…as EFCC closes Emefiele’s trial
…as Ex-CBN boss to file no case-submission
Mr Jim Obaze, the special investigator appointed by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to probe the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) under its immediate past governor, Godwin Emefiele, on Friday told the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) that late former President Muhammadu Buhari and former Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Mr Boss Mustapha, must be charged in court over their alleged complicity in the stealing of $6. 2 million from the apex bank purportedly for the 2023 general election.
The money, said to have been withdrawn from the foreign exchange account of the federal government with CBN, was purportedly meant for international election observers for the last general election in the country.
Obaze said this while testifying for the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) before Justice Hamza Muazu, sitting at Maitama, Abuja, in the ongoing trial of Emefiele before the court.
The former CBN governor is standing trial on an amended 20-count charge, marked FCT/HC/CR/477/2023, bordering on criminal breach of trust, forgery, abuse of office, conspiracy to obtain by false pretence, and obtaining by false pretence to the tune of $6,230,000 while serving as CBN governor.
Emefiele, however, pleaded not guilty to the charge preferred against him by EFCC, on behalf of the Federal Government.
Testifying yesterday as the 15th prosecution witness (PW15) in the case, Obaze told the court that while Buhari should be posthumously prosecuted, Boss Mustapha must be brought before the court to stand trial with Emefiele.
Led in his evidence-in-chief by the prosecuting counsel, Rotimi Oyedepo SAN, who doubles as the Director of Public Prosecution of the Federation, Obaze was furious when his attention was drawn to a letter purportedly from the Presidency said to have been signed by late President Buhari for the release of the $6.2 million and another letter from the Office of the SGF, ordering the former CBN governor to effect the release of the money to one Jibril Abubakar.
The letter introduced the said Abubakar as a staff member of the Office of the SGF and mandated him to collect the money from the CBN.
When shown other letters and the extrajudicial statement of Boss Mustapha, in which he claimed that the late Buhari and himself knew nothing about the earlier letter ordering the release of the $6.2 million to Abubakar, Obaze became more furious in court.
After going through the letters, the PW15 told the court that the situation with Nigeria was a very unfortunate one, especially for the federal government to have put only Emefiele on trial in an alleged fraud that involved more than 10 persons.
He dismissed the denials of the Presidency and Boss Mustapha’s involvement in the stealing of the fund from CBN.
According to Obaze, the former SGF must be charged in court with Emefiele, adding that the Abuja Branch Manager of CBN must also be prosecuted for his failure to carry out due diligence before releasing the looted funds.
This, he said, was because going by the CBN Act, the Naira equivalent of the $6.2 million, which was N2.8 billion, ought to have been deposited with the apex bank before the $6.2 million could be officially released.
Obaze then urges Justice Muazu to make an order directing the prosecution of Jubril Abubakar, who collected the money, and Bashirudeen Maishanu, a staff member of CBN, who claimed to be one of those who stole the money from the apex bank and subsequently refunded $856,500 to the special investigation panel and deposited it with the CBN.
“For actions and inactions, Buhari ought to be charged and must be charged along with Emefiele in this $6.2 million fraud, even if posthumously since national honours are given posthumously.”
The prosecution witness told the court that whatever was being done to the defendant in the case had to be done to Buhari posthumously as well as Boss Mustapha, Abubakar, and Maishanu.
Obaze asserted before the court that if all of them are prosecuted, it will serve as a deterrent to others and lead to the elimination and reduction of Nigeria’s problems by 50 percent.
According to him, “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. 2million 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
“If all of them are prosecuted, it will serve as deterrent and problems of Nigeria will be reduced and eliminated by 50 percent “
“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.”
However, while being cross-examined by Emefiele’s lead counsel, Matthew Burkaa SAN, the PW15 told the court that he did not recover any money from the defendant, adding that “there was no evidence of any transfer of any money to his account by the looters.”
The witness told the court that by presumption, Emefiele ought 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 the looters.
He added that the stolen money ought to have been detected in the annual financial statement of the CBN if all those in charge had been diligent.
Obaze informed the court that he was invited by President Tinubu on December 19, 2023, and that in the presence of the Attorney-General of the Federation and chairman of the EFCC, Kayode Olukoyede, he was directed to prepare chargeable offences relating to the stolen $6.2 million against Emefiele.
He, however, told the court that he was not a lawyer when the defence lead counsel reminded him that the current charge against Emefiele had been prepared on August 14, 2023.
Following Obaze’s testimony, the prosecuting counsel, Oyedepo SAN, told the court that the prosecution was closing his case against the former CBN boss.
Responding to this, Burkaa told the court that the defence would be filing a no-case submission.
At the end of Friday’s proceedings, Justice Muazu adjourned the case to October 20 for continuation of trial.
