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Tag: Forgery case

Lawyer makes no case submission in forgery case

Justice Oluwatoyin Taiwo of the Ikeja High Court has fixed October 5 for ruling on a ‘no case’ submission filed by a lawyer, Kole Bello.

Bello is standing trial for allegedly forging a Certificate of Occupancy (C of O) for a landed property in Lekki, Lagos.

He is standing trial with Chukwu Victor, Friday Palmer and Osumah Terry.

They are facing a three-count charge of conspiracy, fraud and forgery.

According to the charge, the defendants allegedly conspired among themselves and forged a C of O with reference no. 63/63/1989, dated Sept. 28,1989.

The defendants allegedly forged C of O to take over a plot of land belonging to the late Mrs Francisca Awolaja.

Bello and co defendants were also accused of in personating the late Awolaja to fraudulently sell her land to one Mr Rotimi Olubeko for the sum of N5 million.

Bello was expected to open his defence in the forgery case brought against him at resumed proceedings on Friday but chose to file an application asking the court to drop all the charges against him.

At resumed proceedings, Bello’s counsel, Oke Akintunde (SAN), informed the court of the pending application.

He said his client was asking the court to quash the charges against him as the prosecution had not been able to prove any case against him.

“My Lord we have an application before the court where he filed a no case submission on the basis that the defendant does not have any case to answer before the court “ Akintunde said.

Counsels to the second, third and fourth defendants also informed the court of their intention to file similar applications.

The prosecution led by Ms O. A. Bamisaiye, however, informed the court that the prosecution had closed its case and was waiting for the defence to open its case.

Justice Taiwo, thereafter, adjourned the matter till October 5, to hear the pending applications and to also give a ruling on the no case submission of the defendant.

September 25, 2018
AGF takes over forgery case in Edo

Nigeria’s Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, has taken over prosecution of an alleged case of forgery preferred against a Benin based lawyer, Barrister Dele Edokpayi and his firm, Circular Merchants Limited.

A letter to the Registrar of the Federal High Court in Benin City and signed by Ajakaye Iyiola Julius, an Assistant Director of the Ministry of Justice, said the AGF took over prosecution of case in pursuant to Section 174 (1)(b) of the 1999 constitution as amended.

The taking over of the prosecution of the case followed a petition by Barr. Edokpayi that proper investigation was not conducted by the police before he was charged to court.

Barr. Edokpayi and his firm who have since been granted bail were arraigned in June on four count charges of forgery of a deed of transfer of A.O Obasuyi and Sons Sawmill Limited and forgery of application for Governor’s consent for the purchase of property housing A.O Obasuyi and Sons Sawmill.

They were also alleged to have forged the signature of one B.I Obasuyi on the deed of transfer of A.O Obasuyi and Sons Sawmill and the signature of one Sam Obasuyi on application for Governor’s consent dated February, 2006.

Speaking to newsmen in Benin City, Barr. Edokpayi said he was arrested in a gestapo style by the police while driving and was hurriedly charge to court without investigation.

Barr. Edokpayi stated that he was being prosecuted because of a landed property he bought for N10m from three brothers including a former Attorney-General of defunct Bendel State, late Benson Obasuyi.

He explained that the family approached him to rescue them when they couldn’t deliver to a first buyer and he paid out N4m.

Edokpayi said he later paid each of the three brothers N2.8m each for the property which used to be their late father’s Sawmill firm.

His words, “I have receipts for all the transaction we did in 2006, Why did they wait for Benson to die before they claimed I forged his signature? There are other properties I bought from them.

Checks showed that Justice O.O Tokode has earlier granted a motion exparte for an interim order for the prosecution to possess the immovable property housing the A.O Obasuyi and Sons Sawmill limited being the subject matter of the offence of forgery preferred against the accused persons pending the determination of the motion on notice.

