Abuja court strikes out Sanwo-Olu’s rights enforcement suit against EFCC

A Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has struck out the fundamental right enforcement suit filed by Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos State against the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

The trial Judge, Justice Joyce Abdulmalik struck out the matter on Tuesday, after counsel who appeared for Sanwo-Olu, Gbenga Femi Akande, moved the motion for the discontinuance of the case.

The had, on October 29, 2024 slated November 26 for further mention of the suit following the submission by counsel to the EFCC, Hadiza Afegbua, that she was yet to see the fresh originating summons served on them by Darlington Ozurumba, who filed the suit on behalf of the governor.

It was however observed that, the matter was not listed on the cause list for Tuesday and no lawyer represented the governor in court.

Out of the ten cases scheduled for hearing before Justice Abdulmalik on Tuesday, the suit number: FHC/ABJ/CS/773/2024 between Babajide Sanwo-Olu and EFCC was not on the cause list.

It was reliably gathered from the court workers that the suit was struck out on October 31, 2024 after it was withdrawn by the plaintiff.

Meanwhile, there was a mild drama as the EFCC’s lawyer, Afegbua, was sighted in court for the matter.

The anti-graft’s counsel, who had been appearing for the matter, was disappointed to see that the case was not on the cause list. She was surprised when she was informed that the suit had been struck out on October 31.

Afegbua, who refused to speak with newsmen, left the court in disappointment.

However, the enrolled order made on October 31 sighted by newsmen, showed that, only the plaintiff’s lawyer, Akande, was in the proceeding, leading to the striking out of the case.

While the notice of discontinuance of the suit was dated and filed on October 30, the hearing notice issued to parties for the November 26 sitting was equally dated October 30.

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Sanwo-Olu, through his counsel, Ozurumba, had sued the anti-graft agency as sole defendant over alleged threat to arrest, detain and prosecute him after his tenure as governor.

In the originating summons, marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/773/2024 filed on June 6, the governor raised seven questions and sought 11 reliefs.

He specifically sought an order restraining the EFCC from harassing, intimidating, arresting, detaining, interrogating or prosecuting him in connection with his tenure as the governor of Lagos State, among others.

But the EFCC, in its counter affidavit, urged the court not to grant the reliefs sought by Gov. Sanwo-Olu, describing it as speculative.

The anti-corruption agency, in the application dated October 30 but filed October 31 by its lawyer, Afegbua, said contrary to the governor’s claims, the EFCC neither threatened, invited or took any step at all to encroach on his right to freedom of movement nor violated his right to private and family life and personal liberty.

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