Read the press statement below...
Our attention has been drawn to yet
another mischievous report credited to the
Public Relations Officer of the National
Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA),
Mr. Mitchell Ofoyeju, in The Punch
newspaper of today, Friday, February 5,
2016, purporting that Senator Buruji
Kashamu is still facing some extradition
proceedings. Nothing could be farther from
the facts and truth.
Notwithstanding the misleading impression being
created that the agency intends to allow the rule
of law prevail, we are aware that its ex-Chairman,
Alhaji Ahmed Giade, who is now the Special
Assistant to the Minister of Justice and Attorney-
General of the Federation (AGF) on Narcotics is
set to arm-twist the NDLEA to resort to yet
another extra-judicial move.
The misuse of the word “extradition” by NDLEA is
a euphemism for the illegal rendition they actually
are planning. Let it be reiterated that Senator
Kashamu is not worried about extradition
proceedings being brought against him in
accordance with Nigerian Laws. He knows that
can never succeed in view of the decisions of the
English courts that have exonerated him and has
confirmed by several judgments of competent
Nigerian Courts.
What Senator Kashamu is complaining about is
the plan to abduct and ship him out of Nigerian
without resort to due process or the Rule of Law,
an illegal venture that is known as “rendition” not
extradition as the NDLEA misrepresents to the
public. For the avoidance of any doubt,
extradition proceedings have already been
brought against Senator Kashamu by the
previous Attorney General of the Federation in
Suit No. FHC/ABJ/CS/479/2015 and was
dismissed on the 1st of July, 2015.
The AGF has not appealed against that dismissal.
In its judgment in that extradition proceedings the
court expressly held that, “This suit is hereby
dismissed…The Applicant (i.e the AGF), being an
office created by the Constitution (see Section
150 (1) of the Constitution 1999 As Amended)
has a greater obligation, by its act and conduct,
in the context of its very extensive constitutional
powers…to be seen to be law abiding and to give
maximum and unqualified respect to every
judgment of a court of competent jurisdiction,
regardless of its opinion as to whether the Court
was right or wrong until such decisions are set
aside by the appellate Courts.
To do otherwise is to further deepen an incipient
culture of disobedience of Court’s orders and of
unmitigated acts of unbridled impunity to judicial
process even by the citizenry and the proverbial
‘common man’ whose last hope lies in the
Judiciary.” It is highly mischievous for anyone to
claim that “there is a pending appeal by the
Federal Government through the Federal Ministry
of Justice to extradite Kashamu to the US for him
to face trial.”
The appeals in question are in relation to other
judgments and orders that restrained them from
taking any steps against Senator Kashamu on the
basis of the same allegations that he had been
exonerated from. Mr. Ofoyeju and his co-
travellers should acquaint themselves with the
basic facts and details of a case before making
pronouncements that could further cast the
NDLEA as a lawless organisation in the eyes of
right thinking members of the society, and among
the comity of nations.
As we have often said, based on the Extradition
Treaty between Nigeria, the United Kingdom and
the United States, two British courts heard
extradition proceedings against Senator Kashamu
at the instance of the US authorities and found
that it was a case of “mistaken identity”, and
released him.
The same NDLEA that Mr. Ofoyeju claims to be
speaking for had sent two of its top officials –
the then Director of Prosecution and Legal
Services, Mr. Femi Oloruntoba and one Umaru
Dan Asabe (former Director of Operations) – to
London to give evidence (confirming that Senator
Kashamu was not the person sought for by the
U.S. authorities) with the approval of the then
Minister of Justice and Attorney-General of the
Federation.
It is on the basis of these two British judgments
that several Nigerian courts have held that the
NDLEA cannot take any further steps against
Senator Kashamu. And when they did, in spite of
the subsisting orders and judgments of the court,
the action was dismissed. It is noteworthy that in
the same report, the current Minister of Justice
and Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF), Mr.
Abubakar Malami, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria
(SAN), who is the Chief Law Officer of the
Federation has given indication that his office
would not be a party to any illegality.
His position as expressed by his media aide is in
tandem with global best practices in the comity of
nations where any country that lacks regard for
the rule of law is seen as a lawless society.
There can be no extradition without the courts
only illegality. Finally, our advice to Mr. Ofoyeju
and Alhaji Giade is that they should leave Senator
Kashamu alone.
He does not have any extradition case to answer.
A dismissal is a bar to any further action before
the court and it is therefore clear that when
NDLEA says “extradition” what it actually means
is “rendition” since it cannot go back to any
Nigerian court after the dismissal. NDLEA should
be called to order to avoid being used to
perpetrate illegality, political vendetta and
blackmail.
Signed
Austin Oniyokor
Media Adviser to Senator Buruji Kashamu
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