In spite of all the brouhaha and gestapo style of siege displayed on Saturday, the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency on Monday failed to bring the senator-elect for Ogun-East senatorial district, Mr. Buruji Kashamu, before a Federal High Court, Lagos, for extradition hearing.
The agency, said on Sunday that it had received a formal extradition request on Kashamu from the United States government and was coming to court to secure an extradition order on Monday.
Though Kashamu’s lawyer, Dr. Alex Izinyon (SAN), had come to court early in anticipation of the NDLEA’s declaration, the agency, however, failed to bring Kashamu to court.
Izinyon’s colleague, Mr. Ajibola Oluyede, who later came to court and appeared in chambers before Justice Ibrahim Buba with a fresh application, said the NDLEA failed to produce a warrant of arrest it claimed to have secured.
Oluyede, who moved an ex-parte application for a restraining order but which was not granted by court, later addressed journalists, and said Buba had ordered the Attorney General of the Federation, Mohammed Adoke (SAN), and the Chairman of the NDLEA, Ahmadu Giade, to appear in court on Tuesday to explain why they should not be jailed for contempt of court.
Oluyede, who accused Adoke and Giade of illegality, challenged them to produce the US extradition request for Kashamu.
But the agency’s Head of Public Affairs, Mitchell Ofoyeju, in a statement on Monday afternoon, said the agency could not bring Kashamu to court because he failed to turn himself over to the operatives in his house.
“The agency is working hard to ensure that he submits himself to the due process of the law. His house remained cordoned off by anti-narcotic officers pending his appearance in court.”
But Oluyede claimed that an operative of the NDLEA came to the court registry late Monday afternoon to secure a provisional warrant of arrest.
According to Oluyede, the move was a confirmation that the NDLEA had no extradition request for Kashamu from the US, adding that the move was also a confirmation of Kashamu’s alarm that the NDLEA was doing the bidding of his political enemies.
Oluyede said he was told by the leader of the NDLEA operatives manning Kashamu’s house that they were acting under the instruction of Giade, whom he said was only given an oral instruction by Adoke to arrest Kashamu.
However, the premises of the Lagos Division of the Federal High Court on Oyinkan Abayomi Drive, Ikoyi, was on Monday occupied by the loyalists of Kashamu who carried placards with inscriptions such as, “We want Kashamu here in Nigeria,” “Don’t steal our joy from us,” “Don’t take Kashamu away from his people.” “Kashamu is not a drug baron.” “‘US, mind your business,” “We want due process of law,” “Obj, leave Kashamu alone,” among others. (Punch).