The Special Offences Court in Lagos has declined to halt proceedings in the corruption case against former Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor, Godwin Emefiele.
In a ruling on Wednesday, Justice Rahman Oshodi rejected a request for his recusal, asserting that the claims of bias leveled against him were unfounded.
Justice Oshodi particularly referenced a 2013 decision of the sitting Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun to the effect that “Judicial bias is usually insufficient to justify disqualifying a judge from presiding over a case. To justify disqualification or recusal, the judge’s bias usually must be personal or based on some extrajudicial reason.”
The judge went on to cite other judicial precedents of the Supreme Court and subsequently held that the application for his recusal lacked merit and he promptly refused it.
Justice Oshodi said, “Applying the forgoing principles to the circumstances of this case, the allegation of bias has not been substantiated…. Accordingly, the first and second defendants’ recusal application is refused. This is the ruling of the court.”
At the last sitting of the court on Monday, Emefiele through his lead counsel, Olalekan Ojo (SAN), and the counsel to his co-defendant, Kazeem Gbadamosi (SAN) had made oral applications urging the court to recuse itself from the proceedings on the ground of bias.
Both lawyers argued that by ruling to allow the prosecution counsel to ask a leading question from his witness, a question the defence had previously objected to, the judge made it impossible for the defence to fairly cross-examine the witness.
The counsel for the prosecution, Rotimi Oyedepo (SAN), had opposed the applications, stating that they were unmeritorious.