By Innocent Anaba

LAGOS— A Federal High Court sitting in Lagos will today rule on an application by a former Abia State governor, Dr. Orji Uzor Kalu, seeking to stop a witness of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Romanus Madu, from giving evidence on a document, which was alleged to have been forged.

Trial judge is Justice Mohammed Idris.

Orji Uzor Kalu

The witness had while being led in evidence by the EFCC’s lawyer, Mr Rotimi Jacobs, SAN, at the resumed trial of the former governor and two others over alleged fraud, denied authoring a statement requesting N30.8 million bank draft in the course of his duties as a cashier in Abia State Government House in 2005.

“This is my name on it but I was not the person who wrote it. This is not my handwriting and my signature is not there too,” he said.

Afterwards, the EFCC’s counsel, showed him two other applications for bank drafts written by Obasi John and Ogbonna J.

The witness denied knowing of any of the two individuals at Abia State Government House.

“I don’t know anything about bank drafts. I normally collect cash and hand it over to my boss. I also don’t know  any person bearing Obasi John or Ogbonna J. at Government House,”  he said.

Attempts by Jacobs to further extract the witness’ evidence on the three applications was, however, opposed to by the defence lawyers.

In his submissions, Kalu’s counsel, Chief Awa Kalu, SAN, said Jacobs’ action was against the spirit of the Evidence Act. He argued that the witness cannot be asked to compare signatures of persons he claimed he did not know.

After listening to the arguments of parties in the matter, Justice Idris adjourned till today for ruling.