Former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Godwin Emefiele, has urged a court in Abuja to bring the prosecution’s case against him to an end if its remaining witnesses fail to appear.
The request was made during a fresh hearing at the Federal Capital Territory High Court in Maitama, where his trial is ongoing.
Emefiele is currently being prosecuted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission over a 20-count charge. The charges border on alleged procurement fraud and other financial crimes.
He has, however, maintained his innocence and pleaded not guilty to all counts.
During the court session, his legal team argued that the prosecution had already presented several witnesses, most of them investigators. The defence insisted that calling more witnesses to repeat similar testimonies would not add value to the case.
They urged the court to compel the prosecution to either present its remaining witnesses promptly or have its case closed.
The charges against the former apex bank chief include criminal breach of trust, forgery, abuse of office, and obtaining money by false pretence. Part of the allegations also involves funds reportedly earmarked for international election observers during the 2023 general election.
At the hearing, one of the prosecution’s witnesses, an investigator with the anti-graft agency, told the court that about $6.3 billion was released from the apex bank for election-related purposes.
According to the witness, investigations revealed that the approval documents for the funds bore forged signatures.
The investigator specifically mentioned that the signatures of former President Muhammadu Buhari and former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha, were allegedly falsified. He added that forensic analysis conducted during the investigation supported the claim.
However, under cross-examination, the witness admitted that the signature attributed to Emefiele was not subjected to forensic verification.
This point was quickly seized upon by the defence, which questioned the completeness of the investigation and the credibility of the claims against the former CBN governor.
Emefiele’s lawyer told the court that the prosecution had relied heavily on investigative officers rather than direct witnesses. He argued that continuing in that direction would only prolong the trial unnecessarily.
The defence maintained that if the prosecution could not produce its remaining witnesses, the court should consider closing its case.
In response, the presiding judge advised both parties to reserve their final arguments. The court also directed the prosecution to make efforts to ensure that its remaining witnesses are present at the next hearing.
The matter was subsequently adjourned to a later date for continuation of trial.