The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Court

  • Court refuses to stop EFCC from probing oil firm linked to Diezani

    Court refuses to stop EFCC from probing oil firm linked to Diezani

    The Federal High Court in Lagos yesterday refused to restrain the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) from investigating an alleged suspicious payment to an oil firm, Zone 4 Energy Ltd.

    The company’s lawyer, Mr Lanre Ogunlesi (SAN) had urged Justice Abdulazeez Anka to stop the agency from inviting the company’s directors.

    Ogunlesi is representing Zone 4 Energy in a multi-billion naira debt recovery suit brought against it by First Bank Plc.

    The applicants are First Bank, First Trustees Limited and a lawyer, Emmanuel Oyebanji, who was appointed by the bank as receiver of Zone 4 Energy’s assets.

    The defendants are Zone 4 Energy Ltd, Zone 4 Energy FZE and Nigeria Export Processing Zone Authority.

    First Bank claimed that Zone 4 Energy owed it about N10.5 billion.

    It appointed Oyebanji as a receiver for the company’s assets, including petroleum products stored in a tank farm.

    Ogunlesi prayed the court to partially discharge the order restraining Zone 4 Energy’s assets on the basis that the petroleum products belonged to a third party.

    “The petroleum products don’t form part of the charged assets,” he said, arguing that the restraining order made by Justice Saliu Saidu of the same court was only in respect of the tank farm and not the products.

    Oyebanji opposed the application, saying: “We’re entitled to both the tank and the petroleum products.”

    After the arguments, Ogunlesi informed the judge that Oyebanji allegedly wrote a petition to EFCC on an alleged N5 billion payment to Zone 4 Energy.

    The payment was said to have been authorised by former Minister of Petroleum Mrs Diezani Alison-Madueke, and was paid into Zone 4 Enegy’s account.

    Ogunlesi said the applicants were trying to undermine the court’s jurisdiction on the debt suit by using “exra-judicial means” against his clients.

    The SAN said: “The petition is dated August 10. My clients have not gone there (to EFCC), but their customers have been there.

    “There’s a letter from EFCC that they should come tomorrow (today). There’s a likelihood, my lord, that once they get there they’ll be detained.

    “I will not cry wolf where there’s no wolf. They showed them the petition and I said, ‘why should my learned friend do this? You’re in court with me. Leave these things to the court.

    “‘Why would you again write to EFCC to say ‘yes, in respect of three matters in which we have submitted to the jurisdiction of the court, you now want to armtwist my client’.

    “I seek your lordship’s indulgence for a preservative order. It matters to me. When next we return to the court, your lordship may not see my client here. That’s the long and short of what I’m saying.”

    Zone 4 Energy was represented in court by its Executive Director Mr Ola Olaniran.

    But Oyebanji denied authoring the petition, saying: “This is most unfortunate. It is most unbelievable for a learned SAN to say that I wrote a petition last Monday. When the petition is brought to court, the learned Senior Advocate, from the Inner Bar, will apologise to me.”

    Oyebanji claimed he was not engaged by First Bank to handle the case for which EFCC was petitioned.

    “I told the learned Senior Advocate that this is the matter in respect of which I am briefed, being appointed as receiver. I don’t have any other information in respect of the other matter.

    “But that there is a matter involving Diezani Alison-Madueke for which some staff of First Bank, including its former group managing director, were being investigated.

    “I told him that several people were being invited, and that this (Zone 4 Energy’s) account also is not unconnected with that case.

    “He said his client has been invited and that he has said their mind. That was all. Let him produce the petition,” Oyebanji said.

    Refusing to restrain EFCC, Justice Anka said although he had not seen the petition, he would not stop the commission from doing its work.

    He said: “This issue now is, he who asserts must prove. So far, I haven’t seen any evidence of the petition he (Oyebanji) has written.

    “Even if he has written it, both civil and criminal cases can go on together by law. The civil action will continue, the criminal action will continue.

    “Investigation cannot be stopped. Whether they called your client, whether they’re detaining them or whatever, I can’t stop EFCC from doing its job.

    “As you said, it’s related to another matter in which the accounts are involved. I can’t stop any criminal investigation. I can’t give any order stopping an investigating authority.”

    Ogunlesi said he has a pending application in which Zone 4 Energy is praying the court to discharge and strike out First Bank’s debt recovery suit.

