Return Fayose’s houses, court tells EFCC

Posted by admin EFCC Politics, Ekiti, State News Thursday, March 31st, 2011

FORMER governor of Ekiti State, Mr Ayodele Fayose, has won in a suit against the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), in which he was contending the sealing off of his houses in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, by the commission.

In the final ruling of a Federal High Court sitting in Ibadan over the matter, on Wednesday, the EFCC was said to have erred by sealing off two properties belonging to the former governor without any court order directing that the properties be forfeited to the Federal Government.

Delivering his ruling on the case, with suit number FHC/IB/CS/99/10, instituted against the anti-graft agency by the former governor, Justice Jonathan Shakarho said the action of the officials of the commission, who sealed off the Iyaganku GRA houses of the former governor, amounted to “malicious embarrassment of the plaintiff.”

Shakarho, while maintaining that the action of the EFCC officials was condemnable, awarded N10 million as exemplary damages in favour of Fayose.

The judge also restrained the commission or its officials from issuing “misleading press statements, publishing photographs and procuring the release of misleading information about the properties in the media.”

Justice Shakarho further ruled that the EFCC be restrained from sealing off any of the former governor’s properties or infringing on his fundamental and constitutional rights any further.

“The respondents, that is the EFCC, either by itself, its officers, agents, operatives, servants or privies, whosoever, are restrained from further issuing misleading press statements, publishing pictures of the applicant’s residences and or procuring the release of any misleading information in the print media, in any manner whatsoever, or from sealing off the building property and residences of the applicant, being at Plot 12, Block X and Plot 10, Block 1X, GRA Iyaganku, Ibadan, and or engaging in any manner of infringement of the fundamental and constitutional rights of the applicant,” the judge said.

-Tribunewp_posts