A federal capital territory (FCT) high court sitting in Apo has ruled that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has the power to prosecute Olu Agunloye, a former minister of power and steel.
Jude Onwuegbuzie, the presiding judge, gave the ruling on Wednesday on the preliminary objection filed by Agunloye.
The EFCC is prosecuting Agunloye over a $6 billion Mambilla hydropower contract.
The anti-graft agency said it traced some suspicious payments made by Sunrise Power and Transmission Ltd. to Agunloye’s bank accounts.
On January 11, Agunloye was arraigned on a seven-count charge bordering on fraudulent awarding of contracts and official corruption.
PRELIMINARY OBJECTION
“The alleged offences in this charge, bother on my activities as a public officer, including the alleged award of contract without budgetary provision, approval or cash backing,” Agunloye said.
“It also concerns the alleged disobedience of the directives of the president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and forgery of a letter dated May 22, 2003.
“These allegations do not constitute financial crimes, which can be lawfully investigated and prosecuted by the EFCC, pursuant to its powers under Sections 6, 7 and 46 of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (Establishment) Act and in consonance with the Supreme Court’s decision in Nwobike v. Federal Republic of Nigeria (2022) 6 NWLR (Pt. 1826) 293.
In his affidavits, Agunloye added that “this is a threshold issue, in which I know that the court must first satisfy itself that there are requisite statutory powers in the EFCC to prosecute this charge and competent jurisdiction in the court to entertain the same”.
The former minister submitted that “it will be most unjust and unfair to subject me to criminal trial or prosecution, before determining whether the investigating and prosecuting body has the requisite statutory powers to so do.”
“I am an old man of 76 years old, who ought not to be subjected to harrowing fundamental procedural anomalies, that can be resolved at an early stage,” Agunloye said.
“It will be fair and just for this honourable court to first determine and render a decision on this threshold issue of the EFCC’s competence to investigate and prosecute this case. It is in the interest of justice to grant this application.”
Consequently, the former minister prayed the court for an order “prohibiting the EFCC, whether by itself or any officer within its employ, from prosecuting or further prosecuting the instant charge [Charge No. FCT/ABJ/CR/617/2023] against the defendant, for lack of both investigative and prosecutorial powers under Sections 6, 7 & 46 of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission Act, 2004”.
