ECOWAS: The ECOWAS Court of Justice has fixed judgement for 29 June 2016 in the suit filed by retired Colonel Sambo Mohammed Dasuki, the National Security Adviser (NSA) to former Nigerian President alleging the violation of his human rights by the government over his continued detention since December 2015 and seizure of his properties.
This followed the conclusion of oral evidence by two officers of the Department of State Security who were called as witnesses by the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
Led in evidence by Mr. T. A. Agbe, Counsel to the government Mr. Williams Obiora and Mr.Alu Agbi told the Court that the continued detention of Col. Dasuki was for his own protection following intelligence report available to the service and also because he constitutes a threat to national security.
They said that section 3 of the Firearms Act, CAP F28 LFN 2004 of the Federal Republic of Nigeria prescribes the arms that cannot be licensed to individuals and that the arms found in Dasuki`s house during an authorized search fell within the category of prohibited arms. They added that since the possession of the arms is illegal, it presupposes that they are meant for illegal use and that since the plaintiff did not deny possession of the arms, the government suspects that there were more of such arms elsewhere.
The officers also told the Court that national security supersedes individual security and that the law permits the DSS to restrict the movement of any citizen when his life is in danger.
Counsel to the government of Nigeria defended the seizure of Col. Dasuki’s property arguing that the law that set up the country’s Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), a government agency that investigates financial crimes, allows the seizure of the property of looters. He also dismissed the argument of the plaintiff that the defendant refused to release him on bail granted by competent Nigerian courts as there is no evidence to show that he has fulfilled all the bail conditions for his release and urged the Court to discountenance all the reliefs sought by the applicant and dismiss the case in its entirety.
However, Counsel to the former NSA, Mr. Robert Emukperuo urged the Court to disregard the submissions of the defendant and grant the application of his client in its entirety as the submissions of the defendant were at variance with the document they filed. Moreover, he said that the submissions of the first witness alluded to safety and escape and not national security contrary to one of the documents tendered by the defence.
In his earlier submission, Mr. Emukpoeruo had asked the Court to grant all the 13 reliefs sought by the applicant arguing that there it is not an issue that the applicant is in detention and that the State of Nigeria had put him on trial in three different high courts on corruption charges where he was granted bail and that after bail he was rearrested without charge on December29, 2015, and has since been held.
He argued that the critical issue that needs to be addressed is whether there is any legal basis for the detention other than the recourse to national security in light of the sensitive arms or high caliber arms found in his house. He said the defence did not adduce before the Court any judicial procedure for his incarceration and therefore his client’s detention is a classical case of arbitrary and illegal arrest.
Col. Dasuki had approached the Court in suit ECW/CCJ/APP/01/16 alleging the violation of his human rights and asking for 500 million in damages.
