By Ken Afor
The Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi Ojaja II, is seeking the release of the embattled former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele.
It was gathered that the monarch visited Emefiele at the Kuje Correctional Facility in Abuja, Nigeria’s capital, on Tuesday, December 5, 2023.
Among many other prominent Nigerians, the monarch is pushing for the release of the ex-governor of the Central Bank who is incarcerated due to his incapacity to meet his N300 million bail condition.
According to Politics Nigeria, the Ooni of Ife visited the prison twice to discuss with Emefiele. The first visit was during the early afternoon and lasted for four hours.
The monarch had lengthy meetings with Emefiele during both visits.
It would be recalled that last month, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) arraigned Emefiele on a six-count charge related to procurement fraud.
It was alleged that he had used his position to benefit Sa’adatu Yaro, a CBN employee, by allocating a contract for the purchase of 43 vehicles valued at N1.2 billion between 2018 and 2020.
Although he had been in the custody of the Department of State Security for four months prior to his arrest and arraignment, Emefiele was still re-arrested by the EFCC when he was released by the DSS.
Emefiele entered a plea of not guilty to the revised allegations and was later released on bail with the amount of N300 million as well as two guarantors in the same amount, each of whom must have the Maitama district of Abuja certifications of occupancy and title of properties.
The Registrar of the Court ordered him to hand in all his travelling credentials and cautioned him to remain in the Abuja Municipal Council.
The former Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) governor could not fulfill the requirements for bail and he is still detained in Kuje Correctional Facility.
