ABUJA — A lawyer, Joshua Ijaodola, has filed two suits at the Federal High Court in Abuja seeking declarations that the Acts establishing the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) are unconstitutional because they usurp powers exclusively granted to the Nigeria Police Force under Section 214 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended).
The suits, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1231/2025 and FHC/ABJ/CS/1232/2025, were dated 23 June and filed on 24 June. In both suits, Ijaodola named the National Assembly, the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF), the Nigeria Police Force (NPF), and either the EFCC or NSCDC as defendants.
Ijaodola argued that under Section 214 of the Constitution and Section 4 of the Police Act, 2022, only the NPF has the authority to detect, prevent, investigate, apprehend, and prosecute crimes.
He contended that the EFCC Act, 2004, and the NSCDC (Amendment) Act, 2007, illegally delegated these powers to agencies outside the police, contravening the Constitution.
Specifically, Ijaodola cited Section 8(5) of the EFCC Act as granting the commission of police-like powers, which he argued amounted to the creation of an unconstitutional “economic police.”
He said the National Assembly, by passing the Acts, effectively diluted the powers of the NPF by transferring core police duties to separate agencies.
He further argued that billions of naira have been spent annually maintaining the EFCC and NSCDC despite their alleged unconstitutional establishment, calling on the court to void the Acts in the interest of justice and constitutional supremacy.
The lawyer affirmed through affidavits of non-multiplication that the matters are not pending before any other court.
As of Monday, the cases were yet to be assigned to a judge for hearing.
