Posted by By Leke Salaudeen, Assistant Editor on
Mobile giant MTN has given a Lagos High Court details of the reported telephone conversations between the Chairman of the Osun State Election Petitions Tribunal, Justice Thomas Naron and the lead counsel to Governor Olagunsoye Oyinlola, Otunba Kunle Kalejaiye (SAN).
Mobile giant MTN has given a Lagos High Court details of the reported telephone conversations between the Chairman of the Osun State Election Petitions Tribunal, Justice Thomas Naron and the lead counsel to Governor Olagunsoye Oyinlola, Otunba Kunle Kalejaiye (SAN).
The lawyer has denied any secret conversation with Justice Naron, threatening to sue The News magazine, which broke the story.
But the summary of call data records released by MTN on the order of the court, shows that there were interactions between Justice Naron and Kalejaiye through voice calls and text messages, which have been damned as unethical.
According to the records, Justice Naron used his number 08037035105 and Kalejaye used 080340662075 for the conversations between March and May.
The MTN record entitled: "Summary of originating and terminating calls and text in respect of telephone numbers 080340662075 and 08037035105" stated the phone numbers, dates, time, duration and type of calls and texts exchanged between Justice Naron and Kalejaye'
According to the records, Justice Naron through his MTN line (08037035105) made 12 calls to Kalejaye's 080340662075 between March and May. He also sent 20 text messages to Kalejaye through the same line.
Kalejaye sent 24 text messages through his line to Justice Naron.
He made two calls. One was on March 31, which lasted 31 minutes and the other on May 31. It lasted 25 minutes.
A Lagos High court had on August 11 ordered MTN to preserve its call log containing all voice, SMS, and MMS calls made on phone numbers 08034062075 and 08034105705; particularly between November 2007 and May 2009.
Mr Justice D.O. Oluwayemi also ordered MTN to make copies of the log available to the Independent Communication Ltd, publisher of TheNews.
Explaining why it could not make available the call logs from November 2007 to May 2008 as ordered by the court, MTN cited network storage constraints and technical limitations.
In a letter dated September 16, addressed to Simmons Coopers Partners, lawyers to Independent communications Ltd, publishers of The News, MTN, through its Senior Manager, commercial legal, Mr. Rotimi Odusola, said: "Please be advised that due to network storage capacity constraints and certain technical limitations, MTN Nigeria can only provide call data records for three (3) months from the date the records are requested and retrieved from the system. We are therefore, unable to comply with the court order directing the list and preservation of the call data records for the entire duration, from November 2007 to May 2008.
"In respect of 08034062075, we had earlier retrieved this record from our systems and released the call data records from March - May 2008 pursuant to the request from the Nigerian Police and court order. We therefore have copies of the records earlier released and hereby enclose same.
"Please be assured that steps have been taken to preserve copies of the above records in compliance with court orders."
Replying to another correspondence from Simmons Coopers Partners on compliance with the court order, MTN said: "In keeping with our commitment to the rule of law, in line with best corporate practices, we have made further efforts to comply as much possible with the order of the Lagos High Court dated August 11, 2008…."
In a letter dated October 8, signed by General Manager (Commercial/Legal), Mr Oghenerume Rotimi, MTN said steps had been taken and "we have managed to retrieve some additional, albeit limited information, for the two MTN lines on the order of the court.
"These additional records are attached. Note, however, that these records only contain records of outgoing calls on these two lines and cover only the period 30
thMarch-31stMay 2008.
"We must state that in the present circumstances, MTN Nigeria Communications Limited is unable to provide any further details/records beyond what has now been made available."
The News
had in its July 8 edition entitled: "The scandal of judges: How Osun tribunal was compromised," published the call logs of telephone conversations and text messages between the tribunal chairman and Kalejaye.
The revelation drew the ire of lawyers, legal scholars and politicians who demanded a probe, saying the alleged telephone conversations had compromised the image of the tribunal.
The National Judicial Council (NJC) has probed the matter, but it is yet to make its findings known.
Action Congress (AC) governorship candidate, Alhaji Rauf Aregbesola, had filed an application to stop the tribunal's verdict to no avail.
He submitted that the tribunal could no longer be trusted to do justice in his case because of its romance with Kalejaye.
The tribunal delivered what was widely perceived as a controversial judgement on July 15. It upheld the election of Oyinlola.