By Abiola Olawale
The immediate past governor of Kogi State, Yahaya Bello, has finally agreed to appear before the Federal High Court in Abuja for his arraignment on allegation of misappropriation of funds to the tune of N80 billion, preferred against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
Bello’s lead counsel, Abdulwahab Mohammed, during court proceedings on Friday, told the court that his client is ready to appear before the court on June 13.
Mohammed in his argument tendered an undertaking before the presiding judge, Justice Emeka Nwite on Friday shortly after his request for suspension of trial was rejected.
At the beginning of the court proceedings, Bello, through his legal counsel had asked the court to stay execution in his trial because there was an appeal filed by the EFCC, before the Court of Appeal, against the contempt application filed by the defendant against the EFCC chairman, Ola Olukayode.
Justice Nwite, in his ruling on Friday, however, rejected the application made by Bello through his lawyer Mohammed. The judge held that the defendant being in disobedience of the order of the Court cannot benefit from the indulgence of the Court and is not entitled to be heard.
However, Bello’s Counsel, in his argument, claimed that the former governor was not afraid of arraignment but was concerned about the safety of his life in the hands of the EFCC.
Mohammed told the court that the life of his client has been under consistent threats in Abuja, hence, his decision to go underground for safety.
“All my client needs is just an assurance for the safety of his life which has been under threat for some time in Abuja,” he said.
The lawyer requested for four weeks to bring his client before the court. The Judge said that Bello was not the first former governor to be merely invited by the anti-graft agency and would not be the last.
The Judge also said that the charges were based on allegations that have not been proved, adding that the law even presumed any accused person innocent until proven otherwise.
He advised the senior lawyer to prevail on his client to respect the law and order of the court as a law-abiding person.
Based on the undertaking and no opposition from the EFCC counsel, Rotimi Oyedepo, SAN, Justice Nwite fixed June 13 for Bello to appear in court for his plea to be taken.
It would be recalled that Bello and the EFCC had been engaging in a tug-of-war over the past few weeks. The anti-graft agency had moved to arrest the former governor and even laid siege on his Abuja residence for several hours, however, Bello refused to submit himself and has since gone underground.
Bello had argued that the EFCC had no right to arrest him, relying on an ex-parte order from the Federal High Court, Kogi State. However, the EFCC had said it has the right to arrest and prosecute the former governor, saying it has obtained an arrest warrant from the Federal High Court in Abuja.
The New Diplomat recalls that the EFCC is seeking to arraign Bello on 19 counts bordering on alleged money laundering, breach of trust, and misappropriation of funds to the tune of N80.2 billion.
