A Kano high court sitting in Gezawa yesterday dismissed an application filed by former governor of the state, Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso seeking to discontinue a suit earlier filed to restrain the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) from arresting him.
With this judgment, the EFCC is free of any pending or emerging order restraining her from arresting Kwankwaso for allege mismanagement of public funds while serving as Kano State governor.
The court has also directed the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) to investigate counsel to Kwankwaso for alleged misrepresentation and overzealousness in the suit.
Kwankwaso’s lawyer, Barrister Okechuwku Nwaeze, recently filed an ex parte motion restraining the EFCC from arresting his client Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso for an alleged mismanagement of the state’s pensions funds.
But counsel to the applicant had against his earlier prayers filed another motion seeking the court to discontinue the suit, but without the knowledge of the EFCC.
The latter motion may not be unconnected to a statement from Kwankwaso just after his lawyer filed the case, debunking knowledge of Okechukwu’s argument.
Counsel to Kwankwaso had told the court that EFCC had mounted surveillance on the Abuja residence of his client in a move to arrest him, a development, he maintained threatened Kwankwaso’s fundamental human right of freedom of movement.
Okechukwu claimed that EFCC’s alleged plan to arrest Kwankwaso has restrained him from performing his legislative duties as elected senator representing Kano Central.
But in a dramatic move, a statement credited to Kwankwaso disowned Barrister Okechuwku’s prayers in court. The statement issued on July 3rd, the principal private secretary to Kwankwaso, Muhammad Inuwa Ali, said the former governor has not been restrained from his legislative duty.
At the resumption of hearing, yesterday the lead counsel to EFCC, Barrister Sadisu Abubakar, claimed that the commission only knows about the motion to discontinue the suit, accusing Kwankwaso’s lawyer of not informing the commission. Although EFCC’s lawyer did not oppose to the application to discontinue, he, therefore, prayed the court to issue sanction on the applicant’s counsel for time wasting.
Counsel to Kwankwaso did not appear before the court. In his ruling, the presiding judge Justice Muhammad Yahaya struck out the suit and placed a fine of N50,000 against Kwankwaso for wasting the time of the court.
