TheCable

The Economic Community for West African States (ECOWAS) court on Monday refused to grant the prayers of the federal government to strike out the suit of Sambo Dasuki, former national security adviser (NSA), who is challenging his arrest and detention without trial.

Through his lawyer, Robert Emukpoeruo, Dasuki filed the suit on March 15, asking the ECOWAS court to declare his arrest without a court order as unlawful, unconstitutional and breach of his fundamental right.

The government had objected to Dasuki’s case on the grounds that ECOWAS court lacks the jurisdiction to entertain the trial of any Nigerian in the Nigerian court.

Tijani Gazali, counsel to the government, asked the ECOWAS court to strike out the case because “it constituted an abuse to the Nigerian courts”.

But in its ruling in Abuja on Monday, the international court said it has jurisdiction to entertain the suit brought before it by Dasuki for the enforcement of his fundamental rights to liberty and to own property as enshrined in the provisions of the Nigerian 1999 constitution and African charter on fundamental rights of persons.

Friday Chijoke Nwoke, a justice, dismissed the objection of the government against Dusuki suit, saying it was “misconceived, frivolous and lacks merit”.

In the unanimous ruling of the three-man panel of the court, Nwoke held that the claim of government that Dasuki’s case emanated from his trial on certain offences was inappropriate.

The justice held that the claim of government that Dasuki ought to have filed contempt charge against the Nigerian government for disobeying court orders that admitted him to bail but flouted by the defendant could not be sustained because the case of applicant is not ambiguous, in that it has no root from any criminal trial in any court.

He added that at any rate, the case of Nigerian government could not stand in the face of the law because there was no evidence that Dasuki had filed similar pending matter in any international court and that even if he has similar matter in any Nigerian court up to supreme court, such domestic court could not maintaine the status of international court as envisaged in the treaty that Nigeria is a signatory to.

“In our opinion, what Dasuki brought before us as a case is an issue for the enforcement of his fundamental rights to liberty and own property and against unlawful arrest, unlawful detention and unlawful seizure of properties without any court order or warrant of arrest,” Nwoke ruled.

“From the totality of the issues brought before this court, it is clear and there is no ambiguity that the applicant is seeking enforcement of his right to freedom and not on the issue of his trial for any alleged offence before any Nigerian court.

“Therefore, the objection of the government and the request that the case of the applicant in this matter be struck out on the ground of emanating from any criminal matter has no basis, the claims and the request lack merit and are hereby dismissed and we declare that the application of Dasuki is admissible to this court.”

The ECOWAS court said it was not out to decide the issue of whether the applicant is guilty of the charges against him in the Nigerian courts or not but simply to ascertain whether his fundamental rights to liberty, having been granted bail in criminal matters and rearrested since last year and kept in an unknown place, constitute an abuse of his rights to freedom.

Dasuki had complained about the invasion of his houses in Abuja, Kaduna and Sokoto by security agents without any court order or warrant of arrest.

He also protested the seizure of his property comprising vehicles, money and documents, saying the actions constituted the abuse of his rights to liberty.

He is seeking N500million compensatory damages for being denied medical attention abroad.

Definite hearing in the matter has been fixed for May 17.