High Court Rules Out Adegoruwa’s Suit Against Magu’s Confirmation

Justice Mojisola Olatoregun of a Federal High Court in Lagos yesterday stroke out the suit filed by Lagos lawyer, Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa, challenging the continued stay in office of the acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ibrahim Magu.

The judge took the decision after Adegboruwa’s lawyer; Tayo Oyetibo (SAN) sought the leave of the court to withdraw the suit.

Adegboruwa had dragged Magu before the court, praying it to restrain Magu, from further parading himself as acting chairman of the commission.

The lawyer had also urged the court to order the Senate not to entertain any further request for the confirmation of Magu as Chairman of the EFCC since he has so far defied and rubbished the earlier decision of the Senate of December 15, 2016, wherein the Senate declined to confirm his nomination as Chairman of EFCC.

The defendants in the suit are the Senate, the Attorney-General of the Federation, the EFCC and Ibrahim Magu.

But at the resumed hearing of the matter on Monday, Oyetibo told the court that after he was briefed on the fact the case, he went through the file and took the decision to persuade the human rights activist to hands-off the case so as to further encourage Magu in his current war against corruption.

Oyetibo stressed, “There is need to give Magu the opportunity to continue the anti-corruption campaign of the present administration and since this case may affect Magu’s confirmation as such, it was better to discontinue it.”

To confirm the development, Adegboruwa on his part maintained that he was well persuaded by his counsel, that in his second coming, Magu will do a good job, to be more rule of law friendly and to be holistic in his approach to the anti-corruption drive of the administration.

However, the withdrawal of the suit was not opposed to by the counsel to the anti-graft agency, Wahab Shittu, who posited that the position would surely boost the anti-corruption war of the Buhari/Osinbajo administration.

[Leadership]