A Federal High Court in Abuja has granted Diezani Alison-Madueke, former Minister of Petroleum, permission to amend her suit challenging the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission’s (EFCC) order for the final forfeiture of her seized assets.
Justice Inyang Ekwo approved the motion on Monday after Diezani’s lawyer, Godwin Inyinbor, filed the request. EFCC counsel Divine Oguru did not object to the application. Inyinbor informed the court that the motion for amendment had already been filed and that Diezani had been properly served with the motion. The court granted the amendment request as presented.
Justice Ekwo ordered Diezani to file and serve the amended processes within five days, while the EFCC was given 14 days to respond after service. The case was adjourned to March 17 for further mention.
Diezani had initially filed the suit through her lawyer, Chief Mike Ozekhome, SAN, against the EFCC, seeking to extend the time to apply for a court order to set aside the EFCC’s public notice for the sale of her property. She argued that the various orders made by the court in favor of the EFCC were issued without jurisdiction and violated her constitutional rights to a fair hearing and property rights.
The former minister contended that she had not been served with charges or court summons related to the criminal charges against her and that the courts were misled into issuing final forfeiture orders due to suppression or non-disclosure of important facts. She argued that these orders should be set aside since they violated her right to fair hearing.
In response, the EFCC opposed Diezani’s application, claiming that she was involved in criminal acts including conspiracy, corruption, and money laundering, which were the basis for the forfeiture orders. The EFCC’s counter-affidavit asserted that the final forfeiture orders had already been made by the court in 2017 and had not been overturned on appeal.
The EFCC also noted that its investigation revealed the assets in question were proceeds of crime, and the agency had started auctioning the seized property in January 2023. The suspended EFCC Chairman, Abdulrasheed Bawa, had previously disclosed that over $153 million and more than 80 properties had been recovered from Diezani.
The legal battle is ongoing, with Diezani seeking to challenge the forfeiture of her assets, which she argues were wrongfully seized and sold.
