Ogun Assembly sues EFCC, ex- deputy speaker for alleged defamation

The Ogun State House of Assembly has filed a lawsuit at the Federal High Court, Abeokuta, against the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the impeached Deputy Speaker of the House, Oludare Kadiri, for alleged defamation

In the suit N0.FHC/AB/CS/7/2022 dated January 14, 2022, the Assembly alleged that the former deputy speaker was using an EFCC official to get the information given to the agency under confidentiality and leaked such with the purpose of smearing the image of the House in the media.

The parliament confirmed the development in a statement sent to Ripples Nigeria on Friday.

It read: “This is as a result of the confirmed evidence that Hon. Kadri, who has unfettered access to EFCC, is using an official of the Agency to implicate the House at all cost by arranging clandestine meetings between the said official and the invited officials of the House with the aim of giving out the questions to be asked in advance and supposed response for purpose of implicating the House.”

The Assembly said its request to the EFCC for the provision of a copy of the petition against the House in line with section 36 (6) of the 1999 Constitution was rebuffed by the anti-graft agency.

The Assembly urged the court to grant an order of interlocutory injunction directing the EFCC to stay action on criminal investigation pending the hearing and determination of a substantive suit filed last year.

“Without prejudice to formal service of the relevant processes by the court bailiffs, this letter serves as clear and unequivocal notice to the EFCC that a motion for interlocutory injunction is currently pending before the court,” it stated.

Court summons Ogun Assembly over suit filed by ex-OPIC chief

Justice Peter Lifu of the Federal High Court in Lagos has summoned the Ogun State House of Assembly to show cause within seven days, why it should not be restrained from proceeding with the case by the former Managing Director of the Ogun State Property Investment Corporation (OPIC) Mr Jide Odusolu.

The judge made the order on Monday sequel to a motion moved by Odusolu’s counsel, Adetunji Adedoyin-Adeniyi.

Odusolu’s counsel argued on why the court should grant the interim reliefs contained in his client’s motion ex parte.

However, the court ordered the respondents in the suit to show cause upon being served with the order and the court processes, why they should not be restrained in line with the interim reliefs sought by the plaintiff.

The respondents in the suit are the Inspector-General of Police, Assistant Inspector-General of Police (AIG) in charge of Zone 2, Commissioner of Police in Ogun, the state House of Assembly, and the clerk of the Assembly.

On September 21, 2012, the Assembly had during its plenary purportedly adopted the report of its Committee on Anti-Corruption and Public Accounts which investigated the finances of OPIC and discovered huge sums of money allegedly missing from the agency’s accounts.

But Odusolu filed a suit before the court, seeking a declaration that the proceedings of the Assembly and the report of the committee which it purportedly adopted constituted an infringement on his fundamental right to a fair hearing.

He also sought a declaration that the Assembly lacked the competence to investigate the alleged crime and that the chairman of the committee was himself an interested party who served together with Odusolu in the previous administration and even inspected some OPIC projects, which he later claimed have not been executed.

Odusolu also asked the court to grant an order of injunction to restrain the Assembly from deploying the report to initiate any criminal complaint against him before the police and to restrain the police from acting on the said report, pending the hearing and final determination of the suit before it.

In a 40-paragraph affidavit deposed to by the plaintiff, he traced the series of projects executed by OPIC, adding that the accounts of OPIC have been audited by professionals and no fund was missing at all.

Justice Lifu adjourned the matter until November 1 for hearing.

Ogun Assembly passes 2022-2024 Medium Term Expenditure Framework

The Ogun Assembly on Friday passed the 2022-2024 Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) for the state.

Governor Dapo Abiodun presented the 2022-2024 MTEF to the parliament in August.

The Assembly approved the financial framework after adopting the report of the House Committee on Finance and Appropriation at the plenary.

The Chairman of the committee, Olakunle Sobunkanla, moved the motion for the adoption of the report and this was seconded by the whole House.

The report was later read and adopted by the House.

The House Majority Leader, Yusuf Sheriff, moved the motion for the passage of the House resolution titled: “The Year 2022- 2024 Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF)’, seconded by Sobukanla and supported by the whole House.

The Speaker of the Assembly, Olakunle Oluomo, directed the Clerk of the House, Deji Adeyemo, to convey the House resolution to the state’s Commissioner for Budget and Planning, Olaolu Olabimtan, for the preparation of the 2022 budget.