The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, filed an eight-count charge against him in respect of the disputed 753 duplexes in Abuja.

The said property located at Plot 109, Cadastral Zone C09, Lokogoma District, Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Abuja, measures 150,462.86 SQM and comprises 753 housing units.

When the charge was read to him, he pleaded not guilty.

Following his plea, his counsel, Mathew Burkaa, SAN, applied for bail which was not opposed to by the prosecution counsel, Rotimi Oyedepo SAN.

Oyedepo, however, asked the court to expunge some paragraphs in the bail application, and the court granted that.

Ruling on the bail application, Justice Halilu held that bail is a constitutional right.

He added that the defendant (Emefiele) has been granted bail by two other judges and he did not go against the conditions and terms.

“I admit the defendant to bail on the terms and conditions that the defendant’s travel documents which is already before Justice Muazu is hereby attached as part of the condition.

“The defendant shall provide two sureties who must be residents of Abuja within the jurisdiction of this court.

“The sureties must own landed property within the jurisdiction of this court precisely in Asokoro, Maitama  and Wuse 2 which valued at N2 billion,” he held.

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Halilu further ordered that the sureties shall also do undertaking to produce the defendant in court always all through his trial.

He added in the event the defendant jumps bail, they (sureties) will be put in prison.

He ordered that the defendant was granted from the time to Wednesday (June 18) to vacate the bail or else risk going to prison.

He then adjourned until July 11 for continuation.

The charge number: CR/358/2025, borders on alleged having control of property reasonably suspected to be unlawfully obtained.

The offence, the EFCC said, is punishable under Section 319 of the Penal Code Law.

Emefiele was charged alongside one “Ocheme” who is at large.

Besides the housing estate, the two defendants were also charged with unlawfully keeping in their possession billions of naira in proxy accounts in Zenith Bank.

In count one of the charge, Emefiele and Ocheme are being accused of knowingly having within their control the housing estate suspected to be unlawfully obtained contrary to the law.

While in count two, they were alleged to knowingly have in their possession the sum of N167 million domiciled in Kelvito Integrated Services’ account No: 1016232915, in count three they were alleged to have held the sum of N1.23 billion in the same account.

According to the anti-graft agency, the said sums were said to be reasonably suspected to have been unlawfully obtained.

In another count they were also alleged to have in their control another sum of N2.9 billion domiciled in Kelvito Integrated Services’ account No: 1016232915 domiciled with Zenith Bank Plc.

In count five, the commission stated that the defendants between January and December 2022, knowingly had under their control the total sum of N1.98 billion domiciled in Kelvito Integrated Services’ account No: 1016232915 domiciled with Zenith Bank Plc, which sum is reasonably suspected to have been unlawfully obtained.

In other counts they were also linked with the sum of N900 million and N600 million in Ifedigo Integrated Services’ account No: 1210750237 domiciled wit zenith Bank.

Meanwhile, in count eight, Emefiele was said to have in January 2021, forged a document titled, “Irrevocable Power of Attorney Between MG Properties Limited and H and Y Business Global Limited” with the intention of causing it to be believed that the said titled document was executed by or by the authority of H and Y Business Global Limited.

The offences, according to the EFCC, contravened the provisions of sections 319, 362 and 364 of the Penal Code.

Source: NAN

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Initially, the estate was linked to another unnamed former government official, but after extensive investigation by the anti-graft agency, Emefiele was fingered as the real owner of the property. When confronted with the evidence, he denied ownership of the estate, and it was quite easy for the EFCC to secure both interim and final forfeiture orders on the property.

However, Emefiele, through his legal representative, A.M. Kotoye, is now contending that the former apex bank governor ought to have been involved in the court proceedings, as he holds an interest in the property. He has now gone to the Appeal Court seeking to reverse the lower court’s ruling.

“I was unaware of the forfeiture order,” Emefiele asserted in his court papers. He also maintained that he possessed both legal and equitable interests in the estate, despite the court’s assertion that he failed to provide proof of ownership. His lawyer did not stop at that, but also wrote to the Minister of Housing, urging the government to halt all plans to sell the estate until the appeal is resolved.

Just few months ago, and while still in government, Emefiele did all within his power to wash his hands off the estate. In actual fact, he denied ownership of the estate and it was Ifeanyi Omeke, a deputy General Manager and Head, Litigation of Zenith Bank, that was alleged to own the property. Omeke, however, works for Emefiele. It was after extensive investigation that the EFCC was able to link Emefiele and Omeke to be partners in crime.

