EFCC: Why we’re not in hurry to charge El-Rufai to court

By Isaac Aregbesola

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has said it has not concluded its investigation of former Governor of Kaduna State, Malam Nasir El-Rufai

“We are still investigating the former governor, we are yet to conclude our investigations, before he was released on bail last Wednesday,” a source in the anti-graft agency said while explaining why charges have not been filed against El-Rufai despite being interrogated by operatives of the agency for three days.

The source said EFCC would not rush to court over the ‘grievous allegations’ against El-Rufai but would want to do a thorough and professional job on it before being charged to court.

The source added that the EFCC has not concluded its investigation before the former governor he was released on bail last Wednesday.

“Though he was taken into custody by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), immediately we released him.

We will still continue with our investigations after he is done with the ICPC.

“We will then charge him to court after the completion of our investigations of various allegations levelled against him,” the source said.

The former governor was initially held by the EFCC from Monday Feb. 16, when he honoured its invitation, until the night of Wednesday, Feb.18.

He was released on Wednesday night by the commission on administrative bail but later taken into custody by the ICPC.

El-Rufai was held in EFCC’s custody for two nights, from Feb. 16 to Feb. 18, over corruption allegations levelled against him.

One of his aides, Muyiwa Adekeye, had said in a statement that his principal as of Tuesday had spent nine days in the custody of the two anti-graft agencies.

Adekeye said that as of Monday, El-Rufai’s lawyers had not received any response from the ICPC, where he is currently being held, to an application for bail submitted on his behalf.

He added that the commission had also not shown them any remand order authorising his continued detention, in spite of what he described as the expiration of the 48-hour constitutional window for holding a person without charge.

Recall that El-Rufai had last week also filed a N1 billion fundamental rights enforcement suit against the ICPC over raid of his Abuja residence while he is in the custody of the Commission.

El-Rufai, through his team of lawyers led by Oluwole Iyamu, SAN, prayed the court to declare that the search warrant issued on Feb. 4 by the Chief Magistrate, Magistrate’s Court of the FCT (2nd respondent), authorising the search and seizure at his residence was invalid, null and void.

He urged the court to declare that the search warrant was “null and void for lack of particularity, material drafting errors, ambiguity in execution parameters, overbreadth, and absence of probable cause thereby constituting an unlawful and unreasonable search in violation of Section 37 of the Constitution.”

He prayed the court to declare that the invasion and search of his residence at House 12, Mambilla Street, Aso Drive, Abuja, on Feb. 19 at about 2pm and executed by agents of ICPC and I-G, “under the aforesaid invalid warrant, amounts to a gross violation of the applicant’s fundamental rights to dignity of the human person, personal liberty, fair hearing, and privacy under Sections 34, 35, 36, and 37 of the Constitution.”

He urged the court to declare that “any evidence obtained pursuant to the aforesaid invalid warrant and unlawful search is inadmissible in any proceedings against the applicant, as it was procured in breach of constitutional safeguards.”

El-Rufai, therefore, sought an order of injunction restraining the respondents and their agents from further relying on, using, or tendering any evidence or items seized during the unlawful search in any investigation, prosecution, or proceedings involving him.

“An order directing the Ist and 3rd respondents (ICPC and I-G) to forthwith retum all items seized from the applicant’s premises during the unlawful search, together with a detailed inventory thereof.

“An order awarding the sum of N1,000,000,000.00 (One Billion Naira) as general, exemplary, and aggravated damages against the respondents jointly and severally for the violations of the applicant’s fundamental rights, including trespass, unlawful seizure, and the resultant psychological trauma, humiliation, distress, infringement of privacy, and reputational harm.”

El-Rufai did the breakdown of the N1 billion in damages to include “a N300 million as compensatory damages for psychological trauma, emotional distress, and loss of personal security;

A N400 million as exemplary damages to deter future misconduct by law enforcement agencies and vindicate the applicant’s rights.

A N300 million as aggravated damages for the malicious, high-handed and oppressive nature of the respondents’ actions, including the use of a patently defective warrant procured through misleading representations.”

He equally sought a N100 million as cost of filing the suit, including legal fees and associated expenses.