*To 16-count criminal charge:  Not guilty, he pleads

By Ikechukwu Nnochiri

The Federal High Court complex in Abuja was a theater of sorts last Wednesday, as both friends and foes of the embattled former speaker of the House of Representatives, Dimeji Bankole, defied the early morning drizzle and thronged the court room in order to catch a glimpse of their hitherto revered number four citizen of the country who was reportedly apprehended by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC.

Not even the presence of several stern looking security operatives, who posted sentry both at the High Court main gate and other strategic positions within the vicinity, was capable of warding off the numerous spectators who arrived the court as early as 7am.

At exactly 8:45am when the dramatis-personae, Bankole, was marshaled into Court-7 where he was subsequently arraigned by the EFCC, the venue had become jam-packed with people who squeezed themselves together. It took the intervention of armed mobile police men to pave way for the accused person to make his way into a seat that was reserved for him beside the dock.

Satisfied that the stage was set for the legal showdown, trial Justice Donatus Okorowo, made his appearance at exactly 9am, just as the court clerk shouted, “COURT!”, reminiscent of the “ORDER!” exclamation that the former speaker was used to, especially whilst he presided over most of the rancorous sessions that trailed his administration in the  House.

In the instant case however, he was not the lord of the house, but like a prey that is left in the mercies of both the trial judge and the EFCC.

“Yes, court clerk please call the first case on the cause-list”, the judge ordered.

Immediately the matter was called-up, Bankole, in his immaculate white Buba and matching cap, mounted the dock, though he was smiling, it was obvious to every one with discerning eyes that he was highly distressed.

Bankole in court.

At that juncture, four Senior Advocates of Nigeria and 11 lawyers, led by a former Attorney General of Lagos state, Chief Adegboyega Awomolo, SAN, announced their appearances for the accused person.  A few minutes after, Mr Festus Keyamo, while introducing himself as the prosecuting counsel, told the high court that he was appearing with two of his junior lawyers and Jesus Christ, a remark that drew laughter from all and sundry.

“My lord, before the charge is read to the accused person, we urge that you take judicial notice of all the inhumane treatments that has been meted against the accused persons from when he was abducted in his house, till today.  We consider it appropriate to bring to your notice the manner EFCC operatives arrested him in his house around 8 pm on Sunday, June 5. He was not only manhandled, he was arrested in the full glare of pre-arranged cameramen that were engaged by the prosecution.

My lord this is condemnable and we consider the hurried charge that was filed against him before this court highly unconstitutional.  However, we will address that issue at the appropriate time, being a law abiding citizen of this country, my client has resolved to go ahead and take plea of protest today”, Awomolo said.

Refuting the allegations instantly, Keyamo, maintained that the ex-speaker was arrested in accordance with the due process of the law.

Keyamo told the court that the agency got an intelligence report that the accused person had concluded plans to abscond the country the next day, a situation he said informed EFCC’s decision to effect his arrest on Sunday night.

“My lord it is not true that he was manhandled by EFCC operatives, we only took him into custody in order to forestall any attempt to thwart the course of justice, he was not handcuffed or pushed in the same manner the former IMF boss was arrested” he averred.

Determined to make headway in the matter, the trial judge directed the court clerk to go ahead and read the charge to the accused person so that his plea could be entered in the court register.

The court room was dead silent as the embattled former speaker pleaded “not guilty my lord”, to the entire 16-count charge preferred against him by the EFCC.

Immediately the charges were read, his counsel, Awomolo, brimming with confidence, asked the court to allow the accused on bail in self recognition.

He was yet to regain his seat when Keyamo jumped on his feet to challenge the oral bail application.

“My lord, we most humbly apply that the accused person be remanded in EFCC custody pending when his formal bail application is heard and determined. It will be dangerous at this stage to allow him to go home, considering that we had earlier uncovered his plots to flee the country. More so my lord, the accused person is needed for more questioning over several other allegations that were leveled against him. We are therefore opposing his bail application in its entirety, but if the court is minded to allow the oral application, then we shall be asking for our statutory 48 hours within which to reply to the application”, he contended.

After listening to the both parties with regards to the propriety of releasing the embattled ex-speaker on bail, justice Okorowo, upheld the arguments of the anti-graft body, just as he okayed his remand in the custody of the anti-graft agency till 12 pm Friday.

The judge directed the defence counsel to ensure that he filed the bail application that same day so that it could be ripe for hearing on the fixed date, stressing that the prosecuting counsel should promptly file his own reply to the application.

According to the judge, “I would have loved to take the bail application orally and deliver my ruling today (yesterday), but I cannot force the prosecution to concede to the oral bail application”.

Before adjourning definite hearing on the substantive suit to July 26 and 27, trial Justice Okorowo warned the EFCC to refrain from issuing disparaging press statements against the accused person, adding that he should be treated as an innocent citizen until he is convicted of any of the criminal charge against him.

After moves to secure his release crumbled, the former speaker who was subsequently whisked away by EFCC operatives in a white coaster bus marked ABUJA-BR- 739- BWR.

