In a decisive ruling on March 10, 2025, Nigeria’s Supreme Court cleared the way for the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to investigate the administration of Dr. Peter Odili, who governed Rivers State from 1999 to 2007.
The landmark decision, delivered by a five-justice panel headed by Justice John Okoro, dismissed appeals lodged by the Rivers State Attorney General and the Speaker of the State House of Assembly, ending a nearly two-decade legal shield that had protected Odili from scrutiny by the anti-corruption agency.
The saga began in 2007, shortly after Odili left office, when he secured a perpetual injunction from the Federal High Court in Port Harcourt. That order barred the EFCC from probing his tenure, investigating the state’s finances during his eight-year rule, or pursuing any legal action against him. For years, the injunction stood as an impenetrable barrier, despite the EFCC’s persistent efforts to challenge it, starting with a formal contest in 2008.
The tide began to turn in 2018 when the Court of Appeal granted the EFCC leave to appeal the 2007 ruling. This prompted the Rivers State Attorney General and the Speaker of the House of Assembly to escalate the matter to the Supreme Court, filing separate appeals—marked SC/CV/318/2018 and SC/CV/447/2018—to block the EFCC’s renewed push. Their argument hinged on overturning the appellate court’s decision, which they claimed jeopardized the original injunction.
During Monday’s hearing, however, the Supreme Court signaled its unwillingness to entertain the appeals. Justice Okoro, leading the panel, described the case as interlocutory—meaning it dealt with a preliminary issue rather than the core dispute—and questioned its place before the apex court. “This is not the type of appeal we hear here,” he remarked, urging the parties to resolve the substantive matter at the Court of Appeal before returning to the Supreme Court.
Facing this judicial roadblock, the appellants’ counsel, S. A. Somiari, SAN, moved to withdraw the appeals. The EFCC’s legal team, led by Abubakar Mahmud, SAN, alongside Sylvanus Tahir, SAN, and B. O. Obialo, raised no objections. Justice Okoro promptly dismissed both appeals, declaring, “The appeal is dismissed, having been withdrawn without any objection.”
The ruling marks a significant victory for the EFCC, dismantling a legal fortress that had long frustrated its efforts to examine Odili’s stewardship of Rivers State, an oil-rich region central to Nigeria’s economy. With the path now clear, the agency can revisit allegations of financial mismanagement that have lingered over Odili’s administration for years, potentially reshaping the narrative around one of Nigeria’s most prominent political figures.
For Odili, a former governor once seen as untouchable, the decision signals the end of an era of legal immunity—and the beginning of a new chapter under the EFCC’s spotlight.
