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The Supreme Court on Tuesday reserved judgement in the suit brought before it by the Kogi state government and 18 other state governments challenging the constitutionality of the laws establishing the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), the Independent Corrupt Practices, and two others.
A seven-member panel of Justices of the Apex Court, led by Justice Uwani Abba-Aji, reserved judgement in the suit to a date that would be communicated to parties after the plaintiff and the defendant adopted all their processes filed in the matter.
While the plaintiff and the Attorney General of Kogi State, Abdulwahab Mohammed, SAN, up prayed the court to allow the suit and award a heavy cost in favour of the plaintiff, the sole defendant, Attorney General of the Federation (AGF), Prince Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, prayed the court to strike out or otherwise dismiss the plaintiff’s originating summons.
Counsel to the Kogi State government argued that the EFCC Act is defective as it was a mere adoption of United Nation convention against corruption, adding that, it was not done in line with Section 12 of the Constitution, which spells out the procedures, and should therefore be abolished.
In his response, the defendant said the action or inaction of the former Attorney General of the Federation (AGF), Chief Kanu Agabi, SAN, has no place in the instant suit at all.
Fagbemi argued that the law did not make mention of the United Nation, but that Section 15, subsection 5 of the 1999 Constitution backs the Nigerian state in abolishing all forms of corruption.
Earlier in the proceedings, Anambra, Ebonyi, and Adamawa state governments applied to the court to withdraw from the matter, a request which the court granted, and their names were consequently struck out of the suit.
The court had joined Ondo, Edo, Oyo, Ogun, Nasarawa, Kebbi, Katsina, Sokoto, Jigawa, Enugu, Benue, Anambra, Plateau, Cross-River, and Niger states as co-plaintiffs at the last proceedings and granted leave for the consolidation of the case in the suit, marked SC/CV/178/2023, originally filed by the Kogi State government through its Attorney General (AG).
The states, which said they are relying on the fact that the Constitution is the supreme law and any law that is inconsistent with it is a nullity, argued that the Supreme Court, in Dr Joseph Nwobike Vs Federal Republic of Nigeria, had held that it was a United Nation Convention against corruption that was reduced into the EFCC Establishment Act and that in enacting the law in 2004, the provision of Section 12 of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, was not followed.
They argued that, in bringing a convention into Nigerian law, the provision of Section 12 must be complied with and that the provision of the Constitution necessitated the majority of the states’ Houses of Assembly agreeing to bring the convention in before passing the EFCC Act and others, which was allegedly never done.
It is the argument of the states that the law, as enacted, could not be applied to states that never approved of it, in accordance with the provisions of the Nigerian Constitution, and hence, argued that any institution so formed should be regarded as an illegal institution.
Kogi State, in its originating summons, raised six questions for determination and sought nine reliefs.
Among the reliefs sought are “a declaration that the Federal Government of Nigeria, through the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU) or any agency of the Federal Government, lacks the power to issue any directive, guideline, advisory, or any instrument howsoever called for the administration and management of funds belonging to Kogi State of Nigeria or any Local Government Area of Kogi State.
“A declaration that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU), or any agency of the Federal Government of Nigeria cannot investigate, requisition documents, invite, or arrest anyone with respect to offences arising from or touching on the administration and management of funds belonging to Kogi State of Nigeria or any Local Government Area of Kogi State.”
On Tuesday, the number of states challenging the constitutionality of the EFCC and others had climbed to 19, including Kogi State, despite the withdrawal of three states.
The states in the suit Vs AGF are Kogi, Kebbi, Katsina, Sokoto, Jigawa, Enugu, Oyo, Benue, Plateau, Cross River, Ondo, Niger, Edo, Bauchi, Imo, Osun, Nasarawa, Ogun, and Taraba.
The court ruled that the judgement on the Kogi State suit would be applied to all the states in the matter.
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