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Indeed, Idi Musa, an EFCC investigative officer revealed in court, various companies involved in the illegal acquisitions of the property between 2010 and 2021, which are all linked to the former CBN Governor. According to him, the said land, known as Plot 109, lying and situated at Cadastral Zone C09 was initially allocated to Windermere Nigeria Limited on the 15th day of September, 2010, for mass housing development. The title of the property was later transferred to M.G Property Limited via an executed Deed of Assignment. But sometime in August 2021, M.G Properties transferred its title to H & Y Business Global Limited. However, H & Y Business Global Limited is also being investigated for acquiring one of the properties forfeited in the interim by the Federal High Court sitting in Lagos, for the sum of N2.2b from the Nigeria Minting and Printing Ltd. for and on behalf of the then Central Bank of Nigeria Governor, Godwin Emiefele.

Monies H & Y Business Global Limited used for the acquisition of the property were not from their legitimate income but were fraudulently procured by Emefiele and his cronies to disguise and conceal the unlawful origin of the funds used in the acquisition of the properties. Idi Musa of the EFCC was able to prove at the lower court that those funds came from Emefiele.

Without prejudice to the appeal filed before the court of appeal, it is quite clear that we have a system in place in Nigeria that makes it easy for those in power to loot the treasury at will. With Emefiele now boldly coming out to claim ownership of the property said to be the biggest seizure by the EFCC since its creation, he should be ready to prove in court how he was able to acquire the property with his legitimate salaries and allowances as Governor of the apex bank in Nigeria.

Though amongst the top earners in the country going by the nature of his job, and in fact, earning more in salary than the President, Emefiele’s total emoluments is still a far cry from what has been seized from him since his arrest and ongoing prosecution for graft by the federal government.

Just two months ago, Justice Ayokunle Faji of the Federal High Court, Ikoyi, Lagos, ordered the final forfeiture of $1,426,175.14 also linked to Emefiele to the federal government. The court had given the final forfeiture order after a motion on notice filed and argued by Bilkisu Buhari, counsel for the EFCC, which went uncontested by any interested parties. The motion was supported by an affidavit deposed to by David Jayeoba, an investigating officer with the EFCC, who stated that investigation carried out showed that the fund was reasonably suspected to be proceeds of unlawful activities “warehoused” in Donatone Limited’s (DL)’s Titan Trust Bank account.

He stated thus: “The investigation traced the funds to having been fixed into interest-yielding accounts, dissipated and laundered through a foreign account in Mauritius, and transported back to Nigeria under disguise. Of the total sum of $26,552,000.00 USD received by the firm, the balance standing in the said account as of today is in the sum of $1,426,175.14 million USD. It is the balance in the account that the applicant seeks to forfeit to the Federal Government of Nigeria, which has been traced to be the proceeds of unlawful activities of erstwhile Central Bank Governor of Nigeria, Mr. Godwin Emefiele and his cronies. Investigations further revealed that the international entities sourcing for forex were pressured into parting with huge funds to access forex during the period. The signatories to the account warehousing the sum of $1,426,175.14 USD sought to be forfeited are at large and are making frantic efforts to dissipate the funds electronically.”

Until he dabbled into the Presidential race in 2022, while still in government as CBN Governor, many Nigerians never believed that Emefiele could be involved in such level of graft. But when reporters stumbled on over 50 brand new cars with Emefiele for President boldly inscribed on them, it became clear that Emefiele was involved in many shady deals through kickbacks and arbitrage. At the helm of affairs at the apex bank, Emefiele operated an opaque foreign exchange regime that allowed those close to him to get foreign currency at cheaper rate which they resell at the black market, making them instant millionaires.

In Nigeria, stealing is gradually becoming a pandemic, as many in power don’t even know when to stop once they start, and this is usually the intention when they seek elective office. Indeed, when an individual experiences a recurring, irresistible urge to steal, even if they don’t need to, or are motivated by pleasure rather than financial gain or need, it is considered an impulse-control disorder termed as Kleptomania. Emefiele might be suffering from the disease.

But he is not the only culprit. There are several others. The EFCC, few years ago, uncovered another N90 billion fraud involving the former Accountant-General of the Federation, Ahmed Idris. He was immediately suspended by the then President Muhammadu Buhari, who later appointed Anamekwe Nwabuoku as the new Accountant-general of the federation in acting capacity. Even at that, Nwabuoku was able to corner a huge portion of our commonwealth to himself within a few months.

When he was caught and arraigned before a Federal High Court, Nwabuoku pleaded with Justice James Omotoso to give him more time to conclude the refund of the public funds allegedly looted by him and his co-defendant. He and his co-defendant, Felix Nweke, were then facing an 11-count charge of money laundering to the tune of N1.6 billion. The defendants were accused of committing to the act while Nwabuoku served as the Director of Finance and Accounts in the Ministry of Defence between 2019 and 2021.

Indeed, to tackle the problem, we need to strengthen our accounting systems and make our institutions much stronger than what we currently have.

