Whitney Adeniran's Demise: Court To Deliver Ruling On Admissibility Of Treasury Receipts, May 2

Barring any last-minute change, the ruling on the admissibility of treasury receipts for the use of the Agege Stadium where the death of Chrisland Schools student, late Whitney Adeniran was said to have taken place would be delivered on May 2, 2024.

The ruling would be delivered by Justice Oyindamola Ogala of the Lagos State High Court, Ikeja, who equally held that the trial would continue on the same date. 

Justice Ogala arrived at the date after entertaining arguments of counsels from both parties in the ongoing trial of Chrisland Schools staff and others over alleged negligence in the death of the student.

When the matter came up for hearing on Thursday, April 18, 2024, a prosecution witness, Mr Yakubu Jubril, while being cross-examined by one of the counsels for the defence, Olukayode Enitan, SAN, identified them (the receipts) as documents from the Lagos State Ministry of Youth, Sports and Social Development.

The witness further confirmed that the documents were dated November 7, 2018, January 8, 2020, September 26, 2016, and January 9, 2023, and were meant for the payments for the use of Agege Stadium. 

The SAN thereafter attempted to tender the documents as exhibits; a development which was opposed by the counsel for the Lagos State Government, (LASG), Babajide Martins on the reason that the witness, who is a social worker, was not the maker of the documents.

But Enitan, SAN, contended that the documents were treasury receipts for the use of Agege Stadium by Chrisland Schools. 

The senior lawyer equally suggested that the documents were relevant because the LASG collected payments for the use of the facility.

Other counsels for the defence aligned with Enitan's submissions.

In particularly arguing before the judge, the counsel for the 5th defendant (Chrisland School), Ajibola Ariba, insisted that the evidence must be relevant to the issue in contention.

According to Ariba, “the officer of the Lagos State Government identified these documents.”

Before this time, the counsel for the 3rd defendant had tendered the document containing the Sports Commission law, which was admitted as evidence.

Enitan, SAN, had shown the witness some receipts of payment for the usage of the Agege Stadium by Chrisland Schools that bore the header of the Lagos State Ministry of Youth, Sports and Social Development, and of which the witness confirmed are issued by the state treasury. 

However, the counsel for the second, fourth, and fifth defendants; Richard Ahonaruogho (SAN), Ademola Animasaun and Ajibola Ariba respectively, prayed to the court to admit the receipts as evidence on the grounds of relevance as the witness is a government worker and the treasury bills were issued by the state government.

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