By Alex Enumah
Justice Okon Abang of the Abuja Division of the Federal High Court has ordered the Atorney-General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Mr Abubakar Malami (SAN), and former Acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Mr Ibrahim Magu, to appear before him and give evidence in the ongoing trial of former Chairman of the Pension Reform Task Team (PRTT), Mr Abdulrasheed Maina.
The order was sequel to an application by Maina praying the court to compel the AGF, Magu, rights activists, Mr Femi Falana (SAN), and seven others to appear before the court in respect of the corruption allegations against Maina.
Others to appear in the subpoena signed on March 8, 2021 include M. Mustapha, Hassan Salihu, Mohammed Wakil, G.T Idris, Kenneth Amabem, Ibrahim Kaigama and the Director of Compliance, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
They are to appear before the court on March 9,10 and 11 to testify in Maina’s defence.
The order addressed personally to each of the subpoenaed witnesses and cited by THISDAY read: “You are commanded in the name of the President and Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to attend before this court at court 6, on 9th, 10th, 11th day of March 2021 at 9 o’clock in the forenoon, and so from day to day till the above case is tied, to give evidence on behalf of the 1st defendant.”
Maina is being prosecuted by the EFCC for allegedly laundering the sum of N2 billion.
Meanwhile, his first witness, Ngozika Ihuoma, had alleged that Magu misappropriated 222 properties worth N1.63 trillion recovered by the Maina-led PRTT.
He alleged that Magu had sold most of the properties to his friends and associates.
Ihuoma had also told the court that AGF and the National Security Adviser (NSA) met with Maina in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE) in January 2016.
“After the meeting in Dubai, Maina gave the delegation intelligence report that led to the recovery of N1.3 trillion out of the N3 trillion promised to recover,” the witness said.
