By Enyichukwu Enemanna
High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, in Nigeria’s capital Abuja, has ordered the remand of former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Godwin Emefiele in Kuje prison.
This is pending the determination of his application for bail, the presiding judge, Justice Hamza Muazu ruled on Friday.
Emefiele will remain in prison until November 22, when the court will deliver a ruling on his bail motion.
His lead counsel, Mathew Burkaa, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria moved the application for bail which Rotimi Oyedepo vehemently opposed on behalf of the Federal Government.
After taking arguments for and against the application, Justice Muazu said a bench ruling could not be delivered in view of the plethora of authorities cited by the two parties.
The Judge said he needed a little time to study the authorities and peruse through the exhibits supplied by Emefiele to support his request for bail.
Emefiele is standing trial on a six-count charge bordering on alleged breaching of procurement Act. The original charge, which was 20 counts to the tune of N6.5 billion, has been reduced to six, to the tune of N1.6 billion. Emefiele is the only defendant in the new charge.
The former Central Bank governor was accused of using his position to corruptly confer an advantage on Yaro, “a staff of the Central Bank of Nigeria by awarding a contract for the supply of one Toyota Avalon at the cost of N99,900,000 only to April1616 Investment Ltd, a company in which the said Sa’adatu Ramallan Yaro Director and thereby committed an offence.”
He was also accused of conferring corrupt advantage contrary to Section 19 of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act 2000 by awarding a contract for the supply of one Toyota Landcruiser V8 April1616 Investment Ltd., in 2019 at the cost of N73 million.
The Federal Government further accused the former CBN governor of also awarding a contract to Yaro for the supply of two Toyota Hilux Shell Specification Vehicles at the cost of N44,200,000 in 2020.
