The erstwhile Minister of State for Labour and Employment, Festus Keyamo, has vowed to appeal an Abuja Federal High Court dismissal of the suit compelling the investigation of the 2023 presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Atiku Abubakar, over the Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) saga.
A whistleblower, Michael Achimugu, had alleged that Atiku and former President Olusegun Obasanjo used the SPV to syphon public funds.
Following the allegation, Keyamo had called for the arrest and prosecution of Atiku over his alleged involvement.
But the court dismissed the suit because law enforcement agencies were not given enough time to investigate the matter.
A statement by John Ainetor, Assistant Head, Festus Keyamo Chambers, reads: “Earlier today, a Federal High Court in Abuja dismissed the case filed by Festus Keyamo against the candidate of the PDP in the last presidential election, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, over the SPV saga, principally because the court was of the opinion that the law enforcement agencies were not given enough time to commence investigations before the suit was filed, amongst other sundry reasons.
“Our client respectfully disagrees with the reasons for the said decision because the law enforcement agencies did not indicate their willingness to commence investigations, even if they were given more time.
“We want to establish a legal principle that society cannot wait infinitum for law enforcement agencies to do their statutory duties. The suit was designed to prompt the agencies to show their readiness to investigate.
“We are immediately filing an appeal against the said decision to the Court of Appeal as the struggle on this issue continues.”
