A High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) granted bail to Senator Benson Konbowei, who represents Bayelsa Central Senatorial District, on Thursday. The bail was set at N50 million. The senator was earlier arraigned on a three-count charge that included forging a National Youth Service Corps exemption certificate and other related charges.
During the hearing, the police counsel, Mr Reuben Egwaba, opposed the bail application for Sen. Konbowei, citing the possibility of him interfering with his trial if granted bail. The court, however, granted the senator bail, and he is expected to meet the conditions of the bail before he can be released.
“While the charge was filed, the defendant took several steps to interfere with the matter.
” He also wrote a lot of petitions against me to truncate the matter. We urge my lord to refuse the application”
he urged the court.
The counsel representing the defendant, Mr. Gordy Uche (SAN), requested that the court grant his client bail, assuring the judge that if granted, the defendant would not attempt to flee.
After considering the bail application, the trial judge, Justice Christopher Oba, ruled that the defendant must provide two sureties in the same amount who must possess landed properties located in the Federal Capital Territory. Justice Oba also stated that the Certificate of Ownership (C of O) of the sureties must be confirmed to be authentic.
However, despite granting bail, Justice Oba ordered that the defendant be remanded in Kuje correctional facility until the bail conditions were met.
The judge explained that bail is at the discretion of the court, but considering the matter, he did not believe it was a capital offense.
The defendant’s lawyer requested that his client be allowed to provide an undertaking to produce the senator in court until he had perfected his bail, but the judge declined this request.
The case was then adjourned until June 24th for the hearing to continue.
During the hearing, a former senator, Moses Cleopas, testified as a witness for the prosecution. While being led in evidence by the prosecution counsel, Cleopas admitted to writing the defendant’s primary school and discovered some inconsistencies in his certificate.
The prosecution counsel, Egwaba, sought to tender the letter and response as exhibits, but the defendant’s lawyer objected.
” This document is not relevant to the charges preferred against the defendant. Count one deals with fraudulent forgery of the exemption certificate.
” There was nowhere his first school leaving certificate was mentioned. Sections 4, 5 7, and 9 of the Evidence Act have settled this. Also, these documents were not signed and not dated.
” An unsigned document is worthless in law. It doesn’t pass the test of admissibility. It also has no name of the officer who signed it. It contains no evidence that any money was paid to get the certified copies of the documents”
he told the court.
But Egwaba said the documents set to be tendered were a response to a letter the former senator wrote.
“There are original copies of a letter addressed to Moses, a private individual. A letter issued from a public office to an individual cannot be certified. A photocopy can be tendered if the foundation is laid for it.
”Attached to the letter were private documents. It does not need to be certified. Count three is relevant to the document we seek to tender. He lied on oath to INEC.
” Also, the primary school certificate was frontloaded in their process and also included in their proof of evidence. We will amend our charges. We urged me to discount his objections. This document shows that he is a serial forger” he told the court.
The trial judge overruled Uche and admitted the documents as exhibits.
