BY Innocent Anaba

LAGOS—A mild drama played out, yesterday, at a Federal High Court, Lagos, at the resumed trial of former Governor of Enugu State, Senator Chimaroke Nnamani, his company and 10 others, over financial impropriety, as the Economic and Financial Crime Commission, EFCC, sought the transfer of the case to a another judge.

Prosecution counsel had informed the trial judge, Justice Charles Archibong, that he had written a letter to the Chief Judge of Court, Justice Ibrahim Auta, asking for the matter to be transferred to another judge for hearing, saying it is expedient to await the decision of the CJ on the matter.

But Nnamani’s counsel told the court that he was only obliged with a copy of the letter by the prosecution and was not copied as a lawyer representing the accused persons.

The counsel of the sixth accused also raised objection on the procedure adopted by the prosecution on the ground that the case had been in court all these years, while the letter was only written three days ago.

Counsel to the sixth accused person described the letter as frivolous, as the court was not copied. He urged the court to go ahead with the business of the day by hearing his application  filed in November 2008,  seeking  the order of the court to strike out the name of the sixth accused, and former Permanent Secretary in the Enugu State Civil Service, Mr. Sylvia Onwuebemeli, because the prosecution do not have enough evidence linking her to the crime.

In response, the prosecution admitted that the court was inadvertently not copied, as the judge said he was not aware of the correspondence being referred to and that the CJ had not told him anything. The judge proceeded with the business of the day.

The judge also adjourned till June 27, 2011 for ruling on the Sylvia motion for her name to be struck out of the charge, when the prosecution informed him that they had already filed their objection to the motion.