IBRAHIM MAGU FACES YET ANOTHER LEGAL BATTLE TO HIS CONFIRMATION AS LAWYER DRAGS HIM TO THE FEDERAL HIGH COURT, WRITES SENATE

More troubles have come the way of the Acting Chairman of the EFCC, Ibrahim Magu Mustapha as an Abuja based Constitutional Lawyer has filed fresh Originating Summons on Thursday 2nd March seeking to restrain the Senate from confirming his appointment as the substantive Chairman. The plot against Magu’s confirmation thickens day by day and there are indications that in no time, he will lose the long-drawn battle he is waging against many powerful forces bent on ending his career at the foremost anti-graft agency.

In his letter to the Senate dated the 2nd of March, 2017, the Lawyer, Barrister JOHNMARY CHUKWUKASI JIDEOBI, explained the rational for his legal action thus;
“Given the grave security reasons (which has neither been tested in any court nor vacated) on which the Distinguished Senate rested its decision to reject Mr. Ibrahim magu’s nomination, I have approached the Federal High Court (Abuja Division) in suit no FHC/ABJ/CS/159/17 to challenge the powers of the Distinguished Senate to reconsider Mr. Ibrahim Magu. I am equally asking the Court to order him to give up the seat of the Acting Chairman of the EFCC which I strongly believe he is occupying illegally at the moment. Attached herewith and marked as “Annexure IMM1” is a copy of the said suit. The Distinguished Senate is the 1st Defendant in the said suit.”

The Lawyer therefore urged the Senate to stay further action on the letter transmitted to it by the President on the 17th of January, 2017 re-nominating Magu to be confirmed by the Senate as the substantive Chairman of the EFCC. His words;

“It is my humble belief that now that a Court of competent jurisdiction is siesed of this sensitive matter, the Distinguish Senate would allow itself to be persuaded by the ancient doctrines of lis pendis/ sub-judice and accordingly stay action on the said letter requesting for the re-nomination of Mr. Ibrahim Mustapha Magu pending the determination of the Originating Summons already filed against him.”
The Defendants to the suit filed yesterday are: the Senate, the Attorney-General of the Federation, the Economic and Financial Commission and Mr. Ibrahim Magu. The Plaintiff is praying the Court, among others, for the following reliefs;

AN INJUNCTION restraining the 4th Defendant, Ibrahim Magu, whether by himself, his servants, agents or privies, or in any manner whatsoever from functioning in office as or from performing or continuing to perform the duties of or from holding himself out or parading himself as the Acting Chairman of the 3rd Defendant, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.

AN INJUNCTION restraining the 1st Defendant, whether by itself, its respective members, its servants, agents, officers or privies from receiving, entertaining, countenancing, considering, deliberating upon or in any other manner acting upon any request, letter, application or demand for the approval, confirmation or endorsement of the 4th Defendant, Ibrahmi Magu, as Chairman of the 3rd Defendant, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.
The Originating Summons is supported by a 23 paragraph affidavit.
In part of written address, the lawyer came down heavily on Magu in this telling words;

"By continuing to remain and act as the Acting Chairman of the 3rd Defendant despite his resounding rejection by the 1st Defendant, the 4th Defendant is rumpling the Nigerian Constitution. Has he got the powers to do that? The answer is a loud NO. Persons who are desirous of presiding over the agencies of government established by law cannot afford to be spiteful of the law and where they are found to be riding roughshod on the Rule of Law, a civilized society ought not to entrust them with a position of responsibility otherwise by their impunity and abuse of democratic ethos, an organized society may come to a sad end. The 4th Defendant should be told so in the clearest of language."

Some paragraphs of his 23 paragraph affidavit read as follows;
5. I know as a fact that ever since the 4th Defendant was rejected by the 1st Defendant as the Chairman of the 3rd Defendant on the 15th December, 2016, the 4th Defendant has not vacated his position in the office of the 3rd Defendant despite the bindingness of the 1st Defendant’s decision on him. The persistent refusal of the 4th Defendant to bow to the constitutional authority of the Nigerian Senate is scandalously spiteful and scornful of the Nigerian Constitution and capable of weakening the potency of the laws of the land in a manner that will precipitate anarchy and crash our democratic system.
16. I know as a fact that despite the rejection by the 1st Defendant of the nomination of the 4th Defendant as the Chairman of the 3rd Defendant, the 4th Defendant has continued to exercise the powers and functions of an Acting Chairman of the 3rd Defendant in defiance of the decision of the Nigerian Senate rejecting him which constitutes a grave affront to the Constitutional authority of the Nigerian Senate and gravely threatens the established Constitutional Order of Nigeria.

20. I know as a fact that in considering the nomination of the 4th Defendant and rejecting him on the 15th December, 2016, the 1st Defendant has found the 4th Defendant wanting and grossly unfit to be appointed to the Office of the Chairman of the 3rd Defendant.

21. I know as a fact that despite the grave allegations leveled against the 4th Defendant by the State Security Service (otherwise called the DSS) in its letter to the 1st Defendant, the basis upon which the 4th Defendant’s nomination was rejected by the 1st Defendant, the 4th Defendant has not been arraigned before any court of competent jurisdiction for the purposes of the determination of his guilt or otherwise of the grave allegations dangling over his head like the sword of Damocles.

The matter is yet to be fixed for hearing.