Deputy President of the Senate,
Senator Ike Ekweremadu, has described as political witch-hunt by an illegal
body, the assets’ forfeiture case launched against him.
Uche Anichukwu, media aide to
Ekweremadu said it was against natural justice for lawyers of the All
Progressives Congress, APC, extraction to constitute themselves into a panel to
try members of the opposition, relying on Decree 3 of 1984, now known as the
Recovery of Public Property (Special Provisions) Act, 2004.
The Federal Government had asked
the Federal High Court in Abuja to freeze undeclared assets that were traced to
him.
Anichukwu in a statement noted
that not only was the law already overtaken by the Code of Conduct Bureau and
Tribunal Act, 2004, but that the Panel was also not Gazetted in any publication
by the Federal Government of Nigeria Gazette or inaugurated by the President.
“So, considering the Senator ’s
ordeals since his re-emergence as the Deputy President of the Senate in 2015,
and with 2019 election fast-approaching, no one needs any soothsayer to know
that the FG up to something more sinister and diabolical of which the asset
forfeiture lawsuit is a launch pad.”
He explained: “As earlier
clarified by the Senator, the list contains so many fictitious and repeated
properties generated by the dismissed Chief Judge of Enugu State, Justice
Innocent Umezulike, who, in his capacity as the Chief Judge of the State in
2016, colluded with his lawyer, Barrister Tagbo Ike, and some politicians, to
steal and doctor his will. They then churned out petitions to many government
agencies.
“Should proper investigation
devoid of bias and witch-hunt not require that Ekweremadu be invited to respond
to the petition, assuming the panel had the constitutional powers to dabble
into matters relating to assets declaration?
“But the Panel instead approached
the court by way of Motion Ex-parte, which would allow it obtain an interim
forfeiture order against the distinguished Senator, without hearing him, just
to achieve a maximum smear effect.
“The fact that the petition was
authored by a former Chief Judge, who was sacked by the National Judicial
Council for corruption and gross abuse of office and is currently facing
corruption trial at the Federal High Court, Port Harcourt and High Court of
Enugu State, was more reason his petition should have been treated with
wariness.
“Besides, it is on record, as
recently reported by some national dailies, that the AGF had in a letter dated
November 1, 2017 and signed by the Solicitor-General of the Federation,
withdrawn Notices of Investigation, which Obono-Obla sent to some Judges of the
Federal High Court, requesting them to fill assets declaration forms all over in
clear overreach of his purported powers.
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