The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has picked the immediate former Senate President, Bukola Saraki, for questioning on the spending of pubic funds under his tenure as Kwara State Governor, barely two weeks after the anti-graft agency told a Federal High in Abuja that his actions recently had been hindering the agency from probing him.
As gathered, the anti-corruption embarked on a fresh trail of Saraki after investigations revealed that the former lawmaker, while serving as governor in his state, was alleged to have engaged in theft and laundering of public funds using a network of proxy companies.
A source at the EFCC told The Guild that the Kwara ex-governor was arrested at 1:30 pm from his house by a special EFCC team and that the team arrived at the headquarters in Abuja at about 2pm.
The source added that the former senate president was immediately led into a waiting room where he was been questioned for his actions during his eight years tenure between 2003 and 2011.
He added that during Saraki’s tenure as governor, investigations further revealed that the representatives of the proxy companies allegedly made returns to him.
Meanwhile, the action of the commission, according to a source close to Saraki’s aide, negate the law, adding since the court was yet to overrule an existing judgement, I do not see any reason they should have done that.
According to him, the EFCC had filed a case before Justice Anwuli Chikere and the judge has adjourned the matter until Oct. 7, later in the year for hearing.
The earlier ruling was delivered on the suits filed by Saraki against EFCC and the suits filed before Justice Taiwo Taiwo to challenge the action of the EFCC were marked FHC/ABJ/CS/507/19 and FHC/ABJ/CS/508/19 respectively.
The Judge’s ruling on these cases had previously been the basis on which Saraki had continued to allegedly evade invitation and questioning from EFCC.
Justice Taiwo, who was the presiding judge, ruled on an ex parte application filed along with the substantive suits and ordered the anti-corruption agency and other five respondents to the suits to stay action on the probe pending the hearing and determination of the motion on notice filed by the applicant.
Aside from that, the court further directed all parties including EFCC, the Nigerian Police, and other security agencies to maintain the status quo as well as suspend any probe.
“By the provision of Order 4(3) of the Fundamental Rights Civil Procedure Rules, 2009, the court may, if satisfied that the applicant may be caused hardship before the service of an application where liberty or life of the applicant is involved hear the application ex parte upon such interim reliefs as the justice of the application may demand.
“There is no doubt that in making the interim reliefs or orders, the court is guided even in the exercise of its discretion judicially and judiciously applied by the law and statutes.
“I am of the view, after due consideration of the aforesaid, that this court ought to make the order being sought by the applicant pending the hearing and determination of the originating motion on notice,” Taiwo had ruled.
