High Court in Rivers state sitting in the Capital city of Port harcourt has hindered the Nigeria Police and other Law enforcement agencies from arresting the former Acting Managing Director of the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, Joi Nunieh.
The court presided over by Justice S.E Thompson also granted an ex-parte order, restraining the NDDC and others from arresting Nunieh, pending the determination of the matter in court.
Nunieh sought the orders of Court through her counsel, Sylvester Adaka, the immediate past Chairman of the Nigeria Bar Association, Port Harcourt Branch.
Joi Nunieh, appointed into the NDDC in October 2019 and sacked February 2020 has been involved in a series of controversy over her short stint at the Commission which she blamed on the Minister of Niger-Delta Affairs, Senator Godswill Akpabio.
She demanded the arrest of and prosecution of Akpabio by the Police, accusing the Minister of oath-taking, sexual harassment, fraud and corruption at the NDDC.
Joi Nunieh is currently taking refuge at the River State Government House Port Harcourt after being rescued by Governor Nyesom Wike from Police arrest.
NDDC: Handover Nunieh to Us – Police tells Wike
The Commissioner of Police in Rivers State, CP Joseph Mukan, has asked Governor Nyesom Wike to hand over the former Acting Managing Director of NDDC, Joi Nunieh.
Nunieh is currently taking refuge at Government House Port Harcourt.
CP Mukan while reacting to Thursday’s incident also dismissed the rumour that efforts were made to reach him, insisting that no one reached out to him in connection to Nunieh’s arrest.
He said the Governor was wrong to have whisked Nunieh away without recourse to the Law.
According to him, “What people fail to understand is that it is not in every situation that you need warrant of arrest before you can arrest anybody. It depends on the crime of the individual.
“It is really unfortunate what happened yesterday because when the Governor said he is going to rescue her (Nunieh), he should hand her over to me. I am the Commissioner of Police in Rivers state and I am in a better position to take her.
“Nobody is saying the Governor should not protect his citizens but everything should be done within the confines of the law. I am the Chief Law officer of the Command and he wants to rescue his citizen you hand her over to the police for safety.
“I still believe he (Wike) is going to turn her (Nunieh) in because the Police were on a legitimate duty,” Mukan said.
