Patience Jonathan kicks as EFCC seeks forfeiture of $8.4m, N7.3b

Wife of former President Goodluck Jonathan, Dame Patience, on
Monday asked the Federal High Court in Lagos to strike out an
ex-parte application filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes
Commission (EFCC), seeking the temporary forfeiture of her
$8,435,788.84 and N7.35 billion respectively.

She asked the court to grant an order striking out the motion
filed on December 13 last year because it lacks jurisdiction to
hear it.

Mrs. Jonathan said the motion was “a gross abuse of court
process” because the issues were already pending before Justice
Binta Nyako of the Federal High Court in Abuja.

“The ex-parte originating summons filed by the EFCC amounts to
forum shopping, thus an abuse of court process,” she said.

Through her lawyers, Mr. Ifedayo Adedipe (SAN) and Chief Mike
Ozekhome (SAN), the former first lady said the same application had
earlier been filed by the EFCC before Justice Mojisola Olatoregun
of the court’s Lagos division, upon which it had obtained an
ex-parte order.

She said the same application was before Justice Nyako “over
same parties to be affected by this same application.”

She said EFCC allegedly failed to disclose the different suits
and orders made prior to filing the application before Justice
Olatoregun in Lagos.

“The respondent is making great mockery of the judicial system
and in extension this honourable court,” Mrs. Jonathan said.

In a supporting affidavit, a lawyer in Ozekhome’s chambers,
Chimaobi Onuigbo, said EFCC knowing that its application had been
challenged in Abuja, filed the one in Lagos.

“The respondent upon knowing that their application had been
challenged has come to this court to seek same relief over same
accounts and parties that it has filed same application against in
all the suits already mentioned,” he said.

The respondents in EFCC’s motion are – Mrs. Jonathan, Globus
Integrated Services, Finchley Top Homes Limited, AM PM Global
Network Limited, Pagmat Oil and Gas Nigeria Limited, Magel Resort
Limited and Esther Oba.

Onuigbo said their accounts had been frozen for over one year
although they had not been charged with any offence by the
EFCC.

Wife of former President Goodluck Jonathan, Dame Patience, on
Monday asked the Federal High Court in Lagos to strike out an
ex-parte application filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes
Commission (EFCC), seeking the temporary forfeiture of her
$8,435,788.84 and N7.35 billion respectively.

She asked the court to grant an order striking out the motion
filed on December 13 last year because it lacks jurisdiction to
hear it.

Mrs. Jonathan said the motion was “a gross abuse of court
process” because the issues were already pending before Justice
Binta Nyako of the Federal High Court in Abuja.

“The ex-parte originating summons filed by the EFCC amounts to
forum shopping, thus an abuse of court process,” she said.

Through her lawyers, Mr. Ifedayo Adedipe (SAN) and Chief Mike
Ozekhome (SAN), the former first lady said the same application had
earlier been filed by the EFCC before Justice Mojisola Olatoregun
of the court’s Lagos division, upon which it had obtained an
ex-parte order.

She said the same application was before Justice Nyako “over
same parties to be affected by this same application.”

She said EFCC allegedly failed to disclose the different suits
and orders made prior to filing the application before Justice
Olatoregun in Lagos.

“The respondent is making great mockery of the judicial system
and in extension this honourable court,” Mrs. Jonathan said.

In a supporting affidavit, a lawyer in Ozekhome’s chambers,
Chimaobi Onuigbo, said EFCC knowing that its application had been
challenged in Abuja, filed the one in Lagos.

“The respondent upon knowing that their application had been
challenged has come to this court to seek same relief over same
accounts and parties that it has filed same application against in
all the suits already mentioned,” he said.

The respondents in EFCC’s motion are – Mrs. Jonathan, Globus
Integrated Services, Finchley Top Homes Limited, AM PM Global
Network Limited, Pagmat Oil and Gas Nigeria Limited, Magel Resort
Limited and Esther Oba.

Onuigbo said their accounts had been frozen for over one year
although they had not been charged with any offence by the
EFCC.