Michael Ojo l Saturday, April 21, 2019
ADO-EKITI, Nigeria – The court of appeal sitting in Ado Ekiti on thursday have allowed EFCC’S appeal against the judgement of justice Taiwo. O Taiwo of Federal high court Ado Ekiti division on the application to freeze Zenith Bank account linked to the governor of Ekiti state. Recalled that upon the judgement of the lower court the governor withdrew the sum of N5m and transferred the sum of N75n to Mr Mike Ozekhome SAN. The lead judge to the three man pannel honourable justice J.s Ikeyegha directed the freezing of the account of Mr Fayose forthwith.
EFCC had on Dec 2016 frozen Governor Fayose’s accounts after it allegedly traced part of the N4.7bn arms funds from the office of the National Security Adviser to the accounts. However, on December 13, Governor Fayose got the EFCC action overturned when a court ruled that the action was against due process.
The appellate court ruled that the decision of lower court to dismissed the motion for stay of execution filed by the commission against his judgment delivered on December 13 for lacking in merit. In his original judgement where Justice Taiwo said the action breached the governor’s fundamental rights to fair hearing.
The court also upturned the ordered of lower court that Zenith Bank and the EFCC to immediately unfreeze Governor Fayose’s accounts. Two days later, the governor went to the bank to withdraw N5m and jolted by the action, the EFCC returned to the court through a motion asking for the stay of execution of the judgment. However, ruling on the application, Justice Taiwo said: “Once a judgment is being executed, you cannot stay the execution again.”
But the three man pannel of the appeal court today frank at such decision by saying that any lower court judgement is still dubject for appeal and further to supreme court as the situation may warrant.
“An anti graft agency is empowered to freeze any account suspected to be Warehousing proceed of an unlawful activities without any human inducement, there is nothing like breach of fundamental rights in such move ”
Justice Ikeyegha then faulted the lower judgement that the freezing of the account is a breach of fundamental rights and thereby ordered the account to remain frozen
