National Issues
Magistrate orders lawyer and two clients to frog-jump for five minutes
An Osun state magistrate court yesterday witnessed a new turn-up of event as the magistrate played the role of a military officer for five minutes.
Mr Nnajite Okobie, a lawyer who was having a conversation with two of his clients on the court premises, during a court proceeding was sentenced(with his two clients) to five(5) minutes frog-jump as a punishment for noise making while the court was presiding over a rape case.
It was reported that when the magistrate’s warning wasn’t heed to, he sent the court orderly to bring the layer and his clients before him. There, he asked the court orderly to escort the lawyer and his clients to the front gate and see that they have a five minutes frog-jump, after he had giving them a choice between contempt and frog-jump.
The punishment attracted passers-by, as well as workers of the court to the scene. They watched, laughed, mocked and took camera shots while the punishment last.
Some happening in Nigeria makes one question our democracy, and the degree of the human evolution. For sure the lawyer was wrong for such conducts and deserved punishment. But the question is, are there no stipulated law for disturbing a presiding judge?
Before i make further comment on this, i will allow learned people(lawyers), as well as Nigerians to have there opinions.
Nosike
July 21, 2012 at 12:54 am
I am not a lawyer but what that magistrate did was very wrong and inhuman. Nobody is righting the action or conduct of that ignorant lawyer, but are there no other sort of punishment? Or even more, can’t he, the magistrate give him a face-to-face final warning and then allow him to go?
If you ask me, i think the magistrate was just looking for a place to exercise his power.