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Godwin Tsa, Abuja and Romanus Okoye
Human rights activist and constitutional lawyer, Chief Mike Ozekhome (SAN) has called on the Federal Government not to treat the recent British court order of seizure of Nigeria’s foreign assets with levity.
Ozekhome who gave the advice, yesterday, warned that the UK is not Nigeria where court judgment are treated with disdain and violated with utmost impunity
In a statement, Ozekhome urged the Federal Government to immediately hire experienced legal hands in the UK to stem this impending disaster that will eclipse all Nigerians without exception.
According to him the best option thus opens to the Federal Government to halt the looming disaster of attaching her foreign assets to the tune of $9 billion is to immediately appeal the judgement and ask the court for a stay of execution.
“To allow execution of the judgment will plunge Nigeria’s already battered, pilfered and mismanaged economy into irreversible doldrums and recession of unimaginable proportions.
“No one should take Lai Mohammed serious when he boastfully asserted that Nigeria will not surrender any of her foreign assets.
“Really? Did I hear him say “surrender? Lai easily and shockingly forgets that the UK is not Nigeria where court judgment orders are treated with disdain, levity, derision and violated with utmost impunity. The judgement creditors will not seek Nigeria’s permission to go after her foreign assets.
“They will not politely ask Nigeria to “surrender” her assets. No.
“They will simply use the available, tested and trusted legal option of garnishee proceedings, attach and fife all available and known Nigerian bank accounts, assets, monies, properties, etc, wherever they find them in the UK and in any part of the world.
“It is not a matter given to puerile lachrymal effusion, chest-beating, adventurous swashbuckling and grandstanding. It a matter of cold law and facts.
“Let the Federal Government hire experienced legal hands in the UK immediately to stem this impending disaster that will eclipse all of us, without exception.”
