Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court in Abuja has postponed hearing on the money laundering case brought by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) against the immediate former Governor of Kogi State, Yahaya Bello.
Naija News reports that Nwite picked October 30, 2024, for the next sitting on the suit.
This comes after Bello approached the Supreme Court to file an appeal aimed at overturning the arrest warrant issued by the trial court on April 17.
During the proceedings, Bello’s attorney, A.M. Adoyi, highlighted that the matter of the defendant’s arraignment is currently under appeal at the Supreme Court. He expressed the desire to bring the court’s attention to the appeal, referencing an affidavit of record submitted on September 23.
Adoyi further stated that it would be prudent to await the Supreme Court’s ruling on the pending appeal before proceeding with the arraignment to avoid nullifying the appellant’s appeal or undermining the authority of the Supreme Court.
In contrast, Kemi Pinheiro, counsel for the EFCC and a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, contended that the defence attorneys were treating the court as a venue for entertainment.
He noted that an appeal filed by the defendant regarding the method of service of the charges and the evidence presented to their counsel was dismissed by the Court of Appeal on August 28 of this year.
“The appellant shall not take any further step until he submits himself. But they took another step,” Pinheiro noted.
In opposing the Defendant’s applications, Pinheiro said, “they had three applications on this – two before your Lordship and one before the Supreme Court. I will now urge your Lordship to demonstrate audacity of coercive power on him.”
On the other hand, Counsel for Bello contended that the matter scheduled for today (Wednesday), specifically the arraignment, is currently under appeal at the Supreme Court by the defendant.
He requested that the court defer its proceedings until the Supreme Court renders its decision, emphasizing the importance of justice in this context.
Justice Emeka Nwite acknowledged the arguments put forth by the counsel and indicated that he would need to address the issues raised in due course.
He announced that he would adjourn the proceedings to deliberate on the matter.
Consequently, he set the next hearing for the 30th of October for both ruling and arraignment.
Last week, the former governor stated that he had complied with the Commission’s invitation, accompanied by Kogi State Governor Usman Ododo, but claimed he was neither interrogated nor detained. The Commission, however, countered this assertion, maintaining that he remains a wanted individual.
The EFCC subsequently attempted to apprehend the ex-governor by surrounding the Kogi Government Lodge in Abuja during the night of Wednesday last week, but the effort was unsuccessful.