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Nigeria: EFCC Arraigns Borishade, Fani-Kayode Tomorrow
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This Day (Lagos)
2 July 2008
Posted to the web 2 July 2008
Sufuyan Ojeifo And Dayo Thomas
Abuja
As the Senate yesterday condemned arrests of persons invited to give testimonies in the National Assembly within its premises, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) will tomorrow arraign the two former Ministers of Aviation arrested over the N19.5 billion Aviation Intervention Fund.
The ex-ministers, Prof. Babalola Borishade and Chief Femi Fani-Kayode, who were picked up at the National Assembly after appearing before the Senate committee probing the aviation fund were still being held by last night.
A senior official of the EFCC told THISDAY last night that the commission would arraign Borishade and Fani-Kayode tomorrow.
THISDAY also learnt that former Managing Director of the Nigeria Airspace Manag-ement Authority (NAMA), Captain Rowland Iyayi, will also be arraigned.
The commission's Head of Media and Publicity Femi Babafemi had earlier said Borishade, Fani-Kayode and Iyayi had made useful statements while they were being interrogated by the commission.
He said investigations were still ongoing and EFCC would not keep them for long.
Borishade and Fani-Kayode were said to have been arrested based on the information provided by Mr. George Eider, Managing Director of Avsatel Ges MB of Austria, who had earlier been arrested by EFCC.
The company had won the N.6.5 billion Safe Tower contract, which was said to have been inflated.
The Austrian was said to have made useful statements to EFCC about the two ministers and the contract.
Yesterday, however, the Senate passed a resolution barring EFCC from further arrests within the assembly of persons invited to give testimonies at public hearings organised by its standing and ad hoc committees.
The resolution, which also barred all other security agencies, followed Monday's arrest of Borishade, Fani-Kayode and Iyayi by the commission.
EFCC had also arrested Eider, whose company got the controversial N6.5 billion Safe Tower Project last Wednesday at the assembly.
Ruling on a point of order raised by Senator Eyinnaya Abaribe (Abia South) on the development, the Upper Legislative Chamber said such arrests were capable of scaring away persons invited to make presentations and give testimonies before any of its committees.
He had come through Order 15 of the Senate Standing Rules (2007 as Amended).
Deputy Majority Leader, Senator Victor Ndoma-Egba (SAN), who relied on the Legislative Houses Powers and Privileges Act, said EFCC's action in arresting people on the premises of the assembly was illegal and unlawful.
According to him, "The privileges enjoyed by lawmakers are automatically enjoyed by persons invited to the National Assembly and I think that our guests should feel safe right here to be able to do what they were invited here to do."
Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu said the issue was beyond matters of law, stressing, "Even commonsense dictates that conducive atmosphere should be created for people to come into the National Assembly and testify. Moreover the privileges of the National Assembly should be respected"
In his contributions, Chief Whip, Senator Kanti Bello, opposed the position, arguing there was nothing in the constitution that prohibited EFCC from arresting persons in and around the premises of assembly.
Bello said the people who were arrested could have escaped if they had been allowed to leave the premises of the assembly.
Senate President David Mark shared the position of Abaribe, saying the arrests could hamper the operations of the assembly.
According to him, "Some of those persons, who would be scared away, could provide useful information on an investigation being carried out by the Senate Committees."
Mark said EFCC could have effected such arrests elsewhere outside the National Assembly premises, and called for caution in the arrest of persons invited by the assembly to appear before it or any of its committees for clarification of issues.
He said the arrests had created the impression that the National Assembly was doing the bidding of the EFCC under the guise of public/investigative hearings.
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Mark expressed concern at the trend of the arrest, saying EFCC operatives had operated in a manner that suggested there was a concert between them and the National Assembly to round up suspects who appear before standing and ad hoc committees of the Legislature.
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