The Economic and Financial Crimes
Commission has started a fresh move to seize funds in 15 bank accounts
linked with the wife of ex-President Goodluck Jonathan, Patience.
The funds, which the EFCC is seeking to seize, include a total of $8,435,788.84 and over N7.35bn.
The EFCC had on Monday morning appeared
before Justice Mojisola Olatoregun of the Federal High Court in Lagos
with an ex parte application, seeking the temporary forfeiture of the
funds.
The move was, however, interrupted by a
train of Senior Advocates of Nigeria led by Mr. Ifedayo Adedipe (SAN)
and Chief Mike Ozekhome (SAN), who challenged the court’s jurisdiction
to entertain the ex parte application.
The SANs told the judge that the funds, which the EFCC seeks to seize, were already subject of litigation.
But counsel for the EFCC, Mr. Rotimi
Oyedepo, maintained that the SANs had no right of hearing in the court,
since his application was ex parte, wondering how they got wind of the
move by the anti-graft agency in the first place.
He urged the judge to disregard their appearance.
The judge upheld Oyedepo’s submission, following which the SANs left the courtroom.
But in view of the development, the
judge adjourned the case till January 23, 2018 and directed the EFCC to
file an affidavit to convince her that there were no pending lawsuits
relating to the funds sought to be forfeited.
In the said ex parte application, the EFCC listed Patience Jonathan and five firms and one Esther Oba as respondents.
The firms that were listed as second to
sixth defendants were Globus Integrated Services Ltd., Finchley Top
Homes Ltd., Am-Pm Global Network Ltd., Pagmat Oil And Gas Ltd. and Magel
Resort Ltd.
The ex parte application was backed by a 15-paragraph affidavit deposed to by an investigator with the EFCC, Huleji Tukura.
Tukura claimed that investigation by the
anti-graft agency revealed that the funds found in the bank accounts
linked to Patience emanated from the coffers of the Bayelsa State
Government and that the funds were moved at a time when the former First
Lady served as a permanent secretary in one the ministries in the
state.
According to Tukura, Patience first
opened a First Bank account and then “procured” the then Senior Special
Assistant to former President Goodluck Jonathan on Domestic Affairs,
Waripamo-Owei Dudafa, to fund the account with “proceeds of unlawful
activities.”
Tukura averred, “That the said Dudafa
Warripamo-Owei procured one Festus Isidohomen Iyoha and Arivi Eneji
Peter, who were domestic (members of) staff attached to the State House,
Abuja, to deposit the funds, reasonably suspected to be proceeds of
unlawful activities, into the account of the 1st respondent (Patience).
“That in depositing the funds into the
account of the 1st respondent, the said domestic staff, in a bid to
conceal their identity, deposited the funds, reasonably suspected to be
proceeds of an unlawful act, into the 1st respondent’s account, using
fictitious names.
He added that another $4,036,750.00
reasonably suspected to be proceeds of unlawful activities, were
deposited into account No. 2022648664 domiciled in First Bank Plc in the
name of the 1st respondent.
Tukura stated that on September 28,
2016, the 1st respondent, in dissipating the property sought to be
forfeited, transferred $3,640,794.72 to the 1st respondent’s account No.
2031277178 domiciled in First Bank Plc.
He added, “That on the 5th day of
October, 2016, the 1st respondent withdrew the sum of $1,000,000.00 cash
from the said account leaving the balance of the sum of $3,645,013.73
which sum we are urging this honourable court to forfeit in the interim
to the Federal Government of Nigeria.
“That as at the time the various sums
were deposited into exhibit EFCC01, the 1st respondent was a serving
permanent secretary in the employment of the Bayelsa State Government.
“That the funds sought to be forfeited
to the Federal Government of Nigeria are not the 1st respondent’s lawful
earnings but are rather reasonably suspected to be proceeds of unlawful
activities.”
The investigator further explained that
the companies mentioned in the application were not into “any legitimate
income-yielding business venture” but were rather incorporated at the
Corporate Affairs Commission for the purpose of warehousing proceeds of
unlawful activities for the former First Lady.
He claimed that every now and then
domestic servants at the Presidential Villa were sent to deposit money
into the company’s accounts for Patience.
