The Federal High Abuja has dismissed an application filed by suspended Deputy Commissioner Of Police Abba Kyari, challenging the jurisdiction of the court to try him.
Delivering a ruling, Justice Emeka Nwite held that the powers of the Police Service Commission do not supersede the powers of the Federal High Court.
He held that the Federal High Court has the power to hear drug-related offences, as enshrined in the constitution and the NDLEA Act.
The court noted that the subject matter of the case is within the jurisdiction of the court.
Section 251 of the constitution confers the court to the powers to hear and determine the charge.
Abba Kyari had told the court that the charges against him were premature, insisting that the NDLEA ought to have allowed police to exhaust its internal machinery before it instituted the action.
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He told the court that the Police had already commenced an investigation into allegations against him and issued an interim report.
Kyari maintained that he could only be charged in court upon the conclusion of the internal investigation by the police.
He argued that the Police Service Commission, PSC, has similar powers to investigate and discipline erring police officers, in line with the Police Act & Regulations, the same way the National Judicial Council, NJC, disciplines judicial officers.
(Editor: Ifeanyi Mark)
