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Court Orders DSS, EFCC, Others Not To Arrest Emefiele
A court has ordered the DSS, EFCC, and others not to arrest Emefiele.
Eko Hot Blog reports that a Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court sitting in Maitama, Abuja, has issued an order restraining the Department of State Services (DSS) from arresting the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele.
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According to The Cable, the presiding judge, M.A Hassan, extended the order on Thursday to include the inspector-general of police (IGP), attorney-general of the federation (AGF), the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), and the CBN, who are listed as defendants.
The judge gave the order in the suit marked FCT/HC/CV/GAR/41/2022 and filed by the Incorporated Trustees of Forum for Accountability and Good Leadership, the court on December 19.
In a counter affidavit filed in response to the suit, the EFCC, listed as one of the respondents, had said it had no case against Emefiele as he is not under investigation by the commission.
The anti-graft commission, which was joined as the fifth respondent in the suit, submitted that there is a process for the removal of the CBN governor, thus the “continued harassment” and interference by the fourth respondent (DSS) is “embarrassing” in the light of statutory provisions
The EFCC, therefore, asked the court to discharge it from the matter on the ground that it is not a necessary party.
Delivering the judgement on Thursday, the FCT high court judge held that the DSS did not substantiate or provide any material fact of terrorism.
According to Justice Hassan, “the continuous harassment, threat, intimidation, restriction of free movement and abuse of the rights of Godwin Emeffele, governor of Central Bank of Nigeria, over trumped-up allegations of terrorism financing and fraudulent practices, etc., by the 4th Respondent and their officers are vindictive, unwarranted, abrasive, oppressive and same constitute a flagrant breach of his rights to personal liberty, dignity of human person, right to policy making powers freedom of thought, conscience and religion and movement as respectively provided and enshrined under the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as Amended) and the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (Ratification and Enforcement) Act and, therefore, unconstitutional and illegal.”
He also held “that the 4th respondent acted wrongfully and illegally in instigating the president of the federal republic of Nigeria against Mr. Godwin Emefiele in respect of the exercise of his statutory duty relating to the issuance of monetary policies and directives in the interest of national security and economy.”
Consequently, the court restrained the DSS from further arresting, intimidating, inviting, harassing, instigating, interrogating, or detaining the CBN governor.
Recall that Eko Hot Blog had reported how a Federal High Court in Abuja declined an application to allow the DSS to arrest Emefiele over terrorism charges.
FURTHER READING
There had been speculations that Emefiele was being witch-hunted due to the impact the redesign of the naira and limit on cash withdrawals might have on vote buying in the 2023 elections.
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