Sadiya Faruk Absent from Court Again, Requests Cancellation of Arrest Warrant”

By Paul Joseph

Former Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Sadiya Farouq, has applied to an Abuja High Court seeking the withdrawal of an arrest warrant issued against her in an ongoing case filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

Farouq was expected to appear before Justice Jude Onwuegbuzie on Monday alongside former Permanent Secretary Bashir Alkali and Sani Mohammed. However, the former minister was absent from court for the second consecutive time, while her co-defendants were present for the proceedings.

Her counsel, Oladipo Opeseyi (SAN), informed the court that Farouq was unable to attend due to health-related issues. He urged the court to hear an application seeking to set aside the arrest warrant issued against her on April 16.

Counsel to the EFCC, Oluwaleke Atolagbe, opposed the request, arguing that the court could not entertain such an application before the defendants had been formally arraigned.

Opeseyi, however, maintained that the application was a preliminary issue that could be determined before arraignment. He contended that declining to hear the motion at this stage would effectively amount to abandoning the application.

During the hearing, Justice Onwuegbuzie sought clarification on when the former minister would be available to appear before the court. In response, her lawyer stated that communication with his client had been difficult because she was observing a 10-day holiday period in Egypt.

He also noted that he was not in a position to provide detailed information regarding her medical condition.

The court subsequently permitted arguments on the application.

After hearing submissions from both the defence and prosecution, including the EFCC’s objection to the medical documents presented by Farouq’s legal team, Justice Onwuegbuzie adjourned the matter until June 10 for ruling on the application seeking to vacate the arrest warrant.

The outcome of the ruling is expected to determine the next stage of proceedings in the case involving the former minister and her co-defendants.