Justice Inyang Edem Ekwo of the Federal High Court in Abuja has struck out a N1 billion suit filed against former President Muhammadu Buhari and former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele, over the hardships that trailed the 2023 Naira redesign policy.
The judge struck out the suit filed by an Abuja-based legal practitioner, Uthman Isa Tochukwu, for lack of diligent prosecution.
In a ruling on Monday, Justice Ekwo held that he was convinced the plaintiff had deliberately abandoned his own case due to his persistent absence in court without legal representation or any explanation.
The plaintiff, in the suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/418/2023, had dragged the former President, the Attorney General of the Federation, the former Governor of the CBN, the CBN, and two commercial banks before the court, claiming that they inflicted a series of hardships on him during the redesign of the Naira.
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In the suit filed on his behalf by his counsel, Bala Dakum, the plaintiff alleged that his fundamental rights to freedom of movement and dignity of his person were violently breached.
Specifically, the lawyer claimed that his movement was curtailed while his money in the two commercial banks could not be accessed during the hardship occasioned by the redesign of the Naira in January and March 2023, and prayed the court to award N1 billion damages against the defendants to be paid to him for the breach of his fundamental rights.
The plaintiff also demanded an order of perpetual injunction against Buhari and others, restraining them from further withholding the old N200, N500, and N1000 denominations.
Similarly, he prayed the court to compel the defendants to tender a public apology to be published in two major newspapers in the country.
However, at Monday’s proceedings, both the plaintiff and his counsel were not in court and did not offer any excuse for their absence.
Counsel to the 3rd and 4th defendants (Emefiele and CBN), Mr. Chikelue Amasiani, drew the attention of Justice Ekwo to the persistent absence of the plaintiff and his counsel during past proceedings.
Amasiani said that since the suit was filed in 2023, both the plaintiff and his lawyer have not shown any seriousness and commitment to the prosecution of the case, and then prayed the judge to strike out the suit, adding that the plaintiff can come back to revive the case when ready to show seriousness.
In a brief ruling, Justice Ekwo agreed with the lawyer and struck out the suit for lack of diligent prosecution.
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