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Court fixes Dec 7 for Patience Jonathan’s suit over frozen account

By Joseph Onyekwere
27 October 2016   |   4:10 am
Hearing in the suit filed by former First Lady Patience Jonathan, against the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), seeking to unfreeze her account has been fixed for December 7 at the Federal High Court, Lagos.
Patience Jonathan

Patience Jonathan

• Women protest against EFCC
Hearing in the suit filed by former First Lady Patience Jonathan, against the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), seeking to unfreeze her account has been fixed for December 7 at the Federal High Court, Lagos.

Other respondents in the suit besides the EFCC are Skye Bank Plc and a former special assistant to ex-president Goodluck Jonathan, Waripamo-Owei Dudafa. Also joined in the suit are Pluto Property and Investment Company Ltd, Seagate Property Development and Investment Company Ltd, Transocean Property and Investment Company Ltd and Globus Integrated Service Ltd.

The ex-first lady is demanding $200 million from the commission, as damages for infringing on her rights.She is also urging the court to make an order discharging the freezing order and restrain the EFCC and its agents from further placing a freezing order on the said accounts.

When the case was called yesterday, Rotimi Oyedepo announced appearance for the EFCC, while Mr. Granville Abibo (SAN) announced his appearance for Jonathan.

Addressing the court, Oyedepo informed the judge that the matter was coming up for the first time, adding that some of the respondents had yet to be served with the court’s processes.

He submitted that the matter was not yet “ripe for hearing,” having been served with the processes on October 19 and he was yet to file a response.
Counsel to the plaintiff did not contest this submission.Consequently, Justice Babs Kuewumi fixed December 7 for hearing.

Meanwhile, about 100 suspected Ijaw women yesterday, stormed the court, chanting songs of protest over the frozen accounts of the ex-first lady.The women chanted songs in Ijaw and English languages, and raised several placards with some inscriptions, which read: “Ijaw people are in solidarity with Jonathan,” “Unfreeze ex-President Jonathan’s wife’s account,” “We urge EFCC to abide by the rule of law” and “Women must be heard.”

Some of the women expressed loudly their concern for enforcement of women rights as well as those of the ex-first lady. Immediately after the court had risen, they trooped towards the prosecution vehicle, chanting songs of solidarity and boldly displaying their placards.

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