Kemisola Oye
JUSTICE Ibironke Harrison of a Lagos State High Court sitting at Tafawa Balewa Square earlier today granted a medical Doctor, Dr. Ejike Ferdinand Orji, who was sentenced to one year imprisonment for causing grievous harm, negligence and endangering the life of a 16-year-old patient, Two Million Naira bail.
The granting of bail is premised on the ground that before his appeal challenging the judgment which sentenced him to one year imprisonment would be heard by the Court of Appeal, the convict would have served his jail term.
Justice Adedayo Akintoye (retd) had on 20th January 2023, sentenced the convict to a one year imprisonment after she held that the prosecution was able to establish the essential ingredients of the offence of breach of duty, care, and endangering the life of a 16-year-old patient.
Dr. Orji, who is the Medical Director of Excel Medical Centre, Dolphin Estate, was found guilty on four out of the six counts charges which are, counts two, three, four, and six. However, he was discharged on counts one and five respectfully.
The convict was first arraigned alongside his wife, Dr. (Mrs.) Ifeayinwa Orji, but his wife was later discharged following an application by the Director of Public Production that the Lagos State government wherein it sought the discontinuation of the case against her.
The court held that the convict’s action fell below what is reasonably expected of a medical doctor.
Justice Akintoye held that “It is my opinion that the defendant committed a breach of duty as a medical practitioner when he willfully refused to remove the fiberglass cast on the patient’s left leg despite complaints of severe pains which thereby resulted in a compartment syndrome”.
The court also held that the convict applied a Plaster of Paris (POP) cast on pw10’s leg using no medical staff, and without carrying out an x-ray to identify the level of injury.
Justice Akintoye stated that Dr. Orji did not obtain the consent of the mother of the patient who was in the hospital at the time the POP was carried out.
The judge further held that: “The Defendant had undertaken to carry out the procedure and give medical treatment to pw10 (patient), which turned out to be injurious to his (patient’s) health.
“The prosecution has been able to establish essential ingredients of the offences of breach of duty. I find that the prosecution has established essential ingredients in courts two, three, four, and six. The prosecution has therefore proved their case beyond a reasonable doubt.
“Consequently, on counts one and five, the defendant, Dr. Ejike Ferdinand Orji is thereby found not guilty on counts one and five. He is found guilty on two, three, four and six and he is accordingly convicted. This is the judgment of the court”
But dissatisfied with the judgment, the convict filed an appeal to challenge the judgment and also filed an application for bail on 31st January, through his counsel, Bolaji Ayorinde (SAN).
In the bail application, the 65- year- old convict said he was hypertensive. On 27th February, the applicant’s counsel, Chief Ayorinde and the respondent’s counsel Dr. Babajide Martins, both argued the bail application.
Dr. Martins, in his argument, stated that there were no special circumstances that were placed before the court to warrant the bail. He said, “People live with hypertension and there isn’t any evidence that the illness that the applicant suffers can not be treated and the illness isn’t life-threatening.
“In the medical report dated 27th February, there isn’t any life-threatening or infectious disease that could endanger the life of other inmates in the correctional centre“. The respondent, therefore, prayed the court to dismiss the application for lacking merit.
After listening to the arguments of both counsel, the judge adjourned the case till 20th March, for a ruling on the bail application.
At the resumed hearing of the matter today, Justice Harrison held that the bail application failed to satisfy the court. She however said, “The court observed that it is likely that the appeal will not be heard as the applicant would have served his jail term.
“The applicant also stated that this is an election year and the courts will be very busy with election and post-election matters.
“In the light of the above, the court orders as follows, that the applicant is admitted to bail in the sum of Two Million Naira (N2,000,000.00), with two sureties in like sum, pending the hearing of the appeal.
“Records of appeal must be compiled and transmitted within 30 days of this ruling“, the judge held.
The prosecution had stated that it would follow up with the appeal to ensure that the applicant does not abandon the appeal having been admitted to bail.
Eighteen-Eleven Media