Alleged procurement fraud: Emefiele didn’t confer corrupt advantage on self – witness

Michael Agboro, a prosecution witness in the trial of the immediate past Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor Godwin Emefiele, yesterday admitted at an Abuja High Court that Emefiele did not confer any unfair, corrupt advantage on himself in the award of contracts to some companies, during his tenure at the apex bank. The Federal Government is prosecuting Emefiele on an alleged 20 amended charge preferred against him by the Office of the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF). He was alleged to have engaged in criminal breach of trust, forgery, conspiracy to obtain under false pretences and obtaining money under false pretences when he served as the CBN boss.

He was said to have forged a document titled: Re: Presidential Directive on Foreign Election Observer Missions dated January 26, 2023, with Ref No. SGF.43/L.01/201 and purported same to have emanated from the office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (AGF). The defendant is also accused of using his office to confer unfair and corrupt advantage on two companies – April 1616 Nigeria Ltd and Architekon Nigeria Ltd. At the resumed trial, the government called on its 7th prosecution witness, Agboro, an investigator with the Independent, Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC). Led in evidence by prosecution counsel Rotimi Oyedepo (SAN), Agboro tendered several documents, including company registration documents and awards as well as payments for contracts relating to the two forms.

The investigator claimed that Emefiele conferred unfair and corrupt advantage in the award of contracts to April 1616 and Archtekon because documents his team, comprising of persons drawn from the ICPC, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) and the Department of State Service (DSS) showed that while a Director of April 1616, Saadatu Yaro, is a Public Officer, with the CBN, Emefiele’s wife, Margaret Omoyile and his brother-in-law, Mac Congo are directors in Architekon.