A suit filed by former Petroleum Minister, Diezani Alison-Madueke, to challenge the order obtained by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for final forfeiture of her assets faced a setback on Monday at the Federal High Court in Abuja.
The case, which was scheduled for a hearing before Justice Inyang Ekwo, was delayed as the judge was reportedly attending a seminar at the National Judicial Institute (NJI) in Abuja. The case has now been postponed to November 21.
Diezani, through her counsel Chief Mike Ozekhome, SAN, filed a suit, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/21/2023, against the EFCC seeking an order to set aside the agency’s public notice regarding a public sale of her property. In her motion filed on January 6, 2023, she sought five orders from the court, arguing that previous forfeiture orders were made without proper jurisdiction and violated her right to fair hearing.
“The various court orders issued in favor of the respondent and upon which the respondent issued the public notice were issued in breach of the applicant’s right to fair hearing as guaranteed by Section 36 (1) of the 1999 Constitution, as altered,” Alison-Madueke said.
She also claimed she was not served with a charge sheet or evidence regarding the criminal charges against her, arguing that the courts were misled into issuing forfeiture orders through “misstatements, misrepresentations, and suppression of material facts.”
On the other hand, the EFCC, through a counter-affidavit deposed by detective Mr. Rufai Zaki, requested the court dismiss her application. Zaki, who was part of the investigation into criminal conspiracy, official corruption, and money laundering involving the ex-minister, said Alison-Madueke was indeed involved in criminal activities. He noted that the properties in question had already been disposed of through due process.
Zaki further argued that the forfeiture orders were based on legal procedures, including newspaper publications inviting any interested parties to challenge the forfeiture before final orders were made. He also pointed out that Alison-Madueke’s representative, Nnamdi Awa Kalu, had reacted to one of the forfeiture applications, demonstrating her knowledge of the process.
The final forfeiture orders for the contested assets, made in 2017, have not been overturned on appeal, according to Zaki.
The EFCC had previously announced plans to auction off seized assets, including those belonging to Alison-Madueke, which were deemed to be proceeds of crime. The auction began on January 9, 2023. It was revealed by suspended EFCC chairman Abdulrasheed Bawa that the commission had recovered $153 million and over 80 properties from the ex-minister.
Diezani, who served as Petroleum Minister from 2010 to 2015 under President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration, has since relocated to the United Kingdom following her exit from public office. This asset-related suit is separate from another legal action she filed, in which she seeks N100 billion as compensation for alleged defamatory publications by the EFCC.
