An Upper Customary court in Kaduna, North West Nigeria, has fined an Abuja based business woman, Maureen Kabruk and four others, the sum of two million, five hundred thousand naira for contempt of court .
The other four are Hajia Mariam Doka, Dudu Petter, George Peter, and Pascalina Bakam.
Delivering his judbement, Justice Douglas Danladi warned that the court would not tolerate any act of contempt in order to protect the dignity of the court.
The family of late Cecilia Peter Kabruk and her children, including the elders of the family had a serious disagreement over how their mother who had died should be burried .
While the first male child, Emmanuel Bakam Peter insisted that the deceased should be burried in accordance with the Bajju native laws and customs, which he said were the decision of the elders, of the family, the other siblings argued that their mother should be burried close to her husband’s grave, late Peter Kabruk.
In the judgement of the Customary Court of Appeal, Kaduna state dated 6th February, 2025 delivered by Justice Yusuf Yakubu declared that Maureen Kabruk and the four others (Appellants) should produce the corpse of the deceased and surrender same to the first male child, Emmanuel Bakam Peter (Respondent) and the elders of the family for burial.
Speaking to journalists after the judgement, the appellants lawyer, James Bala Ndam told reporters that court has ordered that the corpse should be exhumed and be handed over to the elders of the family for proper burial in accordance with the earlier court judgements.
“The court also awarded two million, five hundred thousand naira to take care of the cost of the exhumation of the corpse that was buried against the court ruling.”
Delivering the judgement, Justice Danladi granted the prayers of the appellants except order number one which seeks imprisonment for violating the clear orders of both courts delivered on the 19th September 2024 and 6th February 2025.
However, the Judge edited the order mitigating them to show remorse thereby declaring that the respondents be remanded in the Correctional Centre until they purged themselves.
