A Special Offences Court in Ikeja, Lagos, has adjourned proceedings to Wednesday, February 26, to rule on whether to continue hearing the case against former Central Bank Governor Godwin Emefiele.
The adjournment followed a request by Emefiele’s counsel, Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) Olalekan Ojo, who urged Justice Rahman Oshodi to recuse himself from the trial, citing allegations of bias. Similarly, Kazeem Gbadamosi, SAN, representing Emefiele’s co-defendant, Henry Omoile, echoed the request.
Emefiele faces a 19-count charge filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) involving alleged gratification and corrupt practices. His co-defendant, Omoile, is charged with three counts related to the unlawful acceptance of gifts.
During Monday’s proceedings, the EFCC’s lead counsel, Rotimi Oyedepo, SAN, concluded the examination of Adetola John, a former personal assistant to Emefiele. Oyedepo referred to Adetola’s earlier testimony from November 2024, in which he claimed to have received $400,000 in cash from John Ayoh, a former director of the ICT Department, and delivered it to Emefiele in his office. Adetola had also testified that he handled office correspondence and visitors in Lagos, while another aide, Eric Odoh, managed similar responsibilities in the Abuja office.
The prosecution presented a printed WhatsApp message from Eric Odoh, obtained by EFCC investigators, which was marked for identification. However, the defence team objected, arguing that the document was not formally admitted as evidence and that the witness could not testify to its contents. Justice Oshodi overruled the objection, allowing the witness to read from the document under Section 224 of the Evidence Act, which permits leading questions on introductory or undisputed matters.
Following the court’s decision, the defence team expressed dissatisfaction and, through oral applications, unanimously requested that the judge recuse himself, alleging bias. Mr. Ojo argued that the court’s ruling effectively validated the claim that the $400,000 received by Adetola was delivered to Emefiele.
Ojo also contended that this premature conclusion made it impossible for the defence to cross-examine the witness fairly. He requested that Justice Oshodi recuse himself from further hearings.
In his response, the EFCC counsel, Oyedepo opposed their applications.
Oyedepo said “In this proceeding, your lordship had numerous times ruled against the prosecution and if the defence is dissatisfied with the ruling of the court, they can appeal.
“I do not know what the defence is trying to prove by telling this court to recuse itself because in this case, there is no evidence of allegation of bias.
“This is a form of delay tactics and I urge your lordship to discountenance this application because a reasonable person in this court will realise that this application is meant to delay this trial.
“The court had earlier granted accelerated hearing in this case and I urge this honourable court to ask the defence to cross-examine the witness.”
Justice Oshodi adjourned till Feb. 25 to rule on the submissions.
Earlier in the proceedings, Emefiele’s counsel had informed the judge of another application seeking permission to allow the former CBN governor to appeal the court’s ruling delivered on Jan. 8, 2025, assuming jurisdiction to hear the case.