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The Supreme Court of Nigeria has dismissed appeals filed by the Rivers State Attorney General and the Speaker of the State House of Assembly.
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It cleared the way for the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to investigate former Rivers State Governor Peter Odili’s tenure.
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Odili had secured a perpetual injunction in 2007.
The Supreme Court of Nigeria has dismissed appeals filed by the Rivers State Attorney General and the Speaker of the State House of Assembly, effectively paving the way for the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to investigate the tenure of former Rivers State Governor, Peter Odili.
In a ruling delivered on Monday, March 10, 2025, a five-member panel of the apex court, led by Justice John Okoro, upheld the leave granted by the Court of Appeal to the EFCC, allowing the anti-graft agency to challenge a long-standing perpetual injunction that had barred it from probing Odili’s administration.
Odili, who governed Rivers State from 1999 to 2007, secured the controversial injunction from the Federal High Court in Port Harcourt in 2007, preventing the EFCC from investigating, arresting, or prosecuting him, as well as scrutinising the state’s finances during his tenure.
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The EFCC has fought to overturn the injunction since 2008, but the legal blockade had shielded Odili from its investigations for nearly two decades.
During the proceedings at the Supreme Court on Monday, Justice Okoro questioned the nature of the appeals, describing them as interlocutory and not the kind of cases the apex court hears at this stage.
“The litigants’ lawyer, S. A. Somiari, SAN, argued that the appeal challenged the leave granted by the Court of Appeal for the EFCC to appeal the 2007 injunction.
Justice Okoro, however, interjected, stating, ‘This is not the type of appeal we hear here,’ and advised the parties to return to the Court of Appeal to have the substantive appeal heard before approaching the Supreme Court.”
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Recognising the court’s position, Somiari applied to withdraw the appeal, while the EFCC’s legal team, led by Abubakar Mahmud, SAN, alongside Sylvanus Tahir, SAN, and B. O. Obialo, did not oppose the withdrawal.
The Supreme Court subsequently dismissed the appeal.
“The appeal is dismissed, having been withdrawn without any objection,” Justice Okoro ruled.
He also stated that a similar appeal, filed by the Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly, was dismissed on the same grounds.
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Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, has ordered the Heads of Local Government Administration to immediately take over the administration of the 23 local government areas, following the Supreme Court judgment that nullified the state LG elections conducted by the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission (RSIEC).
The governor also directed the outgoing local government chairmen to formally hand over to the Heads of Local Government Administration by Monday, March 3, 2025.
