Court dismisses EFCC’s case against Okorocha

The presiding judge, Justice Yusuf Halilu said the action of the anti-graft agency, to have filed the charge in his court, despite filing the same with a Federal High Court was a gross abuse of the judicial process.

While delivering judgment in the suit filed by the EFCC against the former governor of Imo State, Justice Halilu noted that being a creation of law, the EFCC should be seen to be a respecter of the law that created it.

Okorocha was prosecuted by the EFCC on a 17-count charge bordering on conspiracy, stealing, conversion of public funds, and money laundering to the tune of N3.1 billion.

In his judgement, Justice Halilu recalled previous rulings on the same subject matter which EFCC was aware of but still decided to file the same charges against Okorocha before his court.

He recalled that Justice Inyang Ekwo of the Federal High Court, Abuja, had on February 6, 2023, discharged and acquitted Okorocha of the fraud charge preferred against him by the EFCC.

According to him, the ruling of the Abuja High Court flowed from an earlier judgement of a court of coordinate jurisdiction sitting in Port Harcourt in suit number: FHC/PH/FHR/165, between him and EFCC, restraining the agency from further proceeding on the alleged offence subsists.

In the ruling, Justice Stephen Pam, of the Federal High Court, Port Harcourt, had declared it unlawful and made an order prohibiting the EFCC from further prosecuting Senator Okorocha.

However, on Friday, saying that counsel to Okorocha, Ola Olanipekun, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) had successfully woven together the previous court pronouncements, Justice Halilu said he could not but agree with the complaint that the complainant (EFCC) had abused the judicial process by filling the same charges against the complaint in the FCT High court.

While he noted that the same criminal charges filed before the Federal and FCT High courts against Okorocha are now being construed as an abuse of judicial process, Justice Halilu said, he is though was not precluded to look at all the evidence presented, “My desire is to see if the EFCC, being a creation of the law is indeed a respecter of the law being a creation of the law and whether or not these are judgements viz a viz the charges filed before the Federal High court and FCT High Court touching on the same investigation that was declared a nullity by the Federal High Court amount to an abuse of judicial process.

“An order made by a court of competent jurisdiction is valid until it is declared null by a court of competent jurisdiction.

“That’s why any step taken in filing any charge against the first defendant/applicant towards or stemmed from the same investigation which has been declared null and void and unconstitutional by a Federal High Court shall always be challenged on grounds of an abuse of court process.”

He said even though the number of charges is not the same on both charge sheets, the fact nonetheless remains that they were borne out of the same investigation that has been declared illegal and unconstitutional by the Federal High Court.

The judge also noted that the complainant/respondent (EFCC), through his counsel made a strenuous effort to convince the court that the charges are not the same.

In addition, he said the EFCC counsel tempted the court that it was not bound by the decision of a court of the same jurisdiction, which he said could be true but to the extent that it does not amount to an abuse of judicial process.

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Saying that to every general rule, there’s an exception, Halilu said, “If it has to do with the judgement of the Federal High Court, touching on the same subject matter, the same parties, arising from the same investigation which has been declared a nullity and unconstitutional by the Federal High Court, this court is bound hands and legs by the decision of that court, so long as it is the same charge that is being duplicated before me.”

While frowning against incessant abuse of the court process, Justice Halilu said it is no doubt that the charge before him is a nullity and unconstitutional.

He said what the EFCC should have done is to have filed an appeal if it was not satisfied with the earlier court.

Having filed an appeal while filing the same charges at the FCT High Court, the judge said it leaves him with no option than to agree with Okorocha’s counsel, Olanipekun that the EFCC had indeed given the court a proper definition of abuse of judicial process.

“This is indeed an abuse of the court process. I say this with every sense of modesty because there must be an end to litigation, that is why we have statute of courts,” he added.

He said the EFCC must be truly seen as obeying the law, being a creation of the law since the court is needed always for the prosecution of the anti-graft agency’s cases, which the court has helped to promote the image of the agency.

“Having come thus far, this is a convenient ground for me to grant the said application of the applicant and to discourage abuse of court process, that once the abuse of judicial process is established, the proper order is to dismiss the process that has been abused, accordingly the said charge before me is hereby dismissed.”

Okorocha, who was in court, after the session, expressed his appreciation to the judiciary and the outcome of the case.

While urging the EFCC not to relent in its drive against economic corruption, however, he advised that their actions must always be driven within the ambit of the law.