Court Denies Maina Protection From Imminent Arrest

The Chairman of the Pension Reform Task Team, Abdulrasheed Maina has failed to secure a Federal High Court order to protect him from arrest and prosecution … Continue reading Court Denies Maina Protection From Imminent Arrest


The former Chairman of the Pension Reform Task Team, Abdulrasheed Maina

The Chairman of the Pension Reform Task Team, Abdulrasheed Maina has failed to secure a Federal High Court order to protect him from arrest and prosecution by security agents.

Justice Adamu Bello, in his ruling in the exparte motion filed by Maina refused to stop the Senate from ordering his arrest pending the determination of a suit he filed against them before the court.

Maina had approached the court with an application seeking an order of the court to compel the defendants to maintain status quo and not to make any move to arrest or put him on trial in any court pending the final determination of the suit he had already filed against them.

In a nine-paragraph affidavit in support of the exparte motion, Maina averred that the National Assembly members were still making moves to cause his arrest, detention and prosecution in spite of an existing legal action.

He told the court, through his counsel, Mahmud Abubakar Magaji that his purpose of instituting the legal action against the defendants would be defeated unless the court gives order to temporarily stop his pending arrest.

He further said that his right to fair trial had been trampled upon by the Senate for its failure to constitute another committee that will investigate him on his activity as the Pension Reform Task Team Chairman to determine if there was any fraud.

Maina said he had already written through his counsel to the leadership of the Senate that he has no confidence of getting justice in the present committee set up to investigate him because the committee members have allegedly displayed bias, harassment and intimidation against him, contrary to section 46 of the 1999 constitution

Maina promised to appear before a new committee of the Senate to give account of his activities as chairman of the pensions task team.

However, Justice Bello in a short ruling turned down Maina’s request on the ground that the court had been pre-empted by Maina’ counsel.

Justice Bello held that the counsel, on a network news of a television station on Thursday turned what was supposed to be exparte motion to motion on notice by disclosing to the whole world the content of the exparte motion and even went to the extent of naming him as the Judge to hear the motion, thereby rendering the purpose and intent of an exparte motion defeated.

Justice Bello said “The conduct of the applicant’s counsel was  in-appropriate. On that alone, the application cannot be granted”.