    Justice Anka adjourned till August 24 for ruling and hearing.

     

  • Special Crimes Court

    This is necessary if the war against corruption is to make progress

    The Presidential Advisory Committee on Corruption’s preparation of a draft bill, tagged: The Special Courts Bill 2016, for the purpose of establishing a superior court of record to speedily try corruption and other related cases, is commendable. We believe that if the bill becomes law, it will provide opportunity for the special courts and the prosecutor agencies to acquire necessary technical proficiency in the prosecution of criminal offences. Media reports said the draft has been forwarded to the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF), Mr Abubakar Malami (SAN), for review and transmission to the National Assembly for legislative action.

    The bill, according to its title is:”An Act to provide for the establishment of a Special Crimes Court as a superior court of record to allow for speedy trials of certain offences, including economic and financial crimes, terrorism, money laundering and corruption offences and for related matters.” The bill provides for exclusivity over cases listed in its schedule and for a transition period, upon its coming into existence. So, the bill in its section 7 provides that it: “shall have and exercise exclusive jurisdiction and power in respect of offences specified in Schedule 1 to this Act to be known as ‘scheduled offences.”

    We commend the presidential committee for its effort in preparing the bill. We also hope the AGF and the national and state assemblies which will need to collaborate to enact the bill into law and amend the relevant portions of the constitution would work hard at this important assignment. They need not be reminded that our country has been laid waste by corruption, the malignancy of which has manifested in several other sundry crimes that further aggravate the very bad situation.

    Of note, several efforts have been made to make our criminal justice system more efficient through the establishment of specialised investigation and prosecution agencies and even the enactment of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act. Perhaps the proposed specialised court will provide a platform to aggregate all these efforts, to confront corruption and other related offences, which have become intractable and an impediment to our national development.

    So, the proposed bill acknowledges existing laws against specialised crimes, which offences shall be tried in the proposed court. This is desirable as the effort to get the best out of those specialised laws, made to deter and punish modern crimes, have been clogged in the regular courts, competing with civil cases. Also, the earlier reports of plans by the commission to retrain prosecutors and judges, draft guidelines for prosecutors and generally coordinate the war against corruption, is in accord with one of the cardinal objectives of the present Federal Government.

    According to the report, the offences listed in the schedule 1 include: Terrorism (Prevention) Act (No. 10 of 2011) as amended; Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (Establishment) Act (E1 LFN 2004); Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act (No 11 of 2011) as amended; National Drug Law Enforcement Agency Act (N30 LFN 2004); Trafficking in Persons (Prohibition) Law Enforcement and Administration Act, 2015 (No 32 of 2015); Corrupt Practices and other related offences Act (C31 LFN 2004); Kidnapping offences under the Criminal Code (C38 LFN) and the Penal Code (P3 LFN 2004); Cyber Crimes Act 2015, and such other offences declared under any other Act to be a scheduled offence for the purposes of this Act.

    We commend Professor Itsey Sagay and his committee and urge the AGF to quickly review their submission and make necessary consultation with his principal and forward the bill to the National Assembly. On this, we hope the legislative assemblies will act in the best interest of our country, without partisanship.

  • Court okays seizure of Fayose’s assets

    Court okays seizure of Fayose’s assets

    Justice Nnamdi Dimgba of the Federal High Court, Abuja held yesterday that the temporary order of attachment granted in relation to some identified assets of Ekiti State Governor Ayo Fayose did not violate Section 308 of the constitution.

    The judge said the intention of the immunity clause granted to some public office holders is not to shield them from investigation by security agencies for the purpose of obtaining evidence for future uses.

    Justice Dimgba gave the ruling yesterday on an application by Fayose, whose lawyer Mike Ozekhome (SAN), had sought to vacate the order of interim attachment granted by the court on July 20 to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

    The order was in relation to the EFCC’s investigation of some activities of the governor and some of his associates.

    The affected property to which the order relate, include four sets of four-bedroom apartments at Chalets 3, 4, 6 and 9, Plot 100, Tiaminu Savage, Victoria Island, Lagos.

    Also affected are at 44 Osun Crescent, Maitama, Abuja and Plot 1504 Yedzeram Street, Maitama Abuja.

    The EFCC had, while seeking the order, stated in an affidavit accompanying its motion ex-parte that the properties were acquired through proceeds of fraud, which Fayose allegedly got through kickbacks from contractors and other alleged fraud.

