List Of High Profile Cases Lost By FG

The manner in which the loses had come prompted former President Olusegun Obasanjo, to allude the failures to the Federal Government’s inability to engage “staunch ogbologbo lawyers,” stressing that most of the lawyers employed were outsiders.

“If I am a lawyer and I want the opponent to win a case, what I will file will be `wishy washy’. And if I file a `wishy washy’ case, the opponent will see the loophole and he will get out of it. I believe that it is important.

“Secondly, thorough investigation is very important. Now, investigation must be thorough, it must be proper and it must be really taken seriously.

“Third, our judges must be committed in fighting corruption. “They must be committed to fighting corruption.

On Tuesday the losing streak of the federal government continued as Court of Appeal Abuja Division discharged and freed former Chairman of Presidential Implementation Committee on Marine Safety and Security (PIMCOSS), Air Vice Marshal Saliu Atawodi of N600m boat scam allegations.

Atawodi had earlier been arrested and charged to court by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for conspiracy, abuse of office and misappropriation of public funds.

Before the latest embarrassment to the FG, the EFCC also lost its case against Patience Jonathan, former first lady. A federal high court sitting in Lagos unfroze her $5 million account in Skye Bank

Again, the EFCC prayed a federal high court in Lagos to order the temporary forfeiture of N75 million in the account of Mike Ozekhome, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN).

The anti-graft agency said this should be on the ground that the amount deposited in the said account on December 15, 2016, is suspected to be proceeds of crime.

Abdulaziz Anka, the judge, ordered that Ozekhome’s account with the sum of N75 million be forfeited for 120 days.

Ozekhome, who is one of the lawyers of Ayo Fayose, Ekiti state governor, had described the ruling as “insidious, odious and invidious and from the pit of hell”.

Another high profile bungling is in the matter by the DSS in October 2016, against Justice Adeniyi Ademola, who was arrested alongside a number of other judges for corruption and possession of firearms.

Ademola said he was arrested because he granted Sambo Dasuki bail and freed Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the Independent People of Biafra (IPOB) leader.

The federal government charged Ademola to court, saying he received $520,000 as gratification from some law firms between 2013 and 2016.

Okeke in his ruling on the no-case submission of the defendants, held that the prosecution did not adduce enough evidence to warrant the defendants to enter defence.

He said the prosecution did not establish a prima facie case against the defendants, and held that no iota of evidence to prove that the defendants were guilty of the charges levelled against them.

Finally, the ICPC arrested Godsday Orubebe, former Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, had been charged to court by ICPC, in 2016 for N1.97 billion fraud, bothering on the diversion of funds meant for the compensation of owners of property on the Eket Urban section of the East-West road in Eket, Akwa Ibom State.

Abubakar Malami, the attorney general of the federation, in a letter to the chairman of ICPC, said the case of misappropriation does not exist, and further prosecution cannot be justified.

Orubebe was therefore discharged and acquitted, as the ICPC withdrew the case against him.