An Abuja
High Court was Wednesday told by a staff of the Securities and Exchange
Commission (SEC) and prosecution witness for the Economic and Financial Crimes
Commission (EFCC), Hassan Maman, that once an estacode has been approved for an
officer to travel, the money belongs to the said officer.
High Court was Wednesday told by a staff of the Securities and Exchange
Commission (SEC) and prosecution witness for the Economic and Financial Crimes
Commission (EFCC), Hassan Maman, that once an estacode has been approved for an
officer to travel, the money belongs to the said officer.
This is
as he declared that the commission has never dragged any person to any court
for failure to return an estacode meant for a trip the officer failed to
attend.Maman, a Protocol Officer with SEC and the last prosecution witness, as
the EFCC closed its case against Hon. Herman Hembe, the Chairman of the House
of Representatives Committee on Capital Market and his Deputy Hon. Chris
Azubuogu, told the court during cross-examination by counsel to Azubuogu Dr.
Chuba Ikpeazu (SAN) that “in the case of SEC staff estacodes that was not used
another trip would be arranged for them, and until another trip was arranged,
he had done no wrong in keeping the estacode.
as he declared that the commission has never dragged any person to any court
for failure to return an estacode meant for a trip the officer failed to
attend.Maman, a Protocol Officer with SEC and the last prosecution witness, as
the EFCC closed its case against Hon. Herman Hembe, the Chairman of the House
of Representatives Committee on Capital Market and his Deputy Hon. Chris
Azubuogu, told the court during cross-examination by counsel to Azubuogu Dr.
Chuba Ikpeazu (SAN) that “in the case of SEC staff estacodes that was not used
another trip would be arranged for them, and until another trip was arranged,
he had done no wrong in keeping the estacode.
“The
second accused approached me and inquired about how the ticket could be
re-routed to Russia, I have never testified in any court over the failure
to return estacode within five months, to the best of my knowledge the only
conference organised by SEC was the one that ended on October 19, a ticket is
valid for 12 months within which it is used or re-routed, the second accused
person did not claim that he travelled when in fact he did not travel. He did not
call me to inform me that he travelled no other trip was approved for the
second accused to go to Russia.”
second accused approached me and inquired about how the ticket could be
re-routed to Russia, I have never testified in any court over the failure
to return estacode within five months, to the best of my knowledge the only
conference organised by SEC was the one that ended on October 19, a ticket is
valid for 12 months within which it is used or re-routed, the second accused
person did not claim that he travelled when in fact he did not travel. He did not
call me to inform me that he travelled no other trip was approved for the
second accused to go to Russia.”
Another
prosecution witness Usman Ibrahim, a staff of SEC during cross-examination by
Ikpeazu blamed the delay in getting the tickets and estacodes for the trip to
the accused persons on the bureaucracy in the civil service.
prosecution witness Usman Ibrahim, a staff of SEC during cross-examination by
Ikpeazu blamed the delay in getting the tickets and estacodes for the trip to
the accused persons on the bureaucracy in the civil service.
According
to him, “it was the bureaucracy that resulted in the approval being made on the
11th and payment made on the 19th, I was following procedures. I am not the
cause of the problem, it was the due process that resulted in the money being
paid late, I never came in any direct contact with the second accused person.”
to him, “it was the bureaucracy that resulted in the approval being made on the
11th and payment made on the 19th, I was following procedures. I am not the
cause of the problem, it was the due process that resulted in the money being
paid late, I never came in any direct contact with the second accused person.”
During re-examination by the counsel to the EFCC, Chile Okoroma, Ibrahim said:
“The approval for the trip was made by the Acting DG of SEC, and that the
Secretary of the House of Representatives Committee on Capital Market, Femi
Ogunsanya, came to collect the estacode to give to the two accused
persons and I never met with them in person.”
Counsel
to Hembe, Joseph Okutepa (SAN) and Ikpeazu for Azubuogu had after the
prosecution closed its case told the court that the defence will make a no-case
submission as the prosecution had not made any case against them.
to Hembe, Joseph Okutepa (SAN) and Ikpeazu for Azubuogu had after the
prosecution closed its case told the court that the defence will make a no-case
submission as the prosecution had not made any case against them.
Hembe
and Azubuogu are being tried by the EFCC for allegedly misappropriating
the sum of $4,095, an equivalent of N600,000 as estacodes given to them by SEC
to travel to Dominican Republic for a conference.
and Azubuogu are being tried by the EFCC for allegedly misappropriating
the sum of $4,095, an equivalent of N600,000 as estacodes given to them by SEC
to travel to Dominican Republic for a conference.
The matter has been adjourned to April 30 for addresses on the no-case
submission.
Source: Thisday
