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The prosecution of
Hon. Ndudi Elumelu, Senator Nicolas
Ugbane, Hon. Jibo Mohammed and six
others by the
Economic and Financial Crimes Commission,
EFCC, for dipping their hands into the
N5.2 billion
Rural Electrification
Agency, REA, fund, got a boost on
Thursday, March 4, when Justice
Adebukola Banjoko of the FCT High Court,
Gudu, Abuja, dismissed the application
by two of the accused to quash the
corruption charges against them.
The Judge had on
November 10,
2009, thrown out, a similar application
by Senator Nicholas Ugbane, erstwhile
Chairman Senate Committee on Power,
seeking to quash the
fraud case
against him.
EFCC, had on Friday
30th October, 2009, preferred
a fresh 130 count-charge against Hon.
Godwin Elumelu, Senator Nicholas Ugbane
and seven others at the FCT High Court,
Abuja ,
for defrauding the government to the
tune of over N5.2 billion in the Rural
Electrification Agency project.
After Ugbane’s
application was thrown out, Hons Elumelu
and Jibo filed a similar application to
quash the charges against them. The
other accused persons are Engr. Samuel
Ibi Gekpe, Dr. Abdullahi Aliyu, Simon
Kirdi Nanle, Engr. Lawrence Kayode
Orekoya, Abdulsamad Garba Jahun and
Barrister Kayode Oyedeji.
While ruling Thursday
on the motion to quash the case, Justice
Banjoko stated that a prima facie case
has been established for the trial of
the suspects to proceed.
According to the
Judge, the accused have a plain ground
to convince the court that they are not
guilty by the time the case proceeds to
trial.
“It is not whether
the accused is guilty but whether there
is a reasonable ground for the accused
to be prosecuted”, Justice Banjoko said.
Elumelu’s counsel,
Barrister Olushola Dare, had in November
2009, prayed the court to quash the
charges levied against his client as he
said that there is no substantial proof
of evidence.
The counsel also told
the court that there should not be
generalization of charges; as to him,
going by the Evidence Act, the charges
levied against his client ought not to
be generalized.
Counsel to EFCC,
Barrister Godwin Obla, however, said
since it is a criminal case of fraud and
conspiracy which involves all the
accused parties, the joint charges filed
against them are in order.
Justice Banjoko
adjourned the case to May 10, 2010, for
hearing on the substantive case.
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