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| Nuhu Ribadu |
DRESSED in black - trousers, jacket and shoes - with a white shirt
and red tie, the former Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC)
boss was led into the courtroom by one of a judicial clerks around 2.25
p.m.
Mr. Nuhu Ribadu performed the traditional oath swearing
by placing his left hand on the Holy Quran as he was led to go through
the lines to affirm that he would be giving truthful evidence.
Within a minute, Crown Prosecutor Sasha Wass started her
cross-examination. Looking relaxed, calm and often responding to the
prosecutor’s questions with a smile and “yes, mum,” Ribadu held the
court spellbound as he disclosed how Ibori was ‘desperate’ for him to
take a $15 million cash bribe which the former governor allegedly gave
him in Senator Andy Ubah’s house in the presence of the then Head of
Operations, Ibrahim Lamorde and another official of the EFCC, James
Garba. Lamorde is now Chairman of the EFCC.
He also told the
stunned courtroom how Ibori later allegedly sent four hired killers
after him following the late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua’s rise to
power and the then Attorney-General of the Federation, Michael
Aondoakaa, let the former oil-rich Delta State governor off the hook.
Ribadu disclosed further, how, after he refused taking the alleged cash
bribe, Ibori desperately begged him to “just pocket the $15 million and
send me a clearance letter.”
Ribadu, who gave graphic details of
how on a day Ibori was holed up at the Abuja residence of a former
Kwara State Governor, Dr. Bukola Saraki, was moved to shed some tears
towards the end of his over one hour of cross-examination.
He
claimed that two assassination attempts were made by Ibori’s people on
his life, one in Jos and the other in Abuja. He further claimed that
Ibori promised he would “be dismissed from the Police Force” and removed
as “EFCC Chairman,” the moment the administration of the late Yar’Adua
came to power.
“Ibori was more influential” when Chief Olusegun
Obasanjo’s government handed over power to the new administration in
May 2007, Wass said.
The following is the excerpt of the
dialogue that ensued between Wass and Ribadu, as the latter answered the
former’s questions from the witness box:
Wass: I want to ask you please, about the post of governor. What sort of power do governors have?
Ribadu: The governors have executive power ... are immune from prosecution while in office.
I want to ask you about James Ibori, did you investigate him? How did you come to investigate him?
It came from petitions from the ordinary people of Delta State.
Asked how many times Delta people petitioned his office and who
initiated EFCC’s investigations, Ribadu said: “I will say about five to
10 petitions. We also carried out our own investigations and gathered
intelligence and information using our field officers and from banks.”
Asked what date the formal investigation into Ibori began, Ribadu replied: “It’s a date I can’t remember.”
As far as you are aware, did Mr. Ibori know he was under investigation?
He said he was aware
How did you know he was aware?
Ribadu: He got in touch with me.
Ribadu said as the end of his second term was approaching, and knowing
that he could no longer be shielded by the immunity clause, Ibori became
anxious and was desperate to bribe his way out.
Wass: I want to ask you in particular, April 25, 2007, can you help us with what happened?
Ribadu: At the time, James Ibori asked me to take money from him to stop the investigation.
Ribadu disclosed further that Ibori wanted to come to his house to hand
over the cash, but he refused and he (the former) suggested they should
meet at the EFCC office. Ibori rejected this suggestion as “he didn’t
want anybody to see him,” Ribadu said.
Asked if he informed
anyone else about his conversations with Ibori, Ribadu said he told his
officials and alerted the Central Bank of Nigeria.
Asked why he
thought Ibori offered $15 million, Ribadu said it was because Delta
State had an allocation of about $1 billion and “James wasted or took
about half of that.”
Wass: What happened after the money was handed over at Mr. Ubah’s house?
Ribadu: They - Ibrahim Lamorde and James Garba- drove directly to the Central Bank of Nigeria.
Meanwhile, Oando Nigeria Plc yesterday issued a statement on Ibori’s
trial and its alleged links to him, saying: “As Southwark Crown Court in
London proceedings are underway against Mr. James Ibori (known as
‘confiscation proceedings’), ex-Governor of Delta State in Nigeria,
aimed making Mr. Ibori forfeit assets worth approximately £90 million to
the Crown.
“These proceedings started on Monday, September 16, since when Oando Plc has been mentioned several times by a prosecutor.
“Mr. Ibori was convicted in 2012 of Fraud and Money Laundering. At his
trial, he pleaded guilty to the charges and was convicted on that basis.
Because he pleaded guilty, none of the allegations put forward in the
prosecution’s case were ever tested.
“Now, we have situation
where the Crown prosecutor is using untested evidence as the basis of
its case in the confiscation proceedings. The prosecutor is presenting
this evidence as factual and true, including, unbelievably, statements
made by Mr. Ibori – a convicted criminal to the effect that either he,
or his family own 30 per cent in Oando or in another statement
‘beneficial interest in Ocean & Oil.’
“These contradictory
statements were not tested in the first court case and not can they be
tested in the confiscation proceedings, as the defendant has elected not
to participate. This is a dilemma for Oando as it is not a party to the
proceedings – it is not the accused, the defendant or a witness. As
Oando does not have a right to be heard, it cannot challenge the
prosecution’s evidence where it touches upon Oando, for example by
asking the following:
• ‘Exactly which company does Ibori say he owned 30 per cent of?’
•
‘Why are you making sensational statements about a supposed
shareholding when in your own evidence you say Mr. Ibori’s statements
are untrue?’
• Why do you allege he owns 30 per cent of the
company while also admitting that he only has about 400 shares in Oando
Plc? How do you account for the disparity between the company’s own
share register and the statements you are making in court?
“Of
its own volition, Oando approached the Metropolitan Police sometime in
2012 when it became apparent that the company’s name had been mentioned
in the Crown prosecution case in relation to an alleged Ibori
shareholding and transfer of money.
“Oando made available to the
Metropolitan Police evidence of Mr. Ibori’s shareholding of the company
at the time, which was approximately 400 shares. We also presented
evidence that the transfers of money to Ocean and Oil Services Ltd to an
Ibori controlled company was as a result of a legitimate foreign
exchange transactions and without any knowledge at the time that the
company was related to Ibori. Furthermore, there was no evidence of any
transfer from Oando Plc to the Ibori controlled company.
“This
evidence was ignored by the Crown it was not made available to the court
and the prosecution is now trying to portray the payments made by Ocean
and Oil Services Ltd as payments made by Oando Plc. Yesterday, to get
around this hurdle of not having any links between Oando Plc and Ibori,
the prosecution witness, Detective Constable Clerk, misled the court by
saying Ocean and Oil Services and Oando Plc are “…the same company under
a different name…,” clearly trying to establish a link that does not
exist between Oando and Ibori.
“Oando as a responsible corporate
with obligations to its shareholders will pursue all legal avenues
available to right this wrong and seek compensation for any losses it
incurs as a consequence of this inappropriate course of action.
“The UK prosecutor is making damaging statements about a very
substantial oversees company without any reasonable evidence while our
company cannot defend itself in return. This insidious grandstanding
cannot continue. It is leading to unfounded speculation that we are
determined to bring to an end. At this time, we have our counsel in
court, to intervene as “a friend of the court” if any damaging
statements are made in relation to Oando.”
Source: THE GUARDIAN(ngrguardiannews.com)
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