January 08, (THEWILL) – The Lagos State Special Offences Court sitting in Ikeja has struck out charges filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission against former Central Bank of Nigeria Governor, Godwin Emefiele, relating to the allocation of foreign exchange without a bid, declaring them unconstitutional.
Emefiele was arraigned by the EFCC on April 8, 2024, on a 26-count charge bordering on alleged abuse of office, irregular allocation of $4.5 billion and ₦2.8 billion, and other offences.
The charges included alleged abuse of office, accepting gratification, corrupt demand, receiving property fraudulently obtained, and conferring corrupt advantages, as outlined under various sections of Nigerian law, including the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act and the Criminal Law of Lagos State.
Emefiele’s legal team challenged the legality of counts 1 to 4, which accused him of allocating foreign exchange without a bid, arguing that the alleged acts were not defined as offences under any Nigerian law.
In his ruling on Wednesday, Justice Rahman Oshodi upheld the defence’s argument, declaring the charges unconstitutional and striking out counts 1 to 4.
“The specific conduct alleged, namely the allocation of foreign exchange without a bid, is not defined as an offence in any written law in Nigeria,” Justice Oshodi stated.
However, the court retained jurisdiction to hear the remaining charges, including allegations of accepting gratification, corrupt demand, and receiving property fraudulently obtained.
Oshodi dismissed the defence’s objection to counts 8 to 26, affirming that the EFCC presented sufficient evidence to establish the court’s territorial jurisdiction.
“The evidence presented by the EFCC is limited to the jurisdictional objection and does not address the merits of the allegations against the defendant,” the judge clarified.
The trial was adjourned to February 24 and 26, 2025, for further proceedings.
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