November 6, 2017
CAC crisis: High Court strikes out forgery case

Justice Ayo Salami of the Federal High Court in Ibadan, Oyo State, has struck out a case of forgery against the former General Secretary of Christ Apostolic Church (CAC), Pastor Gideon Ikegbema and an official of the Corporate Affairs Commission, Mr Ahmed Moho, on the grounds that the prosecution has not proved any case against them.
Okegwemeh and Moho were arraigned by the Federal Government on a nine-count charge bordering on forgery of documents tendered at the Corporate Affairs Commission to obtain the Certificate of Incorporation of the Church in 1995.
Justice Salami said the case was for ruling, adding that the ruling was to be delivered in January, but had to be suspended following a petition to the National Judicial Council by Pastor M.B. Ayantoye.
The judge said the matter was dispensed by NJC on February 23 and a letter was sent on March 26 to inform him of this.
In his ruling, Justice Emmanuel said the defendants were arraigned on an amended charge on November 17, 2016 to which they pleaded not guilty.
He added that after calling two witnesses, the prosecution had difficulty in getting other witnesses and the defence filed a no case submission, which the prosecution did not defend.
Justice Emmanuel said in spite of the prosecution’s failure to file any defence, the application would be considered on its merit.
After considering the points highlighted in the application, the court held that the prosecution witnesses proved nothing in their testimony and no evidence had been brought before the court to link the defendants to any crime or indicate that they had a case to answer.
Justice Emmanuel upheld the no-case submission of the defendants as there was no evidence to hold them culpable and he dismissed the charges against them and acquitted them of all allegations.
The case started in 2000 after Pastor Ayantoye petitioned the police after his suspension, alleging that the leaders of Christ Apostolic Church forged the documents which they tendered at the Corporate Affairs Commission to obtain the Certificate of Incorporation of the church in 1995. The matter was then filed at the Magistrates’ Court in Ibadan where it was struck out.

April 17, 2017
We won’t give up on Senate forgery case, says Boroffice

The crisis of confidence in the Senate is far from being over.

A member of the Unity Forum – a group of senators opposed to the emergence of Senate President Bukola Saraki and his deputy Ike Ekweremadu – yesterday vowed to continue the fight to “restore the integrity of the Senate”.

Senator Ajayi Boroffice (Ondo North), who spoke to reporters after picking the All Progressives Congress (APC) nomination form to contest the Ondo State governorship primary, said they will not rest until the integrity of the Senate is restored.

Boroffice said their fight against the Senate leadership was based purely on principle and not because of hatred for anybody, adding that his group would continue to “fight to ensure that the image of the Senate is redeemed”.

He said: “I am one of those people who went to court to challenge the election of the Senate’s principal officers and I maintain that we have done that on principle not because we hate anybody. We want to defend the integrity of the senate and the sanctity of the rule of law.

“So, it is not that we are not all working in the same direction. Some of us are speaking out and I hope that you reporters will give expression to our voices when we speak out.

“I can assure you that we will not be intimidated. We will continue to fight to ensure that the image of the senate is redeemed so that any senator in Nigeria can raise his head anywhere in the world and describe himself as a senator.”

Speaking on the raging controversy and agitation for restructuring of the country, he said: “I pray that we have enough time during the life span of this senate to send the amendment to the constitution to Mr. President for his assent.

“If you look at it, you will see that we are already restructuring the country with those amendments. Some of the things that they are in the exclusive list have been brought to the concurrent list and we are actually committed to true federalism and fiscal federalism.

“Some of us are in support of the State police, even though we know it is subject to misuse. We believe that certain items that are now in the exclusive list should be transferred to the state.

“So we are doing something about it. We are not making noise about it and by the time we get this amendment through, many Nigerians will know we have done a good job not only in terms of structure but in the area of revenue allocation.”

He said Ondo state should be one of the best in terms of economic vibrancy because it is an oil producing state and has second largest deposits of bitumen in the World.

“It has natural resources like cocoa, palm oil and coal. But all these remain untapped. If well-harnessed, it will boost the state’s economy. We need someone knowledgeable that can help to create jobs and ease our ailing economy.

“We have ceramic, rubber, wood industries that are all dead. If we revive them we will not need to depend on the government. We will plug all leakages and develop a very vibrant economy.

