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Appeal Court dismisses CBN’s appeal against N63.7m, $10,000 awards
The Court of Appeal in Abuja has dismissed an appeal by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) seeking to block the payment of N63.7million and $10000 awarded against the Federal Government, in favour of a German, Martin Gegenheimer, for his unlawful arrest and detention by men of the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS).
A three-member panel of the appellate court held, in a unanimous judgment on May 23 (last Friday), that the appeal by the CBN was devoid of any scintilla of merit.
In the lead judgment, Justice Hamman Barka resolved the two issues identified for determination, against the CBN and in favour of the first respondent, Gegenheimer.
The Appeal Court proceeded to affirm the February 22, 2024 ruling by Justice Inyang Ekwo of the Federal High Court, Abuja, ordering the CBN to pay Gegenheimer the N63.7m and $10000 awarded against the Nigerian government in a 2021 judgment by the Court of Justice of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).
The appellate court, in the judgment on the appeal marked: CA/ABJ/CV/434/2024, also awarded N300,000 cost against the appellant (the CBN), in favour of Gegenheimer, for filing an unmeritorious appeal.
Justice Ekwo had, in the February 22, 2024, ruling, ordered the CBN to deduct the N63.7m and $10000 from the FG’s funds in its custody to settle the debt that arose from a 2021 judgment given against Nigeria by the ECOWAS Court.
Justice Ekwo rejected CBN’s claim that the Federal Government’s foreign exchange accounts were currently in deficit, making it impossible to pay the entire judgment sum.
The ruling was on a garnishee proceeding, marked: FHC/ABJ/NJR/M/3/2022, filed and prosecuted for Gegenheimer by his lawyer, Daniel Makolo, to enforce the judgment of the ECOWAS Court delivered on March 4, 2021.
Justice Ekwo agreed with Makolo that, as against the contention by the CBN, the ECOWAS Court’s judgments do not qualify as a foreign judgment in the strict sense of it and could be enforced by Nigerian courts.
The German, who said he visited Nigeria on a business trip, stated that while returning to Kenya on 23rd February 2020, he was stopped by men of the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) at the boarding gate of the Kenya Airways aircraft after all necessary departure formalities were completed.
He said the NIS officials arrested him, seized his passport and detained him in a jam-packed detention cell between February 23, 2020, and March 4, 2020, despite the COVID protocol and without acceptable food as well as medical care.
He subsequently challenged his arrest and detention before the ECOWAS Court, in a suit marked ECW/CCJ/APP/23/2020.
In the March 4, 2021, judgment, a three-member panel of the sub-regional court, presided over by the court’s president, Justice Edward Amoako Asante, declared Gegenheimer’s arrest and detention illegal.
They ordered the Nigerian government to pay him N53,650,925 as special damages for various losses suffered and costs incurred while under unlawful arrest and detention by the NIS.
The costs, the court said, relate mainly to hotel expenses incurred by the Germans while under forced detention by agents of the Nigerian government.
The court further ordered the Nigerian government to pay him another N10m in general damages as reparation for all violations and moral prejudice suffered for violating his rights, and an additional $10,000 was the expenditure incurred by the applicant to secure his bail.
The ECOWAS Court equally ordered the Nigerian government to remove the German from its watch list and to immediately and unconditionally release his German passport, which was “arbitrarily and unlawfully” seized by agents of the Nigerian government.
Meanwhile, a Federal High Court in Abuja has dismissed a charge of forgery brought against Gegenheimer by the NIS in the name of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
The NIS, in the charge marked: FHC/ABJ/CR/152/2020, accused the German of, among others, forging a Nigerian international passport.
In a ruling, Justice Evelyn Maha upheld the no-case submission made by Gegenheimer (through his lawyer, Makolo) and held that the prosecution failed to produce relevant evidence to support its allegations against the defendant.
Justice Maha further held that the prosecution, having failed to make out a prima facie case against the defendant and failed to link him with the alleged offences, there was no basis to call on him to enter a defence.
She proceeded to dismiss the charge and then discharged and acquitted Gegenheimer.
News
Adeboye advised me to pay my wife full salary after resigning from her banking job-Bakare
Popular man of God Pastor Tunde Bakare has narrated how RCCG Senior Pastor Eunuch Adeboye advised him to pay his wife full salary after she quit her job.
Hear him:
“ Pastor Adeboye told me to be paying the full salary of my wife when she resigned from her bank job without telling me”.