    It stated that the funds used for the purchase of the properties were said to be drawn from the sum of N1, 219,490,000, which was said to be part of the N4, 745,000,000, allegedly stolen from the treasury of the Federal Government through the Office of the National Security Adviser.

    In his application filed on notice on July 21, Ozekhome hinged his request for the court to set aside the order of interim forfeiture on 10 grounds.

    He argued that the court lacked jurisdiction to entertain and/or proceed to grant the interim order.

    Ozekhome contended that in view of the immunity enjoyed by Fayose as sitting governor by virtue of the provision of Section 308 of the Constitution, he (Fayose) “cannot be proceeded against in a court of law”.

    Justice Dimgba upheld the argument of EFCC lawyer Andrew Akoja, to the effect that the July 20 order was validly made.

    “It is my considered opinion that the order of court, made on July 20, 2016 in respect of some property of the applicant, and within the limited scope and duration within which it was obtained, was duly procured and does not offend the provision of the Constitution referred to,” the judge said.

    Justice Dimgba said although Section 308 of the Constitution serves to protect governors of states from the distraction of litigation and legal proceedings, to enable them to attend to official responsibilities, it should not be interpreted in such a way as to defeat the fight against corruption, to mean that the EFCC or other investigating agencies cannot take a peep into the assets or personal accounts of a serving governor in the execution of a strictly worded and mutually supervised interim attachment orders for the purposes of obtaining evidence for use in future when the immunity has lapsed.

    “In the light of the above, I hold that the applicant is not entitle to the reliefs sought and are hereby refused.

    “However, in the interest of justice and not to appear to make a mockery or nonsense of the immunity clause, I hold that the interim attachment order of July 20, 2016, granted by this court in favour of the respondent (EFCC) shall last for 45 days as the court had already ordered, within which the respondents must conclude their investigation in respect of those property, at the end of which every encumbrance on the property arising from the order of court, must abate.

    “I order that in the event that the respondent may wish to renew the interim attachment order as they are entitled to, they must serve the motion to that effect on the applicant not later than five days to the expiration of that order, without which the order shall stand abated,” Justice Dimgba said.

  • Court summons NCS director over suspect’s death

    Court summons NCS director over suspect’s death

    A Federal High Court in Abuja has summoned the Director, Legal Department of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) and a lawyer in the department, S. I. Bello, over the death of a suspect, Abubakar Rilwan.

    Justice Nnamdi Dimgba, who is sitting as the court’s vacation judge, ordered that the NCS’s legal director and Bello appear at the court on August 4 to explain why they should not be cited for contempt for allegedly failing to send Rilwan for medical attention as ordered by the court.

    It was learnt that Rilwan, who was said to be a staff of Arewa Consultative Forum, was arrested by the NCS on allegation of forgery.

    He was said to have claimed he had connection with the NCS, with the capacity to influence employment in the Customs.

    The NCS later arrested him in June, accused him of forging some NCS documents. He was taken to the Federal High Court on July 12 for arraignment.

    Observing that Rilwan was not looking healthy, the judge suspended proceedings and directed that the accused person be taken before medical experts for proper examination and attention.

    Yesterday, Rilwan’s lawyer Laura Oviawe told the court that her cleint died on July 13 at 9 pm while arrangement was being made to take him to court.

    Oviawe said officials of the NCS called her on July 13 to inform her of the development.

    The NCS was not represented in yesterday, prompting the judge to order that the lawyer, who represented the court on July 12, Bello, and the director, NCS Legal Services to appear in court on August 4, to explain why the court’s order that Riwan be taken for medical attention was not complied with.

     

  • Group to Jibrin: go to court if you have evidence

    Group to Jibrin: go to court if you have evidence

    A Coalition of Media and Civil Society groups – the Africa Media Roundtable Initiative – yesterday  advised the former Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on  Appropriations, Abdulmumin Jibrin and other aggrieved lawmakers to proceed to the court, if they have credible evidence of budget padding.

    In a statement by its Executive Director, Comrade  Olabode Adeyemi, the group  said Jibrin should produce credible evidence against Speaker Yakubu Dogara and the other he accused of o involvement  in padding the  2016 Budget.

    The statement said: “Rather than taking the matter to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) or the Independent Corrupt Practices and other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), he should allow the Judiciary, which to intervene in the matter.

