False Asset Declaration: A'Court Affirms Ruling of CCT on 15 Count Charges against Saraki

*Orders him to enter defence on 3 others

The Court of Appeal in Abuja last  Tuesday ordered Senate President Bukola Saraki to open his defence on three of the false Asset declaration charges brought against him by the Federal government.

The court however upheld the ruling of the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) on the remaining 15 on the grounds that the prosecution was not able to prove the charges against Senate President.

A three-man panel of the court led by Justice Tinuade Akomolafe in a judgment delivered yesterday on the appeal by the Federal government against the ruling of the CCT, held that the prosecution established a Prima facie against the respondent in counts 4, 5 and 6.

Counts 4,5 and 6 bothers on the purchase of house 17 A and B at McDonald Street, Ikoyi Lagos by the Senate president.

In view of this, the appellate court therefore remitted the case to the CCT for the Senate President to open his defence in the said charges.

But delivering its judgement on the federal government appeal of the ruling of the CCT, Justice Tinuade Akomolafe-Wilson in the 70-page unanimous judgment held that there was no evidence to substantiate 15 out of the 18 counts charges against saraki.

According to Court of Appeal, the prosecution established that there were discrepancies in the claims on the asset declaration forms as to how the two houses in Ikoyi were acquired.

Consequently, the panel held that the senate president needs to provide explanations to the discrepancies established by the prosecution that the properties he claimed were bought from sales of rice and sugar in his asset declaration form were bought from loans acquired from a commercial bank.

The panel stated that it dismissed the 15 counts against Saraki having concluded that the evidence adduced at the tribunal, were based on hearsay evidence that have no probate value.

The court further held that the information supplied in the report used to prepare the charge did not link Saraki with the charges as required by law.

According to the court, the 48 documents tendered by the federal government and admitted by the tribunal were not from the appropriate sources that were supposed to tender them before they could be admitted in line with provisions of the law.

Having established prima facie case against Saraki in respect of counts 4,5 and 6 which bothered on the properties at McDonald Street, Ikoyi – Lagos, the court said that the tribunal should conduct trial so as to arrive at a just conclusion on the 3 charges instead of dismissing them at a no case submission stage.

"And it is hereby ordered that counts 4,5 and 6 be remitted to the code of conduct tribunal", the court held.

Justice Akomolafe-Wilson said, the prosecution erroneously came to the conclusion that the burden of prove on the 15 charges rest on the respondent, whereas it is an established fact that the party that alleges must be the one to prove beyond reasonable doubt.

The court faulted the federal government on the claim that Saraki collected salaries and emoluments from Kwara State government after he had left office as the executive governor of the state adding that it was a big surprise that no single witness was invited from Kwara State to prove the allegation.

Similarly, the court faulted the prosecution for falling to call relevant witnesses to support its allegation that Saraki operated foreign account while he was in office as governor of kwara state. 

“In conclusion, we find no merit in 15 out of 18 count charges brought against the defendant by the complainant and we hereby uphold the decision of the tribunal delivered in June this year on the finding”.

“On the remaining three, it is hereby ordered that counts 4,5 and 6 be remitted to the tribunal for retrial to enable the defendant offer explanations where necessary”.