While Nwabuoku is the first defendant, Nweke is the second defendant in the charge marked FHC/ABJ/CR/240/24 dated May 20 and filed on May 27 by EFCC counsel, Ekele Iheanacho. Nwabuoku was appointed acting AGoF on May 20, 2022, under ex-President Muhammadu Buhari after Ahmed Idris was suspended as AGF over alleged N80bn fraud. He was, however, removed in July 2022, a few weeks after assuming office.

Former Petroleum Minister, Diezani Alison-Madueke, whilst in office, was able to steal so much that she doesn’t even know what to do with the looted funds. Expensive under wears and gold were some items confiscated from her. At the end of EFCC investigations into her sleaze, N47.2 billion and $487.5 million in cash and property were traced to her by the EFCC. Alison-Madueke served under former President Goodluck Jonathan, and has remained a fugitive, running from the hands of the law in Nigeria.

There are several former Governors and Ministers that are facing corruption charges by the EFCC.

A think-tank group in the United Kingdom known as the Chatham House claims that $582 billion has been stolen from Nigeria since independence in 1960. That report, released in 2019, was the base of an article published in The Economist on the corruption drama in Nigeria titled: ‘Catch Me if You Can, African Kleptocrats are finding it tougher to stash cash in the West’.

The question to be asked then is why is it so easy for government officials to dip their sticky fingers into the till? Former Finance Minister, Kemi Adeosun, while speaking at a three-day conference organised by the Presidential Advisory Committee Against Corruption (PACAC), said that the country has been fighting to recover illicit funds from corruption that have been transferred out of the country over the past 20 years. She however, noted that it is far too easy to steal in Nigeria, and that measures needed to be put in place to discourage the trend. According to her, prevention is better than cure.

“Recovering money is exciting, but it is difficult. It takes years. We’re still battling to recover money that was looted from Nigeria 20 years ago. So, my perspective as minister of Finance and as an Accountant is: how do we block the money from getting out in the first place? How do we strengthen our controls? How do we create the early warning systems that tell us to flag certain transactions? Let’s stop the money going out; let’s stop the loss, and then we can work on recovery.” She also revealed that plans are being put in place to make it harder for looters to loot the country’s treasury.

“We are taking steps to improve tax administration, to improve compliance, and just to generally make it a little more difficult for people to loot the treasury.” Few months after those statements, she was forced to resign after it was discovered that she did not take part in the mandatory one-year National Youth Service (NYSC) scheme.

Indeed, to tackle the problem, we need to strengthen our accounting systems and make our institutions much stronger than what we currently have. Currently, in most establishments, auditors who are meant to serve as checks and balance in the accounting circle are all part of the sleaze. While many attribute the level of corruption in the country to poverty, some acts of corruption, especially those involving government officials stealing billions of Naira, should be identified as a disease and mitigated with the death penalty as it is done in China and other countries. Otherwise, we will continue to go round in circles in the supposed fight against corruption in the country.

See you next week.

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The forfeiture suit was filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC.

Justice Ayokunle Faji in his judgment, held that the sum formed proceeds of unlawful activities and ought to be forfeited to the Federal Government.

The court, consequently ordered forfeiture of same.

The court held that the anti-graft agency had proved its case, establishing unlawfulness of the said funds.

The EFCC counsel, Mrs Bilkisu Bahri-Bala, had told the court that the sum was lodged in the account of Donatone Ltd domiciled in Titan Trust Bank.

She had argued that the funds had been established to be proceeds of unlawful activities.

In an affidavit deposed to by one David Jayeoba, an EFCC investigating officer, he said that the commission received Intelligence report on the crime.

According to him, this led to the filing of the forfeiture proceedings.

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“In the course of my investigation, the commission received intelligence which led to tracing of the funds warehoused in the Donatone Ltd .

“While investigating the monumental fraud, we discovered a huge amount of money warehoused and concealed in the account of the company, domiciled in Titan Trust Bank.

“Part of the said funds, which represent the proceeds of Emefiele and his cronies’ unlawful activities, are retained in the accounts now sought to be forfeited,” he averred

According to the deponent, directors were procured by Emefiele, to conceal, retain and disguise funds which are proceeds of unlawful activities.

Justice Faji had on May 30, 2024, ordered interim forfeiture of the funds, which final forfeiture the court ordered on Thursday.

Source: NAN

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Aliu Adams Oshiomhole needs no introduction in Nigeria’s politics. From his days as a labour leader, after being elected President of the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC), to his days as a politician, starting as the National Chairman of the All Progressive Congress, (APC), and as a two-time Governor of Edo State and now as a Senator representing Edo North in the Senate, Oshiomhole is an old war-horse who calls a spade by no other name.

On Monday last week, he propounded a theory that is worth considering by those in the ivory towers. Speaking during a forum on Local Government autonomy organized by the House of Representatives in Abuja, Oshiomhole said that it is preferable for Nigeria to have 774 local government chairmen who are corrupt than to have a single centralized leader who controls and steals all the resources of the nation.

