the University of Calabar, Calabar pending the determination of the motion on notice which was to be filed on Monday, 31st July, 1995.

2. The election into the Students' Union Government of the University of Calabar, Calabar scheduled for Friday the 28th day of July, 1995 is hereby postponed pending the determination of the motion on notice.

3. The applicant ( Eja, Esege Elemi, for himself and as representing students opposed to the SUG elections) is here granted leave to bring this action in a representative capacity.

4. The applicant is to enter into an undertaking to pay whatever damages that may arise following the grant in this application.

5. The Defendant/ Respondent shall be at liberty to apply to discharge the order, if it so desires.  And the case be adjourned to 2nd August, 1995 for argument of the Motion on notice.


The aforementioned orders were issued at Calabar, under the seal of Court and by the Hand of the presiding Judge, W. S. N. onnoghen on the 28th day of July, 1995.

Prior to the publishing of this article, the caption of this piece has triggered historical chain-reactions by ebullience and erudite comrades like: Maxwell Eba, Ezeifedi Julius, Ob'Abang Josef Neji, Bassey Oben and of course Joe Coco Bassey among others who where actively involved in activism then. However, in their scholarly presentations of the roles played by themselves and in extension their colleagues, none could vividly recall the exact date of the said aborted election.

The incumbent Chief Justice of the Nigerian Supreme Court, Justice Walter S. N. onnoghen was the presiding Judge.
Iwara O.  Osuaya was the Principal Registrar.  University of Calabar was the defendant. Chief Victor Ndoma-Egba (SAN) the erstwhile Senate Leader was the plaintiff's counsel. Mr. Eja, Esege Elemi was the plaintiff. Sadly, TheScribe learnt he now lives in the celestial with his ancestors. It's on record that the scheduled election didn't hold as planned due to the litigation.
Source: Cross River State High Court; Nigeria Union of Campus Journalists, NUCJ archive and oral interviews.

Comr. Ogar, Emmanuel Oko
Publisher of TheScribe and Observer.