Justice Abdul Kafarati of a Federal High Court in Abuja yesterday declined the request by former Minister of Aviation, Senator Stella Oduah to stop the Federal Government from probing her tenure between 2011 and 2015 and prosecuting her.
Delivering judgment yesterday on a fundamental right enforcement application brought against the Federal Government by Oduah, Justice Kafarati, held that the fundamental right enforcement suit by Oduah lacked merit.
The trial judge upheld the objection raised by the respondents (the Attorney General of the Federation and the Inspector-General of Police), to the effect that the court lacked the requisite jurisdiction to hear the case, which subject matter was outside the provision of Chapter 4 of the 1999 Constitution.
He declared that the Federal Government's investigative and prosecutorial agencies cannot be prohibited from carrying out there constitutional duties, adding that any invitation by the police and the EFCC was an opportunity for Oduah to present her own side of the case.
Oduah who is a serving Senator from Anambra North Senatorial District had, in the case prayed the court to declare illegal the alleged plot by the respondents to arrest, investigate and prosecute her in relation to her activities while in office, particularly the controversial two amoured cars she acquired.
The purchase of the amoured vehicles by the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) while Oduah was minister, had attracted public outrage over allegation that the prices were inflated.
Oduah had argued that the criminal allegations relating to her tenure as minister had been investigated by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and House of Representatives' Committee on Aviation, which both absolved her of any wrong doing.
She urged the court to declare that, having earlier been exonerated, any further investigation, arrest, harassment and prosecution of her person in relation to the same issue, amounted to the invasion of her fundamental right to personal liberty, freedom of movement and to be presumed innocent until proved guilty.
She prayed for order prohibiting the respondents from inviting, arresting, otherwise harassing or prosecuting her over the matter.
Respondents in the suit included the Attorney General of Police (AGF), EFCC, the Inspector General of Police (IGP) and the Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offences Commission (ICPC).
Justice Kafarati, in upholding the preliminary objection by the AGF and the IGP, agreed with them that Oduah could not come under the fundamental rights procedure to seek the reliefs she sought.
He said the subject matter of the case was not a fundamental rights issue.
The judge agreed that Oduah cannot seek to restrain statutory bodies from performing their statutory responsibilities through a fundamental rights enforcement application.
He held that the case was without merit and dismissed it.
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