Embattled former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Godwin Emefiele, has urged the Federal Capital Territory High Court in Abuja to prevent the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) from calling additional witnesses beyond the 10 initially listed in his ongoing procurement fraud trial.
Emefiele’s lead counsel, Matthew Burkaa (SAN), argued that since the EFCC had only included 10 witnesses in its proof of evidence submitted to the court, it should not be permitted to introduce more.
However, the EFCC’s prosecuting counsel, Rotimi Oyedepo (SAN), opposed the motion, stating that additional testimonies were essential for a comprehensive and fair trial.
Oyedepo contended that restricting the agency from presenting more witnesses would violate its right to a fair hearing.
After hearing arguments from both sides on Monday, Justice Hamza Muazu adjourned the case to March 20 for a ruling.
Emefiele faces 20 charges, including criminal breach of trust, forgery, and conspiracy, under case number FCT/HC/CR/577/2023. He is also accused of using his position as CBN governor to grant corrupt advantages to two companies, April 1616 Nigeria Ltd and Architekon Nigeria Ltd.
During Monday’s proceedings, the EFCC’s 10th witness, Salawu Gana, testified that the contract awarded to April 1616 for procuring vehicles for the CBN complied with procurement laws and the bank’s guidelines.
Under cross-examination by Emefiele’s lawyer, Gana explained that the CBN’s Procurement Department had reviewed and vetted quotations from bidders before awarding the contract to April 1616, which had the lowest bid. He stated that Emefiele’s approval was based on the CBN Tenders Board’s recommendations.
The witness confirmed that the vehicles were delivered and that April 1616 was paid following the board’s recommendations. As the former Head of the Procurement Unit, Gana emphasized that Emefiele was not a member of the CBN Tenders Board.
He also noted that neither he nor the five procurement officers who recommended April 1616 had been charged by the EFCC. Furthermore, Gana stated that he had not seen any evidence linking Emefiele to payments from April 1616’s bank account.
According to Gana, Emefiele was neither a director, shareholder, nor signatory to April 1616’s bank account, as confirmed by the company’s registration certificate. He also testified that Emefiele did not influence the procurement process through phone calls or SMS, adding that he reported directly to his supervisor, Mr. Ekanem Akpan, and not to Emefiele.
During the session, EFCC counsel Rotimi Oyedepo (SAN) submitted bundles of exhibits detailing the bidding processes for 45 different vehicle supply contracts awarded by the CBN to April 1616, RT Briscoe, and Globe Motors.
In his evidence-in-chief, Gana reiterated that April 1616 secured the contracts because it offered the lowest quotations.