Former Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi State, Yahaya Bello, has demanded that he be tried in his home state Kogi.
Bello, who was absent for his scheduled arraignment and plea bargain, at the Federal High Court, Abuja, Thursday, made the request through a letter his lawyers led by Abdulwahab Mohammed, wrote to the court.
The former governor argued that only the Kogi High Court in Lokoja has the territorial jurisdiction to preside over the allegations that were brought against him.
One of the lawyers in Bello’s team, Adeola Adedipe, who informed the court about the letter, said after the close of the last sitting, he reported back to his team what transpired in court and he was informed that a letter had been written on behalf of the defendant to the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court.
“Requesting in substance, that this matter be administratively transferred to the Federal High Court, Lokoja Judicial Division, which we believe has territorial jurisdiction to handle this matter.
“That letter was received at the Chief Judge’s Chambers and the office of the Honourable CJ. We wrote the prosecution team through Mr Iseoluwa Rotimi Oyedepo, SAN, on June 13, notifying him that administrative steps had been activated, whereof he was directed to provide a response to the request for transfer of the matter,” Adedipe said.
He denied knowledge that there had been a response by the prosecution team in compliance with the directive of the CJ, adding that “We are also not in receipt of any decision that has been made on this request by the CJ,” he said.
Adedipe said they have filed an affidavit to this effect and attached two documents referencing the same, just as he told the court that he isn’t urging anything from the court at the moment although his duty is to the court.
The prosecutor, Kemi Pinhero, asked the court to compel the defence lawyer to say why the defendant was not in court, despite an undertaking he made on June 13, to ensure his presence in court for his scheduled arraignment which has been adjourned multiple times.
Pinehero said the letter to the CJ did not discharge the undertaking made by Bello’s counsel at the previous sitting, adding that a situation where a petition is forwarded against a judge to the National Judicial Council, does not stop proceedings on cases pending before the judge.
He said the court should invite Bello’s counsels to explain why they should not be penalized for contempt of the court, and urged the trial judge, Justice Emeka Nwite, to dismiss the tales of the defence lawyer as “dilatory and a further attempt to treat this court with scorn.”
Bello is facing charges bordering on money laundering, breach of trust and misappropriation of public funds to the tune of about N80.2bn brought against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.
