Alex Enumah in Abuja
The special investigator appointed by President Bola Tinubu, Mr. Jim Obazee, to unravel how the sum of $6.2 million was allegedly stolen from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), under Mr. Godwin Emefiele, yesterday stunned a High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), when he expressed surprise at the prosecution of only the former CBN governor.
Emefiele is standing trial on a 20-count amended charge bordering on criminal breach of trust, procurement fraud as well as conspiring with some other persons to move from the apex bank the sum of $6,230,000, purportedly meant for international election observers for the 2023 general elections.
In the charge marked: FCT/HC/CR/577/2023, he was also accused of forgery, abuse of office, as well as conferring corrupt advantages on two companies, April 1616 Nigeria Ltd and Architekon Nigeria Ltd, while in office.
He however denied committing the alleged offences and has since been admitted to bail.
As part of efforts at establishing the allegations against Emefiele, the prosecution; the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), yesterday called its 15th and last witness in the case.
Obazee, who was being led in evidence by EFCC’s lawyer and Director Public Prosecution of the Federation, Mr. Rotimi Oyedepo, SAN, midway into the proceedings demanded that all those mentioned in the alleged crime must be brought before the court for trial.
Those he specifically mentioned included the late former President Muhammadu Buhari and former Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Mr. Boss Mustapha.
Others were a staff of the CBN, Bashirudeen Maishanu, from whom the witness claimed he personally recovered the sum of $856,500; a “staff” in the office of the former SGF, the Abuja branch manager of the CBN as well as the Board of Governors of the apex bank.
In an apparent displeasure with only Emefiele in the dock, the witness queried in the open court why the others are not standing over the stealing of the $6.2 million from the federal government foreign exchange account domiciled at the CBN.
Obazee’s position was prompted by a letter from the Presidency alleging that the ex- President Buhari, had signed for the release of the $6.2 million and another letter by the office of the SGF, ordering the former CBN governor to effect the release of the money to one Jibril Abubakar, introduced as a staff of the office of the SGF to collect the money.
The special investigator became more furious following subsequent letters and extra-judicial statements by Mustapha that late President Buhari and himself knew nothing about the earlier letter ordering the release of the $6.2 million to Abubakar, for logistic payment for foreign election observers.
Upon glancing through the letters, Obazee said that the situation with Nigeria was unfortunate, especially for the federal government to have put only Emefiele on trial in an alleged fraud that involves more than 10 people.
In an apparent anger, Obazee dismissed the denial of involvement in the fraud by the Presidency and the former SGF and demanded in the open court that Mustapha must be brought into the dock alongside Emefiele.
He also demanded the prosecution of the manager of the Abuja branch of the CBN, on the grounds that the looted fund was released to the suspected “criminals” without carrying out due diligence.
He explained that by the CBN Act the N2.8 billion, equivalent of $6.2 million ought to have been deposited before the $6.2 million can be officially released.
“For actions and inactions, Buhari ought to be charged along with Emefiele in this $6.2 million fraud, even if posthumously since national honours are given posthumously.
“As for Boss Mustapha, as far as I am concerned, he did deny to me that he did not sign the documents from his office which initiated the request for the $6.2m and led to the release of the amount to a person who claimed to be a staff of his office.
“Whatever you are doing to Emefiele by way of prosecution ought to have been done to Buhari, Mustapha, Maishanu and former board members of the CBN under Emefiele
“I just hope that all of them would be lined up in this dock with Emefiele and this must include Maishanu, who returned to me $856,500,” the former Financial Reporting Council boss said.
Under cross examination by Mathew Burka, SAN, the lead counsel to Emefiele, the witness told the court that he did not recover any money from the former CBN governor and that there was no evidence of any transfer of any money to his account.
He however said that by presumption Emefiele was supposed to have knowledge of the alleged fraud if the CCTV and BVN portal in the Abuja branch office of the CBN had been put to use before the money was released to looters.
The witness further stated that the disappearance of the money ought to have been detected in the annual financial statement of the CBN if all those in charge had been diligent.
Obazee recalled that he was invited by President Bola Tinubu on December 19, 2023 and that in the presence of the Attorney General of the Federation and Chairman of the EFCC, he was directed to prepare chargeable offences against the defendant over the stolen $6.2 million.
Emefiele through his counsel told the court he would be filing a no-case submission application to the charge, an indication that the prosecution may not have been able to prove its case based on the evidence of the 15 witnesses called in the case.
The prosecution had closed its case after calling 15 witnesses and tendered several documents in support of the 20-count criminal charge.
Justice Hamza Muazu however adjourned the trial till October 20.