Justice Isa Dashen of the Federal High Court in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, has criticized the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for publishing a declaration of Pastor Oyinmiebi Biribena and his wife, Pastor Beatrice Biribena, as wanted in a national daily on June 8, 2022. Pastor Biribena leads the Christ Embassy Church in Kumasi, Ghana.
The judge ruled that the publication was made without a valid court order, rendering it unjustified, unlawful, and unconstitutional. In a judgment on a suit filed by the Biribena couple on June 10, 2022, seeking the enforcement of their fundamental human rights against the EFCC and its former spokesperson, Wilson Umujaren, Justice Dashen sided with the couple.
The court held that the EFCC’s publication violated the couple’s fundamental rights to personal liberty, freedom of movement, right to private and family life, and dignity of human person as guaranteed by the Nigerian Constitution and the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights.
As a result, Justice Dashen ordered the EFCC to publicly apologize to the Biribena couple for the unlawful publication and restrained the commission from inviting, harassing, arresting, or detaining them pending the determination of another suit.
Furthermore, the judge awarded N10 million in exemplary damages against the EFCC and Umujaren, jointly and severally, for the unlawful infringement of the Biribenas’ fundamental rights and the psychological trauma and humiliation they endured.
In a related suit, Justice Dashen ruled against the EFCC’s seizure and sealing of property belonging to Bliss Multinational Perfections Limited, stating that it was wrongful, unlawful, and must be returned, as the property was not acquired through proceeds of crime.