EFCC had maintained that he connived with other persons at large, to inflate the costs of several contracts that was awarded by the House in 2008, to the tune of about N894 million, contrary to section 58(4) (a) of the Public Procurement Act No. 14 of 2007 and punishable under section 58(5) of the same Act.

Some of the alleged illicit deals that formed the conduit pipes through which the said monies were pilfered by the accused person, includes the purchase of 400 units of 40-inch Samsung (LNS. 341) television sets, 800 units of Desktop Computers (HP Compaq dc 5700), 100 units of Sharp Digital Copier 5316, 400 units of HP LaserJet 2600N,  among others.

The ex-speaker, who issued a statement through his media aide, Mr. Idowu Bakare yesterday, lamented that the EFCC has refused him access to his team of lawyers, contending that it amounted to an abuse of his fundamental and constitutional rights.

According to the statement from Idowu, “The EFCC is presently subjecting Rt. Hon. Dimeji Bankole the former Speaker of the House of Representatives to psychological torture as it has refused access to him by his team of lawyers and family members since he was abducted on Sunday night at his residence in Asokoro, Abuja.

“This is against his fundamental and constitutional rights to have access to his lawyers and close family members while in custody of the anti- graft agency.

Information at our disposal indicates that pressure was mounted on him throughout Sunday night to get him to write a statement implicating some members of the House of Representatives. 

“As we earlier alerted, the manner EFCC has gone about the invitation of the former Speaker and the subsequent media trial and prosecution with EFCC feeding unsuspecting public with such fiction of the former speaker resisting arrest, under house arrest and attempting to flee the country even as No. 4 citizen of Nigeria shows that the agency is engaged in political witch hunting and vendetta against the former Speaker.

“So far the anti- graft agency even without concluding investigation has portrayed Bankole as guilty from its utterances and selective persecution and is refusing to charge him to court to decide on the case as stipulated by the law within a time limit.

“We understand that not making headway with Bankole, the EFCC has perfected plans to start harassing members of his family starting with his immediate family. As reported in the media yesterday, EFCC went to search his house where his wife and two children were domiciled and harassed the wife, a trend that is now common with EFCC. We believe that the agency should have isolated the wife from such treatment of a man who is still presumed innocent

‘We gathered that EFCC has not forgiven comments credited to Bankole by Wikkileaks to the effect that EFCC is not “worth a penny” even after Bankole has publicly denied making such a statement about the organization months ago” it read.

Some of the charges against him reads, “That you, Dimeji Bankole and others now at large on or about the 28th of May, 2008, within the jurisdiction of Federal High Court, being Body of Principal officers of the House of Representatives responsible for the approval of contracts in the House of Representatives, with intent to defraud, did conspire amongst yourselves to inflate the cost of 400 units of 40-inch Samsung (LNS. 341) television sets by approving the purchase of the said item at the rate of N525,000.00 per unit, instead of the prevailing market price of N295,000.00 and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 58(4)(a) of the Public Procurement Act No. 14 of 2007 and punishable under Section 58(5) of the same Act.

“That you, Dimeji Bankole and others now at large on or about the 28th of May, 2008, within the jurisdiction of Federal High Court, being Body of Principal officers of the House of Representatives responsible for the approval of contracts in the House of Representatives, with intent to defraud, did conspire amongst yourselves to inflate the cost of 800 units of Desktop Computers (HP Compaq dc 5700) by approving the purchase of the said item at the rate of N330,000.00 per unit, instead of the prevailing market price of N160,000.00 per unit and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 58(4)(a) of the Public Procurement Act No. 14 of 2007 and punishable under Section 58(5) of the same Act.

“That you, Dimeji Bankole and others now at large, on or about the 28th of May, 2008 within the jurisdiction of the Federal High Court, being Body of Principal officers of the House of Representatives responsible for the approval of contracts in the House of Representatives, with intent to defraud, rigged the bid for the purchase of 2 units of Range Rover Bullet Proof vehicles by refusal to follow all the procedures prescribed for public procurements in Sections 17 to 56 of the Public Procurement Act No.14 of 2007, leading to a loss of value to the national treasury and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 58(4)(e) of the Public Procurement Act, No.14 of 2007 and punishable under Section 58(5) of the same Act.

“That you, Dimeji Bankole and others now at large, on or about the 28th of May, 2008 within the jurisdiction of the Federal High Court, being Body of Principal officers of the House of Representatives responsible for the approval of contracts in the House of Representatives, with intent to defraud, rigged the bid for the purchase of 400 units of DSTV systems by refusal to follow all the procedures prescribed for public procurements in Sections 17 to 56 of the Public Procurement Act No.14 of 2007, leading to a loss of value to the national treasury and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 58(4)(e) of the Public Procurement Act, No.14 of 2007 and punishable under Section 58(5) of the same Act”, among others.

Bankole has equally approached the Federal High court with an application seeking an enforcement of his fundamental human right.