When Odili Stands up to Immigration Service’s Impunity

CICERO/Report

Since he left office in 2007, former Rivers State Governor, Dr. Peter Odili, is hardly in the news. But attempt by the Nigerian Immigration Service to humiliate him recently was vehemently resisted by a Federal High Court in Abuja, Alex Enumah writes

The Abuja Division of the Federal High Court last week ordered the immediate release of the international passport of former Rivers State Governor, Dr. Peter Odili, seized by the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS). The court, presided over by Justice Inyang Ekwo, gave the order in a judgment he delivered in a suit by Odili challenging the action of the service.

The judge declared the action of the service as illegal, unconstitutional and an infringement on his fundamental rights. He added that the seizure of the former governor’s passport, was a punitive act, insisting that no citizen should be treated in such a manner, irrespective of status.

Odili had successfully travelled to the United Kingdom recently for his medicals. Upon his return to Nigeria through the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja on June 20, his travelling documents were checked and given back to him by operatives of the NIS. But while he was waiting for his luggage, under the pretext of routine check, an official of the service again approached him and demanded for the passport which he complied with. But the document was never returned back to him, without any cogent reason.

This prompted the former governor to file a suit marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/965/2021 against the immigration service and its Comptroller General before a Federal High Court in Abuja. In a fundamental rights enforcement suit he filed, the former governor claimed that the international passport was seized from him on June 20, by operatives of the service without any cogent reason and has been withheld since then.

In an eight-paragraph affidavit he personally deposed to, the former governor claimed to be a senior citizen of Nigeria, law-abiding and had not done anything to warrant the seizure of the passport from him.

He prayed the court to compel the two respondents to release the passport to him and also issue an order of perpetual injunction against the respondents from further harassing, embarrassing, intimidating or interfering with his fundamental right to freedom of movement.

The former governor further demanded a written apology for the embarrassment caused him by the immigration service.

Soon after, the immigration service filed a counter, ridiculously revealing that the former governor’s passport was seized because he was on the watch-list of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). The service turned around to say that Odili did not care to know why his passport was seized, or demand its release.

In an affidavit deposed to by one Okwe Ernest of the Legal Department of the service, he averred that the former governor was not entitled to the request presented before the court and that his suit should be dismissed for being premature, having failed to meet the condition precedent to the filing of such suits.

He asserted that the action of Immigration was as a result of collaborations of all the federal government security agencies and that the respondents were only carrying out their statutory functions.

“It is the government policy that streamlines the security agencies present at the point of entry/exit from the country.

“By virtue of Section 31 of the Immigration Act 2015, the respondents are empowered to prevent the departure from Nigeria where there is a request to arrest such a person in the public interest as requested in the instant case by the EFCC. By the above section of the Immigration Act, the respondents are empowered to seize the applicant’s international passport because he was watch listed sequel to EFCC requested,” it said.

“This action is premature and incompetent as the applicant failed to serve pre-action notice on the service as condition precedent before filing this suit against the respondents. The failure to serve pre-action notice robs this honourable court of jurisdiction. The applicant is not entitled to the reliefs sought and the suit should be dismissed with substantial cost for failure to comply with condition precedent,” the service said.

While arguing the case, Odili’s councel, Chief Ifedayo Adedipe, SAN, contended that his client’s right to own property was violated by the NIS because it failed to obtain any court order before seizing the passport. He urged the court to order the respondents – the NIS and its Comptroller-General – to return his client’s passport which they unlawfully seized from him.

The counsel also urged the court to disregard the respondents’ claim that Odili was on the watch list of the EFCC, noting that up till now, his client has neither been interrogated nor charged with any offence. He urged the court to reject a letter from the EFCC, tendered by the respondents to justify the seizure of the passport.

Adedipe noted that the purported letter could not take the place of an order of a law court.

“The applicant is a senior citizen of Nigeria and is 73 years old, a former deputy governor, a two- time governor of Rivers and an accomplished medical doctor as well as a holder of national honours. The EFCC is not a body that can instruct Immigration to seize passport in place of a court order,” Adedipe said.

Responding, NIS’ lawyer, Jimoh Adamu, simply urged the court to reject the case, because the name on the seized international passport did not correspond with the name of Peter Odili that instituted the court case.

After listening to all the arguments, Justice Ekwo in his judgment, agreed with Odili’s lawyer, Adedipe that the NIS and its Comptroller General lacked the constitutional powers to seize the said documents.

He went down memory lane when he referred to the brush Odili had with the EFCC in 2007, which culminated in a judgment of the Federal High Court delivered on March 5, 2008. In the judgment was an order of perpetual injunction restraining the EFCC from investigating the former governor over his tenure as governor between 1999 and 2007. Justice Ekwo added that until the order is voided and set aside by a competent court of records, the order remains binding on EFCC, its operatives and agents.

He said: “I found that the seizure of the applicant’s International passport was wrongful, illegal, contemptuous, arbitrary and above all unconstitutional. From the evidence which has not been controverted in this case, the seizure of the applicant’s passport upon his return from his medical trip was done in a manner that dehumanised, belittled, harassed and derided him.

“Declaration is hereby made that the seizure of the applicant’s international passport without any reason is illegal and constitute an infringement on his fundamental human rights to freedom of movement and to own moveable property as guaranteed under sections 41 and 44 of the 1999 constitution.

“An order is hereby made directing the respondents to immediately release and return the applicant’s international passport. The action of immigration in this matter is condemnable as it is made in violation and disobedience to valid order of court.”

Justice Ekwo consequently, ordered Immigration to tender an apology to Odili in writing for the embarrassment caused him with the seizure of his passport. He thereafter granted order of perpetual injunction against Immigration and restraining it and its agents from harassing, intimidating or infringing on the fundamental rights of Odili to freedom of movement inside or outside Nigeria.

Many observers have since described the action of the immigration service not only as impunity and overzealous but disgraceful. They noted that it smacks of busybody, noting that if this could be done to a former governor, how much more ordinary citizens

Though the service stated in its affidavit that it action was legally empowered by virtue of Section 31 of the Immigration Act 2015, there was nowhere the Act stated that passports would be withdrawn with impunity and in an overzealous manner but with cogent reason.

Odili, a medical doctor, deputy governor between 1992 and 1993 and two term governor of Rivers State between 1999 and 2007, has been in the since country since he left office. From time to time since then, he has been going abroad for medical check ups based on the advice of his doctors. Nobody has ever accused him of any wrongdoing. How the last trip became different, is strange to many.

Reacting to the verdict, a former Commissioner of Information in Rivers State, Emma Okah, decribed the action of the NIS as impunity and overzealousness taken too far. He wondered what the former governor did to warrant such a humiliation.

“I was shocked when I heard that the immigration service seized former Governor Odili’s international passport. A peaceful man who has been quietly enjoying his retirement? What did he do? Nothing. He has been in this country since 2007 when he left office, quietly contributing his quota to the development of the country. Did they hear that he was involved in fraud when he travelled abroad? Is it an offence to travel for a medical check up? Why are they after him, to embarrass him? Has it become a crime to live in peace or quietly? This was a clear display of impunity, illegality and overzealousness,” Okah said.