The Court of Appeal in Abuja has struck out two appeals filed by the Federal Government against a September 29, 2021 order of a Federal High Court barring it from reopening the trial of former Abia State Governor Orji Kalu and his firm, Slok Nigeria Limited, for money laundering charges.
In the two judgments delivered yesterday, a three-member panel of the appellate court held that the Federal Government’s appeals were defective.
Justice Joseph Oyewole, who authored and read the lead judgments in both appeals, upheld the objection raised by Kalu (now a serving senator) and Slok.
The court found that the records of appeal in both cases were not properly compiled and certified, as required under Court of Appeal’s Rules and Section 104 of the Evidence Act.
It held that even if the breach of the court’s rule was to be overlooked, the court could not close its eyes to the non-compliance with the mandatory provision of the Evidence Act.
A defect the court painted out in the record of appeal was that the official of the trial court who certified the records did not indicate his/her designation, as required by the Evidence Act.
The Federal Government’s lawyer Oluwaleke Atolagbe said, in view of the court’s decision, the appellant would promptly re-file new appeals to enable the appellate court deal with the substance of the case.
The appeals were against the September 29, 2021 judgment delivered by Justice Inyang Ekwo of the Federal High Court in Abuja prohibiting the Federal Government from further prosecuting Kalu and Slok.
This followed an earlier judgment of the Supreme Court voiding the proceedings leading to their earlier trial and conviction.
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Kalu was charged and tried with Slok and a former Account Director in Abia State Government House, Ude Jones Udeogu, for their alleged complicity in diverting the N7.1 billion from Abia State’s coffers.
The three were convicted and, while Kalu and Udeogu were sentenced to 12 and 10 years imprisonment, Slok was wound up.
But, upon an appeal by Udeogu, the Supreme Court, in a judgment on May 8, 2020, set aside their trial and conviction on the grounds that the trial judge, who was elevated to the Court of Appeal, ought not to have continued to hear the case.