On Wednesday afternoon, Emefiele, who appeared elderly and feeble, left the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) building in Maitama without incident.
Emefiele was taken before the court almost two hours prior by a number of EFCC agents, some of whom were armed. Emefiele was dressed in light green native clothing and a headgear.
But after Judge Olukayode Adeniyi’s decision to grant him bail and give him over to his attorneys, the EFCC agents withdrew, leaving him in the hands of his attorneys and family, who drove him out of the courtroom and into a black sport utility vehicle (SUV) parked outside the main entrance.
When the case—a fundamental rights enforcement suit by Emefiele—was brought up, his attorney, Matthew Burkaa (SAN), informed the judge that the EFCC had brought his client in line with the court’s November 2 ruling.
Emefiele was seated in the courtroom when Justice Adeniyi requested him to stand up so he could be seen. Emefiele complied.
Judge Adeniyi expressed satisfaction and praised the EFCC and its attorney, Farouk Abdullah, for bringing Emefiele into court in accordance with the court’s November 2 order.
The judge then heard arguments from the parties’ attorneys regarding the best course of action for the court. The attorney representing Emefiele, Burkaa, then asked the court to give his client bail.
Burkaa said that Emefiele should not have been detained for 151 days, or nearly five months, without being accused of a crime.
He implored the court to grant Emefiele bail in accordance with the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA).
Burkaa continued, “The Federal Government and the EFCC have not demonstrated that Emefiele was a flight risk or that he would not appear in court if given bail.”
The attorneys representing the respondents, which included the Federal Government of Nigeria, the Attorney General of the Federation, the Chairman of the EFCC, Oyin Koleosho, and Abdullah, pleaded with the court to deny Emefiele bail.
They mentioned that Emefiele was the subject of an ongoing charge, and that his arraignment was set for November 15.
Deciding, The order was made in accordance with Order 4 Rule 4(C)(i) of the Fundamental Rights Enforcement (Procedure) Rules, which were made in accordance with Section 46(2) of the Constitution, Justice Adeniyi observed.
He observed that two issues were particularly apparent in the documents submitted by the respondents in the Emefiele lawsuit regarding the implementation of fundamental rights.
First, he mentioned that Emefiele was facing charges before a different judge in the court; his arraignment is set for November 15.
The second, the judge stated, was the EFCC presenting a copy of a remand order it purportedly had from an Abuja magistrate court to the court.
He stated that the court was quite concerned that Emefiele was held in state custody for about 151 days without being charged with a crime, despite the difficulties that had been pointed out.
Justice Adeniyi added:
“Even where a remand order subsists, the court is empowered under Section 298(2) of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA) to make any orders it considers necessary during the remand period.
“I must emphasize that the essence of the exercise today is not for counsel on both sides to argue or debate on whether or not the court should admit the applicant (Emefiele) to bail. The order of the court of November 2, 2023 is already clear on that.
“The exercise today only becomes necessary for the refusal of the 3rd and 4th respondents to abide by the first option given by the court in its order of November 11, which is to release the applicant unconditionally.
“He said although the court has been informed that Emefiele would be arraigned on November 15, which is not a certainty, cannot preclude his court from admitting him to bail in the interim.
“There must be an end to detention without trial. There are no compelling facts placed before this court that if the court admits the applicant to bail, he shall not attend the arraignment as scheduled.
“Without any further ado, I hereby order that the applicant be released on bail to his learned senior counsel – Matthew Burkaa (SAN), J. J. Usman (SAN) and Magaji Mato Ibrahim (SAN) – who are hereby charged with the responsibility of producing him in court on the 15/11/2023, the date scheduled for his arraignment or any such other date as the case may be.
“In addition, the applicant shall transmit and deposit all his international traveling documents with the Senior Registrar of this court pending his formal arraignment or pending the hearing and determination of the applicant’s substantive motion on notice filed before this court, whichever is earlier in time,” the judge said.
But for the fact the Emefiele was shielded by his lawyers, he would have been attacked by some angry individuals, who witnessed the court’s proceedings and were unhappy that the ex-CBN Governor was granted bail.
Emefiele, who looked troubled, was overheard asking his lawyers if they were sure the EFCC operatives will not come back for him.
As he walked from the third floor (where the courtroom is located) to the ground floor and into the waiting car, some of the angry individuals were shouting thief, thief, as they made effort to reach him.