Alhaji Yahaya Bello, the immediate past Governor of Kogi State, has filed an appeal at the Supreme Court against the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for declaring him wanted. This legal action follows a 19-count charge of alleged money laundering involving N80.2 billion.
Bello was scheduled to appear for arraignment at the Federal High Court in Abuja on Wednesday. However, during the proceedings, his legal team, led by Mr. A. M. Adoyi, informed Justice Emeka Nwite of the pending appeal at the Supreme Court. The appeal aims to set aside an arrest warrant issued against Bello on April 17, and an affidavit of record regarding this was filed on September 23.
Adoyi requested that the trial court postpone the arraignment until the Supreme Court makes a decision, arguing that proceeding with the case could undermine the appeal. He stated, “The most appropriate thing to do is to await the decision of the Supreme Court in the aforesaid appeals, before taking any step for arraignment so as not to render the appellant’s appeal null or to pull the rug out of the feet of the Supreme Court.”
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In response, Kemi Pinheiro, counsel for the EFCC and a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, criticized Bello’s legal strategy. He urged the court to consider referring Bello’s lawyer to the Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee for possible sanctions, claiming that the lawyer’s actions were detrimental to the integrity of the judiciary. Pinheiro argued that Bello’s legal team has previously been informed that the court would not entertain any applications until he made himself available for trial.
The trial court will now await the Supreme Court’s decision on the appeal before proceeding with the arraignment, leaving the outcome of the case uncertain as both sides continue their legal battle.
