In the continuous trailer of the ex-governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele, a seventh prosecution witness, PW7, Agboro Michael, explained how Emefiele claimed to have signed and approved contracts worth billions of naira to members of his family and associates.
The witness on Monday narrated to Justice Hamza Muazu of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, High Court, Abuja, on how the trailing CBN governor awarded and approved payment to two companies named Architekon Nigeria Limited and April 1616 Investment Limited, which were later investigated to belong to his wife, Margaret Emefiele, and his in-law, Sa’adatu Yero.
Agboro Michael, the witness who is an investigator with the ICPC, presented proof by the prosecution counsel, made up of Rotimi Oyedepo, the EFCC, the ICPC, the CCB, the DSS, and the Nigerian Police.
In the statement disclosed on the EFCC Nigeria X handle, stated that the witness “testified on the count charge of abuse of office and conferring an unfair advantage to a public officer and relatives, preferred against Emefiele.
“My Lord, these companies were awarded about 45 contracts to supply Toyota vehicles. We were worried as investigators as to how a particular company would get bids concurrently to supply vehicles. We did our investigation and discovered that the company was not even accredited by Toyota.
“In the companies, my Lord, one has Sa’adatu’s husband and siblings as directors, and the other one has Sa’adatu as the director of the company while she is still a civil servant.“
“Document ‘F1’ shows the signature and approval of the defendant to pay the sum of N854,700,000.00. His signature was number three on the document,” he said. Testifying further, Michael said in “‘F3’, the defendant approved N1.857 million for the supply of 47 units of Toyota Hilux.“
Also, “F4 was the defendant’s approval to purchase for the bank an armoured Toyota Avalon car at the cost of N99.9, and F5 was the approval to procure two units of Toyota Hilux for the bank, and all were bought from April 1616 Investment Limited.”
Speaking further on the discovery of the investigative team on exhibit P26, page 86 of 107, on November 6, 2021. Michael stated, “It is a credit into the account from the CBN to the tune of N41,943,400.34, and Page 87 was also a credit in April 2016 from the CBN, N304,853,000.50.“
Reading furthermore, on “26 January 2021, April 1616 Investment Nigeria Limited also received N304,853,720.55 from the CBN, and on the 10th of February 2021, the CBN paid N201,023,323.31.
It was noted that the approval of payment on March 4, 2021, “was N304,843,620.85, and on April 27, 2021, it was N60,976,744.17: then on May 31, 2021, it was N60,976,744.17, and on February 21, 2021, it was a payment of N50,547,508.30, which was equally approved by the defendant.”
However, the witness disclosed to the court that the team has recorded evidence of the defendant’s statement under caution, including a video recorded in a conducive environment.
While testifying in the courtroom, the witness said, “In 2019, again, we discovered the defendant also used his office and position to confer a corrupt advantage to one of the staff of CBN, Sa’adatu Ramalan Yero, to supply one unit of Toyota Land Cruiser V8 at the cost of N73,800,000 to her company, April 1616 Investment Nigeria Limited, where she is a director and equally a director in the CBN.
“Again, my Lord, the defendant also approved the payment of renovation of the CBN Governors’ residence at No. 2. Global Road, Ikoyi Lagos, to a company named Architekon Nigeria Limited, where his wife and brother-in-law are both directors.
“Sometime in 2020, the defendant used his position as CBN Governor to confer on his wife and brother-in-law a corrupt advantage by awarding their company landscaping of the CBN governor’s residence in the sum of N39,46,000.”
Additionally, Michael said a contract “to procure furniture items was also awarded to his brother-in-law in the sum of N97,000,000, and again, a contract to procure a power line at the same CBN Governor’s residence in the sum of N68,568,740.00.“
When the counsel for the defendant, Matthew Burkaa, questioned the witness, he noted that, among all the other signatories, “why was his client the only one fished out?
“There are many signatories in the memo; only his client was on trial.”
Responding to the question, the witness replied, stating that “the defendant was on trial because he was the approving authority, while others only minuted on the documents to justify the process and didn’t have the power to make such payments and approvals.”
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Additionally, Oyedepo opposed Burkaa’s plan to provide the defendant’s statement from the Nigerian Police Force as an exhibit because he believed it was a public document that required certification. Subsequently, Burkaa removed the document and pledged to present the authentic certified copy on the subsequent postponed date.
Therefore, the case was adjourned to April 25 and 26, 2024, by Justice Muazu for the continuation of the trial.