Let me quote him: “The issue we have to address is about character. Whether money allocated to local government chairmen is stolen or shared with other non-state actors and abused regulations, what will change? The bottom line of this conversation is that if we transfer money directly to the local government, will that mean more development at the local government level? That, for me, is a matter of character. If we want to reduce local government stealing money, I have argued that it’s better to have 774 thieves, with each local government producing one or two billionaires, than to have one big man taking everything. I am completely for local government autonomy. I also believe that whoever has power must account for it at whatever level. I only hope and pray that God will give the National Assembly the wisdom to review the legal framework such that it is easier to punish a local government Chairman (that steals) than the Governor who is in office, and you have to wait for eight years (to punish him)”.

That was the new theory propounded by Oshiomhole. In essence, we should allow 774 council chairmen to steal rather than a Governor or a President doing all the stealing. More or less liberalising stealing and justifying it at the local government level.

Ronald Hope Sr. and Borrwell Chikulo, in a seminar paper titled: ‘Corruption and Development In Africa: Lesson from Case Studies’, noted that ‘’corruption in Africa has reached cancerous proportions. In fact, so pervasive is this phenomenon in the region that it has been labelled the ‘AIDS of democracy’, which is destroying the future of many societies in the region. The corruption problem in Africa reflects the more general, and now legendary climate of unethical leadership and bad governance found throughout most of the continent.’’

Also, writing in African Journal on Politics and Administrative Studies, the trio of Ibrahim S. Muhammad, Sanusi Abdul Wasiu, and Muddassir Ahmad Gado, also examined ‘Corruption and Its Impact On Socio-Economic Development in Selected Countries of Africa’, and noted that Africa is indeed a continent blessed with an abundance of natural resources, ranging from valuable minerals like gold, diamonds, copper, and oil. These resources, they noted, hold immense potential for fostering economic growth and development across the continent. However, Africa continues to grapple with extreme poverty and underdevelopment, with corruption being identified as a major impediment to progress.

In their work, the trio focused on the pervasive issue of corruption in Africa, with Nigeria, Uganda, and Zimbabwe as case studies.

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Their findings revealed the staggering impact of corruption on Africa’s development, with annual losses of approximately $60 to $100 billion due to illicit financial flows, while highlighting that the flows divert resources away from political and socio-economic advancement, exacerbating widespread impoverishment. In their conclusion, the authors underscored the corrosive effect of corruption on Africa’s development and offered several recommendations to address the issue, which include promoting merit-based leadership selection, enforcing stronger legal actions against corruption, empowering anti-corruption agencies, engaging citizens and civil society in the fight against corruption, and strengthening the rule of law and judicial independence. These recommendations aim to pave the way for a more transparent and accountable future in Africa.

We need to strengthen our institutions to prevent widespread abuse and large-scale looting of our treasury. It is so easy for those in power to steal billions of Naira and get away with it. Except that is done, we can rightly describe Nigeria as a Banana Republic, where anything goes.

Indeed, the impact of corruption in Nigeria is glaring for all to see, with 70 per cent of the population swimming in multi-dimensional poverty. With hunger and deprivation walking on all fours, taking its toll on the hapless majority while a tiny fraction of the elites seem to have cornered the nation’s wealth for themselves and their nuclear families.

Should we then examine Oshiomhole’s queer suggestion that we should fully liberalise the persistent looting of the country in the hope that it would have a wider spread and impact and either directly or indirectly work towards the eradication of poverty amongst the masses? A ‘fantastically corrupt’ local government chairman, (apologies to Donald Trump) would have at least 10 members of his immediate family that would benefit from his looting of the treasury which would also percolate to several others who could also benefit from the looting. In a sense, hundreds, if not thousands of their children, wives, side chicks and relatives of these council chairmen stand to gain massively from the direct allocation of resources to the third tier of government as sanctioned by the Supreme Court.

If we liberalise stealing at the local government level, at the end of each election cycle, whether it is three or four years, we would have produced hundreds, if not thousands of billionaires instead of just 36 Governors and the FCT boss directly in charge of local government funds.

Oshiomhole’s argument has also been strongly validated by the discovery of 753 duplexes in Abuja owned by the former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, (CBN), Godwin Emefiele. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), also, during the week, secured the final forfeiture of those duplexes to the Federal Government. While ruling on the Commission’s application for the final forfeiture of the property, Justice Jude Onwuegbuzie held that the respondent had not shown cause as to why he should not lose the property, “which has been reasonably suspected to have been acquired with proceeds of unlawful activities, the property is hereby finally forfeited to the federal government.”

Yet, this is just one of the properties that has been associated with the former CBN Governor. There are several others outside the shores of the country. Since the revelation by the anti-graft agency, most Nigerians are still wondering why Emefiele would contemplate such a huge estate, given the level of poverty in the land. Again, it goes to show how loose our institutions are as well as the lousy accounting structures that makes it possible for an individual to steal such humongous amounts of money from the system.

