BY
TIMOTHY AGBOR, OSOGBO
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has arrested a lawyer, Temitope Oyedipe, within the premises of the Osun State High Court in Ile-Ife and whisked him to Lagos allegedly over a pending proceeding in court.
In a statement issued on Wednesday by the Publicity Secretary of the NBA in Osogbo, Dawood Ajetunmobi, the arrested lawyer had appeared in a matter for which the operatives of the anti-graft agency apprehended him as he stepped out of courtroom on Wednesday.
The NBA statement read that the EFCC operatives had quizzed the lawyer over a matter for which he announced his appearance, and was whisked away to their Ikoyi office in Lagos on the ground that he failed to give satisfactory account on the case in question.
This, the NBA said, infringed Oyedipe’s fundamental human rights.
Demanding the immediate release of the lawyer, the statement read, “Members of the Nigerian Bar Association, Osogbo Branch, are warming up to have a showdown with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission over the infringement on the fundamental rights of one of Temitope Oyedipe, who was, on Wednesday, arrested on the Osun State High Court premises in Ile-Ife by some operatives of the EFCC from Lagos.
“Temitope Oyedipe held a brief of another colleague of his in a garnishee proceeding pending at the court. It was learnt that the EFCC was interested in the suit and Oyedipe was whisked away by the operatives after the proceedings.
“Immediately the news filtered to the Human Rights Committee of the NBA, Osogbo Branch, it was deliberated and a counsel, Nurudeen Kareem, has been assigned to proceed to the Commission’s office in Lagos. The Chairman of the branch, Hassan Agbelekale, has also contacted the Lagos and Ikeja branches of the NBA for synergy to ensure the counsel is timely released.’
“When the committee inquired from the EFCC operatives via a telephone call, it was confirmed that Oyedipe was arrested when he could not give satisfactory information about the suit in which he appeared, though he held a counsel’s brief.
“The said substantive counsel and his client in the garnishee proceeding were said to be the targets of the operatives, but the duo were not present in court, and Oyedipe held the lawyer’s brief as agreed between them. So far, the counsel, Temitope Oyedipe, is still in the office of the EFCC in Ikoyi, Lagos. The branch has put every mechanism in motion to ensure his release as soon as practicable.
‘’While consultations are ongoing with the leaders of the association in Nigeria with a view to taking a collective but deterring decision on this condemnable act, the branch calls on the EFCC to immediately release Temitope Oyedipe unconditionally.”