    “We are calling on Hon Jibrin and other aggarieved lawmakers to seek redress in the court to protect the image of the House of Representatives and not going to either the EFCC or ICPC which are the agencies of the Executives. If you approach the Court you have to swear  to an affidavit  before making your allegations and if you lie under oath, you know the consequences  under the law but you go to the ICPC or the EFCC to make such allegations, you may later make a U-turn and change you statements.

    “I can remember vividly that when the 2016 budget was passed by the National Assembly, there were insinuations in some quarters that it was padded, but Hon Jibrin that defended it. He never spoke out against the House leaders until he was sacked from the plum job. If what he is saying is true, let him go to court to seek redress.

    “We are thanking the Channels Television for repeatedly showing the whole World the video clips of his defence. Now that there was nothing like budget padding, why is he now claiming that there was budget padding by the Speaker and 10 others? If he is sure of his allegations he should go to court or shut up””.

  •  Court didn’t stop Port Harcourt convention, says Makarfi’s lawyer

     Court didn’t stop Port Harcourt convention, says Makarfi’s lawyer

    A Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Chief Ferdinand Orbih, at the weekend has picked holes in a ruling by a Federal High Court in Abuja, recognising the Senator Alimodu Sherrif-led faction of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

    Orbih, counsel to the Makarfi-led faction, said the ruling by Justice Okon Abang did not stop the national convention billed for August 17 in Port-Harcourt, Rivers State.

    The senior advocate told reporters that the Federal High Court in Abuja never restrained the PDP from holding its forthcoming convention.

    He said:  ”The point must be made very clearly that it is not true that the Honourable Justice Okon Abang stopped the forthcoming Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) convention scheduled to hold in Port-Harcourt on August 17, 2016.

    “What is true is that there is an application filed by the plaintiffs seeking to stop that convention. It will interest you to note that the application is still pending; it has not even been argued before the learned trial judge.

    “So, there is no way a judge can give a decision on a motion that has not yet been argued before him. So, it is good to disabuse the minds of the public that no such thing happened.”

    Justice Abang, while ruling on the PDP leadership crisis suit last Thursday, had adjourned a pending application seeking to stop the convention. Justice Abang had said: “This suit is adjourned till August 15, to rule on applications seeking to stop the National Convention of the party scheduled for August 17 in Port Harcourt as well as the one by other Executives of the Markafi-led Committee seeking to join in the matter.”

    Orbih said:  ”What the Port-Harcourt division of the High Court decided was that the convention that was held in Port-Harcourt wherein the Ali Modu Sherriff National Executive Committee of the PDP was dissolved and the Ahmed Markafi-led caretaker committee was set up by the PDP, was validly held and conducted and that everything done in that convention was in order.”

  • Court sentences labourer to ‘transport’ two buckets of water 100 times for stealing

    Court sentences labourer to ‘transport’ two buckets of water 100 times for stealing

    For stealing a cell phone valued at N6,000, a labourer was yesterday sentenced to “carry two buckets filled with water up and down a staircase 100 times,’’ by an Ebute Meta Chief Magistrates’ Court, Lagos.

    The labourer, Chikwandu Alo, 28, was sentenced by Chief Magistrate B.O. Ope-Agbe as he admitted committing the offence.

    She said the convict would learn his lessons after he serve out his sentence.

    “I order that the convict should fill up two buckets with water and carry them up and down a stair case a 100 times,’’ she said.

    Prosecuting Sergeant Jimah Iseghede had told the court that the accused stole the cell phone from a van.

    “The complainant saw him and raised an alarm and the accused was apprehended,’’ he said

    The offence contravened Section 285 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2011.

  • $15b arms deals: Court orders panel members release

    $15b arms deals: Court orders panel members release

    A Federal High Court in Abuja has ordered immediate release of a member of the Presidential Committee on the Procurement of Arms and Equipment in the Armed Forces and Defence Sector, Air Commodore Mohammed Umar.

    The committee has been probing alleged $15 billion arms deals in the armed forces.

    But Umar was arrested by the Department of State Security Service (DSS) about three weeks ago after $1,030,000 was found at his residence in Maitama District, Abuja.

    The DSS has been working on clues that Umar  might have taken “advantage of his membership of the Arms Panel” to extort suspects.

    Umar insisted that the money was payment to his company, Easy Jet Integrated Service Limited for cargo flights to  Houston and Hong Kong .

