The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court has directed the former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele, to be remanded at the Kuje Correctional Centre in Abuja. This ruling was issued by Justice Hamza Muazu on Friday, and a decision on Emefiele’s bail application is slated for November 22, 2023.
Emefiele is confronting charges from the Federal Government, initially consisting of 20 counts amounting to N6.5 billion, which have now been revised to six, totaling N1.6 billion. The amended charges allege Emefiele’s complicity in the unauthorized acquisition of 43 vehicles between 2018 and 2020, valued at N1.2 billion.
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As per the modified charge sheet, the Federal Government asserts that Emefiele improperly obtained the vehicles and granted a contract for the purchase of 37 Toyota Hilux Vehicles valued at N854 million. The charges delineate that Emefiele, the sole defendant in this case, exploited his position as the CBN Governor to bestow corrupt advantages upon Sa’adatu Ramallan Yaro, a staff member of the Central Bank of Nigeria, by awarding contracts to April 1616 Investment Ltd., a company where Yaro serves as a director.
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In the first count, Emefiele is accused of awarding a contract for the supply of 37 Toyota Hilux Vehicles at the cost of N854,700,000 to April 1616 Investment Ltd., thus committing an offense. The second count alleges a similar corrupt advantage conferred by Emefiele on Yaro for the supply of one Toyota Avalon at the cost of N99,900,000 to the same company. The third count involves the awarding of a contract for the supply of one Toyota Landcruiser V8 to April 1616 Investment Ltd. at the cost of N73 million.
The fourth count accuses Emefiele of unlawfully awarding a Toyota Landcruiser V8 valued at N73,800,000 to April 1616 Investment Ltd. Additionally, the Federal Government contends that Emefiele granted a contract to Yaro for the supply of two Toyota Hilux Shell Specification Vehicles at the cost of N44,200,000 in 2020.