“ When my wife told me she had resigned, I drove to my father-in -law’s house to report her but he told me that nothing concerns him with our marriage.
“I then drove straight to Redemption Camp to report her to Pastor Adeboye. I told him how my wife just resigned from her bank job without telling me and that I just started my chambers and we were just making it little by little and her salary would help us augment whatever I gave her.
“Pastor Adeboye’s response shocked me. He said, “ Wow,she did that on her own! Don’t u think that’s a great thing to do? She did it to focus attention on your child. If all women would do that Nigeria would be a better place. He then told me that apart from house allowance, I must be paying her the salary she earned at the bank since she resigned to start working in my house and taking care of the children.”
“I wasn’t happy with the counsel because I was scared of how I would cope as the sole breadwinner of the house. The Holy Spirit then took me to Isaiah 54:5 and showed me a Scripture I will never forget,” I,the Lord your God,your maker, I am your husband. The Holy Spirit then said if I am your husband, treat your wife the way you want me to treat you! “
“I was sober and I prayed.The next month instead of giving her 375 Naira, her salary in the bank, I gave her 500 Naira and I also gave another 500 Naira for house allowance. It has grown since then!”
* Culled from his autobiography, the last but definitely not the least*
News
SAD! One casualty, six injured as bus collides with truck on Ikorodu road
A terrible road crash at Majidun, inward Ogolonto, Ikorodu Road, has left one woman dead and six others grievously injured, the authorities have confirmed.
The Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) revealed that the accident involved a Volkswagen commercial bus, registration number EPE 494 XM, and a stationary tipper truck.
In a statement signed by the Director, Public Affairs and Enlightenment Department of LASTMA, Adebayo Taofiq, said that Preliminary investigations indicate that the bus, chartered to ferry passengers to a programme in Ogijo, suffered a sudden brake failure while reportedly speeding recklessly.
However, the driver lost control, slamming violently into the tipper truck parked at the roadside for diesel.
The violent collision claimed the life of an adult female passenger instantly.
Five women and one man sustained severe injuries and were rushed to Benic Special Hospital for emergency treatment. The deceased was taken to General Hospital, Ikorodu, for formal documentation.
The statement read, “The brutal impact resulted in the instantaneous death of an adult female passenger, while five female occupants and one male sustained severe and life-threatening injuries. While all 5 injured casualties were rushed to nearby Benic Special Hospital, the remains of the deceased were immediately transferred into the custody of security personnel who conveyed them to the General Hospital, Ikorodu, for urgent formal documentation.
“In a swift and highly coordinated response, LASTMA operatives pursued and apprehended the tipper truck driver who attempted to abscond upon witnessing the enormity of the tragedy. The driver of the commercial bus was likewise arrested. Both individuals were thereafter handed over to officers of the Ipakodo Police Division for comprehensive investigation.
“To re-establish order and ensure seamless vehicular movement toward Ikorodu Garage, LASTMA personnel efficiently removed the mangled remains of both vehicles from the roadway.
“The General Manager of LASTMA, Mr. Olalekan Bakare-Oki, conveyed profound grief over the harrowing incident and extended his heartfelt condolences to the bereaved family.
According to the statement, “He prayed that Almighty God grants them the fortitude to endure the irreplaceable loss, and he wished the injured victims a swift and full recovery.
“Mr. Bakare-Oki further admonished motorists to exercise utmost restraint, vigilance, and discipline on the highways by avoiding excessive speed.
“He stressed that overspeeding drastically impairs a driver’s capacity to respond to sudden mechanical failures or unforeseen hazards, thereby magnifying the risk of catastrophic outcomes.
“Bakare-Oki reaffirmed LASTMA’s resolute commitment to the protection of lives and the promotion of safer motoring culture across Lagos State.
News
2027: Despite Ex-President Jonathan’s unusual silence, supporters storm PDP convention with posters(Photos)
Despite Ex-President Goodluck Jonathan’s unusual silence towards his 2027 presidential aspiration, many Peoples Democratic Party members who support former President Goodluck Jonathan’s political comeback were seen at the party’s current elective convention in Ibadan, the capital of Oyo State.
With Bala Mohammed, the governor of Bauchi State, projected as Goodluck Jonathan’s running mate, the supporters were seen raising flags.
According to an online newspaper there has been conjecture on Jonathan’s potential return to run for president in 2027.
Despite the former president’s silence on the subject, his allies attested to his purported preparedness to run in the much awaited election.
On Friday, posters of Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde were seen at the convention site.
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