A High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) in Maitama has granted bail to the former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele.
Justice Olukayode Adeniyi admitted Emefiele to bail in a ruling delivered a moment ago and handed him to his lawyers, who shall produce him in court on November 15 when he is scheduled to be arraigned before another judge of the High Court of the FCT in a charge earlier filed by the EFCC against him and one other person.
“There must be an end to detention without trial” the judge held, stressing that it was the refusal of the Economic and Financial and Crimes Commission, EFCC, to comply with the order the court made on November 2, that led to the ruling.
Besides, the court held that it could not allow Emefiele to remain in custody owing to claim of the Federal Government that he would on November 15, be arraigned on a fresh charge.
It held that the claim was speculative as there was nothing to establish that the planned arraignment would hold as scheduled.
More so, the court noted that a purported remand order that FG’s lawyer tendered before it, which was signed by an Abuja Chief Magistrate, bore conflicting dates.
“A very crucial fact that this court cannot overlook is the Applicant’s claim that he has been incarcerated for a period of upward of 151 days without trial,” Justice Adeniyi added.
He held that section 298(2) of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, ACJA, 2015, empowered the court to make necessary orders, even when there is a remand order against an Applicant.
Consequently, the court directed that Emefiele should be released to a team of three Senior Advocates of Nigeria, SANs, that represented him in the matter.
It held that the lawyers should produce him in court on November 15 for his planned arraignment or at any other date that he is required to appear in court.
Justice Adeniyi directed Emefiele to surrender all his international documents to the most senior Registrar of the court, pending his arraignment.
It subsequently adjourned further proceedings in the matter till November 17.
The ruling followed a fundamental right enforcement suit that the erstwhile CBN boss, who has been in detention for about five months, filed through his team of lawyers led by Mr. Matthew Burkaa, SAN.