The outcome of the fundamental human rights lawsuit filed by Godwin Emefiele, the former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria who was detained and suspended, will be determined on Thursday (Today).
The lawsuit filed by Emefiele seeks to challenge his arrest and subsequent detention by the Department of State Services.
AMBusiness reported that the DSS on June 10 arrested the governor of the apex bank shortly after President Bola Tinubu suspended him from office and ordered a probe of the CBN.
Emefiele claims that his human rights have been violated in the lawsuit he filed before the Federal Capital Territory High Court in Abuja through his attorney, Joseph Daudu (SAN).
The Attorney General of the Federation, the Director General of the DSS, and the DSS have all been named as respondents in the lawsuit. They have each filed preliminary objections contesting the court’s authority to hear their cases and requesting that the lawsuit be dismissed.
The DSS informed Justice Hamza Muazu at the June 20 sitting in the case that Emefiele’s detention was legal because the DSS had obtained an order from an FCT Chief Magistrates’Court to hold him in custody pending completion of the investigation.
AGF’s attorney, Tijjani Ghazali (SAN), urged the court not to get involved, saying that Emefiele’s arrest and incarceration by the DSS were administrative decisions made by the executive branch of government.
Emefiele’s attorney, Daudu, dissented from them and insisted that the case had validity.
Justice Muazu postponed his decision on whether or not he has the authority to hear the case and take into account Emefiele’s pleas until today.
