On Wednesday, the Attorney General of the Federation and the Department of State Services were dismissed from two fundamental rights enforcement suits filed by Godwin Emefiele’s siblings in the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory FCT.
George and Okanta Emefiele filed a lawsuit against their parents and sought a court injunction to protect their right to freedom of movement, among other rights.
Individually, they had petitioned the court for an injunction barring the secret police from inviting, intimidating, harassing, or arresting them in connection with “matters or body of matters which relates to the ongoing investigation of Mr. Godwin Emefiele and/or matters outside the constitutional and statutory mandate of the 1st respondent (DSS)”.
In two different cases, the applicants had become parties alongside the DSS and the AGF.
Grace Ehusani, who represented the applicants in both cases, stated at Wednesday’s resumed hearing that the applicants had filed notice of discontinuation of the matter in each case.
Counsel for the DSS, Ibrahim Awo, did not oppose the application but instead asked the court to dismiss the case rather than strike it out as the applicants had sought.
He then requested a hefty N2 million cost award in favor of the respondents and against the petitioners.
The AGF’s lawyer, Maimuma Lami-Sheru, agreed with the DSS lawyer’s request for a N2 million fee.
Justice Emmanuel Okpe, sitting as a vacation judge, issued a ruling dismissing the lawsuits with no costs to the plaintiffs.
