THE Court of Appeal in Abuja, on Friday, May 3, granted an ex-parte motion for stay of contempt proceedings filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and issued against its Chairman, Ola Olukoyede, by a former governor of Kogi State, Yahaya Bello.
The appellate court, presided over by Justice Joseph Oyewole, granted the EFCC’s application to serve the processes in the appeal by substituted means on the former governor.
The court consequently adjourned the hearing of the motion on notice until May 20.
Recall that the EFCC boss, who was summoned to appear before the Kogi State High Court to show cause why he should not be committed to prison for disobeying its orders, had appealed the ruling of the trial court and sought a stay of its proceedings.
Olukoyede is facing a contempt charge for carrying out “some acts upon which they (the EFCC) have been restrained” by the lower court on February 9, pending the hearing and determination of the substantive originating motion.
Justice I. A. Jamil, while ruling on Suit No: HCL/68M/2024 and Motion No: HCL/190M/2024, ordered that “the said act was carried out by the respondent (EFCC) in violation of the order, which was valid and subsisting when they carried out the act.”
The Judge held that the EFCC’s act amounted to contempt.
The EFCC operatives had laid siege on the residence of the former governor as early as 8 a.m. on April 17, with a bid to arrest him, despite a court order restraining them from taking such action, pending the determination of the originating motion.
Justice Jamil’s order was based on a motion ex-parte filed by Bello, through his lawyer, M.S. Yusuf, where he prayed the court for an order to issue and serve the respondent (EFCC chairman), with Form 49 Notice to show cause why order of committal should not be made on him.
But the anti-graft agency had predicated its action on the ruling of another court in Abuja a few days after the said restraining order.
It later withdrew its appeal against the restraining order Justice Jamil’s at the Court of Appeal in Abuja.
