Cardoso was summoned following an application filed on Monday by Alex Izinyon (SAN), counsel for the Governor of Kogi State, Usman Ododo.

The Governorship Election Petition Tribunal of Kogi State has summoned the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Olayemi Cardoso, to appear before it.

The tribunal sitting in Abuja summoned the CBN Governor to appear before it on Tuesday (today) over role the apex bank played in the November 11, 2023, governorship election in Kogi state

Cardoso was summoned following an application filed on Monday by Alex Izinyon (SAN), counsel for the Governor of Kogi State, Usman Ododo, PUNCH reports.  

The CBN boss is said to be the second respondent in the petition filed against the Social Democratic Party (SDP) and its candidate, Muritala Ajaka.

The Kogi Governors counsel reportedly filed the application following the refusal of Cardoso or any officer at the bank to honour the subpoena issued by the tribunal on April 18.

Izinyon stated in the application that he was aware that the CBN management, in a letter to the tribunal, said they would not be available until Friday, April 26 pursuant to their application for subpoena.

According to Izinyon, while Ododo had intended to call his witnesses within five days, the subpoena should be addressed before the governor proceeds.

He said he expected an officer from the Legal Department of the CBN to be at the tribunal on Monday, describing the letter written to the tribunal by the apex bank as an act of contempt.

Izinyon added that the subpoena, by nature, is in the name of the President and Commander-In-Chief of Armed Forces, adding that the CBN team should be at the tribunal on Tuesday to give evidence and if they failed to appear, it would be in the court record, going by the fact that the matter was time-bound.

Izinyon said, If by tomorrow, we call our last witnesses and they (CBN officers) are not here, we urge my lord to look at our application in the interest of justice. 

The counsel for the Independent National Electoral Commission, Aliyu Saiki (SAN) and All Progressives Congress lawyer, D.C. Demingwe (SAN) and the counsel for the petitioners, and Pius Akubo (SAN) seconded Izinyons application.

However, Akubo said that since Izinyon had hinted that Ododo would be closing his defence on Tuesday, he urged the court to allow the APC to proceed with its defence after the governor must have called his witnesses, even if CBN officers failed to appear.

Justice Ado Birnin-Kudu in his ruling held that the subpoena was to the CBN governor and director of Corporate Service of the apex bank.

The judge said that it is a command in the name of the President, Commander-In-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

He held that the act of writing to the tribunal by the apex bank that its officers will be available on April 26 is contemptuous and condemnable.  

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