Metuh whose poor health condition caused his trial to be stalled last Thursday May 19th, had applied for permission to travel for treatment of an undisclosed ailment.
Ruling on his application this morning, the presiding judge, Justice Okon Abang, held that the court lacked the jurisdiction to entertain the application because there was a subsisting order directing Metuh to deposit his passport with the chief registrar of the high court.
According to Abang, that order had not been set aside, hence the court would not grant the his request.
“This is not a case of sympathy, but a case of law. This court has no jurisdiction to entertain this application. The court is not Father Christmas to give to the defendant what it did not ask for. The application lacks merit. It is accordingly dismissed. The court cannot set aside its decision.”The presiding judge also dismissed Metuh’s argument that his ailment cannot be treated here in Nigeria.