BY VICTOR BUORO, ABUJA – Following payment of the first tranche of the Ikoyi Osborne Tower cash recovery saga, a Federal High Court, Abuja, has fixed January 17, 2018 for hearing in a suit instituted against Minister of Finance, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFFC), Office of the Attorney General of the Federation (OAGF), and three others over the part payment of whistle-blowers entitlement in the huge sum of the $43.4m, N23.3m and 27, 800 Euros recovered by the anti-corruption agency in Flat 7, Osborne Towers, Ikoyi, Lagos through whistle blowing efforts.
The Court, presided over by Justice Ijeoma Ojukwu, is set to adjudicate on the suit instituted by one of the original Whistle-blowers Abdulmumini Musa in which he is praying for a mandatory injunction to stop the Minister of Finance from excluding him from the payment of the 2.5% to 5% of the whistle-blowing fees.
The court’s action by Musa was sequel to the move by the minister of Finance, Mrs Kemi Adeosun, to pay a sum of N421 million to the whistle-blowers without the plaintiff benefitting despite the facts that joint efforts led to the recovery of the huge sum.
To ensure that there is no obstacles in quick determination of the suit, hearing notice has been served on all the six defendants in the court action.
In the suit filed by Abdulhamid Mohammed, the plaintiff claimed to have participated actively in the whistle blowing efforts that led to the recovery of the money by the EFCC.
The suit with No. FHC/ABJ/CS/1158/2017 also has Bala Usman, Stephen Sunday and one Sheriff, all of Suite 6, Kujre Oil and Gas Filling Station, Abuja as 4th, 5th and 6th defendants respectively.
Plaintiff in the writ of summons claimed that he, 4th, 5th and 6th defendants’ jointly volunteered information to the EFCC operatives which eventually led to the recovery of the huge local and foreign currencies.
The plaintiff is seeking the court’s declaration that he is entitled to share from the approved whistle blowing entitlement by the minister of Finance and order of the court directing the EFCC and the minister to include his name as part of the beneficiaries of the whistle blowing fees along with the 4th, 5th and 6th defendants as they actively participated and are instrumental to the whistle blowing or disclosure of information which eventually led to the recovery of the huge sums of money.
Counsel to the plaintiff, Abdulhamid Mohammed has written another letter to the minister of Finance, the EFCC and the Attorney General of the Federation warning them to follow the path of the rule of law in the payment of the whistleblowing fees.
The letter dated December 12, 2017, and received on December 13, 2017, informed the minister of Finance that the Writ of Summon has been served on her and sufficient notice giving to her office to enable her stay action on the payment of Ikoyi whistle-blowers entitlement and to await the final determination of the matter before the court.
Already, part payment of the whistle-blower fee had been disbursed to the other whistle blower to the exclusion of the plaintiff and two others despite several complaints from the petitioner to both the Minister of Finance and her counterpart at the Justice Ministry and Attorney General of the Federation through their lawyers.
This is just as the lawyer to the first whistle-blower confirmed the payment by the Federal Government saying that the balance of the fee would be paid in the first quarter of 2018.
