Former Minister of Petroleum Resources, Diezani Alison-Madueke, has taken legal action against the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), requesting the Federal High Court in Abuja to halt the sale of her seized properties.
Through her legal team, led by Chief Mike Ozekhome (SAN), Diezani argued that the anti-graft agency had auctioned off her assets without granting her a fair hearing.
She further urged the court to direct the EFCC to retrieve any properties already sold to individuals or corporations.
According to the former minister, the EFCC acted “in breach of her fundamental right to fair hearing”by proceeding with the public auction.
The sale, she stated, was based on final forfeiture orders obtained from various courts across the country, which she insists were wrongly granted.
“In many cases, the final forfeiture orders were made against properties which affected the Applicant’s interest,”Diezani stated in her legal filings.
“The courts were misled into making the final order of forfeiture against the Applicant, based on suppression or non-disclosure of material facts.”
She further alleged that the applications leading to the forfeiture were secured through “gross misstatements, misrepresentations, non-disclosure, concealment, and suppression of material facts.”
Meanwhile, the EFCC had issued a notice in 2023, informing the public of its intent to sell assets linked to Diezani, citing court orders as the legal basis for the decision.
However, the former minister maintains that the orders should be reviewed and set aside.
Her legal team contends that “a void order is as good as if it was never made at all,”emphasizing the need for a fair reassessment of the case.
The lawsuit has once again ignited discussions about asset forfeiture laws in Nigeria, with legal experts and the public keenly observing the court’s next move.
