Court stops EFCC, police from arresting sacked judge, Olotu

    
An Abuja Federal High Court on Tuesday granted an interim order stopping the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and others from arresting Justice Gladys Olotu, who was recently dismissed by President Goodluck Jonathan on the recommendation of the National Judicial Council.

Justice Olotu was a judge of the Abuja FHC before her compulsory retirement after the NJC found her guilty of misconduct.

The court, presided by Justice Adeniyi Ademola, granted the order after hearing Justice Olotu filed through her lawyer, Okey Obikeze.

In the motion, she asked the court to make an order directing the EFCC, Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission, the Inspector-General of Police, the Code of Conduct Bureau and others to refrain from inviting, interrogating, harassing, arresting and detaining her,  pending the hearing and determination of the substantive suit which she filed to challenge her dismissal.

Others listed as defendants in the motion are Centre for Network Against Corruption, a civil society organisation which had petitioned the EFCC alleging financial improprieties against the judge, the Attorney General of the Federation, the NJC, Hon Justice S.M.A Belgore, Chief Gabriel Igbenedion, Ponticelli Nigeria Limited, Stolt Offshore Services S.A, The Vessel M.V Theo, the owners of the Vessel M.V Theo, Elf Nigeria Petroleum Ltd, ABC Maritime AG, The Vessel M.V Lara and The Vessel M.V Krysia.

In an affidavit in support of the motion, Justice Olotu averred that she has been receiving numerous threats of arrest and detention at the instance of the respondents and that already, the EFCC on March 18, interrogated her from 10 am to 4pm at their office in Abuja and thereafter directed her to return on April 1.

She added that upon leaving the office of the EFCC, the agents of the other respondents started trailing her in a bid to arrest and detain her, and as a result, she has been avoiding her house.

After hearing the ex parte motion, Justice Ademola granted all the reliefs sought by Justice Olotu and adjourned hearing on the substantive matter to April 2.

Olotu had earlier approached the court to challenge her dismissal, after which the court granted her request for a judicial review of her suspension and recommendation for retirement by the NJC.

President Jonathan, the NJC, the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Mariam Mukhtar, the Attorney-General of the Federation, Mohammed Adoke, SAN, and the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, Justice Ibrahim Auta, were listed as the defendants in the suit she filed in a bid to set aside her sack.

The NJC had recommended the dismissal of Justice Olotu and Justice U. A. Inyang of the Federal Capital Territory High Court after finding them guilty of misconduct, following investigations into allegations contained in petitions brought against them.

According to the NJC, Justice Olotu “failed to deliver judgment only to deliver same in Suit No. FHC/UY/250/2003, 18 months after the final address by all the counsel in the suit, contrary to the constitutional provisions that judgments should be delivered within a period of 90 days.”

The Council added that Justice Olotu “admitted before the Fact Finding Committee of the Council that investigated the allegations that she forgot she had a pending ruling to deliver in an application for joinder.”

The NJC equally found that she “entertained a post Judgment matter in Suit No. FHC/UY/CS/250/2003 in Port Harcourt after delivering judgment, which made her functus officio.”

It was also established that “in another case, Suit No. FHC/ABJ/CS/505/2012, Justice Olotu failed to deliver judgment twice.”