Seduke Dealt Crushing Blow
Goitsemodimo Kaelo | Monday November 9, 2020 14:05
Seduke had approached court to secure a legal claim against producing to Parliamentary Committee on Education and Skills Development and the Speaker of the National Assembly the withheld student transcripts, student logbooks and files while they demand payment from government.
Seduke was also seeking an order restraining and interdicting the committee from holding, continuing and/or conducting a hearing in which he shall be called as a witness and/or be subpoenaed.
High Court judge, Godfrey Radijeng dismissed the application with costs on Thursday stating that the applicant has failed to demonstrate explicit circumstances for urgency.
Radijeng also said the court couldn’t interdict things that are alleged or could happen given the circumstances set out in the application.
“As regards the first applicant, there is no basis laid as to the explicit circumstances that found the urgency of the application save to state that a lien exists over documents,” Radijeng said.
“I take a view that the existence of a lie is a substantive matter that cannot be frustrated by a request for discovery or production where such production is not in the control of the second applicant.”
He said the Judicial Manager vested with the control of the property or documents of the school has not in my view set out the explicit circumstances warranting the treatment of the alleged lien as requiring protection and or why the application ought to be fast tracked in the litigation queue.
“The holding of a lien over documents, does not found urgency. The applicants have not satisfied the court as to requirements of urgency and the application must fail,” he added.
Radijeng also said the applicant’s prayer to seek an interdict against the committee from subpoenaing him was speculative as the respondents have disclosed that they will be calling Seduke to testify given his disclosure that he is not in possession of the documents sought owing to the judicial management of the school.
“The net effect of the application is to seek to interdict what may happen in future as is clearly discerned from paragraphs 46, 47 and 49 of founding affidavit and as contended in the applicants’ heads. I take the view that the court cannot interdict things that are alleged could happen given the circumstances set out in the application,” the judge said.
According to court papers, Seduke bemoans government led to the institution failing to pay their dues on time and eventually not paying at all.
He stated that due to government’s failure to honour their agreement, the institution ended up unable to trade anymore on account of cash flow problems and ended up under Judicial Management. The institution is demanding P18,770,000 from the ministry.