    According to him, the payment was made on May 12 for  services rendered by Easy Jet  as follows: Cargo flight (Ilyusin II-76 Cargo plane from Nairobi-Houston) at $520,000 and drop off from Nairobi-Hong Kong at $510, 000.

    The DSS was however pushing on with its probe of the Air Commodore as at the time of filing this report, a development that forced Umar to seek judicial redress at the Federal High Court to secure his bail.

    In a Motion on Notice filed on the July 21, Umar prayed sought for the following reliefs:

    *An order of the court admitting him to bail in charge No. FHC/ ABJ/CR/145/ 2016 pending trial and determination of this case.

    *And for such order(s) as this Honourable Court may deem fit to make in the circumstances.

    In his ruling, Justice Nnamdi Dimgba, after hearing Umar’s counsel Hassan Liman (SAN) with Ibrahim Bawa and prosecution counsel E.A. Orji,  granted bail to Umar.

    Justice Dimgba said: “Bail is hereby granted to the 1st Defendant/Applicant in the sum of N100 million and two sureties in the sum of N50 million each of which must enter  a bail bond for this sum.

    “The sureties can be private businessmen or professionals or be in the civil service of thevFederation. And where in the civil service, a surety must be in the rank of a director.

    “The sureties must be owners of developed landed properties in any of Abuja metropolis excluding the satellite towns.

    “The sureties must provide evidence of their payment of income tax for the past three years.

    “The applicant must deposit his international passports with the Registry of this court and must not travel out of the country without the court’s permission.

    “The registry of this court shall verify the satisfaction of the above bail conditions and are free to call on the assistance of the prosecution whenever they deem it necessary.

    “The case is hereby adjourned to 26th and 27th of October for trial.

    Justice Dimgba also berated the DSS for flouting an order of the court to remand Mr. Usman in prison.

  • Govt ‘ll respect court’s tariff decision, says Fashola

    Govt ‘ll respect court’s tariff decision, says Fashola

    The Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola yesterday reacted to the recent court judgment which outlawed the 2015 electricity tariff increase of distribution companies (DisCos).

    He said Nigeria will play by existing rules governing her power sector at the same time respect the rulings of her courts.

    He spoke in Abuja when 14 solar power investors signed their respective Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) with the Nigeria Bulk Electricity Trading Plc (NBET) for the building of 1,125 megawatts (Mw) solar stations in 11 states.

    Justice Idris Abubakar of a Federal High Court in Lagos had overturned the tariff which was approved for the DisCos by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC).

    According to him, even though the court disbanded the tariff and NERC was contesting it, the government will maintain its dual obligation to protect electricity consumers and operators in the sector.

    The minister said electricity consumers in the country must come to the reality that the rates charged by the DisCos in their respective networks will never remain permanent.

    He said they will continue to respond to extant economic realities and indices from which they are calculated. He noted that they can either go up or come down depending on these indices.

    He stated that Nigerians erroneously believed the 2013 privatisation of the power sector was going to bring an immediate end to the sector’s challenges and dearth of public electricity in the country.

  • Hijab: Court strikes out Osun CAN’s application

    Hijab: Court strikes out Osun CAN’s application

    AN Osun State High Court, sitting in Osogbo, has struck out the application for stay of execution order sought by the state chapter of the Christian Association of Nigeria (OS-CAN) on the court judgement, allowing female Muslim students to wear hijab in public schools.

    When the case came up yesterday, the lead counsel to OS-CAN, Ayo Laogun, told the court that the case had gone to the Appeal Court.

    He applied to withdraw the application for stay of execution, saying: “In view of Order 4 Rules 10 & 11 of the Court of Appeal Rules 2011, the lower court cannot take the application”.

    Counsel to the 1st to 5th respondents, Governor Rauf Aregbesola, Ministry of Education and three others, Jide Obisakin, did not oppose the withdrawal application.

    Justice Jide Falola, therefore, struck out the application.

    The lead counsel to the Muslim community, Kazeem Odedeji, who came after the court sitting, explained that the agreement was to meet at 11am.

    He wondered why the case was taken at 9.am.

    He, however, expressed his satisfaction with the withdrawal of the motion for execution.

    He said: “The motion for stay was withdrawn and struck out. We are satisfied because the implication is that there is no motion for stay again in any court and nothing anybody can hinge upon against the full implementation of the judgment. It then behooves all parties to fully obey the judgment”