Ruin-of-law chronicles: • Ibori to get own kangaroo court in Asaba,• To choose his own judge!
In what may be the height of Yar’adua’s byzantine obsession with keeping James Ibori from prison or losing his loot from the well documented atrocities against the treasury and people of Delta State, the Supreme Court- anointed Nigerian leader has secretly approved the setting-up of a Federal High Court in Asaba with the express task of providing a special trial for the former state governor.
In a move so despicable it is capable of changing the old phrase, “kangaroo court” to “Ibori court” in Nigeria, the beleaguered but powerful Ibori would choose his own federal judge to be assigned to handle his case.
SaharaReporters has learnt that the Federal High Court in Asaba is being facilitated by funds from the Delta State government. It is believed to have reached an advanced stage of completion and an announcement could be made in a matter of days.
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Late last year, the Federal Court of Appeals, sitting in Kaduna, in a ruling read by Justice Amina Adamu Augie, stopped Ibori’s trial and stated that for the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to act as investigator, prosecutor and at the same time embark on "forum shopping" for judges amounted to persecution and not prosecution of the accused persons.
The judge, who is known to be very close to Ibori, ruled that Ibori could not be tried in Kaduna and ordered that the chief judge of the Federal High court re-assign his case to the jurisdiction in which he committed the crime of money-laundering and graft.
The Chief Judge of the Federal High court, Justice Abdullahi Mustapha, has since refused to re-assign the case to the Benin division of the Federal High Court and instead worked with Yar’adua to set up the “Ibori court” new division in Asaba to try the case.
When Saharareporters called the CJ, he was visibly agitated from the tone of his response and declined to speak with us on phone. We then sent him a text message asking why he chose to treat Ibori differently from Henry Okah, who has also applied for his case to be transferred to the Federal High court in Yenegoa, Bayelsa state where the bulk of his alleged crimes were committed.
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Justice Mustapha repeatedly screamed that he wouldn’t speak to us over the phone, requesting instead that we send our reporter to visit him in his office either in Lagos or Abuja. When we asked that he make a commitment to guarantee the safety of our reporter, he said he could not do that, but went ahead and fixed two appointments for our reporter to meet with him to “talk”.
The apprehension of the Chief Judge is understandable, in view of another revelation that he re-assigned the case of detained MEND leader, Henry Okah, to the Jos Division of the Federal High court. That is the same division where a judge earlier declined to hear the case because of what he perceived to be the manipulation of the Attorney General, Mr. Michael Aondoakaa.
But our sources said the Chief Judge, the attorney General, the Director-General of the State Security Services (SSS), Gadzama and the National Security Adviser, Muktar met and decided to try Okah in Jos regardless of the Court of Appeal ruling regarding Ibori by using the spurious claim that Okah’s offenses are treasonable and thus can be tried anywhere in the federation.
Chief Judge Mustapha is no stranger to this type of contradiction and controversy. Nigerians will recall that it was before him that the presumed winner of the June 12, 1993 elections was hauled by the Sani Abacha regime and tried for treason. When Moshood Abiola’s treason trial commenced he appealed against Mustapha’s trial and took his case to the Court of Appeal, which decided that Abiola be tried in Abuja for treason even though the so-called acts of “treason” were committed in Lagos.
The position of the Court of Appeal was that since Abiola wanted to overthrow the government in Abuja, he could be tried in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). Abiola however died in prison custody while still awaiting trial.
Henry Okah’s attorneys told Saharareporters that out of the 62 charges proffered against him by the Nigerian authorities, only three have treason component, noting that the re-assignment of the case to Jos by the CJ meant they were up something against Okah in Jos, as Abuja could have been their choice if they genuinely wanted to go by the treason theory and precedent on M.K.O Abiola.
Meanwhile, Ibori continues to live in luxury.
Saharareporters sources said the former Delta State governor recently got a brand new jet delivered to him and traveled to Shanghai, China since last week.The details of the jet are unknown to Saharareporters at this time, but our sources said it was purchased in the name of O’Secul Nigeria Limited, the company with which Ibori purchased the National Fertilizer Company (NAFCON) in 2005.
The extensive wealth of Ibori in Abuja continues to be revealed. It is now known that in additioin to others, he also owns Number 1, Clement Isong Street plot 2696 in Asokoro, where he erected a massive mansion, as well as six other properties to his name in the FCT, Abuja alone.
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