An Abuja High Court has ordered that a notice of committal to prison (Form 49) be served on the chairman, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Farida Waziri for disobeying the court order asking her to release the assets of Victor Osita Uwajeh. This is sequel to an earlier order of court [FORM 48] of the sheriffs and civil process act earlier served on Mrs Waziri for flouting three court orders to release the assets of Mr Uwajeh.

Presiding Judge Adebukola Banjoko asked Mrs Waziri to obey the directives contained in the orders served on her or she will be guilty of contempt of court and will be liable to be committed to prison.

In her ruling on the order sought by the EFCC to vacate the earlier order made on the 4th day of October 2010 for the release of the accused person's properties, Mrs Banjoko noted that the Order to EFCC for the interim seizure and forfeiture "lapsed naturally. Upon its lapse, there is nothing to vacate, there is nothing to extend, and there is nothing at the point of lapse, to appeal against. In essence, the Order upon the expiration of the specified time limit, ceased to have any force of law and therefore, since the original Order was not appealed against at the outset, there really should be no fuss on the subsequent action of the Court discharging this Order, which became ineffective upon expiration."

On the assets of Mr Uwajeh, Mrs Banjoko said: "Order of the 4th day of March 2010 for interim seizure and forfeiture of the under listed properties which was granted for six months has expired with no application for renewal. Therefore, the order dated 4th day of March 2010 is hereby discharged and assets seized are hereby released forthwith." The case is adjourned to the 19th day of October 2011 for Mrs Farida to appear in court to show cause why she should not be committed to prison.

It would be recalled that Mr Uwajeh was arraigned on a four-count charge of forgery and for parading himself as a staff of the commission with the intention of defrauding unsuspecting members of the public, an offence contrary to section 363 of the Penal Code Act Cap 532 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 1990, and punishable under section 364 of the same Penal Code Act, PCA. He pleaded not guilty to the four-count charge.