The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has been ordered to pay N1.12bn compensation to the family of late Mike Madu who lost his life in car collison involving an INEC official in Imo State.
The judge presiding over the case, Justice Inyang Ekwo also ruled that INEC must pay the amount with a 10 percent annual interest from the date of the judgment until full payment is made and ordered the agency’s Chairman, Prof. Yakubu Mahmood, and other defendants to send a letter of condolence to Madu’s family.
“An order is hereby made for the defendants to pay the cost of prosecuting this action. This shall be the judgment of this court,” Justice Ekwo declared.
The six years lawsuit was filed by the brother of the deceased, Augustine Madu against INEC, its Chairman, the INEC Commissioner in Abuja, and INEC escort driver Hassan Abdul on September 18, 2019.
According to court documents, he claimed the accused parties were responsible for the accident that claimed Mike Madu’s life on June 16, 2019 and sued for N1.12 billion in compensation for the wrongful death of his brother.
According to investigation, the late Madu was escorting two Chinese investors to the Enugu Free Trade Zone in a Lexus Vehicle on the Itobe-Anyigba Expressway in Kogi State, when a Toyota V8 Land Cruiser Jeep driven by Hassan Abdul with a police escort, Sgt. Usman Abdullahi, lost control, swerved into the opposite lane, and crashed into the Lexus in a head-on collision.
This accident lead to the death of Mike Madu and one of the Chinese investors, Huang Hia Yan who succumbed to their injuries, while the surviving investor, Qu Xin Dong, their driver as well as the police escort and driver were hospitalized with the Holley Memorial Hospital and lived.
A post-mortem examination of the deceased was ordered by the Kogi State Chief Magistrate Court on July 10, 2019 before he received a warrant to bury his brother and the deceased investor.
A police report dated July 16, 2019, later revealed that Abdul’s reckless speeding to be the cause of the accident.
The Plaintiff , Augustine claimed that INEC and its officials showed no concern or remorse during all the legal proceedings for causing his brother’s death despite the heavy blow as Madu was the breadwinner of the family including his widow and son who now struggle to cope with his loss.
He also revealed that the defendants also failed to attend any of the trials which included the adoption of his written statement on June 14, 2023 where he presented two witnesses, including Josephine Emumwen, an officer in the Nigeria Police Force, Kogi State Command and the recall for cross examination on November 16, 2023
Justice Ekwo closed the case and ruled in favor of the plaintiff, ordering INEC to compensate Madu’s family for their loss.