EFCC challenges Diezani’s bid to rely on UK acquittal in property case

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has challenged former Petroleum Resources Minister Diezani Alison-Madueke’s bid to rely on a United Kingdom court judgment that discharged and acquitted her of bribery and corruption allegations in her ongoing property forfeiture case in Nigeria.

The commission made its position known in a further counter-affidavit filed in opposition to Diezani’s application seeking to tender the June 17 judgment of the Southwark Crown Court in London as evidence.

Justice Inyang Ekwo had on July 1 granted Diezani permission to present the UK judgment before the Federal High Court.

However, the EFCC argued that the proceedings before the Southwark Crown Court had no bearing on the Nigerian case or the final forfeiture orders under which the disputed properties were sold.

The anti-graft agency maintained that the UK proceedings concerned a separate matter that was not being prosecuted before any Nigerian court and had no relevance to the substantive suit before Justice Ekwo.

The EFCC said the properties were sold pursuant to final forfeiture orders issued by Justice C.A. Obiozor of the Federal High Court on July 9, 2019, and Justice I.N. Oweibo on September 10, 2019.

It maintained that the orders remained valid and had not been set aside, adding that notices were published in newspapers to allow interested parties to show cause why the assets should not be forfeited before the final orders were made.

Diezani, through her counsel, Prof. Mike Ozekhome, SAN, is seeking an order directing the EFCC to retrieve properties allegedly sold to third parties.

She alleged that the commission sold assets linked to her without affording her fair hearing and argued that some of the forfeiture orders were obtained through misrepresentation, suppression and non-disclosure of material facts.

The former minister also maintained that she had never been convicted of any unlawful activity to justify the forfeiture of her properties and claimed that she had been outside Nigeria since 2015 while undergoing medical treatment and was not served with relevant court processes.

The EFCC, however, said criminal proceedings had been instituted against Diezani in various Nigerian courts following investigations into her activities while she was a public servant.

Justice Ekwo adjourned the matter until November 11 for hearing of the pending applications.