The 1st to 3rd Respondents had brought before this Court an appeal against the assumption of jurisdiction in a Habeas Corpus proceedings by the Lagos High court. (Coram Hunponu-Wusu J.) (hereinafter referred to as the lower Court). The lower Court had assumed supervisory jurisdiction over the proceedings of the Failed Bank Tribunal created under Decree No. 18 of 1994. The lower court not only assumed jurisdiction, it ultimately made an order that the 1st to 27th Applicants be unconditionally released form detention.

On 15-6-99, this court gave Judgment in the appeal. We concluded that the continued detention of the 1st to 27th Applicants was an infraction of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ rights, Cap. 10. Laws of the federation 1990. In concluding we had Reasoned that Section 26 of Decree No. 18 of 1994 imposed stringent conditions for the grant of bail to those brought before Tribunals created under the decree and that the inability of the Applicants to meet the bail conditions arose from the stringent nature of the conditions and that this had roots in Section 26 of Decree No. 18 of 1994. We concluded also that the lower Court was right to assume jurisdiction in the Habeas Corpus proceedings brought by the Applicants. We ordered that the Applicants be brought before the Federal High Court so that they could be granted bail on terms as Would ensure that they came back to take their trial.

The applicants filed an application at the court of Appeal for an order admitting them to bail. Respondents raised a preliminary objection contending that the Court of Appeal had no jurisdiction to entertain such an application having delivered its final judgment in the matter and therefore become funtus officio.