Court Convicts Former Minister, Mamman Saleh, the former Minister was convicted on 12 count charges against him by the Economic and Financial Crime Commission EFCC.
KaNo —
The Federal High Court in Abuja, on Thursday,has convicted the former Minister of Power, Saleh Mamman.
Mamman Saleh is facing 12 count charges related to money laundering,filed against him by the Economic and Financial Crime Commission EFCC.
However, Mamman was convicted in absentia by Justice James Omotosho who held that the EFCC proved its case against the former minister beyond a reasonable doubt and consequently found him guilty on all the counts.
Mamman served under former President Muhammadu Buhari between August 2019 and September 2022.
Court Convicts Former Minister Of Power, Mamman Saleh
He has been on trial over alleged diversion and laundering of funds linked to the Zungeru and Mambilla hydroelectric power projects.
The anti-crime accused him of conspiring with officials and private companies to divert public funds meant for the power sector project.
Justice Omotosho said he was satisfied with the evidence led by the prosecution before convicting Mamman on all the charges.Justice Omotosho described the prosecution’s case as overwhelming and the defence as almost non-existent.
“The evidence of the prosecution is overwhelming as against the scanty and almost absent defence of the defendant. The defendant did not offer any credible evidence to rebut the prosecution’s case,” he held.
Court Convicts Former Minister Of Power, Mamman Saleh
The court heard that most of the diverted funds were funnelled through Bureau de Change operators, who converted the money into foreign currencies before handing it over to Mamman.
The judge also took a swipe at the former minister’s tenure, lamenting that a man who held the nation’s power sector in his hands showed no interest in leaving a meaningful legacy.
“Little wonder that Nigerians have remained in darkness till today,” Justice Omotosho added
The conviction was handed down in Mamman’s absence, forcing the court to defer sentencing.
Court Convicts Former Minister Of Power, Mamman Saleh
The EFCC immediately applied for a warrant of arrest.His lawyer, Mr. Mohammed Ahmed, told the court that the defendant’s whereabouts had been unknown since last Tuesday when notice of the scheduled judgment was issued, adding that his personal assistant later claimed he was sick.
Ahmed’s bid to persuade the court to adjourn the judgment failedThe trial judge, however, was unconvinced, referencing news reports showing that Mamman had recently been involved in political activities, including purchasing a form to contest the governorship election in Taraba State.
EFCC’s counsel, Mr. Rotimi Oyedepo, urged the court to proceed, dismissing any justification for the defendant’s absence.
“My Lord should go ahead. If the judgment is in his favour, we know what to do. If it is against him, we also know what to do,” he said.
Court Convicts Former Minister Of Power, Mamman Saleh
Mamman was first arrested in 2021, approximately four months after ex-President Buhari removed him from office.
The EFCC called 17 witnesses and tendered 43 exhibits before closing its case, alleging that he conspired with ministry staff to divert about ₦22 billion meant for the Zungeru and Mambilla Hydro Electric Power projects.Investigations, the agency said, revealed that the funds were used to acquire choice assets both within and outside the country.
Former Ministers Facing Corruption Charges.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) is currently investigating Chris Ngige, a former Minister of Labour, over an alleged N2.2 billion fraud.In count one, the defendant was alleged to have between September 2015 and May 2023, while being the supervising Minister of the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF), used his position to confer an unfair advantage upon Cezimo Nigeria Limited, a company whose MD/CEO and alter ego, Ezebinwa Amarachukwu Charles, is his associate.
The former Minister of Humanitarian Affairs,Sadiya Umar Farouk,was arraigned by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on a 21-count charge bordering on criminal breach of trust, abuse of office, fraudulent award of contracts, and conversion of public funds.
Court Convicts Former Minister Of Power, Mamman Saleh
According to the charge, Farouq allegedly diverted S1.3 million meant to be refunded to the ministry by Visual ICT Limited.
A former minister of aviation and close political associate, Hadi Sirika, is also facing charges over an alleged N2.7 billion fraud linked to aviation projects.
The most far-reaching allegations surround the former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele, whose tenure coincided with some of Nigeria’s most painful monetary interventions and biggest quantitative easing in the form of ways and means.
The EFCC has accused Emefiele of arbitrarily allocating N3 trillion worth of foreign exchange, equivalent to $2 billion, without competitive bids or due process, allegedly conferring undue advantages on associates.
Court Convicts Former Minister Of Power, Mamman Saleh
Investigators further allegedthat he operated 593 bank accounts across different countries, unlawfully acquired a 753-unit housing estate in Abuja and illegally mismanaged more than N16 billion.
A professor of economics at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, Emmanuel Nwosu, stated that the scale of alleged fraud indicates significant flaws in the country’s accounting and auditing frameworks.
He argued that corruption in poor countries such as Nigeria differs markedly from that in middle-income economies.
“The type of corruption we see in poor countries that have jumped to ostentatious consumption without industrialisation is different. If people can be charged with corruption to the tune of N3 trillion, something is fundamentally wrong with public sector accounting and auditing. If these systems worked as they should, nobody could steal one kobo from the government,” Nwosu said
Court Convicts Former Minister Of Power, Mamman Saleh
Nwosu also questioned the fiscal narrative around fuel subsidy removal, noting that Nigerians continue to pay high prices for petrol without clarity on how savings from subsidy removal are being utilised.
“If the subsidy was removed, where is the N16 billion daily subsidy money that Nigerians were told about?” he asked
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