“We will run a knowledge-driven economy. We must make sure Nigerians pay their taxes. There are countries that have no natural resource and are doing very well”.

July 21, 2016
Saraki, Ekweremadu forgery case: AGF is partisan, says Senate

The Senate yesterday described Attorney General and Minister of Justice Abubakar Malami (SAN) as partisan, in the forgery case he is prosecuting against Senate President Bukola Saraki and Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu.

Chairman, Senate Committee on Media and Public Affairs, Senator Aliyu Sabi Abdullahi, in a statement accused Malami of having “personal and pecuniary interest in the case as he was a counsel to the aggrieved Senators who decided to externalise the issue of election of the leadership of the upper chamber of the National Assembly after they failed in their bid to get their preferred candidate elected.”

Abdullahi described Malami as “the one who advised his clients to report the matter to the Police and now that he has become AGF, he decided to use his constitutional powers to pursue private interest by filing a criminal case in the FCT High Court against the subsisting ruling of a court of co-ordinate jurisdiction.”

The statement added: “When the Senate invited the AGF to come and throw light on the forgery case, it was not to challenge his right to file, take over or discontinue any criminal case but for him to explain the issues of conflict of interest, abuse of office, disrespect of a subsisting order of a court and violation of the principle of Separation of Powers which are being raised against him.

“When his supporters jumped up and started abusing the Senate over the invitation, we know our position that an Attorney General and indeed any public officer for whose office public funds are appropriated can be invited by the Senate and the House of Representatives to explain certain issues, is on firm, constitutional ground.

“That is in spite of the fact that the AGF is responsible to the President who appointed him.

“It should be noted that Malami’s name is still on the list of lawyers defending Senator Suleiman Hunkuyi and others in the Federal High Court.

“We invite all Nigerians, including those shouting over whether it was right for the Senate to invite the AGF or not, to read the ruling of Justice Kolawole and conclude whether Malami is still fit to be AGF in a government which canvasses change and rule of law.

“Our position as a law making chamber is that the Office of AGF is a sensitive and strategic one being the only other office in the executive arm apart from that of President and Vice President to which the constitution specifically assigns some roles and powers.

“It must therefore be occupied by a sober, law abiding, brilliant, mature, broad-minded and less partisan lawyer.

“Mr. Malami is yet to convince us with his handling of this case that he possesses these attributes.

“We call on him to respect the ruling of the court and to redeem the integrity of his office.

“In conclusion, the Senate is calling on all parties, Mr. Malami, the Attorney General inclusive, to heed the wise, timely and apt advice of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar that “it is time to move on.”

“Truly, Nigeria needs our collective energy to address the various challenges – notably increasing poverty, hunger, youth unemployment, general insecurity and kidnapping, among others – which are time bombs that we can only ignore at our own collective peril.”

July 4, 2016
Saraki, Ekweremadu’s forgery case, not a National Assembly matter -SGF

……SGF to Saraki, Ekweremadu: Allow judiciary do its job,
The Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Babachir David Lawal on Wednesday said the trial of the Senate President, Bukola Saraki and his Deputy, Ike Ekweremadu for forgery was not a trial for the Senate or the National Assembly as a body.

In a statement he personally signed, Lawal said that a case of forgery is usually preferred against individuals, pointing out that such case of certificate forgery led to the resignation of the former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Salisu Buhari.

Noting that bringing the National Assembly as a body into the new court case is unwarranted; he said that such action can only be for other purposes and reasons outside the investigation and legal proceedings.

He said: “Since the arraignment of the President of the Senate, Senator Bukola Saraki and, his Deputy Senator Ike Ekweremadu before the Federal High Court on Monday, June 27, 2016, the two leaders of the Senate, have issued two separate press statements conveying messages that are far from being complementary to the person and government of President Muhammadu Buhari.

“Senator Saraki in his statement clearly insinuated that Mr. President is not in control of his administration and that a cabal now runs the federal administration. On the part of Senator Ekweremadu, he insists that President Buhari is exhibiting dictatorial tendencies that can derail our democracy.

