A Nigerian lawyer, Femi Falana, lodged a lawsuit against Federal High Court Chief Judge Abdul Kafarati for failing to appoint judges to perform a monthly inspection of anti-graft agency detention facilities.
In suit number FHC / CS/764/19 made accessible to journalists on Saturday, Mr Falana said he wrote a letter dated 7 September 2018 to Mr Kafarati urging him to conform with the statutory duty of appointing magistrates to visit detention centers with the Federal High Court’s authority.
The petitioner added that he wrote a reminder to the defendant on June 29, 2019 advising him to fulfill that statutory duty.
The senior lawyer said he wrote a similar letter to the Federation’s Chief Justice, Federal Capital Territory’s Chief Justice, and Lagos ‘ Chief Justice, urging all of them to comply with related statutory regulations. He said they have since appointed the visiting judges, unlike Mr Kafarati.
Mr Falana said Mr Kafarati did not comply with the statutory provision despite several instances of arbitrary detention in the multiple detention centres.
The complainant is therefore seeking the court’s statement that the defendant failed to appoint judges to carry out monthly inspections in the detention centers of the State Security Services Department (SSS), the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and other detention centers of all federal government agencies in accordance with section 34(4) of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2015.
“A declaration that by the express provisions of section 34(4) of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2015, the defendant is under a legal obligation to designate justices to conduct the monthly inspection in the detention centres of the Department of the State Security Services (DSS), Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and other detention centres of all Federal Government agencies.”
He sought a court order for the defendant to appoint judges to conduct the monthly inspection in the SSS, EFCC and others detention centres.
A judge is still to be assigned the suit.
