All is set for the trial of House member Farouk Lawan
for allegedly receiving $620,000 bribe, The Nation learnt yesterday.
The Attorney-General of the Federation, Mr. Mohammed
Bello Adoke (SAN), has given the legal advice for the trial of the suspended
Chairman of the House of Representatives Ad Hoc Committee on Fuel Subsidy
Regime and the Clerk of the panel, Mr. Boniface Emenalo.
The Office of the AGF has engaged a Senior Advocate of
Nigeria, Chief Adegboyega Awomolo, to handle the prosecution of the two
suspects on behalf of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related
Offences Commission (ICPC).
The charges against the suspects will be filed any
moment from now by the prosecutor.
According to sources, the AGF has established a prima
facie case against Lawan and Emenalo, based on police investigation.
Section 26 of the ICPC Act empowers the AGF to
prosecute Lawan or any other suspect.
The section says: “Prosecution for an offence under
this Act shall be initiated by the Attorney-General of the Federation or any
person or authority to whom he shall delegate his authority in any superior
court of record as designated by the Chief Judge of a State or the Chief Judge
of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja under section 61 (3) of this Act; and
every prosecution for an offence under this Act or any other law prohibiting
bribery, corruption, fraud or any other related offence shall be deemed to be
initiated by the Attorney-General of the Federation.”
A source, who spoke in confidence, said the legal
advice had been sent to the ICPC for immediate trial of the suspects.
The source said: “Police investigation has shown
clearly that Lawan and Emenalo have a case to answer. They will be charged
under some sections in the ICPC Act.
“As a matter of fact, the police confirmed the receipt
of the bribe sum by Lawan and Emenalo, although they refused to produce the
cash.
“The video and audio clips showed beyond doubt how the
bribe sum was collected. The clips will be primary evidence which will be filed
before a High Court.
“A respected Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Chief
Adegboyega Awomolo, will handle the prosecution and he has been asked to go
ahead to file charges against the suspects after due consultations with ICPC.”
Some of the detectives, who handled the investigation,
and businessman Femi Otedola, who gave Lawan the bribe in what he called a
sting operation, will testify for the prosecution during the trial.
“With this development, the police bend of the bribery
has been temporarily closed, unless there is any fresh clue on the bribe sum,”
the source said.
The suspects may be arraigned in line with sections 8,
10, 15, 20 and 20 of the ICPC Act 2000.
Also, if the trial is not disrupted with
injunctions, the ICPC Act says the suspects are to know their fate within 90
working days of their arraignment in court.
Section 26 says: “A prosecution for an offence shall
be concluded and judgment delivered within ninety (90) working days of its
commencement save that the jurisdiction of the court to continue to hear and
determine the case shall not be affected where good grounds exists for a
delay.”
But a curious aspect of the forthcoming
prosecution of the suspects is the fact that the court is at liberty to compel
them to retrieve the bribe wherever it is kept.
The suspects risk a seven-year jail term, if they do
not produce the cash.
Section 15 says: “Any person who, with intent to
defraud or conceal a crime or frustrate the Commission in its investigation of
any suspected crime of corruption under this Act or under any other law:
“Destroys, alters, mutilates, or falsifies any book,
documents, valuable security, account, computer system, diskette, computer
print out or other electronic device which belongs to or is in the possession
of his employer, or has been received by him on account of his employment, or
any entry in any such book, document, accounts, or electronic device, or is
privy to any such act; or
“Make, or is privy to making any false entry in any
such book, document, account or electronic record; or
“Omits, or is privy to omitting, any material
particular from any such book, document, account or electronic record; is
guilty of a felony, and shall on conviction be liable to seven (7) years
imprisonment.”
Section 20 is explicit on the payment of fine, which
is going to be five times of the bribe sum.
The section adds: “Without prejudice to any sentence
of imprisonment imposed under this Act, a Public Officer or other person found
guilty of soliciting, offering or receiving gratification, shall forfeit the
gratification and pay a fine of not less than five times the sum of the value
of the gratification which is the subject matter of the offence where such
gratification is capable of being valued or is of a pecuniary nature, or ten
thousand Naira, whichever is higher.”
Source: The Nation
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