The Federal High Court in Abuja has dismissed an application filed by David Ukpo seeking an order to set aside the July 1 and 6, 2022 orders for the release of his biodata to Senator Ike Ekweremadu in a UK court.
Justice Inyang Ekwo, in a ruling, held that the applicant, the Edo Civil Society Organisations, who filed the motion on Ukpo’s behalf, lacked the legal right to institute the case.
Justice Ekwo held that the provision of Article 3 (e) of the preamble to the Fundamental Rights Rules, 2009 under which EDOSCO filed the suit, cannot be said to have granted any person without legal personality to sue or be sued in the court.
The court stated that this application is to protect the applicant’s human rights upon being instructed by Edo Civil Society Organisations (EDOSCO) on behalf of the applicant (Ukpo)
Going by this averment, the court held that it is clear that the applicant in this case is Edo Civil Society Organisations adding that the counsel for the applicant knows this but cleverly avoided to state it in his application
The applicant also prayed the court to bar all the respondents from further breaching Ukpo’s rights to privacy guaranteed by Section 37 of the 1999 Constitution.
Ekweremadu and Beatrice, through their counsel, Adegboyega Awomolo, SAN, urged the court to dismiss the application on grounds that Ukpo, who was taken to the UK sometime in 2022, could not have briefed anyone as his whereabouts was unknown.
Besides, they argued that there was nothing before the court to show that the said minor Ukpo) briefed EDOSCO
Justice Ekwo had, on July 1, 2022, ordered the National Identification Management Commission (NIMC), Comptroller General of Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), Stanbic IBTC Bank, United Bank for African (UBA) and Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System Plc (1st to 5th respondents respectfully), to release Ukpo’s biodata to the Ekweremadus in UK court.
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The judge ordered that all information, including his Bank Verification Number (BVN), should be released for Ekweremadus’ defence in the UK court over alleged organ harvesting.
Justice Ekwo had, on July 6, 2022, directed the NIMC to immediately release the biodata of Ukpo to the AGF for onward transmission to the UK court.
The court issued the order following a request to that effect by NIMC and in response to the request of the convicted couple to defend themselves in a London court. The order followed NIMC’s refusal to obey the earlier order of the court.
Ekweremadu and wife had, in an application dated and filed on June 27, 2022, by Awomolo took the respondents to court.
However, The couple were, on June 23, 2022, remanded in the UK police custody after they were arraigned before the Uxbridge Magistrates’ Court for alleged conspiracy to facilitate the travel of Ukpo, alleged to be a minor, for organ harvesting.
Despite their denial, Ekweremadu and his wife were convicted and sentenced to prison in May 2023.
While Ekweremadu was sentenced to nine years imprisonment for organ trafficking, his wife was slammed with four years and six month jail-term.
The Medical Doctor, Obinna Obeta, who was said to have conspired with them, got 10 years imprisonment.
Ekweremadu’s wife was however released from the UK prison In January,2025 after serving her jail-term.
Delivering the ruling, Justice Ekwo agreed with the argument of the Ekweremadus’ that the prayers on the face of the motion paper were not prayers for the enforcement of fundamental rights.
He stated that if the applicant was interested in enforcing his fundamental rights, counsel ought to have instituted a fresh action under the Fundamental Rights (Enforcement Procedure) Rules, 2009
The judge said that the prayers on the motion paper had become academic and do not require any answer nor can the court grant same.
(Editor : Ena Agbanoma)
