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By Lizzy Chirkpi
Former Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor, Godwin Emefiele, has challenged the Court of Appeal in Abuja, seeking to overturn a recent judgment that granted the federal government full control of a vast estate comprising 753 housing units in the Lokogoma district of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
Theproperty was initially seized by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) under a court order, with early reports linking it to another unnamed former government official. However, Emefiele, through his legal counsel A.M. Kotoye, has now stepped forward, asserting his own interest in the estate and arguing that he should have been a party to the forfeiture proceedings.
Emefiele stated in court documents,”I was unaware of the forfeiture,the EFCC published the interim forfeiture notice in an obscure section of a newspaper, making it difficult to detect.”
He further explained that his simultaneous involvement in three other criminal cases in both Abuja and Lagos hindered his ability to notice the publication.
He also accused the EFCC of deliberately concealing the forfeiture case from him, despite their ongoing engagement concerning other charges he faces.
The trial court, however, dismissed Emefiele’s claims, ruling that the EFCC had followed due process and that the newspaper notice was sufficiently public. The judge declared that the notice “could not reasonably be described as hidden.”
Despite the lower court’s assertion that he failed to provide proof of ownership, Emefiele maintains that he possesses both legal and equitable interests in the expansive estate. He characterised the entire ruling as a “miscarriage of justice.”
“The failure of the trial judge to properly evaluate the affidavit and documents before him is perverse and has caused a miscarriage of justice, “The orders were made in breach of the 1999 Constitution and are therefore null and void.”
In a related development, Emefiele’s legal team has written to the Minister of Housing, urging a halt to all plans to sell the estate until the appeal process is concluded. “We are aware that the properties may soon be sold to the public. We have already served the EFCC with a notice of appeal and an injunction,” the letter stated.
The federal government had recently announced intentions to auction the 753 housing units to low- and middle-income Nigerians, a plan that now faces uncertainty pending the outcome of Emefiele’s appeal.