An FCT High Court on Thursday struck out a suit filed by the Department of State Services (DSS) seeking a 14-day extended detention order for the suspended Central Bank Governor, Godwin Emefiele.
The DSS said its request is in line with new evidence it had discovered, but Justice Hamza Muazu dismissed the application, citing it as an abuse of court process and identifying the lack of jurisdiction.
Channels TV reports that the application was discreetly filed by the DSS’s legal team on Wednesday.
Upon questioning by the judge about the court’s jurisdiction, given the exclusive rights of the Magistrate Court to grant detention orders under Sections 293 and 296 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, the DSS’s counsel, Mr. Victor Ejelonu, opted to withdraw the matter.
The application came in the wake of Mr. Emefiele’s re-arrest by the DSS from the Federal High Court premises in Lagos, following his remand in a Correctional Centre while awaiting the fulfilment of his bail conditions granted by Justice Nicholas Oweibo.
Meanwhile in another news…
Godwin Emefiele’s brother, George condemned the face-off between operatives of the Department of State Services, DSS, and the Nigeria Correctional Centre on Tuesday.
The Justice Nicholas Oweibo-led court had granted Emefiele bail in the sum of N20 million after six weeks in the custody of the DSS.
Speaking with journalists at the court premises, George said: “It’s unfortunate that this is happening in Nigeria, a democratic nation that is blessed with people of integrity.
“I remembered how the current president fought the military tooth and nail during the NADECO period. Three courts have said release him on bail, he is not running away, he served this nation for nine years, all his life was in Nigeria here.
“You can imagine where two Federal Government apparatuses are fighting themselves. This is a disgrace to this nation. How else are we going to describe this? If this is happening today to somebody who served this nation for nine years, then, what is the fate of the poor man.”
