Welcome, Guest: Register On Nairaland / LOGIN! / Trending / Recent / NewStats: 3,153,425 members, 7,819,548 topics. Date: Monday, 06 May 2024 at 05:53 PM |
Nairaland Forum / Nairaland / General / Politics / I Was Told Buhari’s Lawyer Gave Justice Ademola N500,000 — Witness (475 Views)
What Saraki, Dogara Told Buhari About Dino Melaye’s Travail, 2018 Budget - READ / What Magu Told Buhari On SSS Allegations / "Buhari Gave Justice Ademola N500,000 During Certificate Controversy" - Witness (2) (3) (4)
I Was Told Buhari’s Lawyer Gave Justice Ademola N500,000 — Witness by Botango23(m): 6:59am On Feb 22, 2017 |
A Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Mr. Joe
Agi, who is being prosecuted along
with Justice Adeniyi Ademola of a
Federal High Court , has told the
Department of State Services that a
President Muhammadu Buhari’s
lawyer paid N 500 ,000 to the judge in
2015.
Agi said Mr. Kola Awodein (SAN ) paid
the money to Justice Ademola in 2015
at the time the judge was presiding
over Buhari’s certificate case .
Agi had claimed to a DSS investigator
that the sum of N500 , 000 paid to
Justice Ademola by Awodein was not
meant to be a bribe but a gift for the
wedding of the judge’s daughter .
This came to the fore on Tuesday
when a DSS investigator , Mr.
Babatunde Adepoju , was testifying
before a High Court of the Federal
Capital Territory , Maitama, as the 16 th
prosecution witness in the ongoing
trial of Justice Ademola, his wife,
Olabowale and Agi .
Adepoju made the disclosure while
being cross - examined by defence
lawyers .
Justice Ademola, Olabowale and Agi ,
are being jointly prosecuted by the
Office of the Attorney General of the
Federation on charges, including
receiving and giving gratification to
influence the course of justice.
Among the 18 counts preferred against
the defendants , was an allegation that
on January 5 , 2015 , in his capacity as
a public servant , Justice Ademola
“ corruptly received ” from Agi a BMW
Saloon 320 i valued at N8 .5 m through
his son, Ademide Ademola, as
gratification in the exercise of his
official functions as a judge.
The prosecution also alleged in about
five other counts , that Justice Ademola,
through his wife, received gratification
of N 30 m in three instalments of N 10 m
each from Agi between March 11 and
March 26 , 2015 .
Under cross - examination on Tuesday ,
Adepoju confirmed that in the course
of investigating the case against the
defendants , he interrogated and took
the statements of Justice Ademola and
Agi only.
The witness also confirmed that Agi
had disclosed the information of
Awodein’ s payment of N 500 ,000 to
Justice Ademola to him (Adepoju ), in
the course of interrogation .
He also confirmed that Agi had
explained under interrogation that the
N30 m he paid into Olabowale’s
account was the money contributed by
his and Justice Ademola’s mutual
friends for the judge’s daughter ’s
wedding.
The witness , who had concluded his
evidence- in - chief on Monday ,
confirmed under cross - examination
that, among those who, like many
other friends , sent monetary gifts to
Justice Ademola about the time of his
daughter ’s wedding in 2015 was
Awodein.
Awodein used to be a lawyer in the
defence team of the then presidential
candidate of the All Progressives
Congress, Maj. Gen. Muhammadu
Buhari (retd .), (now the President),
who was faced with a series of suits
seeking his disqualification from
participating in the March 28 , 2015
presidential election for failing to
submit his academic certificates to the
Independent National Electoral
Commission .
Adepoju confirmed that Agi had said
under interrogation that while the
certificate case filed by one Mr.
Chukwunweike Okafor was pending
before Justice Ademola, Awodein paid
the sum of N 500 ,000 into the judge’s
account as gift for the judge’s
daughter ’s wedding.
The encounter between Agi ’s lawyer,
Mr. Jeph Njikonye , and Adepoju went
thus:
Lawyer : In that interview , he (Agi) told
you that the wedding gift passed by
Ken Hubert and Bassey Nassey was not
the only wedding gift .