In the last couple of days, social media has been awash with some Nigerians calling for a ‘wedding’ between Emefiele and Diezani Alison-Madueke, another former Minister of Nigeria that has been identified as corruption personified owing to the frightening amounts of monies and assets she acquired from alleged corrupt practices while in office.

There is no denying the fact that corruption has brought Nigeria to its knees. This country is already tottering on the precipice. We all must be determined and resolute in our efforts at taming the monster of corruption in our midst.  Until we Africans decide to react forcefully against the stench of corruption to which we are currently subjected, corruption will remain a societal norm, poisoning civil society and splitting it into rent-seeking elites and helpless spectators.

Most Nigerians can no longer afford three square meals in a day in spite of the God-given resources at our disposal. Many of those in government steal what they do not even need and in the process, hinder the growth and development of the people and the country.

While Oshiomhole is pushing for his liberalisation of stealing, in the belief that it would eventually spread wealth and reduce the inequality gaps in the system, I would however, canvass for the death penalty for those who are cornering our wealth for themselves and families alone. However, my own recommendation would have a human face. If you are caught stealing below N10 million, the money should be recovered and the individual sent to jail for one year. The thinking here is that the person concerned is hungry and was looking for what to eat. Those caught stealing above N10 million but below N100 million should have the fund recovered and sent to jail for five years without an option of fine.

Any Nigerian caught stealing any amount above N100 million up to a N1 billion should be sentenced to life imprisonment, as such an individual is not bothered about the welfare of his fellow citizens; while anyone caught stealing any amount above N1 billion should face the firing squad after the loot must have been recovered. It is believed that those in the last category are hired killers who have no scant regard for their fellow citizens. Their lawyers should also get some form of punishment. If those that are ‘fantastically corrupt’ are put to death, it will send the right signal to other prospective looters and there would be sanity in the system. China and Vietnam have the death penalty for government officials involved in fraud and other vices.

We should be bothered as a nation that corruption has eaten deep into the fabrics of our national life. We need to strengthen our institutions to prevent widespread abuse and large-scale looting of our treasury. It is so easy for those in power to steal billions of Naira and get away with it. Except that is done, we can rightly describe Nigeria as a Banana Republic, where anything goes.

See you next week.

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Adetola, who was the former personal assistant to Emefiele, made the revelation on Thursday while giving evidence before an Ikeja Special Offences Court.

Emefiele is standing trial for alleged abuse of office and  $4.5 billion and N2.8 billion fraud, while in office.

He is being prosecuted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, alongside his co-defendant, Henry Omoile.

Omoile, on his part, is facing three-count charge bordering on unlawful acceptance of gifts by agents.

At the resumed hearing, Adetola, through his counsel, Mr  Rotimi Oyedepo (SAN), told  the court that he managed office correspondences and visitors of the governor  in Lagos.

He said his duty gave him direct access to Emefiele.

Adetola said sometime in February 2023, he received an invite from EFCC and was interviewed on his relationship with Emefiele.

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He said, “I made a voluntary statement at EFCC office.

“In 2018, Mr Eric Odoh, the personal assistant to the governor in Abuja, sent  a message to me that I should go and meet Mr John Ayoh, the former director of ICT department to collect $400,000  and give it to the governor.

“I went to Mr Ayoh’s house in Lekki and he gave me the envelope.

“I came back to the office and gave the envelope to the governor.”

Adetola further told the court that he informed EFCC about the money during his interrogation.

The witness also confirmed that he communicated with Emefiele through telephone, email, office line and verbal communication whenever he was around.

He also confirmed to the court that he knew one George and Okanta who were Emefiele’s younger brothers and the governor’s wife, Margaret, by virtue of his relationship with his boss.

Adetola also confirmed to the court that Omoile (his co-defendant) lived in Emefiele’s house in Lagos.

The witness also identified bundles of documents which were official communication between him and the ex-governor.

He also identified documents showing his communication with Ayoh (former director of ICT department) and Odoh (personal assistant to the governor in Abuja).

The prosecution sought to tender the bundles of documents for identification purpose.

Emefiele’s counsel, Mr Olalekan Ojo (SAN) did not object.

But Omoile’s counsel, Mr Adeyinka Kotoye (SAN), objected and argued that the documents had no basis in law.

According to Kotoye, a document not tendered as an exhibit, should not be tendered at all.

Oyedepo, in his response, argued  that the documents were relevant and would prove essential ingredients of the offences.

“The documents are for the purpose of identification,” he said.

Justice Rahman Oshodi, admitted the bundles of documents for identification purpose, after considering  the parties submissions.

Oshodi adjourned the case until December 10 for cross-examination of the witness.

Source: NAN

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Emefiele is charged before an Ikeja Special Offences Court.

