Suspended Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, Godwin Emefiele, has asked a Federal High Court sitting in Lagos, to stop the Federal Government, through the Department of State Services, DSS, from further prosecuting him.
Emefiele, arraigned on July 25, by DSS over alleged illegal possession of firearm, was, however, admitted to bail and ordered to be remanded in prison custody, but was re-arrested by the DSS.
In a fresh application before Justice Nicholas Oweibo, Emefiele through his lawyers, led by Mr. Joseph Daudu, SAN, is seeking an order of the court discharging him of all charges brought against him by the DSS, arguing that it was in “brazen disobedience” of the subsisting orders of the court granting him bail on July 25, 2023.
He further prayed for an order, prohibiting the Federal Government from continuing to enjoy any form of indulgence from the courts except and unless it complies with the bail ruling.“Relying on Section 6(6)(a) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), relevant sections of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2015 and under the inherent powers of the court, Emefiele wants the court to stay further proceedings in the current charge until he exhausts all the remedies available to him in law to compel the government and the DSS to obey the order of the court admitting him to bail or remanding him in prison custody, until he perfects his bail terms.
In the application, he is seeking to invoke the jurisdiction of the court to enforce its orders, so as not to be seen “as a toothless bulldog or paper tiger.”
According to Emefiele, his fresh application seeks to preserve and protect the “efficacy, majesty and integrity of the court as well as the rule of law in our democracy.”
Meanwhile, the DSS has joined issues with him, while the court will hear the fresh application today.
