Following the escape from arrest, of the former Kogi State governor,
Abubakar Audu, by operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes
Commission, EFCC, on December 11, 2012, the Commission has
concluded plans to declare him wanted.
The former governor, alleged to have fraudulently enriched himself to
the tune of over N4 billion while he was governor of Kogi State
between 1999 and 2003, fled when operatives of the Commission
stormedhis 32 Suleiman Barau street, Aso Villa, Asokoro Abuja
residence in the early hours of today.
The latest effort to arrest the ex- governor followed a Supreme Court
ruling of November 23, 2012, which dismissed the ex-governor's appeal
to continue to protracthis corruption trial by EFCC. The Supreme Court
ruling therefore clears the way for his fresh arraignment.
It would be recalled that Audu was arrested in Jos in 2006 after a six
months manhunt by operatives of the Commission, before his earlier
arraignment at the Kogi state High Court on December 1, 2006, on an 80
criminal count charge of conspiracy, fraud, and criminal breach of
trust and embezzlement of public fund.
The EFCC had, while the case lasted at the high court, cause issuance
of nolle prosequi by the former Attorney- General of Kogi state, Dr.
John Alewo Agbonika and the Attorney General of the Federation, Chief
Bayo Ojo on February 8, 2007 for the case tobe discontinued at the
Kogi State High Court as the Commission claimed to have lost faith in
the handling of the matter by the State High Court.
"In my capacity as the AG of Kogi state in collaboration with the AG
of the Federation and by virtue of the power vested in me by Section
211 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 and
Section253 of the CPC and all the powers enabling me in that behalf, I
Dr. John Alewo Agbonika hereby inform this honourable court that I no
longer intend to continue the prosecution of this case in
collaboration with the AG of the Federation to whom I hadgiven a fiat
to prosecute this case", Agbonika, the former Kogi State Attorney
General said.
But rather than discontinue the matter in the spirit of the nolle
prosequi, the trial judge, Justice Medupin, went ahead as he further
referred two questions to the Court of Appeal for determination.
In a judgement delivered by Justice Bode Rhodes-Vivour, the Supreme
Court held that the Court of Appeal was wrong to consider the
questions referred to it for determination after being aware from the
records of Appeal that a nolle prosequi had been filed.
"This is so because there is/was nothing before the trial court, so
there would be nothing for the Court of Appeal to send back.It
amounted to an academic exercise for the Court of Appeal to waste
judicial time considering questions from a case that is nolonger in
existence. There was no longer liveissue to be considered by the Court
of appeal in view of nolle prosequi filed in the trial court", the
Supreme Court ruled.
Part of the setback suffered by the Commission in the prosecution of
the case was the filing of several applications by the defendant for
stay of proceedings at the high court pending the final determination
of the appeal. Audu had on December 12, 2011, through his lead
counsel, Mike Ozekhome, SAN, filed the stay of proceedings motion
supported by 11-paragraph Affidavit.This was 26 clear days after the
Supreme Court of Nigeria on November 16, 2011, struck out a similar
application he filed on January 24, 2011.
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