He is standing trial for abuse of office and  $4.5 billion and N2.8 billion fraud while in office.

He is being prosecuted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC.

Emefiele’s co-defendant, Henry Omoile, is standing trial on three counts bordering on unlawful acceptance of gifts by agents.

Ogah was led in evidence by EFCC counsel, Mr Rotimi Oyedepo (SAN).

He said that he had worked at Zenith Bank Plc., as Secretary to Emefiele when he was the Managing Director of Zenith Bank.

The witness told the court that he later joined CBN as Secretary in charge of administration to the governor.

He said he was responsible for receiving all internal and external mails for the governor of CBN and also directed his attention to them.

Ogah said: “I worked in the CBN governor’s office and took instructions from  CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele.

“I was asked to give a document to the account officer of three companies, namely; Limelight, Comec and Answin Resources Ltd. while working for the governor.

“I scanned the document and sent it to the account officer of the three companies through his official email.”

Justice Rahman Oshodi adjourned the case until October 30 for continuation of trial.

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Earlier, the first prosecution witness, Mr Monday Osazuwa  was recalled for cross-examination by Emefiele’s counsel, Mr Olalekan Ojo (SAN).

Osazuwa, a dispatch rider at CBN,  had told the court that he did not keep record of  money he collected on behalf of Emefiele while he was in office.

Osazuwa had, on April 12, testified before the court how Emefiele, on different occasions, directed him to collect millions  of dollars in cash and in tranches, on his behalf.

The court had, on May 18, granted the request of defence to recall Osazuwa, following a motion on notice moved by Mr Kazeem Gbadamosi (SAN), counsel to Emefiele’s co-defendant.

The witness told the court that he did not keep any records of money he collected for Emefiele.

According to Osazuwa, the former governor instructed him not to keep any record of money he collected on his behalf.

Ojo had asked if the witness provided any documents to EFCC showing where he recorded money he collected for Emefiele, Ojo also asked if he knew the importance of keeping record of financial transactions.

The witness replied that he did not keep any record.

The witness said: “There is no document produced.

“The instructions given to me by the first defendant was that I should not write anything down.

“I do not have document by either the first or second defendant acknowledging receipt of money.

“I did not produce any record, I obeyed the instruction.”

Source: NAN

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The witness, made this known while testifying in the case of alleged procurement fraud preferred against Emefiele  by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC.

Gana who is the Prosecution Witness (PW10), was the former Head of Procurement Department.

The witness led in evidence by the prosecution counsel, Rotimi Oyedepo, SAN, confirmed that he was in office when contracts for vehicles contained in Exhibits F4 to F45, were approved.

The witness told the court that Toyota vehicles obtained at the cost of N99,900,000 was acquired by the CBN from April 1616 Nigeria Ltd. through direct procurement.

Referring to Exhibit F5, Gana said two Toyota Hilux were obtained at the cost of N23,100,000 each through selective bidding.

He said April 1616 Nigeria Ltd., was awarded the contract having placed the lowest bid and aligning with the CBN’s in-house estimate of the same sum.

Earlier, the witness had testified that at the CBN, contracts could be awarded through direct procurement or selective bidding.

He added, depending on the guidance of the director of procurement department who works in team with the Deputy Director, the Head of Procurement (himself) and the procurement officer.

After his testimony, the prosecution counsel prayed the court to grant him an adjournment different from the earlier date of October 22.

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“I am appearing in a case filed by Kogi and 15 other states against the EFCC in the Supreme Court on Tuesday,” he told the court.

The defence counsel, Matthew Burkaa, however, did not object to the prayer but pointed out that cost of movement was high now and such be considered.

Justice Hamza Muazu then adjourned the matter until November 13, for continuation and hearing of the application.

Earlier, the defence counsel, Burkaa, had opposed the prosecution’s amended additional proof of evidence served on them.

Burkaa challenged the process and manifestation of intent to call two witnesses who were not listed earlier.

He said the defence was not challenging the charge but bringing in of new witnesses to testify.

Emefiele was alleged to have engaged in criminal breach of trust, forgery, conspiracy to obtain by false pretence and obtaining money by false pretence, when he served as the apex bank’s boss.

Among the allegations was that the former CBN boss forged a document titled: Re: Presidential Directive on Foreign Election Observer Missions dated January 26, 2023 with Ref No. SGF.43/L.01/201 and purported same to have emanated from the office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (AGF).

He is also accused of using his office as CBN governor to confer unfair and corrupt advantage on two companies; April 1616 Nigeria Ltd and Architekon Nigeria Ltd in suit marked: FCT/HC/CR/577/2023.

Source: NAN

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The organization said it had observed that the CBN had again, re-introduced the Retail Dutch Auction System, RDAS, to conduct the sale of foreign exchange to end users after it was jettisoned by the apex bank.

