…. anti-graft agency acting with impunity– Emenike

…. we’ve not flouted any court order–EFCC

By Ikechukwu Nnochiri

ABUJA— A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress, APC, and former governorship candidate in Abia State, High Chief Ikechi Emenike, is currently at loggerheads with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, over a forfeited property in Abuja.

Whereas Chief Emenike accused the anti-graft of acting with impunity by disobeying subsisting court orders that granted him access to the property situated at House 6, Aso Drive, Asokoro, Abuja, on the other hand, the anti-graft agency denied any wrongdoing, insisting its action was backed by the law.

It will be recalled that Justice Musa Liman of the Federal High Court in Abuja had, in a ruling on June 20, berated the agency for refusing to obey an order that directed its armed officials to vacate the property.

The court further slammed EFCC for obtaining an ex parte order from it on March 27, through suppression and misrepresentation of material facts.

The said order gave the Commission the nod to take possession of the property which it said was forfeited to the Federal Government by a former Minister.

Aside from voiding the ex-parte order, Justice Liman who was irked by the conducted of the Commission, directed its armed officials to immediately vacate the property

It specifically directed that the order granting Emenike unhindered access to the building should be served on the Chairman of the EFCC, Mr. Ola Olukayode, by substituted means.

The court’s volte-face came after it was furnished with full details surrounding the disputed property.

EFCC had in its motion dated November 17, 2024, anchored its request to take possession of the property on a judgement it said was handed to it on October 22, 2022, by trial Justice M. O. Olajuwon of an Abuja High Court.

However, after his domestic staff members were chased out of the property, Chief Emenike re-approached the court with evidence to show that the Commission failed to disclose that it had been collecting rent from him for the property he has occupied for over 10 years.

The APC chieftain further told the court that there is a subsisting judgement from a High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, which gave him a Right of First Refusal after it held that the EFCC had no legal right to keep any forfeited property to itself for whatever use.

The court, in the said judgement, held that the only option the law gave the EFCC was to sell off the property and remit the proceeds to FG’s Single Treasury Account.

It held that as a sitting tenant, the Commission ought to give the plaintiff the Right of First Refusal.

Chief Emenike told the court that though EFCC had after a meeting he held with its former Chairman, Mr. Abdulrasheed Bawa, agreed to reevaluate and sale to him, it later decided to keep the property for itself.

He alleged that instead of appealing against the judgement of the high court, the agency filed an ex-parte order before another court where it secured the eviction order that was later quashed.

Meanwhile, the EFCC had since refuted the allegation that it suppressed fact before the court.

“It is not in the character of the EFCC to engage in judicial disobedience,” the Commission said in a statement it made available to the media, saying it “obtained a legitimate order of possession from the court.”

Arguing that “there was no misrepresentation of facts before Justice Liman,” the EFCC said the presence of a tenant, Chief Emenike, in the disputed property did not invalidate the final forfeiture order it earlier obtained.

It dismissed claims that it wrongly evicted Emenike or disregarded a standing contempt order, insisting no valid court order was served on either its Chairman, Olukoyede, or its lawyer, Mr. Francis Usani.

The agency contended that though Emenike had a rental agreement with the former minister from whom the property was seized, he had not been paying rent to it for over a decade as claimed.

It stressed that the court judgement only granted Emenike the right to be considered for purchase, if and when the property was officially put up for sale—a move the EFCC said had not occurred.

EFCC lied — Emenike

Disagreeing with the anti-graft agency, Emenike, in a statement, produced receipts of rent payments he made to the Commission from January 2017 to December 2022.

According to him: “I have been living in that house for over 10 years. When the EFCC secured the house as a forfeited asset, they appointed an agent, Azikagbon & Co, whom I have been paying the rent to, on behalf of EFCC.

“When the house was advertised for sell, by the EFCC, I had a meeting with the former EFCC Chairman (Mr. Bawa) on the need to grant me the Right of First Refusal. He agreed but promised that they will get back to me after reevaluating the property.

“While I was waiting for the Right of First Refusal, EFCC suddenly decided against their own law to appropriate the property to their chairman. I objected and went to court.

“After several months of legal exchange before an FCT Hight Court, Hon. Justice Musa in a subsisting (unappealed judgement) gave me the Right of First Refusal and told the EFCC that they have no legal right to keep any forfeited property to themselves for whatever use.

“In the same judgement, he told them that the only option the law gave them was to sell the property and remit the proceeds to Federal Government’s Single Treasury Account. He ruled that as a sitting tenant, EFCC should give me the Right of First Refusal.

“EFCC has not appealed the judgement and has also refused to give me the Right of First Refusal. Rather, in an unethical move, the EFCC went to Federal High Court and on an experte application, secured an eviction order with which they stormed No. 6 Aso Drive and chased away all my domestic staff and took possession of the house.

“We approached the same Court who gave the experte order. He reversed his earlier order and lambasted the EFCC for fraudulently securing the order and ordered them to vacate my residence, and restore me to the house.

“The Court sent its bailiffs to go and enforce its order. Rather than obey and vacate the premises, the EFCC told the bailiffs bluntly that they would not obey any court order and even threatened to shoot the court officials.The Court tried again with the support of policemen from the FCT police command, but met another resistance from the EFCC operatives.

“The EFCC filed a motion before the same Court for a Stay of Execution of the Court Order. The Court not only rejected and dismissed the EFCC motion, the Court also told them to go and purge themselves of their disobedience of the order.

“The Court stated that EFCC behaviour is unconscionable.The question is why is the EFCC so fixated with this particular property, even trampling on the rights of a bonafide citizen?

“This is the height of impunity and lawlessness,” High Chief Emenike stated.