By Ikechukwu Nnochiri
Former Governor of Kaduna State, Nasir El-Rufai, has failed to persuade the Federal High Court in Abuja to stop the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) and other anti-graft agencies in the country from freezing his bank accounts.
In a ruling by Justice Joyce Abdulmalik, the court dismissed a suit filed by the former governor, who has been in detention, seeking an order restraining federal government agencies from moving against his assets.
The court held that the suit not only lacked merit but was speculative, as no reasonable cause of action was disclosed against the agencies the applicant listed as defendants.
Therefore, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), the Department of State Services (DSS) and the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) were struck out from the case.
In the suit he filed on February 24, El-Rufai prayed the court for an interim injunction directing the respondents to maintain the status quo ante regarding his assets.
According to him, the order was necessary to prevent him from being placed in a state of helplessness. He insisted that the severance pay he received upon completing his tenure as governor of Kaduna State between 2015 and 2023 could not reasonably be suspected to be proceeds of any unlawful activity.
He urged the court to declare that properties purchased from his severance pay were lawfully acquired.
The banks the applicant prayed the court to protect from the respondents included Zenith Bank Plc, Naira Account Number: 1007158671; Zenith Bank Plc, Domiciliary Account Number: 507 1511327; Guaranty Trust Bank (GTB) Plc, Account Number: 0023824978; Access Bank, Dollar Account Number: 1396386493; and Access Bank, Naira Account Number: 1396382103.
El-Rufai also sought a declaration that any attempt by the respondents to apply for, obtain or execute any interim or final forfeiture or freezing order, without first establishing a reasonable suspicion supported by credible evidence as required by relevant law, would amount to a breach of his rights.
He relied on Section 17(1) of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Related Offences Act, 2006, and the Supreme Court decision in Melrose General Services Ltd v. EFCC (2024) SC/1519/2019, to pray the court to declare that, as a citizen of Nigeria, he is entitled to the presumption of innocence and the protection of his fundamental rights.
He argued that any action by the respondents seeking to circumvent his constitutionally guaranteed rights through ex parte applications that conceal material facts would amount to a breach of Section 36(5) of the Constitution and a violation of the principles of fair hearing.
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