A Federal Capital Territory, FCT, High Court on Friday struck out an application by former National Security Adviser, NSA, Col Sambo Dasuki (rtd), seeking to stop his trial pending his release from detention.
Justice Peter Affen, in his ruling, held that the former NSA was unable to prove that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, was holding him after he was granted bail.
Affen said that the anti-graft agency did not in any way act contrary to court order because it did not have the accused person in custody.
Dasuki, in an affidavit filed by his counsel, Joseph Daudu SAN, in support of his application, claimed that President Muhammadu Buhari betrayed his emotion when he said he and the embattled leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, Nnamdi Kanu might not be release as they may jump bail during a chat with journalists in December.
Claiming that he has been barred from associates since his arrest, Dasuki prayed the court to stop his trial until the federal government complied with court order granting him bail.
Daudu showed the court newspaper cuttings in which the president expressed disapproval to the bail granted his client by the court.
The defence counsel while countering the argument that Dasuki was being held by the Department of State Services, DSS, and not the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, told the court that such claim did not hold water as the Federal Government is the complainant in the charges and that both the DSS and the EFCC were agents of the government.
Rotimi Jacobs SAN, counsel to the Federal Government, however informed the court that the charges were leveled against Dasuki by the EFCC, and not the DSS.
Jacobs argued that EFCC did not disobey court order granting Dasuki bail, but that the former NSA was being held by another government agency.
He then urged Justice Affen to strike out Dasuki’s application because the DSS, which is holding him was not a party to the charges against him in court.
Following the prosecution’s argument, Justice Affen dismissed the application.
