Senator-elect, Prince Buruji Kashamu, has dragged the Inspector General of Police (IGP) and 11 others before a Federal High Court in Lagos to forestall the move of his extradition to the United States for alleged drug offences without following due process. In Originating Summons brought before Justice Okon Abang, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chieftain alleged that there was a conspiracy between the law enforcement agencies of Nigeria and the U.S to humiliate as well as prevent him from being sworn-in as Senator. Joined as defendants with the IGP in the fundamental rights suit marked FHC/L/CS/508/15, are Chairman, Nigerian Drug Laws Enforcement Agency, (NDLEA); Chairman, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, (EFCC); Director General, Department of State Security, (DSS); The Interpol National Central Bureau, (NCB); and Attorney-General of the Federation, (AGF). Others are – the Clerk of the National Assembly; the National Security Adviser to the President; Independent Corrupt Practices and other Related Offences Commission (ICPC); Nigeria Custom Services (NCS); Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) and Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC). Kashamu is seeking nine declarative orders from the court to restrain the defendants from arresting, detaining or otherwise effecting his abduction upon spurious allegation, that defendants' actions are illegal, unlawful, ultra vires and a breach on his rights. He is also seeking the court to direct the clerk of the National Assembly to accord all facilities and privileges due him as Senator-elect. When the matter was called for hearing on Monday, counsel to the EFCC, Rotimi Oyedepo, who stated he was yet to see the court processes, prayed for an adjournment to enable him find out which of the agency's offices was served. He told the court that the commission was yet to reply to the suit because he hasn't laid hands on the processes. Apologising for stalling the proceeding, Oyedepo noted that it would be in the interest of justice if EFCC was given a short adjournment to reply to the suit. But lawyer to the applicant, Dr. Alex Izinyon (SAN), urged the court to discountece EFCC's application for an adjournment, on grounds that the matter should be determined expeditiously. He argued that there was no material fact before the court to exercise its discretion, adding that since EFCC had conceded that they were served and failed to respond after 12 days stipulated by Order 8 Rule 3 of the court, there was no room for extension. Aside the EFCC, the NIS also pleaded for a short adjournment to enable its lawyer reply the applicant's brief. He told the court that the NIS has not been able to respond to the application as a result of the ill health of its counsel. Other respondents, who have filed their replies did not object the prayers of the EFCC and NIS, prompting Justice Abang to adjourn to May 8, for hearing of all pending applications. Kashamu, in a 92 paragraph affidavit filed before the court by Izinyon and Riceky Tarfa (SAN), averred that he was incarcerated in Brixton Prisons in London from January 10, 1998 to January 10, 2003. He stated that his committal order was set aside after a judgment delivered by the Bow Street London Magistrate presided by District Judge Tim Workman. The court, he added, cleared him of the allegations by the U.S. authorities. Kashamu averred that the court held that the allegations with regards to importation of Narcotic into U.S. involved a case of mistaken identity and there was no “prima facie” case that he was the person referred to as “Alaji” by those apprehended in the U.S., who had indicated that they had a West African collaborator. He stated that after the judgment, which was delivered on October 6, 2000, he was re-arrested and brought to face the second extradition proceedings which the U.S. authorities had commenced before the judgment of the high court was delivered. The senator-elect claimed that when the second extradition judgment was delivered on January 10, 2003, by Justice Tim Workman, he was released and returned to Nigeria to start his business. As a result of his philanthropic activities, Kashamu stated he was lured into politics, which has brought him some powerful enemies, including his erstwhile political leader, former President Olusegun Obasanjo. In the affidavit, Kashamu alleged that Obasanjo and himself had been political allies between 2009 and 2012, when he worked for him and his candidate for governorship of Ogun State, General Adetunji Olurin. He averred that he fell out with Obasanjo because of his stance for internal democracy in the PDP, which prompted him and his allies to institute legal actions to untie the grip of Obasanjo’s group on the party. Kashamu stated that his action enraged Obasanjo, who has made every attempt to stop his progress politically. He stated the former president engaged intense propaganda against him to give impression that he had been convicted for drug related offences in the United Kingdom (UK) or U.S. Kashamu averred that the International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL) was instigated to investigate him on the basis of these allegations in 2008, after which the agency published a report dated March 4, 2008, stating that he was never declared wanted. As stated by the PDP chieftain, his lawyer, Ajibola Oluyede, informed him in October 2014, that on a flight to Abuja from Lagos, a colleague of his, Chief Godwin Obla, SAN, who is very close to Attorney-General of the Federation, informed him of the tremendous pressure that Obasanjo was bringing upon the AGF for his extradition and in one of the discussion between the AGF and Obasanjo witnessed by Obla, the former president boasted that he was making arrangement with some U.S. officials in the region to have him abducted and flown in a private plane to the U.S., prompting Obla to advise Oluyede to warn him (Kashamu). He stated that upon discreet inquiries, he found out that there have been moves by U.S. official within the region to secure the assistance of the former head, Interpol division in Nigeria, Deputy Inspector General Of Police, Solomon Arase, now acting IGP, for his arrest and delivery to the U.S. officials for transportation to U.S. without following due process required by the Nigeria Extradition Act. Kashamu also claimed that Arase was alleged to have confirmed that one Doma Chabot approached him in January 2015, and he has been in communication with her and U.S. Directorate of Homeland Security Headquarters, Washington DC, since then. As stated by Kashamu, Ms. Chabot is in the Attaché, Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs enforcement at the American Embassy, Route Des Almedies, BP 49, Dakar, Senegal. He claimed that one Koye Ijaduoye, a chieftain of the PDP on April 1, told him that the All Progressives Congress (APC) senatorial candidate, Dapo Abiodun, had told him (Ijaduoye) on telephone that Obasanjo had assured Abiodun of Kashamu's extradition. He stated Ijaduoye, who stated he was a former aide to Abiodun, told him (Kashamu) that he telephoned Abiodun to sympathise with him for his loss in the election to Kashamu, but was surprised when Abiodun brushed aside his sympathy and told him that Obasanjo had assured him of plans between certain U.S. security officials and some Nigeria security agents to arrest Kashamu before or during his swearing-in as senator on May 29, and transport him to the U.S. in a private plane to face trial before Judge Norge. Kashamu alleged that the second option was to get the Inspector General of Police to withdraw his (Kashamu’s) police detail, thus making him accessible and vulnerable to their plots. The senator-elect stated he decided to take the necessary court action to stop Obasanjo from repeating what he did to one Lanre Shittu, on November 27, 2000. He claimed that Obasanjo abducted and transported Shittu to U.S. even after a competent court refused an extradition request. He contended that the AGF cannot act on any request from the U.S. in view of the appeal at the Supreme Court over the decision of the Federal High Court in Lagos in 1998, which had restrained the AGF from acting on request from U.S. authorities on these discredited allegations. Kashamu accused the incoming APC government of being a part of a plan to perpetrate illegality and to subvert the judicial system.
