Former chairman of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), Chidi Odinkalu, has recalled how he sued the now-suspended governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele, in February for his job.
Odinkalu said in a brief comment made available to TheNiche on Sunday alongside the judgement that the National Industrial Court of Nigeria (NICN) made that he did not have locus standi.
The statement followed Emefiele’s suspension from office by President Bola Tinubu effective Friday night. The suspended CBN boss has also been arrested by the Department of State Services (DSS) months after he was accused of financing terrorism among others.
First applicant, Odinkalu, and second applicant, Ralph-Collins Uzoezie, jointly sued Emefiele (first respondent) CBN (second respondent) and the Attorney General of the Federation at the time, Abubakar Malami (third respondent).
The action was commenced by an originating summons filed on 12 May, 2020.
In support of the originating Summons was a 4-paragraph affidavit deposed to by one Joy Anne John female, Nigerian and a Litigation Secretary in the law firm of the counsel to the applicants.
It was deposed that the first applicant is a citizen of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and has interest in the manner the affairs of the country is conducted and he is also a tax paying citizen, legal practitioner, civil rights activist and former chairman of the NHRC who is interested in seeing a greater Nigeria where the provisions of the laws are adhered to. The second applicant is a tax paying citizen.
The applicants prayed the court to determine some questions including:
“Whether by the combined effect of the provisions of Sections 1(3) and 9 of the Central Bank of Nigeria Act, 2007, the 1st Respondent is statutorily mandated to devote the whole of his time to his employment with the 2nd Respondent (as an independent entity) and the Federal Republic of Nigeria and not engage in any full or part time employment or vocation which in the context includes belonging to a political and participating in its primaries, congresses or other convention for the purposes of nomination of its candidates to contest election for the office of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria schedule for 25th February 2023.
“Whether by the combined effect of the provisions of Sections 40 and 45 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended) and Sections 1 (3) and 9 of the Central Bank of Nigeria Act, 2007, the overriding interest of public order and morality required of the 1st Respondent in the independent discharge of his functions while in the employment of the 2nd Respondent does not override the protection of his interest to belong to a political party and participate in its primaries, congresses or other convention for the purposes of nomination of its candidates to contest election for the office of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria scheduled for 25th February 2023.”
In his judgement, Justice Oyebiola Oyewumi said among other things, “In view of the above reasoning, I must say that from whatever angle it is looked at, the Applicants have not disclosed in their affidavit in support of the Originating Summons sufficient interest to have the locus standi to bring this action. The nature of this action and the reliefs sought are not such that this Court can expand the scope of locus standi in favour of the Applicants.”
Credit: The Nicheng
