Court Declines To Halt Probe Of Okorocha
A Federal High Court sitting in Abuja on Wednesday, refused to grant Rochas Okorocha, former governor of Imo State request for an interim injunction to stop the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, and panel of inquiry set up by the state government from further investigating alleged financial infractions he committed while in office.
Justice Ahmed Mohammed made this known shortly after counsel to Okorocha, Oba Maduabuchi, SAN, informed the court that since the defence counsel asked for an adjournment to respond to processes served on them, the court should make an order stopping the parties in the suit from going ahead with the probe pending the determination of the matter.
Counsel to the 2nd to 48th defendants J. M. Madu, interjected that the probe panel had not commenced sitting. Madu also assured that he would inform the Attorney General of Imo about the court development and would urge them to respect the court not to begin sitting until the suit is determined.
Okorocha, senator representing Imo West District, on his suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/588/2020, through his counsel, Maduabuchi, prayed the court to direct EFCC to stop it’s investigation into all the petitions that were submitted against him by Imo State government during his tenure as governor of Imo State between May 2011 and May 2019.
Other defendants in the suit are the Attorney General of Imo, members of the Judicial Commission on Lands and Related matters, members of the panel to investigate the activities of ISOPADEC, members of the panel to investigate the status of the newly established Tertiary institutions, members of the investigative committee for financial transactions in Imo State, Committee for the Review of appointments, recruitments and related matters from 2015 till date and the committee for the investigation of LGA.
Counsel to the 2nd to 48th defendants, J. M. Madu challenged the jurisdiction of the court to entertain Okorocha’s suit.
Madu argued that the court in Abuja was bereft of the territorial jurisdiction to hear the matter.
He drew the attention of the judge to a recent circular from the chief judge of the court that all matters should be transferred to where the cause of action arose from.
“We are humbly applying that this matter is transferred to Owerri division of this court where the cause of action arose from, ” Madu submitted, adding that since he was recently briefed to handle the case, he would need time to file process.
Maduabuchi pleaded the court to reject the application which he said was aimed to frustrate his case.
“My lord, their sole aim is to foist on this court a situation of complete helplessness by rushing and completing their probe activities. By the time we come back, they would have finished the process.
“I urged my lord to make an interim order that all their activities, pending when this motion on notice is heard and decided”.
Countering Madu’s position, Maduabuchi said the defendants cannot choose where the matter should be heard. “The head office of the EFCC is resident in Abuja. Therefore this court has the jurisdiction, ” Maduabuchi pleaded.
Justice Mohammed after listening to both arguments, then held that it would be of no use to grant a restraining order since Madu had undertaken to tell the parties not to go ahead with the probe pending when the matter would be determined.
The judge held that since the EFCC was not represented in court to hear it’s side of the story, it would be unfair to grant the request in the interest of justice.