In a press statement made available to FrontPage, the Lead Researcher and Policy Analyst, Pol Eco Analytics, Mr Olamilekan Adefolarin, said though Pol Eco Analytics was strongly in support of any genuine and proactive monetary policies that would strengthen the ailing naira at the moment, it was not the first time the Dutch auction systems process was being implemented by CBN.

The organization recalled that under Godwin Emiefele, the Retail Dutch Auction System, RDAS, was in use as against the Whole Sale Dutch Auction System, WSDAS, that was implemented under Emir Sanusi Lamido Sanusi.

“Significantly, the Whole Sale Dutch System allowed CBN to sell FX to banks alone, while on the other hand, the Retail Dutch Auction System, RDAS, allowed direct sales of forex to end users by CBN through the banks.

“Unfortunately, the excuse given for dumping the Whole Sale Dutch Auction System, WSDAS, for Retail Dutch Auction System, RDAS, was the dollarization of the Nigerian economy. Similarly, the CBN had deployed Inter Bank Settlement Allocation Rationale as mechanism to sell forex.”

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Pol Eco Analyst expressed concerns  that over the last nine months, the apex bank had introduced different short to medium term strategies of fixing Nigeria’s forex challenges and Medium-to-Long Term Strategy focused on improving FX Inflows and stabilizing the Naira, as well as  interventions to reduce the challenges faced by diaspora remittance flows, and forex from oil and gas  receipt flow into our External Foreign Reserve.

Others, it was said, included strengthening surveillance and technological capabilities to monitor cryptocurrency transactions, and while all FX transaction windows had been consolidated into the NAFEM platform, the CBN removed the exchange rate cap to enable International Money Transfer Operators’ (IMTOs) participation, as well as revamping the Bureau de Change (BDC) segment.

“Without a doubt,  the CBN’s current policies, despite promising long-term benefits, have their own challenges, reason being that the model fails to address the challenge of attracting adequate liquidity sustainable for the Nigerian macro-economic environment,” the organization said.

While acknowledging  the fact that current monetary reforms were a crucial measure to help overcome naira depreciation,  Pol Eco Analytics said that to make a lasting difference in monetary policy impact in Nigeria, Cardoso should refrain from policy experimentations  amid the various policy reforms targeted at a stable FX liquidity.

“Regrettably, many Nigerians are yet to come to terms with the free float exchange rate regime of the CBN and questions are still being asked about the willing-buyer, willing-seller regime of the Investors and Exporters Window.

“Pol Eco Analytics strongly believe that addressing  Naira’s volatility will not be achieved through policy experimentation but strategically tackling liquidity concerns.”

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Ogbonnaya told an Ikeja Special Offences Court on Tuesday how Emefiele used the bank to move multimillion naira to his wife.

Emefiele is standing trial over abuse of office and alleged $4.5 billion and N2.8 billion fraud while in office.

Ogbonnaya, the fifth prosecution witness, was led in evidence by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, counsel, Mr Rotimi Oyedepo (SAN).

She told the court how Emefiele used Zenith Bank to transfer millions of naira in tranches to his wife through various companies.

Ogbonnaya said the companies that received the cash flow were Amswing Resources and Solution, Limelight Dimensional Service Ltd., Omec Support Service Ltd. and Mango Farm.

“Limelight manages the facilities of CBN, located at Alakija and all transactions pertaining to power and fixing things that are not working was always done by the vendors,” she said.

The witness who also doubles as a Business Relationship Manager, joined the bank in 2006.

Ogbonnaya said she never had direct dealings with the ex-CBN governor but received instructions from his wife to transfer cash from CBN into their private companies through Zenith Bank account.

She said apart from Mrs Emefiele she also received instructions from two other people, one Mr John Ogah and one Mr Opeyemi Oludimu, who worked for the Emefiele but now late.

The witness, however, said that she managed the various companies accounts through which the multimillion naira was sent to.

“Mrs Margaret Emefiele, the ex-CBN governor’s wife, is the direct beneficiary of the accounts.

“The companies sent transfer instructions to my email and Margaret is the beneficial owner of the accounts.

“All transactions made in the accounts were confirmed by Mrs Emefiele before they were processed.

“She sends transfer instructions directly to my official email address with Zenith Bank or sends two other persons to act on her behalf but I still receive approval from her,” she said.

The witness also told the court that from March 9 to 11, 2015, the accounts received cash flow from  the apex bank to the tune of N18. 9 million and N1.8 million respectively

“On Feb. 22, 2021, there was a cash flow of N43 million from CBN; on July 21, 2022, there was a cash flow of N37.3 million; on Oct. 21, 2022, there was a credit flow of N44.6 million; on May 10, 2023, there was a cash flow of N93.1 million from CBN, among others,” she said.

The witness further said that she usually communicated with Emefiele’s wife through email, phone calls and Whatsapp on transactions that were to be carried out on the accounts before processing them.

