An Abuja High Court sitting in Maitama is set to rule on the lawsuit filed by Godwin Emefiele, the suspended governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), challenging his arrest and detention by the Department of State Services (DSS).
Emefiele was arrested by the DSS following his suspension by President Bola Tinubu and the subsequent initiation of a probe into the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
Emefiele alleges a violation of his human rights in the suit, which was filed before the Federal Capital Territory High Court in Abuja through his counsel, Joseph Daudu (SAN).
The respondents in the suit include the Attorney General of the Federation, the Director General of the DSS, and the DSS itself. They have filed preliminary objections that challenge the jurisdiction of the court to hear the case and request that the suit be dismissed.
During the court hearing on Tuesday, June 20, the DSS, represented by counsel I. Awo, argued that Emefiele’s detention was lawful, as the DSS had obtained an order from the FCT Chief Magistrates’ Court to keep him in custody until the investigation was concluded.
At the resumed proceedings in the matter, Emefiele, through his team of lawyers led by Daudu, SAN, prayed to the court to enforce his fundamentally guaranteed rights to liberty and freedom.
Daudu maintained that the continued detention of his client in the custody of the security agency amounted to a gross infringement of his human rights under both the 1999 Constitution, as amended, and the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights.
He also argued that all the allegations that have been levelled against Emefiele were state offences that could be entertained by the FCT High Court.
The Attorney General’s counsel, Tijjani Ghazali (SAN), also argued that Emefiele’s arrest and detention were administrative decisions within the executive branch and urged the court not to interfere.
However, Emefiele’s lawyer, Daudu, disagreed with the respondent, maintaining that the suit had substantial merit.
Justice Hamza Muazu adjourned the case until today to deliver his ruling on the court’s jurisdiction and consider Emefiele’s prayers.