“From their statements, the two leaders of the Senate also gave this erroneous impression that by their arraignment, it is the entire Senate and indeed, the Legislative Arm of Government that is on trial.

“They want the public to believe that their prosecution is utter disregard by the Executive Arm of government for the constitutional provisions of separation of powers and that preferring the forgery case against them is a vendetta exercise.

Since the case is in court, he said that the Judiciary should be allowed to do its job.

He stressed that the case only involves the four accused persons.

He added: “And should not be presented to the unsuspecting public as involving the entire Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. The complaint leading to the forgery investigation was reported to the Police by some aggrieved Senators who specifically accused certain persons.

“It is not the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria that is involved and definitely not the House of Representatives. To bring the National Assembly as a body into this court case is totally unwarranted. It can only be for other purposes and reasons outside the investigation and legal proceedings.

“A case of forgery is usually preferred against individuals. This is not different. As was the case with a former Speaker of the House of Representatives, who was accused of certificate forgery, what he did was to resign, honorably. The matter did not even go to court.

“In that particular case, it was never orchestrated as a matter for the National Assembly. The individual involved did not drag the entire Legislature into the matter.” He said

He pointed out that the separate statements by the Senate President and his Deputy were contradictory.

He said: “While Senator Saraki believes Mr. President has abdicated his powers and that a cabal is in charge of Federal Administration, Senator Ekweremadu says President Buhari has become a dictator.

“Our democracy is still evolving and being deepened. The provisions of the separation of powers are entrenched in our Constitution and should guide everyone in our conduct. The rule of law is indeed supreme.

“This particular case is before the judiciary and is not being decided by the Executive Arm of Government. All that has transpired is still within the confines of our laws. These are the rights to accuse, to be investigated and be arraigned before the court.

“To impute other considerations to the process is unfortunate. We should allow the process to take its course, in consonance with the dictates of the law and total obeisance to the cardinal democratic principle of the separation of powers,” he stated.

June 29, 2016
Ohaneze youth threaten showdown with AGF over Saraki /Ekwerenmadu

The Ohanaze youth forum at the weekend threatened a showdown with the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) Mr. Abubakar Malami over planned arraignment of the Senate President, Bukola Saraki and his Deputy, Ike Ekwerenmadu on Monday.

The federal government is to arraign the duo over alleged forgery case of the Senate Standing Rules.

Noting that the prosecution was politically induced, the youth in a statement issued in Abuja on Friday and signed by the co-chairman, Mazi Okemiri Alex, said that they would mobilize similar groups to scuttle the arraignment.

They warned the AGF not to touch the deputy senate president, Ekwernmadu who they claimed was their son.

The group also pointed out that the Senate as an independent body had investigated the case in question and found the presiding officers not guilty.

They demanded the federal government to allow the national assembly do its job in the spirit and letters of the principle of separation of powers.

The statement reads: “The Ohanaeze Ndigbo Youth Council is alarmed by the sudden resurfacing of the arraignment of the Senate President Bukola Saraki and the Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu over the purported forgery of the Senate 8th session rules.

“In as much as we do not condone any act of illegality, from any quarters, we make bold to state that the present attempt to arraign Senator Saraki and Ekweremadu is ill -motivated and politically induced.

“The issue at stake has been investigated by the Senate and the duo found guiltless in the past. The Senate is the highest law making body in the country and the principle of separation of power confer on them the privilege to internally investigate and even discipline any of their erring members.

“Also the principle of Separation of powers presupposes that the three arms of government viz, Executive, legislature and the Judiciary have a reasonable level of independence, though working in synergy. If the Senate has not found the duo guilty, is it the Judiciary or the Executive that should do so.

“We therefore advise the AGF representing the judiciary and the Executive arm to allow and respect the principle of separation of powers. In particular our son Senator Ike Ekweremadu is occupying the highest political office in the South East and should not be unduly humiliated and embarrassed by these recurring antics. We shall no longer take this lightly.

