The Supreme Court of Nigeria has rejected appeals from the Rivers State Attorney General and the Speaker of the State House of Assembly, which sought to block the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) from challenging an injunction that prevented it from investigating former Governor Dr. Peter Odili.
A five-member panel of the apex court, led by Justice John Okoro, ruled on March 10, 2025, dismissing the appeals and effectively granting the EFCC the legal authority to proceed with its probe into Odili’s eight-year administration in Rivers State.
This decision marks the end of the anti-graft agency’s prolonged legal battle to investigate the former governor.
The dispute began in 2007 when Odili, who governed Rivers State from 1999 to 2007, secured a perpetual injunction from the Federal High Court in Port Harcourt.
This ruling barred the EFCC from investigating, arresting, or prosecuting him and also restricted the agency from reviewing the state’s financial activities during his tenure. Since 2008, the EFCC has repeatedly challenged this order, but it remained in effect for nearly two decades.
In 2018, the Court of Appeal granted the EFCC permission to contest the Federal High Court’s decision, prompting the Rivers State Attorney General and the House Speaker to file separate appeals at the Supreme Court to overturn that ruling.
However, during the Supreme Court hearing, Justice Okoro questioned the validity of the appeal, describing it as interlocutory.
Counsel for the litigants, S. A. Somiari, SAN, argued that the appeal was aimed at contesting the Court of Appeal’s decision to allow the EFCC to challenge the 2007 injunction.
Justice Okoro interrupted, stating, “This is not the type of appeal we hear here,” and advised the appellants to return to the appellate court to resolve the substantive case before bringing it to the Supreme Court.
Following this position, Somiari withdrew the appeal, and the EFCC’s legal representatives, led by Abubakar Mahmud, SAN, did not object. Justice Okoro then ruled, “The appeal is dismissed, having been withdrawn without any objection.”
A similar appeal filed by the Rivers State House Speaker marked SC/CV/447/2018, was also dismissed on the same grounds. With this ruling, the EFCC now has the green light to investigate Odili’s tenure, bringing an end to years of legal hurdles.