Court Throws Out DSS’ Application for Extension of Emefiele’s Detention

Alex Enumah in Abuja

Justice Hamza Muazu of a High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) in Maitama, Abuja, on Thursday struck out an application secretly filed by the Department of State Services (DSS) seeking the court’s permission to detain the suspended Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr. Godwin Emefiele, for a further 14 days.

The judge struck out the exparte application filed Wednesday for being an abuse of court processes, as well as outside the jurisdiction of the court.

Emefiele has been in custody of the secret service since June 10 when he was arrested in Lagos and whisked to the service headquarters in Abuja.

Emefiele is being kept in flagrant disobedience of the rule of law for which security agencies, especially the DSS has become notorious.

The application, which was struck out by the court, was aimed at keeping the suspended CBN governor in perpetual custody in the guise of “fresh evidence” against him.

While Emefiele was suspended from office on alleged grievous offences, including abuse of office and economic sabotage amongst others, the Federal Government however, filed a charge of alleged unlawful possession of firearms against him, confirming claims that the former governor is being persecuted rather than prosecuted.

However, when the suit marked FCT/HC/M/12105/2023, came up for hearing, Justice Muazu directed the counsel to the DSS, Victor Ejelonu, to address the court on jurisdiction in view of the provisions of Sections 293 and 296 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA) 2015, which vests exclusive rights on the Magistrate’s Court to grant detention order, the counsel applied and withdrew the matter.

It would seem that what the DSS did was an attempt to use the court to legalize its action in Lagos, where they abducted Emefiele from the custody of the Nigeria Correctional Services.

Condemnation and outrage trailed the filing of the exparte application by the DSS before the FCT High Court seeking an order to detain Emefiele for a further 14 days.

This application followed the re-arrest of Emefiele from the premises of the Federal High Court in Lagos by the security agency after he was remanded in the custody of the Correctional Centre pending the perfection of his bail which was granted by Justice Nicholas Oweibo.

An Abuja-based constitutional lawyer, Nnamdi Mba, in his reaction said: “You cannot be charging someone to court yet, you cannot obey the same court. What the DSS is doing is tantamount to intimidating the courts.”

Another lawyer, C. C. Nwudo, who analyzed the situation stated: “Ordinarily, when a person is brought to court and takes his plea, it is no longer the duty of the security agency that brought the defendant to court to determine where the person will be held in custody but the duty of the court. Hence once a defendant is granted bail, except the judge specifically mentions otherwise, the men of the Nigeria Correctional Service take custody of such person until the bail conditions are perfected.

“In the case of Emefiele, the DSS practically abducted him from the custody of the Correctional Service and have now filed for an order seeking to further detain him for 14 days when they have held him consecutively for over six weeks and have exhausted the maximum two previous orders to detain him for 28 days. Except they tell a bunch of lies in their application to the judge, no judge knowing the true facts of this matter can grant them such application. I am glad to hear that the judge courageously struck out their application.”

Another lawyer, Mr. Hassan Omale, in his own reaction, said the abduction of Emefiele by the DSS from the custody of the Nigeria Correctional Service without court order is unlawful and outright criminal and whoever gave the order for such to happen ought to be removed from office immediately.

With the application having been struck out by the court, the DSS is now in a very difficult position to continue to further detain Emefiele who has been in their custody for more than six weeks.

The DSS cannot continue to hold him illegally and they cannot get another magistrate order to overrule the order of the High Court since the High Court does not have jurisdiction to grant them such order.

This is yet another judicial loss suffered by the DSS against Emefiele in a case that has been dubbed by many as persecution and personal vendetta.