Why would a judge adjourn a criminal case ‘sine die’ after
granting the accused bail in terms he knows fully well he might not be able to
meet? This is the question the National Human Rights Commission would try to
proffer answer to as they investigate a Federal High Court judge of the Abuja
Division, Justice Adeniyi Ademola, over his purported controversial handling of
a bail granted to a former Director of Pension Accounts in the Office of the
Head of Civil Service of the Federation (OHCSF), Dr. Sani Teidi Shaibu.
Executive Secretary of the Commission, Professor Bem Angwe,
said the Commission would study the case file in the wake of allegations raised
against the presiding judge by the embattled former director.
Specifically, the investigation is to establish whether the
trial judge has not violated certain provisions of the code of conduct for
judicial officers in Nigeria by his handling of the case and whether he is
still a fit and proper person to occupy his exalted seat in the event a case of
judicial misconduct is established against him.
Professor Angwe said this yesterday in Kuje Prison at the
flag-off of the nationwide audit of prisons and other detention facilities
exercise.
Dr. Teidi, who was among the inmates that spoke to the Commission gave a graphic account of his ordeal at the hands of Justice Adeniyi whom he accused of deliberate plot to keep him perpetually in jail.
Dr. Teidi, who was among the inmates that spoke to the Commission gave a graphic account of his ordeal at the hands of Justice Adeniyi whom he accused of deliberate plot to keep him perpetually in jail.
Dr Shaibu is facing a criminal trial before Justice Ademola
alongside a former member of staff of Oceanic Bank, Mr. Udusegbe Omoefe Eric,
and a few other corporate persons. In the 22-count charge slammed on them by
the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), they were accused of
obtaining money by false pretence, conspiracy to commit fraud and concealing
the illicit origin of stolen pension funds.
He shocked the Commission with his submissions that in what
appears a clear departure from the N10 million bail with one surety in like sum
totaling N20 million granted him by Justice Bello where he was first arraigned
over the same offence, Justice Ademola had granted him bail in the sum of N500
million with two sureties in like sum, totaling N1.5 billion only to later
increase it to N1 billion after refusing his application for a variation of the
bail conditions.
But what was so shocking to the Commission was that his
case had been adjourned sine dine (indefinitely) by the trial judge and that he
has been in prison custody for 11 months after perfecting his bail conditions.
It was on the basis of this that the Commission said it was
going to investigate the case by going through the case file to verify the
allegations.
The National Judicial Council (NJC) is also probing the
judge over similar allegation.
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