Court throws out Akwa Ibom government's case against EFCC

The Federal High Court in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, has thrown out a case brought by the Akwa Ibom State Government. The case challenged the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission's (EFCC) powers to investigate the state's financial dealings.

The EFCC shared this news on its Facebook page on Tuesday. Justice M.A. Onyetenu dismissed the case on 8 October after agreeing with a preliminary objection from the EFCC's lawyers.

The then Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Uwemedimo Nwoko, filed the suit in 2017. This was after the EFCC began looking into claims that state funds were misused.

The EFCC sees the dismissal as the end of this case in federal court. But it does not decide whether the investigation was valid or if the court has authority over state finances.

The EFCC stated that the judge accepted its argument. The case was not valid because a similar case was already in progress at the Akwa Ibom State High Court in Ikot Ekpene when the federal case started.

EFCC lawyer Joshua Abolarin argued that having the earlier case meant the federal action should not have happened. Justice Onyetenu accepted this argument and dismissed the case completely.

This issue goes back to 2016. Some residents of Akwa Ibom complained to the EFCC about alleged misuse of state resources meant for public good and development.

The EFCC said it started an investigation and called some state officials for questioning. Instead of going, the officials went to the Akwa Ibom State High Court in Ikot Ekpene through the Attorney-General to challenge the EFCC's actions.

The state government also filed a separate case in the Federal High Court, arguing against the EFCC's authority to look into the state government's financial matters.

On 6 July 2016, the late Justice F.O. Riman granted a temporary order against the EFCC and other federal agencies until the case was resolved. This order was later used to block the EFCC from questioning state officials.

An appeal against this temporary order failed. The Court of Appeal told the parties to go back to the trial court and wait for the main case to be settled.

The EFCC later challenged the competence of the committal case, saying the earlier case at the State High Court had not been resolved before this second case.

The latest ruling is a procedural win for the EFCC in its ongoing legal battle with the Akwa Ibom government. By upholding the preliminary objection, the court dismissed the case based on the EFCC's reasons. It did not look into the actual claims of financial misconduct.

The dismissal does not confirm that public funds were misused or that any state official did something wrong. The EFCC's announcement also does not show if the other case at the Akwa Ibom State High Court has been resolved.

This ruling takes away the federal case as a way for the state government to challenge the EFCC's investigation. The parties can still explore other legal options.

The EFCC is a federal body set up to investigate and prosecute economic and financial crimes. Disputes over its powers to investigate have often led to court cases involving public officials and government bodies.