An Akure High Court will on January 25 decide whether or not the Speaker of the Ondo State House of Assembly, Hon Bamidele David Oleyeloogun and two others should face prosecution over allegation of fraud levelled against them.
The EFCC had dragged the Speaker, Oleyelogun, a Lawmaker, Felemu-Gudu Bankole and a civil servant, Segun Oyadeyi to court for alleged misappropriation of 2.4million naira belonging to the State Assembly. The fund was meant for seminar, which the lawmakers and the civil servant were meant to attend.
However, when the case came up for hearing at the weekend, the lawmakers said the EFCC lacked the power to prosecute offences affecting the finances and assets of the state as there exist a law enacted by the Assembly to tackle corruption allegation in the state.
The defendants in the preliminary objection filed to the EFCC charges by their counsel, Mr Femi Emodamori asked the Court to decline Jurisdiction and strike out the charges against them because the EFCC has no right to prosecute them.
The defendants said the charge AK/106C/2022 filed by the EFCC is flawed, defective having not been initiated in due compliance with the process of the law.
Emodamori said the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, (EFCC) has no right to try the defendants for alleged corruption in view of the State Public Complaint Financial Crimes and Anti Corruption Commission Law passed into law and signed by the governor, Oluwarotimi Akeredolu in January, 2022.
The Assembly had in 2021 passed a law titled “The Ondo State Public Complaints, Financial Crime and anti-Corruption Commission and other matters connected thereto” for the trial of cases related to corruption in the state. The law was signed into law January, 2022.
According to them, the charge against them contains two counts, alleging them of committing financial crimes involving the finances and assets of the state and since the state has its own version of the law, the EFCC should hands over the prosecution of the case.
FLIGHTS RESUME AFTER WORKERS STRIKE
Air passengers both local and international can now heave a sigh of relief as normalcy is gradually returning to airports across the country as seamless passenger facilitation has commenced.
This is coming on the heels of the suspension of strike by aviation unions over the review of salaries of its members in the Nigeria Aviation Handling Company, NAHCO.
The strike was called off after three hours meeting between the unions, the National Union of Air Transport Employees, NUATE, the Air Transport Services Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, ATSSSAN, and the management of the company.
Flight operations were grounded on Monday morning following the industrial action embarked on by the staff of NAHCO over failure to review their current salaries since June 2022.
Flight disruption due to the strike left scores of passengers both local and foreign stranded at the Lagos airports which spilled over to airports across the country.
Speaking on the strike, Secretaries General of the Unions in NAHCO, the National Union of Air Transport Employees, NUATE and Air Transport Services Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, ATSSSAN, Comrades Ocheme Aba and Frances Akinjole noted that its members embarked on the strike because the NAHCO management handled their seven-day ultimatum with kid gloves.
According to them, the management also continued to play on their intelligence through rescheduling of purposeless meetings.
In an agreement reached at the end of the meeting, all staff have been directed to resume work immediately, negotiation of all workers’ welfare to start Wednesday this week and NAHCO management decided to withdraw the suit and vacate the earlier court order obtained.
Reacting to the strike, the Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Aviation, Mr. Nnaji Nnolim earlier in a statement had appealed to the unions and management of the company to dialogue and avert further disruption to aviation activities.
Mr. Nnaji urged the union to douse its agitation and show concern for the pains the action would bring on innocent Nigerian travellers both locally and internationally.
Responding to the development, the Group Executive Director, NAHCO, Dr. Olusola Obabori said, the Company engaged the Unions and other stakeholders because they understand the power of negotiation.