“We shall mobilize other like groups all over the country to resist the tyranny of democracy in our country,” It stated.

June 24, 2016
AGF to Saraki, others: Offer your explanation to court

The Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation (AGF), Abubakar Malami (SAN) has responded to claim by the Senate President, Bukola Saraki, and others that the charge of forgery against them amounted to an abuse of the principle of separation of powers

The AGF, who justified his decision to initiate criminal proceedings against Saraki and three others over the allegation that they were involved in the forgery of the Senate Order 2011, urged the defendants to take their argument before the court.

Malami, in a statement issued late Thursday by his media aide, Salihu Isah, said he was withing his constitutional powers to initiate criminal proceedings against anybody where any of the investigating agencies has established a prima facie case against such suspect.

The AGF, who faulted the arguments by Saraki and others named in the charge before the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), urged them to go before the court and explain their roles in the forgery case rather than accusing him of violating the Legislative arm.

“It is not in doubt that each arm of government is constitutionally vested with distinct powers. Looking critically at the doctrine of the separation of powers, it is a practice that exist on a tripod viz, the executive, legislature and judiciary with clearly distinctive functions and responsibilities as captured under the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended).

“So, by virtue of this, we are committed to the rule of law and will thus keep to the tenets of the rule of law as enshrined in a constitutional democracy like ours.

“The Office of the Attorney General of the Federation is empowered under Section 174 (1) of the Constitution and vested with the power to undertake and initiate criminal proceedings in any court of law in Nigeria.

“By virtue of this power as the Chief Law Officer of the nation, he has simply initiated criminal proceedings for forgery against the affected principal officers in the Senate for altering the Senate Standing Rules in the Federal High Court.

“It is worthy to note here that the action of the Attorney General of the Federation can stand the test of any law since he did not act on a vacuum.

“He acted based on a recommendation by the Inspector General of Police (IGP) who having fully satisfied investigative procedure arising from the petition sent to the Nigerian Police by some aggrieved members of the Red Chambers of the National Assembly alleging that the affected officers altered the rules of the Senate for Dr. Bukola Saraki and Ike Ekweremadu to emerge leaders of the Eighth Senate of the National Assembly.

“Under the 1999 Constitution, only the Attorney General of the Federation has the powers to institute criminal proceedings.

“For the benefit of doubt, as stated above, there was a petition bordering on allegations of forgery against the defendants, the petition was investigated by the police and the police recommended the case for prosecution.

“At this point, the question is how initiation of criminal proceedings against Dr Bukola Saraki, Ike Ekweremadu, Salisu Maikasuwa and Bernard Efeturi violated the principle of separation of powers as contained in the Constitution? “The action of the Attorney General of the Federation cannot obviously be said to be a coup against the National Assembly as the Senate has claimed.

“By preferring the charge, the accused persons are entitled to fair hearing under the law while the prosecution is obligated to prove its case against them beyond reasonable doubts. “Therefore, the Attorney General of the Federation has not violated any known law in the land. Or is the Senate suggesting that its principal officers, members and staff of the National Assembly are above the law or enjoys same immunity as do the nation’s President and Governors?

“It is common knowledge over the years since the nation embraced democratic system of governance and backed by the current Constitution those elected officers of government who are exempted from legal encumbrances whether it is civil or criminal are known to all.

“It is pertinent to be reminded too, that forgery of the Senate Standing Rules cannot be described as the internal business of the National Assembly that is exclusively only in its purview. “The Attorney General of the Federation cannot therefore be faulted for his decision to initiate legal actions against the accused for alleged forgery after a thorough police investigation of the issue whether there was an amendment of the Senate Standing Rules in 2015 or not.

“The case of Adesanya vs Senate which has been seriously touted in its press statement does not support them and they should rather take their plea and defend the action accordingly.

“We assure Nigerians that the Attorney General of the Federation will continue to be committed to the rule of law at all times.

“On this particular forgery case, we believe he should rather be commended for his foresight and political will to carry out his constitutional role to the letter and not to be vilified under any guise.”

June 23, 2016