A Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Mike Ozekhome, has told a Federal High Court in Lagos that he received N75 million from the Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose, as legal fees.
Mr. Ozekhome stated this in a suit filed before the court seeking to unfreeze his account, that was frozen by the anti-graft EFCC based on a court order.
The Federal High Court on Thursday fixed March 2 for the hearing of the lawyer’s suit.
Mr. Ozekhome said the N75 million contained in the account is the legal fees he received from the Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose.
Justice Abdulazeez Anka ordered that a hearing notice be issued on the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC.
The court had on February 7 ordered a temporary forfeiture of N75 million found in the applicant’s Guaranty Trust Bank account following an application by the EFCC.
When the case was called on Thursday, the EFCC was not represented in court.
Addressing the court, Mr. Ozekhome said his suit was filed on February 14 and that EFCC was served on February 20 according to a proof of service.
Justice Anka noted that the commission was still within time to respond.
He said the commission was entitled to seven days which, he said, had not lapsed, adding that the commission should be allowed their clear seven days.
In his response, Mr. Ozekhome asked for the earliest possible date for hearing of his application, insisting that the suit was urgent.
Mr. Ozekhome, who is seeking the immediate vacation of the interim forfeiture order, argued that the EFCC’s application for the interim order was done in bad faith.
The commission, he said, did not comply with the statutory and judicial authorities in obtaining an interim order through a motion ex-parte.
According to him, the respondent suppressed material facts in obtaining the order and as such, “the action is unconstitutional as same offends constitutional provisions.”
He said the EFCC did not disclose to the court that Justice Taiwo O. Taiwo of the Federal High Court in Ado-Ekiti, had unfrozen Governor Ayodele Fayose’s accounts forthwith.
Mr. Fayose’s account was initially frozen by the EFCC for his alleged role in the misappropriation of billions of Naira from the office of the National Security Adviser.
Mr. Ozekhome said the unfreezing order allowed the governor to operate his account before transferring the sum of N75 million to his chambers’ account.
He further argued that the EFCC’s application and the subsequent order were based on non-compliance with court rules and judicial authorities regulating the granting of ex-parte application.
“The entire gamut of the application leading to the granting of the interim order ex-parte amounts to forum shopping and a calculated attempt to over-reach me.”
He submitted that the issue, whether the said sum formed proceeds of a crime, was currently on appeal.
Justice Anka adjourned the suit to March 2.