By Abdulwahab Abdulah, Bartholomew Madukwe & Ebele Okafor

LAGOS—Coroner’s  Inquest investigating the circumstances which led to the collapse of a six-storey guest house belonging to the Synagogue Church of All Nations, SCOAN, yesterday, suspended its invitation to the founder of the church, Prophet Temitope Joshua, pending the determination of his suit against the Coroner before Justice Lateefat Okunnu of an Ikeja High Court.

TB Joshua-Synagogue Church

The decision was reached by the Coroner judge, Chief Magistrate Oyetade Komolafe, after listening to an oral application by joshua’s lead counsel, Chief Lateef Fagbemi, SAN. Although last week the coroner dismissed a similar application filed by Prophet TB Joshua before him, on the ground that it was abuse of court process.

Magistrate Komolafe had issued witness summons on relevant individuals and institutions including the Prophet TB Joshua. But the prophet, instead of appearing before the inquest, filed an application before Justice Okunnu to stay further proceedings of the inquest and suspend further actions on his invitation to appear to give evidence before it pending the determination of his suit against the coroner’s judge before the High Court.

Joshua in the said application dated November 11, 2014 before the High Court and marked ID/188MJR/2014 had asked for a judicial review of the coroner’s proceedings, which began on October 13.

He had asked the High Court to declare that his invitation to appear as a witness before the coroner was a breach of his right to fair hearing, as no case had been established against his person before the coroner.

Joshua further contested that the coroner had been extending his inquisitions into areas beyond its statutory purview.

Justice Okunnu had fixed December 22, 2014 to hear the application.

The inquest was inaugurated by the Lagos State Government under the state Coroner’s System Law No.7 of 2007 to investigate the cause and circumstances resulting in the death of 166 people following the collapse on September 12, 2014 and bring its findings and recommendations to the appropriate authorities.

Meanwhile, in his testimony before the inquest yesterday, a Deputy General Manager, Air Traffice Control, with the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency, NAMA, Mr Rafiq Olubukola Arogunjo confirmed that a Nigeria Airforce Aircraft was on a training mission within the Ikotun area on September 12 when the Synagogue church building collapsed.

Arogunjo who stated that the aircraft never flew directly over the collapsed building noted that the aircraft maintained the statutory 1000 feet flight distance in congested areas.

He further stated that the controversial aircraft had to fly over the Ikotun area for about six times due to the high traffic on in coming aircraft at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Lagos.

Arogunjo insisted that on each of the six times that the aircraft navigated the Ikotun Area, it maintained a 2700 feet distance from the collapsed building.