An Abuja High Court has sentenced the Director-General of the National Council for Arts and Culture, Olusegun Runsewe, to prison for disobeying court orders.
Justice Jude Okeke in his ruling on the motion described the act of Runsewe as highly contemptuous, adding that committing him to the custody of the Nigerian Correctional Services will serve as deterrent to others who abuse public office and disobey court orders with disdain.
Justice Okeke had on 15th December, 2017 ordered that status quo be maintained in the suit brought by
Ummakalif Limited against the forceful removal of artists and traders from the Arts and Crafts Village in Abuja, the nation’s capital.
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Runsewe as the chief executive of the Agency where the village was located is said to have gone ahead to evict the artists and traders from where they had their source of livelihood.
The defendants in the suit are the Federal Capital Territory Minister, Federal Capital Development Authority, the Director General National Council for Arts and Culture, and the Minister of Culture and Tourism.
The motion to commit the Director-General to prison was dated June 21, 2019
