A former governor of Kogi State, Mr. Yahaya Bello has pleaded with Justice Maryann Anenih of the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja to spare him the possession of a landed property in the Maitama district of Abuja as one of the conditions for bail. Details later…
Justice Maryanne Anenih of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, High Court, Maitama, has directed that a hearing notice be served on Yahaya Bello, former governor of Kogi State, at his residence and on the court’s notice board. This follows his repeated failure to appear in court for arraignment on charges of fraud involving N101.4 billion. In a ruling on Thursday, November 14, 2024, Justice Anenih instructed that the hearing notice be pasted at Bello’s residence at No. 9 Benghazi Street, Wuse Zone 4, Abuja, and displayed on the court’s notice board. The court issued this order as the public summons requiring Bello’s appearance is set to expire on November 17, 2024, allowing him a few remaining days to comply. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC requested an adjournment to allow Bello more time to respond to the public summons, which provides a 30-day period for his appearance. According to the counsel to the EFCC, Jamiu Agoro, the option of issuing a warrant of arrest is premature as the 30-day compliance period has not yet expired. Justice Anenih thereafter granted the EFCC’s request for an adjournment, setting November 27, 2024, as the new date for Bello to appear in court for arraignment. Recall that the court had previously issued a public summons on October 3, 2024, after Bello failed to attend prior hearings related to the new 16-count charges filed against him by the EFCC. The charges include allegations of fraud amounting to N101.4 billion.
Jamilu Abdullahi, a Bureau de Change operator and the third prosecution witness in the trial of Ali Bello, on Tuesday, November 5, 2024, affirmed before Justice Obiora Egwuatu of the Federal High Court, Maitama, Abuja that funds were brought to him by agents of Kogi State Government for the payment of school fees of the daughters of former governor, Yahaya Bello.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, on Wednesday October 30, 2024 asked Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court sitting in Maitama, Abuja, to proceed with the trial of a former governor of Kogi State, Yahaya Bello in absentia, arguing that his non-appearance in court for arraignment should not be allowed to frustrate his trial.
People’s Democratic Party (PDP) candidate in 2023 Kogi State Governorship elections, Senator Dino Melaye has accused former Governor Yahaya Bello of hiding in the state’s government house kitchen to evade arrest by EFCC. An elated Senator, who was reacting to his legal victory after six years, made this revelation on his X handle on Tuesday. Melaye wrote; “After 6 years of legal battle with the Federal Government and IGP on 12 different frivolous cases, just to silence me and drown my voice. “The last of the 12 cases was decided yesterday and I won it just like the other 11 before it. I was humiliated and detained 436 days between 2017 and 2019. “Truth will always remain constant and for me it is a no retreat,no surrender situation. I will continue to speak the truth despite all odds. “In an unjust society, silence is crime. Truth have no volume. “I was humiliated and escaped 4 assassination attempts, to the glory of God, I am here today bouncing and making progress. “No amount of threat, arrest or humiliation will break Dino because if you speak the truth, you will die,if you lie you will die, it is better to speak the truth and die. “Bello, (Yahaya) who instigated these charges is a hunter, who has now become the hunted, hiding inside his successor’s agbada or taking cover in the coven and the oven of Government House kitchen, to escape arrest. “This is what it means to be law-abiding. When your innocence is questioned, be available to prove your innocence. “When you evade common invitation, resist arrest, or refuse to appear in court, you have pronounced yourself guilty! “Truly, the guilty is afraid. “Bello should do the right thing by showing up to explain how N110B moved from the state coffers to his pocket. That is the definition of good citizenship.”
Justice Maryanne Anenih of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT in Maitama, Abuja on October 3, 2024, has issued a public summon against former Governor of Kogi State, Yahaya Adoza Bello following his absence in a fresh arraignment on 16-count charges preferred against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC. Bello, Shuabu Oricha and Abdulsalami Hudu are facing prosecution bordering on criminal breach of trust, and conspiracy to commit an offence to the tune of N110.4 Billion. Justice Anenih issued the summon in a ruling following an ex parte application by EFCC counsel, Rotimi Oyedepo, SAN praying the court to grant leave that the defendant be served the charges via substituted means, following his absence in court to answer charges filed against him on September 24, 2024. The court ordered that the charges be served on the defendant at his known residence, No 4, Benghazi Street, Maitama, Abuja, through a public summons to be published in widely circulated national newspapers and also pasted within the premises of the court. The judge granted two separate adjournments: October 24, 2024, and November 14, 2024. The former was for arraignment on the grounds that the defendant will be arrested and brought to court by EFCC and the latter when the 30 days of service elapsed. Bello is also being awaited for arraignment before Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court, Abuja on an 18-count charge bordering on money laundering to the tune of N80.2billion.
