A Federal High Court in Lagos has fixed December 7, 2016 to hear the
N200m fundamental rights enforcement suit filed by wife of ex-President
Goodluck Jonathan, Patience, against the Economic and Financial Crimes
Commission and Skye Bank Plc to challenge the freezing of four bank
accounts containing $15m.
The EFCC placed a ‘No Debit Order’ on the four accounts opened in the
name of four companies which were linked to a former Special Adviser on
Domestic Affairs to ex-President Jonathan, Waripamo-Owei Dudafa.
But Patience had sued the EFCC and Skye Bank claiming the ownership of the $15m found in the four bank accounts.
According to PUNCH, the matter came up for the first time before Justice Babs Kuewumi on Wednesday.
At the hearing, Patience’s lawyer, Mr. Granville Abibo (SAN), urged the
court to restrain the EFCC from tampering with the $15m in the frozen
accounts pending the determination of the suit.
He said despite being served with court processes, the EFCC was still making moves that could overreach the court.
After listening to the parties, Justice Kuewumi adjourned till December 7, 2016 for the hearing of the case.
Patience is urging the court to compel the EFCC to immediately remove
the ‘No Debit Order’ placed on the four bank accounts in question.
She also wants the court to order Skye Bank to pay her damages in the
sum of N200m for what she termed a violation of her right to own
personal property under Section 44 of the 1999 Constitution.
Filed in support of the suit was an affidavit deposed to by one Sammie Somiari.
Somiari said it was Dudafa who helped Patience to open the four bank accounts which the EFCC froze.
According to him, Dudafa had on March 22, 2010 brought two Skye Bank
officers, Demola Bolodeoku and Dipo Oshodi, to meet Patience at home to
open five accounts.
He, however, claimed that after the five accounts were opened, Patience
later discovered that Dudafa opened only one of the accounts in her name
while the other four were opened in the names of companies belonging to
Dudafa.
