Funso Muraina
6 November 2009
Abuja — The Senate Committee Chairman on Power, Senator Nicholas Yahaya Ugbane, and his counterpart in the House of Representatives, Hon Ndudi Elumelu along with others accused of awarding 156 contracts to phony contractors to the tune of N5.2b. yesterday urged an Abuja High Court to quash the charges prefered against them by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commssion (EFCC).
The accused persons unanimousely through their lawyer, Sunday Ameh told the court that the proof of evidence did not disclose any primae facie evidence against them as they were just performing their respective legislative duties.
They urged the court sitting before Justice Adebukola Banjoko of the Federal High Court Gudu to quash the charge, discharge and aquit them of the said charges.
EFCC counsel, Godwin Obla urged the court to dismiss the applications of the accused persons even as he stressed that the accused persons are charged for committing and abbetting the said offences.
After adopting their written addresses, the court adjourned the matter to 10th of November, for ruling on the applications.
An analysis of the 157 - count criminal charges slammed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on the Senator, three House of Representatives members and six others indicated that the contracts were awarded to 51 different contracting firms.
Some of the contractors allegedly not be in existence legally benefited up to ten times each in the contract largesse.
Among those that featured prominently include Omotoso & Sons, Willand Eng. Ltd, Con Engineering Nig. Ltd, Damsal Nig. Ltd, Berna Dinois Nig. Ltd, Tometrix International Limited, Okia Morris Nigeria Limited, Mark E Engineering Limited and Skipper Electrical Limited.
The N5.2B was also alleged to have been paid to the firms upfront by the National lawmakers and their alleged collaborators for non existing rural electrification projects.
Senator Ugbane representing Kogi East, Ndudi Elumelu, Hon. Igwe Paulinous and Hon Jibo Mohammed and six others were since in December 2008 put on trial by EFCC on 157 criminal court charges involving conspiracy, breach of trust, fraudulent facilitation of withdrawal of funds belonging to the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
The rest include Samuel Ibi Gekpa, MD Rural Electrification Agency (REA) Dr. Abdullahi Aliyu Permanent Secretary Ministry of Power, Simon Kirdi Nanle, Engineer Lawrence Kayode Orekoya, Abdulsamad Garba Jahun and Barrister Kayode Oyedeji.
They were all alleged to have defrauded the Federal Government through the Rural Electrification Agency account No. 0103742014 domiciled in the Central Bank of Nigeria.
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