She said the bundles of documents which entailed the various transactions were printed from her office desktop computer.

“The documents were sent to my email and when investigation started, I was requested to print all the documents to the law enforcement which I did.

“I printed from the office desktop and took them to compliance officer.

“I also have certificate confirming that these documents were printed from Zenith Bank,” Ogbonnaya said.

The prosecution sought to tender the bundles of documents which entailed the various transactions that took place between the witness and Emefiele’s wife.

Emefiele’s counsel, Mr Olalekan Ojo (SAN), and the second defence counsel, Mr Kazeem Gbadamosi (SAN), did not object the admissibility of the documents.

The court, thereafter, admitted into evidence the certificate of identification, bundle of printed documents, following no objections from the defence.

The witness, thereafter, spoke into the documents and briefly explained the inflow and outflow of fund, purportedly sent from the CBN through Zenith Bank to Emefiele’s wife.

The prosecution also sought the indulgence of the court for the witness to write down the number in which she used to have conversations with Mrs Emefiele on an A4 paper which was admitted into evidence.

The witness, however, said that she could not remember some digits of the number by heart but she could recall it through her mobile phone.

The two defence counsel, however, objected to the witness, recalling the number through her phone.

Justice Rahman Oshodi had earlier in the proceeding granted  the application filed by the second defence counsel to recall the first prosecution witness, Monday Osazuwa.

EFCC had on April 8 arraigned Emefiele on 23 counts bordering on abuse of office, accepting gratifications, corrupt demand, receiving property fraudulently obtained and conferring corrupt advantage.

Also, his co-defendant Henry Omoile-Isioma, was arraigned on three counts bordering on acceptance of gift by agents.

The defendants, however, pleaded not guilty.

The judge, however, adjourned the case until July 10 for continuation of trial.

Source: NAN

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Obazee, at the award ceremony by ThisNigeria Newspaper in Abuja that held on June 27, 2024, where he and four others were awarded, stated that those who could not account their stewardship while in office should be made to face the consequences so that the country could be cleaned up and returned to the path of progress.

Speaking at the occasion, Obazee celebrated President Tinubu for granting the opportunity “to take a good look at the malfeasance in the country and find a way to wash them off.”

He highlighted that the biggest problem in the country was that “we seem to be building permanent structures with temporary sticks”.

He added that “as a country, if we don’t provide for the poor we cannot protect the rich.”

Obazee thanked the newspaper for recognising him and others who served the country wholeheartedly, and was elated by the award which he said, encouraged those in public service to ensure that they served with the object of making humanity better.

“The award encourages those of us who believe in service and who believe in the country. I’m actually delighted that at this time when the journalism industry is facing headwinds, one can still have newspapers that have come out to demonstrate strategies that involve celebrating those who contribute to humanity.

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“I’m also delighted that Nigerians know that everybody will account for his actions especially now that the government has commenced trials while some are still in the process. We are looking forward to a situation where we will begin to demand for accountability, probity, transparency and statutory code of corporate governance so that people can be held accountable and responsible.

“There was a time in this country when a company came out and said it lied on stock taking. Instead of being punished through a slump in their stock price people rushed the shares, and the shares appreciated. It means we are not conscious of the need for accountability. But from now, I think Nigerians will know that there is need for people and institutions to be accountable and that such accountability should come with consequences,” Obazee said.

The former Executive Secretary of the Financial Reporting Council, FRC, the premier regulator in Nigeria, got the Gold Prize in Public Service from ThisNigeria Newspaper for unearthing and cleansing the Augean stable of malfeasance in the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, under the immediate past governor of the CBN, Mr. Godwin Emefiele.

The said embattled ex-CBN Governor is currently facing trials in courts in Lagos and Abuja.

Obazee was appointed the Special Investigator on July, 28, 2023 by President Bola Tinubu to probe the CBN, related entities and other key Government Business Entities (GBE) in the country.

The appointment is rooted in Section 15(5) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 as amended, which places responsibility on him and his team to investigate and block the leakages in CBN and others as well as provide a comprehensive report on public wealth currently in the hands of corrupt individuals and establishments (whether private or public) to the President.

The Publisher of ThisNigeria Newspaper, Eric Osagie, commended Obazee and his team that throughout the investigation, they did “not succumb to inducements to sway them from the path of rectitude, unlike probes of similar nature.”

Other awardees are the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Minister, Nyesom Wike, who got a Gold Prize for Infrastructure Revolution and Exceptional Leadership in the FCT; Governor Kabir Abba Yusuf of Kano State who was awarded Gold Prize for Courage in Leadership; Governor Umo Bassey Eno of Akwa Ibom was awarded Gold Prize for Peace Building and Innovative Leadership while Comrade Issa Aremu also got Gold Prize in Public Service for effective government-workforce engagement.

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