Wike Asks Court to Restrain IG, EFCC, DSS from Searching His House

Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Ezenwo Wike, has asked the Federal High Court in Abuja to restrain the Inspector-General of Police, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Department of State Services (DSS) from conducting a search in his homes.

Wike is asking the court to declare that conducting such search in his house would violate his immunity guaranteed by the constitution.

He is praying the court to determine whether Section 308 of the 1999 Constitution precludes the defendants from applying for and or obtaining any process of any court requiring or compelling his appearance.

The governor wants the court to declare that by virtue of the provisions of Section 308 of the Constitution, the defendants or their agents cannot apply for, obtain, issue or in any way or manner howsoever execute any court process requiring his appearance.

Wike said the defendants intend to raise his Abuja residence so as to incriminate him in an unspecified crime through the recovery of huge sums of money, firearms and expensive wristwatches.

He is among others, praying the court for the following: “A declaration that by virtue of the combined effect of section 308 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended) and sections 149 (1) and 150 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act 2015 the defendants cannot whether by themselves, their servants, agents, officers, privies or in any manner howsoever apply for, obtain, issue or in any way or manner howsoever execute any search warrant at the residence of the plaintiff in Abuja or in any of the plaintiff’s residence in any other place or locations in Nigeria where the issue and or execution of such search warrant would compel and or require the presence of the plaintiff who is the Governor of Rivers State, Nigeria.

“An order that the defendants whether by themselves, their servants, agents, officers, privies or in any manner howsoever cannot by the combined effect of section 308 of the 1999 Constitution and sections 149 (1) and 150 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act 2015 apply for, obtain, issue or in any way or manner howsoever execute any search warrant at the residence of the plaintiff in Abuja or in any of the plaintiff’s residence in any other place or locations in Nigeria during the continuance of the plaintiff’s tenure of office as the governor of Rivers State.”