Atiku, ex-wife make final submission on children’s custody suit Oct 8

A court in Kubwa, Abuja has said that it has fixed 8 October for the adoption of final written addresses in a suit involving a dispute between Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, the son of former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, and his former wife, Maryam Sheriff, over the custody of their children, The Punch said.

Sheriff, who instituted the suit, is seeking an order to grant her custody of their three sons, a request opposed by Atiku.

The judge, Bashir Dansule, picked the date for adoption of final address by the parties after Atiku’s lawyer, Abdullahi Hassan, presented his last defence witness on Wednesday

The defence witness, Lawra Kamchi, 42, testified in Hausa language, which was translated to English by a court interpreter.

After Kamchi finished testifying, Hassan applied to close the case of the defence.

In response, the claimant’s lawyer, Nasir Saidu, said he would not call a witness.

He urged the court to allow him to argue on points of law on the basis of the   evidence and testimonies of the defendant’s witnesses.

But Hassan objected, arguing that, procedurally, he as the defence counsel ought to be the first to address the court.

He urged the court to adjourn the case to enable parties to file their final written addresses and return to court for adoption.

The judge then adjourned the case till October 8 for the adoption of final written addresses by the parties’ lawyers.