A pool of constitutional and human rights lawyers have begun moves to commence committal proceedings against the Director General of the Department of Security Service (DSS), Mr Yusuf Magaji Bichi, at the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), for allegedly violating multiple judgments and orders of the court calling for the release of suspended Central Bank governor, Mr. Godwin Emefiele from custody.
The applicants who are led by Mr. Maxwell Opara and Ahmed Tijani, have prayed the Court to commit Mr. Bichi to prison until he purges himself of the contempt.
Specifically, the form 48 which was brought under order IX, rule 13, Sherriff and Civil process Act, CAP S6, LFN 2004, read: ‘Take notice that unless you obey the directives as contained in the order of the court delivered on the 13th day of July 2023, you will be guilty of contempt of court and will be liable to be committed to prison.’
In their Motion filed before the Court for the issuing of form 48 and form 49 which are the forms to commence proceedings to commit a contemnor to prison, the lawyers assert that by the judgments and orders of Justice M. A. Hassan, Justice Hamza Muazu and Justice Bello Kawu, the DG DSS ought to have released Mr. Emefiele from detention.
In the affidavit in support of the application, the consortium deposed to the fact that Justice M. A. Hassan restrained the Respondents in that suit particularly the State Security Service (SSS) from arresting, detaining or interrogating Mr. Emefiele for offences connected to terrorism financing, money laundering, round-tripping, financial crimes of national security dimension etc.
It is their deposition that despite the clear and positive orders of Justice Hassan, the SSS still went ahead to arrest and detain Mr Emefiele and has so detained him for well over a month while shopping for evidence which does not exist.
While addressing newsmen after filing their processes at the Registry of the Court, Mr. Maxwell Opara said the group would pursue the matter to its logical conclusion and ensure that Mr. Bichi is sent to prison to serve as a deterrent to other heads of security agencies and top government officials that contempt of court and gross abuse of their offices for personal vendetta will no longer be tolerated.
Mr. Opara also called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to immediately relieve Mr. Bichi of his appointment as DG SSS for having obviously misled the president that Mr. Emefiele had committed heinous crimes against the state only for him to now file a charge of possession of a validly registered pump action rifle against Mr. Emefiele.
‘Is it not clear enough to Nigerians that that the SSS is persecuting Mr. Emefiele if after holding him for 5 weeks they can only file a ridiculous charge of possessing a validly registered pump action gun?’ Mr. Opara asked.
He continued ‘If possessing a validly registered pump action gun is a crime worthy of being held in perpetuity, what has the SSS done to the person threatening Nigerians from a particular section of the country with an assault rifle? This clearly shows the travail of Mr. Emefiele is more for political reasons than for any other.’
He concluded by questioning that assuming there was no valid court order, since the DSS had been unable to find any evidence against Mr. Emefiele, he was entitled to his release and how much more now that three different courts have ordered his release, the SSS is still holding him in unlawful detention and violating all his rights, hence the reason why the consortium would ensure Mr. Yusuf Magaji Bichi ends up being committed to prison.