The arrest and incarceration of Mr. Godwin Emefiele, the suspended governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, have drawn more condemnations.

After initially denying that it had actually arrested the troubled top bank official, the Department of State Service, or DSS, acknowledged Wednesday that he was in its custody.

The DSS Public Relations Officer, Peter Afunanya, issued a statement confirming Emefiele’s detention.

“The DSS wishes to confirm that the suspended governor is now in its custody for some investigative reasons”, the statement said.
“The public, particularly the media, is enjoined to apply utmost caution in the reportage and narratives concerning this”, the statement warned.

President Bola Tinubu removed Emefiele from office on Friday night. His suspension was cited as a result of an ongoing investigation into his office and the proposed banking sector changes in a statement by Willie Bassey, Director of Information at the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation.

Emefiele took over in 2014 after succeeding Lamido Sanusi, who had also been controversially removed from office a few months prior to the conclusion of his term by President Goodluck Jonathan.

Olisa Agbakoba, a legal authority, called Emefiele’s detention as shocking in the meantime.

Agbakoba, in a statement by his Media Relations Officer, Niyi Odunmorayo, said: “The suspension of the CBN governor from office is not a surprise as his tenure was way beyond monetary policy. But confirmation by the DSS that Emefiele is in its custody comes as a shock.
“The statutory role of DSS is internal security and I shudder to think what role DSS will play in this matter. The rule of law says it all – can the relevant agency responsible for Governor Emefiele step forward but this excludes the DSS unless this has security implications”.

Additionally, lawyers protested the purported midnight raid on the Lagos home of the CBN suspended Governor and his forcible detention by DSS agents, calling the incident undemocratic, under the banner of United Lawyers for Rule of Law Defense.

The attorneys claimed that arresting Emefiele in defiance of an active court order prohibiting his arrest was against the rules of the rule of law in a press release issued by their leader, Hon. Obe Albert, yesterday.

Then, out of respect for the court and the law, they demanded his release.

Similar to this, the Niger Delta Rights Advocates (NDRA) claim that the suspended CBN governor’s rights were violated during his arrest by DSS personnel.

Bright Ngolo, the NRA’s National Coordinator, stated: “The organization is forced to call attention to a clear violation of Emefiele’s rights, who until Friday was the CBN Governor.

“The reports we have is that operatives of the DSS stormed the Lagos residence of Emefiele in the dead of the night, blindfolded him and forcefully took him away in a manner suggestive of abduction.
“As Rights Advocates, we should not live in a nation where all manner of gestapo style arrests will be made in the name of getting people to question them or account for perceived misdeeds. Mr Emefiele could be invited for questioning at any time since no Nigerian is above the law.
“However, we are also concerned that there is a judgment by a competent court in suit no GAR/CV/41/2022 instituted by the Incorporated Trustees of the Forum for Accountability and Good Leadership, wherein Justice M.A. Hassan barred the DSS, Attorney General of the Federation, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and the Central Bank of Nigeria, who are listed as 1st, 2bd and 5th defendants from arresting Emefiele.

“Our call for the authorities to respect the rule of law by challenging and setting aside Justice Hassan’s judgment has nothing to do with the propriety or otherwise of his removal from office as CBN governor. NDRA wants the due process of the law to be followed in pursuing the Emefiele case rather than painting the picture of repression of the rule of law.

“We call on all agencies of government therefore, to respect the rule of law as a confirmation that democracy has taken root in our country and no institution or agency of government can just wake up and overreach its bounds”

Investigate INEC, not CBN – LP

The Labour Party’s leadership, for its part, criticized the President’s decision to suspend Emeifele, calling it vengeful and unconstitutional.

Obiora Ifoh, the party’s acting national publicity secretary, made this statement Wednesday in Abuja.

He said, “The Labour Party is disturbed by the decision of President Tinubu to suspend Emefiele, albeit unconstitutionally without seeking the permission of the National Assembly and we insist that the action was not in good taste and sounds punitive.

“This is what Nigerians will face in the APC government, where perceived enemies are dealt with, perceived opposition parties and their members are dealt with, even when they are protected by the law.

“If indeed, there is any government agency that should be investigated with this utmost urgency, should it not be the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC and its Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu?

“This is the institution that is responsible for the mockery of our democracy. This is an institution which asked for and received N355 billion in taxpayers’ money to conduct the worst ever election in the history of Nigeria and Sub-Saharan Africa.

“This is an election umpire that has shamelessly chosen to be partisan during and after the election, even at the tribunal.

“We urge the APC-led government to carry out a thorough investigation of the CBN and particularly, the last APC government’s interference in the operation of the apex bank.

“Nigerians will not tolerate political and peripheral investigation. We suggest a forensic auditing by an independent firm and by so doing, maybe the real culprits, not just Emefiele will be unearthed.”