Justice Rilwan Aikawa of the Federal High Court sitting inward Ikoyi, Lagos, on Wednesday, Nov 1, 2017, dismissed an application past times a quondam Minister of Petroleum Resources, Diezani Allison-Madueke, seeking to hold out joined equally a accused inward a N450m fraud case.
Allison-Madueke, who is currently inward London where she is beingness investigated for coin laundering, had, inward the application, sought an chance to defend the allegations inward a accuse filed against her, Mohammed Belgore, SAN, as well as a quondam Minister of National Planning, Prof. Abubakar Sulaiman, past times the EFCC.
The quondam stone oil resources government minister had on Oct. 6, through her lawyer, Mr Onyechi Ikpeazu (SAN), urged the courtroom to compel the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) to extradite her to Nigeria from the United Kingdom of Great Britain as well as Northern Ireland of Britain as well as Northern Republic of Ireland to defend the charges against her.
Belgore, a governorship candidate during the 2011 Kwara State gubernatorial election, is standing trial with Sulaiman for allegedly receiving the amount of N450m on March 27, 2015 out of the $115,010,000 paid into Fidelity Bank Plc past times Allison-Madueke.
At the final adjourned sitting on Monday, Oct 30, 2017, her lawyer, Onyechi Ikpeazu, SAN, had pleaded with the courtroom to permit her to defend herself inward iv of the counts inward the involvement of jurist as well as fair hearing.
Also, inward his address, Ikpeazu had submitted that the prosecution should take his client’s advert from the charge, if it would non laissez passer on her an chance to defend herself past times listening her equally a defendant.
However, inward his response, the prosecution counsel, Rotimi Oyedepo, had opposed the application, maxim that it was an abuse of courtroom process.
Oyedepo farther stated that it would hold out unfair to the prosecution if a accused was added at this phase inward the trial, adding that the affair would bring to initiatory of all de novo as well as thus farther prolong the prosecution. Oyedepo, therefore, urged the courtroom to dismiss the application.
Justice Aikawa adjourned the instance to Nov thirteen as well as 14, 2017 for continuation of trial.