It was recently reported that the Chief Judge of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Justice Ishaq Bello, had ordered Magistrates in the FCT to stop granting remand orders to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). This order may be connected to the policy of EFCC of securing warrants from magistrates to detain suspects beyond the 48 hours allowed by law. This was the move adopted by the EFCC to enable it detain the National Publicity Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Olisa Metuh in its custody pending the conclusion of its investigation or his proper arraignment. The EFCC claims to have obtained a valid court order to detain Olisa Metuh for 14 days. Many Nigerians have expressed their views on this development and as usual most views on the issue are split along sentimental lines. You might have pitched your tent with one side or the other but let’s see what the law actually says.

The purpose of this article is to address the issue of the validity or otherwise of the order of the Abuja Chief Judge to magistrates in line with the extant laws on such issues. Section 293 (1) of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2015 which provides that, “A suspect arrested for an offence which a magistrate Court has no jurisdiction to try shall within a reasonable time of arrest be brought before a Magistrate Court for remand.” Such a remand order once granted shall be for a period not exceeding 14 days in the first instance, and the case shall be returnable within the same period. A suspect affected by such a remand order is entitled to apply for bail before the Magistrate Court or proceed to the High Court to apply for the enforcement of his fundamental right to personal liberty.

The validity of this practice has been upheld by the Nigerian Supreme Court (the highest court of the land) in the case of Mrs. E. A. Lufadeju v. Evang. Johnson (2007) 8 NWLR (PT 1037) P. 535. The law in Nigeria appears to be quite clear as it affects the powers of Magistrate Courts to grant remand orders. I humbly submit that these provisions of the law as well as the decision of the Supreme Court in Lufadeju’s case cited above makes the directive of the Learned Chief Judge to Magistrates to be of no effect in law. The only lawful way to strip Magistrates of this power would have to be by Legislative amendment of the existing laws. It is therefore safe to conclude that if the EFCC obtained a remand order to detain Olisah Metuh then his detention by the EFCC was lawful and not a violation of his rights under s. 35 of the Constitution.

P.S. as at the time of writing this article, Chief Olisa Metuh has been charged to court by the EFCC and has been remanded in custody at Kuje Prison pending his bail application hearing.

Ehi Akpata, a lawyer, writes from Benin City. He tweets from @mcspella

Views expressed are solely that of author and does not represent views of www.omojuwa.com nor its associates