Alledged N2.9bn fraud: Court discharges Okorocha, others

said.

The judge further held that from the moment the HAGF gave the directive to the EFCC, the commission ceased to have the legal authority to prosecute or continue the prosecution of the case.

“In other words, the intervention of the HAGF in any criminal proceedings ends the authority of the prosecuting agency in the matter unless otherwise directed by the HAGF.

“In the end, I find that noncompliance by the respondent with the directive of the HAGF as stated in Exhibit Okorocha 7 is fatal to this proceeding and has rendered it a nullity.

“The respondent is not empowered by any law to continue with this proceeding after the HAGF issued the directive in Exhibit Okorocha 7.

“With Exhibit Okorocha 7, it is only the HAGF that can decide whether or not to charge the defendants upon the case file being remitted to his office as directed,” he added.

Besides, Justice Ekwo agreed with the defendants that the earlier judgment of a court of coordinate jurisdiction sitting in Port Harcourt in suit number: FHC/PH/FHR/165, between Okorocha and EFCC, restraining the agency from further proceeding on the alleged offence had not been set aside.

According to him, the order is binding until it is set aside.

“The fact that a person refuses to comply with the law does not change the law, neither does the law change to accommodate the act of noncompliance by any person.

“What happens when a person elects not to comply with the law is that the law turns its back on the person.

“When that happens, every action or decision taken by such person in the process of non-compliance becomes illegal and the court will set aside such act of non-compliance ex debito justitiae.

“This is so because there is no machination that can be used to salvage an illegal act,” he said.

The judge, who said that Okorocha’s and 5th defendant (Consolid Projects Consulting Ltd.)’s objections succeeded on merit, struck out the charge.

“I therefore make an order striking out the charge which found this proceeding. The consequence is that the defendants are discharged,” Ekwo declared.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the EFCC had said it received an intelligence report about criminal diversion, abuse of office and money laundering against Okorocha while running the affairs of Imo State government between 2011 and 2019.

The commission said that the intelligence was investigated and confirmed to be true.

The anti-corruption agency then filed a 17-count charge marked: FHC/ ABJ/CR/28/22 against Okorocha and others.

Okorocha, who is the 1st defendant, was arraigned alongside Anyim Nyerere Chinenye, Naphtali

International Limited, Perfect Finish Multi Projects Limited, Consolid Projects Consulting Limited, Pramif International Limited, and Legend World Concepts Limited as 2nd to 7th defendants, respectively.

He was alleged to have laundered fund to the tune of N2.9 billion while serving as governor of Imo.

But Justice Ekwo, on May 31, 2022, admitted Okorocha to bail in the sum of N500 million with one surety in like sum.

The judge also granted Okorocha’s co-defenndant, Chinenye, bail in the terms of the administrative bail earlier granted to him by the EFCC.

But Okorocha, who currently represents Imo West Senatorial District, had filed a preliminary objection, alongside the 5th defendant, praying for an order quashing the charge and/or all counts of the charge preferred against him.

The senator described the suit as being “unlawful, baseless, oppressive and a gross abuse of the process of the court.”

2023: Cyber attacks, greatest threat to general election -Expert

By Christiana Ekpa

The Executive Director OJA Development Consult, Jide Ojo has said that Cyber Attack is the Greatest threat to the 2023 General Election in Nigeria, even as he disclosed that the upcoming General Election worth N478.6bn, is the costiest in the history of the Country.

This was just as the director general of the National Institute for Legislative and Democratic Studies (NILDS), Prof. Abubakar Sulaiman and Resident Representative of Konrad Adenauer Stiftung, Nigeria, Marija Peran said that there can’t be proper democracy without a proper Media.

The Stakeholders equally called on law enforcement officials to arrest and prosecute offenders of the Electoral Act,

The stakeholders disclosed these in Abuja on Monday at the opening ceremony of training workshop for the National Assembly press Corps organised by Konrad Adenauer Stiftung (KAS) in conjunction with NILDS and the National Assembly.

Ojo while Presenting his paper titled “2022 Electoral Act vs. 2010 Electoral Act: Highlighting the substantive and Noteworthy Provisions in the 2022 Electoral Act” said the Section 3 sub section 3: recommended that Funding for the election shall be released 1 year ahead, adding that INEC Spent N117 billion in Cyber Security alone

Also the NILDS DG in his opening said “I call on all security and enforcement agencies to closely study all the electoral offences in the Act and takes measures to arrest and prosecute offenders.

“The Electoral Act has robust provisions prohibiting campaigning or broadcasting based on religious, tribal, or sectional reason for the purpose of promoting or opposing a particular political party or the election of a particular candidate (s.97). Section 91 prohibits campaigns or slogans that are tainted with abusive language that directly or indirectly injure religious, ethnic, tribal or sectiona| feelings.

“It also prescribes penalties for breaches. Yet, no politician or party has been charged despite abundant evidence of blatant contraventions of these provisions by people from all parties.

“Additionally, the Electoral Act has a few provisions on the use of state media but, unfortunately, nothing concrete to regulate private media organisations. Nonetheless, Section 120 (6) prohibits the dissemination of false results and prescribes a penalty of three years imprisonment”.

He decried the rise of negative campaigns by politicians and tasked the media to redirect the candidate in their approach to electioneering campaigns. “The failure of the media to re-frame the conversation and re-direct politicians to issues that confront Nigeria has largely worsened the situation”, he alleged.

Conttinuing, he advised, “I challenge you, therefore, to reflect on your role as watchdogs of our democracy. As professionals, you have a duty to inform the public and provide them with the information they need to make Informed decisions about leadership and policy.

“However, the media is better placed to set the agenda for public discussion of critical issues, especially in the build-up to the elections”.

In a welcome remarks, the resident representative of the Konrad Adenauer Stiftung (KAS) in Nigeria, Marija Peran, said that it was critical to prepare the media for the task ahead.