Human Rights Activist and Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Femi Falana has called for the release of former EFCC Chairman, Abdulrasheed Bawa, from the custody of the Department of State Service (DSS).
According to Falana, the remand order against Bawa has expired, as per the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA), which stipulated a maximum detention period of fifty-six days.
He mentioned that given that the detention period has been exceeded, the DSS should release Bawa from illegal custody without any further delay.
The lawyer demanded that the Federal Government must ensure that the rights of both Bawa and former Central Bank Nigeria, CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele were respected by the DSS and the office of the Director of Public Prosecution at the Federal Ministry of Justice, despite their record of disobeying court orders while in office.
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He said:
“The plight of both suspects should be a lesson for all public officers in Nigeria who always behave as if there will be no tomorrow. However, the government, which rules by law, is under legal obligation not to breach the fundamental rights of citizens, except in a manner prescribed by the Constitution.”
Falana recalled how he had earlier demanded the immediate release of Emefiele and Bawa
On that, he said:
“I requested the Federal Government to charge the two detained suspects before a court of competent jurisdiction if there was evidence they had committed criminal offences.
“It is public knowledge that Emefiele was recently charged with illegal possession of firearms before the Lagos Judicial Division of the Federal High Court. Even though he was granted bail, the DSS treated the order of the court with contempt.
“As the violent invasion of the court, coupled with disobedience of the order of the court by officials of the DSS could not be justified, the Federal Government decided to withdraw the charge of illegal possession of firearms. The case was, accordingly, struck out by the court, while Emefiele was charged with some economic crimes at the Abuja Judicial Division of the Federal High Court.”
He further said:
“In view of the fact that Bawa has not been charged with any criminal offence whatsoever, the DSS ought to have released him from custody. I am not unaware of the claim that Bawa is being detained on the basis of a remand order issued by a magistrate court in the Federal Capital Territory.
“It ought to be pointed out that the remand order has become spent, invalid and illegal as no magistrate has the power under Section 493 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2015 or Section 35 of the Constitution of Nigeria to authorise the detention of a criminal suspect for 67 days without trial.”