Witness: Yes .
Lawyer : He (Agi) also told you that
Buhari’s lawyer , Mr. President’s
lawyer, also passed a gift of N500 , 000
to the family through him.
Witness: Yes
Lawyer : The name of the lawyer is Mr.
Kola Awodein (SAN ).
Witness: Yes
Lawyer : The third defendant (Agi )
further informed you that within the
period (before and after the wedding )
that Buhari’ s certificate case was
pending before the first defendant
(Justice Ademola).
Witness: Yes
Lawyer : Was President Buhari’s lawyer
paying the money in order to win his
case?
Witness: No
Lawyer : To say that it (the money paid
by Awodein ) was a bribe would be a
speculation .
Witness: Yes
Lawyer : To describe the gifts passed
through the third defendant by mutual
friends as bribe would be speculative .
Witness: Yes
When earlier cross - examined by Chief
Robert Clarke , Olabowale’ s lawyer, the
witness agreed that in African culture ,
it was usual for people to be
“ showered with gifts ” when having
any of naming , wedding and funeral
ceremonies .
On the BMW car gift , Adepoju
confirmed that the judge’s son,
Ademide, said under interrogation
that Agi was his mentor and that the
car was a fulfilment of a long -
promised gift from the Senior
Advocate of Nigeria.
The witness also admitted that the
initial allegations that Justice Ademola
received bribe from the immediate -
past National Security Adviser , Col .
Sambo Dasuki (retd .), as well as from
the leader of the Indigenous People of
Biafra , Mr. Nnamdi Kanu , for the bail
he granted them , were not backed by
evidence.
He said he confirmed in the course of
investigation that the Federal
Government did not oppose either of
the two accused persons ’ bail
applications when heard by Justice
Ademola.
The witness also confirmed that a
magistrate earlier granted bail to
Kanu but the order of bail was not
complied with.
He said he was not aware if the
magistrate had been put on trial .
On the allegation that the N30 m paid
to the judge’s wife was probably a
bribe for an order of garnishee nisi
granted in favour of Agi ’s clients for
the enforcement of a $ 3 . 2 bn judgment
earlier given by the judge, Adepoju
confirmed that, his “ initial view of the
matter is based on incomplete
knowledge .”
The lead prosecuting counsel , Mr.
Segun Jegede , announced after the
defence lawyers finished cross -
examining Adepoju and the witness
subsequently re - examined, on
Tuesday , that the prosecution had
closed its case.
Jegede called three bankers as
additional prosecution witnesses on
Tuesday .
With a total of 19 witnesses, he
announced that the prosecution had
closed its case.
But the defence lawyers said they
would file no - case submission.
The trial judge, Justice Jude Okeke,
directed that the defence must file the
no- case submission and the
prosecution should respond before
March 19 .
He fixed March 19 for the hearing of
the no - case submission.
|
Re: I Was Told Buhari’s Lawyer Gave Justice Ademola N500,000 — Witness by Nobody: 7:07am On Feb 22, 2017 |
This country ehn |
Re: I Was Told Buhari’s Lawyer Gave Justice Ademola N500,000 — Witness by K2nice(m): 7:13am On Feb 22, 2017 |
Lol |
Re: I Was Told Buhari’s Lawyer Gave Justice Ademola N500,000 — Witness by Mynd44: 7:19am On Feb 22, 2017 |
(1) (Reply)
Saraki's Made-in-nigeria Advocacy Gets A Boost In Abuja / EFCC Recovers More Property From Ex-customs Boss / Six Hospitalized As Police, DSS Barricades Peace Corps Office
(Go Up)
Sections: politics (1) business autos (1) jobs (1) career education (1) romance computers phones travel sports fashion health religion celebs tv-movies music-radio literature webmasters programming techmarket Links: (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7) (8) (9) (10) Nairaland - Copyright © 2005 - 2024 Oluwaseun Osewa. All rights reserved. See How To Advertise. 18 |