Justice Nicholas Oweibo of the Federal High Court in Lagos has scheduled the arraignment of Godwin Emefiele, the suspended governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), for July 25. The charges against him pertain to the alleged unlawful possession of firearms. This date was set following a delay caused by the State Security Service (SSS) in complying with court orders.
On July 13, the SSS charged Emefiele with illegally possessing weapons on two counts.
The SSS charged Emefiele with illegally possessing one single-barrel shotgun (JOJEFF Magnum 8371) in the charges that were presented to the court.
He was also alleged to be in possession of 123 rounds of live ammunition (cartridges) without a licence.
Both charges are said to be in contravention of sections 4 and 8 of the Firearms Act Cap F28 Laws of the Federation, 2004, punishable under section 27 (1)(b)(i) of the Act.
On July 17, a group of lawyers took part in protests against the failure to comply with the orders of high courts in Abuja. In response, they initiated a contempt proceeding before a Federal High Court in Abuja, accusing the director-general of the State Security Service (SSS), Yusuf Bichi, of disregarding court orders. The lawyers sought to have him imprisoned for his alleged contempt of court.
On Monday, the attorneys, including Maxwell Opara and Ahmed Tijani, accused Bichi of disregarding a number of orders from M. A. Hassan, Hamza Muazu, and Bello Kawu despite having those orders served on them.