An Osun State High Court has struck out the application for stay of execution filed by the Christian Association of Nigeria against the judgment which allowed Muslim students to wear hijab in all public schools in the state.
Justice Jide Falola on Tuesday struck out the application following the filing of another stay of execution before the Court of Appeal sitting in Akure by the CAN.
Counsel for CAN, Ayo Laogun, informed the court that his client had filed a fresh application for stay of execution before the Court of Appeal, Akure.
He applied to withdraw the application for stay of execution, saying, “in view of Order 4 Rules 10 & 11 of the Court of Appeal Rules 2011, the lower court can not take the application.
Counsel for the 1st to 5th respondents, Governor Rauf Aregbesola, Ministry of Education and three others, Mr. Jide Obisakin, did not raise any objection to the withdrawal of the application.
The judge subsequently struck out the case.
Meanwhile, the Chairman of the CAN in the state, Rev. Elisha Ogundiya, has called on Christians across the state to be law-abiding pending the determination of the case before the appellate court.
He said he wanted the state government to ensure that status-quo was maintained in the state public schools.
Ogundiya said the CAN would pursue the matter to a logical conclusion and urged his members to be “vigilant and prayerful for a successful conclusion of the suit at the appellate court.”
Justice Falola had on July 8 advised lawyers of the two parties in the case to warn their clients against destabilising the judiciary.
Falola said, “I want to draw your attention to an issue, I want you lawyers to admonish your clients not to use religion to destabilise the judiciary. Judges have religions they chose to have and some don’t have.
“Shopping for a particular type of judge to handle your case based on their religions is deplorable and should be condemned. Judiciary is a temple without bias. We deal with the law and religions are dropped at the gate of the courts.
“It is easy for Nigerians to resort to blackmail whenever things don’t happen the way they want them to happen.”