CCT Approves No-Case Submission Request By Onnoghen’s Counsel

The Code of Conduct Tribunal, CCT, Thursday approved the prayer
of the Defence counsel, Adegboyega Awomolo, SAN, to the suspended
Chief Justice of Nigeria, CJN, Walter Onnoghen to address the
tribunal on a no-case submission.

It also directed the tribunal registrar to make available a
record of proceedings to Awomolo to enable him prepare his wrtten
address.

Awomolo, according to the directive of the chairman of the
tribunal, Danladi Umar would receive the recorded proceedings next
Monday.

He was also billed to make ready copies of his written address
to the prosecution counsel and tribunal on Wednesday for him to
subsequently address the tribunal subject to adoption of same on
next week Friday.

This application came after the PW3, Ifeoma Olagbue, the
standard chartered bank account officer to Onnoghen gave her
evidence today.

Under cross examination by Awomolo, PW3 admitted that the five
accounts opened by Onnoghen with the bank in foreign currencies of
Euro, sterling pounds and dollars were all domiciliary accounts
managed here in Abuja and not overseas as was alleged.

she also admitted that it was her bank that encouraged Onnoghen
to invest in other profit yielding ventures and that interest on
the accounts were regularly credited to his accounts.

Further, PW3 admitted that from the transfers made by Onnoghen,
none was for the purchase of luxury cars.

When grilled by the prosecution counsel, Aliyu Umar, PW3 even
explained that when transfers are done, there are usually a column
where the purposes are stated and, added from the transfers in
Onnoghen’s debit, “I see that they are for investment
purposes”.

Also, PW3 admitted that Onnoghen took a facility (loan) of
£500,000 as at January 2019 and that his security for the loan are
his investment in bonds. She affirmed that the defendant contrary
to allegations doesn’t have one million dollars in his
accounts.

However, the tribunal chairman adjourned the case to March 29
and further threatened to jail any journalist found culpable of
misrepresentation of proceedings.

He said, “If any journalist here or anybody make publication
that is inconsistent with the proceedings, I will send him to
prison where he will stay until when I will retire at 70 years.

” There he will be languishing. You will see the other side of
my coin.”