Bukola Saraki, the 8th Nigerian Senate President, has accused former president, Muhammadu Buhari of trying to use the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to frame him up of fraud to weaken his tenure.
Saraki who ruled under President Buhari between 2015-2019, made the accusation on his official facebook handle, while celebrating the Supreme Court’s judgement delivered on Friday, overturning the Federal High Court’s 2018 decision regarding an alleged N3.5 billion fraud case against Melrose General Services Limited.
Prior to the judgment, the EFCC had accused Melrose General Services Limited of obtaining N1.4bn from the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) through false claims.
The Commission therefore, secured the final forfeiture of the said N1.4bn through the Federal High Court, but being dissatisfied with the court ruling, Melrose General Services approached the Supreme Court for redress.
At the resumed session held on 14th March 2024, counsel to the appellant, Kehinde Ogunwumiju informed the apex court of a motion seeking to set aside of the judgment of the Court of Appeal.
He premised his argument on the fact that the money involved in the forfeiture suit is not a proceed of any unlawful activity, but payment for a contractual and consultancy agreement.
He therefore prayed that the decision of the high court on the forfeiture be reversed.
However, the EFCC Counsel, Ekele Iheanacho, informed the court of his counter-affidavit dated 11th March 2024, praying the court to adopt his brief of argument and dismiss the appeal of the appellant
He said: “My Lords, we seek the leave of your noble Lordships to undertake a brief overview of the concept of forfeiture granted by the two courts below in a bid to drive home the 1st respondent `s case.
“There are generally two types of forfeitures used to recover the proceeds and instrumentalities of crimes. They share the same objective, namely the forfeiture to the state of the proceeds and instrumentalities of crime. Both share common two-fold rationales”, he said.
“Recall that appellant filed his notice of appeal against the well-considered judgment of the Federal High Court which was equally dismissed by the Court of Appeal on May 31, 2019, having found that the appellant failed to show that the said funds are not proceeds of crime.
“Further to the background of the matter, the EFCC carried out investigations which revealed among others the sum of N3.5bn was fraudulently paid to the appellant to carry out a consultancy job for the Nigerian Governors Forum, NGF, under the guise that the appellant carried out a consultancy job for the NGF entitling it to the money when it did not do any such work.
“The appellant made several withdrawals within a short time leaving N1,222,384,857.84 before the EFCC intervened.
“Further investigation led to the recovery of an additional sum of N220m which the appellant had paid to WASP Networks Ltd and Thebe Wellness Services”.
Meanwhile, after listening to all the submissions, the five-man panel of the apex court reserved judgment on the matter till 7th June, 2024.
However, delivering a judgment on 7th June, the Supreme Court panel led by Justice Akomaye Agim set aside the judgments of the lower courts and ruled in favour of the appellant, Melrose General Services.
Celebrating the victory of Melrose, Saraki said: “Yesterday’s ruling by the Supreme Court, which overturned the 2018 decision of the Federal High Court regarding an alleged N3.5 billion fraud case against Melrose General Services Ltd., has brought a long and arduous legal ordeal to a just and welcome conclusion.
“As much as this case was between the EFCC and Melrose General Services Limited, it was a proxy war, with Melrose serving as a mere pawn in a larger scheme to victimise and persecute me.
“It was always clear that this case, just like my CCT case, was a thinly veiled attempt by the Buhari administration to use the EFCC for political gain.
“The allegations of “Paris Club Fraud” were nothing more than a smokescreen designed to weaken my office as President of the Senate and tarnish my reputation through spurious accusations similar to the Code of Conduct Tribunal, from which I was also acquitted.
“As I said at the CCT, this case too was a politically motivated attack, not on corruption, but on the very foundations of our democracy.
“It aimed to undermine the independence of the judiciary, the separation of powers, and checks and balances—principles I have always fiercely defended.
“They hoped that by targeting me, they could sow discord within the legislature, turning colleagues against each other, ultimately weakening the institution of the Senate, and silencing dissenting voices.”
The former Senate President said because of this he is grateful to Almighty Allah (SWT), the ultimate arbiter of justice, for guiding the Supreme Court to this righteous verdict.
He also commended the judiciary for their meticulous examination of the evidence and adherence to due process, which ensured that justice prevailed.
“I also thank Melrose’s legal team for their tireless efforts in seeing this case to a just conclusion.
“Moving forward, we all have to canvas for fairness in the fight against corruption.
“We should see this verdict as an inspiration to champion the rule of law, promote democracy and its institutions, and tolerate divergent views,” he said.