The legal tussle between the Department of State Security and the Managing Director of Capital Oil and Gas Limited, Mr Ifeanyi Ubah, continued on Thursday with two courts giving conflicting orders on the matter.

In a ruling in Lagos, Justice Mohammed Idris of the Federal High Court in Ikoyi ordered the DSS to release Mr Ubah unconditionally within 48 hours.

Justice Idris gave the order in his ruling on an ex-parte application filed before the court by Mr Ubah following his arrest by the DSS.

In the judgment to enforce his fundamental rights, Justice Idris held that Mr Ubah’s detention without charge violated his rights to move freely.

The judge also urged the Federal Govt to build a culture of accountability and respect for the rule of law and the Constitution.

He directed the Attorney-General of the Federation, Mr Abubakar Malami, to ensure strict and due compliance with the judgment. 

However, minutes after, the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory sitting in Jabi in a separate ruling granted a contradictory order for the Department of State Services to further detain the Managing Director of Capital Oil Plc for 14 more days.

Justice Yusuf Halilu gave the order while ruling on an ex-parte application filed by the DSS, which claimed it had yet to conclude its investigation into the case.

The DSS arrested Mr Ubah early in May, accusing him of engaging in acts of economic sabotage including the illegal sale of N11bn worth of petroleum products stored in his tank farm by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC.

Mr Ubah’s lawyers, however, said that his detention cannot be in perpetuity and the DSS risk been in contempt of court if it fails to release Mr Ubah

Meanwhile, Members of Staff of Capital Oil and Gas have cried out to the government to ensure his release so as to save the jobs of over 2,000 workers.