Lead prosecution counsel in the trial of former governor of Kogi State Yahaya Adoza Bello, Kemi Pinheiro SAN, on Wednesday, September 25, 2024, told Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court sitting in Maitama, Abuja that the recent appearance of Bello at the parking lots of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, was out of place as both the trial court and Court of Appeal clearly ordered him to present himself for arraignment in the N80.2billion money laundering charges preferred against him by the EFCC. “There is nowhere my Lordship or the Court of Appeal ordered that Yahaya Bello present himself at the EFCC car park, but rather to appear before my Lordship for arraignment. What is even more worrisome and disconcerting is that the defendant went to the EFCC car park holding the hands of a person with immunity who came with all the full security of his office” “The implication, my Lord, is if there was an attempt to get him from the person of immunity, there would be an invitation to anarchy. The invitation by the EFCC later in the day for Yahaya Bello to come alone, not with a person with immunity, security persons and other people was resisted again on their own admission”, he said. Speaking further, Pinheiro pointed out, “My Lord, we wrote a letter to the defendant’s lawyers drawing our colleagues’ attention that arraignment is not conducted in EFCC’s car park, but the defendant should be in court today according to the judgment of the Court of Appeal and this honourable court’s ruling”. Pinheiro also urged the judge to demonstrate his might and exercise his power to show Bello’s counsel A.M Agboyi that the court is not a vaudeville for entertainment but for serious business. “This court is not a vaudeville, a vaudeville is a place of diverse entertainment. I want to borrow the words of Justice Uwaifo that no party should make a court a place of entertainment. The court must resist it. It is a place of serious and solemn business”, he said. He specifically sought the order of the court for Agboyi to be sanctioned and referred to the Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee, LPDC, for turning the court to a vaudeville. My Lord, it is against this backdrop that I will make this assertion that my learned friend wants to turn this place to an entertainment place or a casino. I want the court to use its power against him because his senior advocates have left and they pushed him so that it will serve as a lesson to others,” he said. He also sought leave of the court to proceed to the trial of Bello in absentia. Meanwhile, Abdul Mohammed SAN, counsel to Adeola Adedipe SAN, craved the indulgence of the court to exercise its discretion not to charge Adedipe for contempt. “Our application is filed on the 18th of July 2024, it is supported by an 11-paragraph affidavit deposed to by the applicant Mr. Adeola Adedipe. That affidavit has an exhibit marked A, and in compliance with my Lord is a written address. “We are urging my Lord to exercise his discretion, we are on bended knees begging you to exercise your discretion and grant the prayers that are contained in the affidavit”, he said. After listening to the counsels, Justice Nwite stressed that “the matter is slated for arraignment, and it seems it has gone back to square one. It’s been over five months now and I don’t know how the case is going. With the submission made by counsels this morning, it’s quite unfortunate, but I have to reserve my comments, I have to reserve judgement on the submission of these counsels”. He thereafter adjourned the matter till October 30, 2024, for arraignment and ruling. The EFCC is prosecuting Bello on 18-count charges bordering on money laundering to the tune of N80.2billion.
It is public knowledge that a former governor of Kogi State, Mr. Yahaya Bello had made several unsuccessful attempts to throw spanners in his ongoing trial through some irresponsible and utterly rascally efforts. The appropriate place of surrender would be before Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court, Abuja, before whom his legal team had undertaken to produce him to answer to the 18-count charges of money laundering preferred against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC. Yahaya Bello should be more interested in clearing his name than playing the victim and crying persecution, where none exists. To even insinuate that he was the target of a phantom assassination attempt because the EFCC made efforts to effect his arrest at the Kogi State Governor’s Lodge where he had been hiding, is preposterous. It is the first time in the Commission’s more than two decades existence that such a jejune claim would be made. This is no more than scaremongering, intended to scandalise the Commission. But EFCC is not deterred by this, and other shenanigans by the ex-governor. The Commission remains committed to ensuring that the law takes its course in the money laundering charges already filed against Yahaya Bello in Court. EFCC is eager to engage the former governor in the courtroom where the avalanche of evidence so painstakingly assembled can be presented and arguments marshalled for justice to be served to all parties involved in this saga. The true test of Yahaya Bello’s willingness to abide by the law in the criminal proceedings instituted against him at the Federal High Court Abuja by the EFCC is to present himself to the court in obedience to the order of Justice Nwite. His presence in court is the only step that will convince Nigerians that his touted submission to the EFCC which was widely reported in the media on September 18, was not a stunt. Till date, Bello is yet to take his plea in the alleged N80.2billion money laundering charges preferred against him before Justice Nwite. His invasion of the corporate headquarters of the Commission with a retinue of security details, hand-to-hand cahoots and carriage with a sitting governor having immunity, unwarranted media blitz, scripted sleight of hands unknown to the public and other backend intelligence available to the Commission, compelled a tactical rebuff of his touted surrender offer. The incident of Wednesday, September 18, 2024, regarding the orchestrated antics of the former governor to surrender himself to the EFCC, having denied being invited by the Commission and operating underground as a fugitive for several months, expectedly raised concerns and curiosity of many Nigerians who had been waiting frantically for his arrest and trial. As a responsible anti-graft agency, the EFCC is sensitive to public opinions, especially if they are in tandem with its operational codes and Standard Operating Procedures. However, no hysteria, blackmail, sentiment or coordinated attacks in some section of the media would make the Commission compromise its integrity. Yahaya Bello’s matter cannot define the success or failure of the works of the EFCC, as the scorecard of the Commission is remarkable and undeniably impressive. The EFCC is not unaware of the fact that corruption fights back. Bello must have his day in court, no matter the recourse to blackmail, appeal to emotive public sympathy or acts of brigandage. Within the year, the Commission had arraigned three former ministers, two ex-governors, several top government officials, captains of industries, internet fraudsters and many more would be arraigned in due course. Every former governor, minister, head of ministries, departments and agencies, MDAs being investigated by the Commission would soon be charged to court. The EFCC is not running a circus show. Corruption issues should not be turned into a theatre of the absurd. Those who harbor a criminal suspect should know that the act is also a criminal offence which is also punishable in law. While the EFCC is assuring the public of its unfaltering focus and commitment to continue to tackle every issue of economic and financial crime without fear or favour, there is need to remind Nigerians that corruption does fight back and caution and restraint should always be exercised in responding to the operational mechanics and dynamics of the Commission. The EFCC would continue with its no sacred cow policy, no matter whose ox is gored.
