Olukoyede vows to resign if Yahaya Bello is not prosecuted.

Ola Olukoyede, the Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), has vowed to pursue the prosecution of former Kogi State Governor Yahaya Bello to its natural end.

During a chat with journalists on Tuesday at the EFCC headquarters in Abuja’s Jabi neighbourhood, the anti-graft chairman promised to resign if Bello is prosecuted.

He promised to hold everyone accountable for obstructing the previous governor’s arrest.

The EFCC is attempting to arraign Bello on 19 counts of money laundering, breach of trust, and theft of funds totaling N80.2 billion.

He stated that no matter what anyone does or how many attacks the anti-graft agency receives, he and his men will continue to assist cleanse the country.

Olukoyede stated that the EFCC requires the support of Nigerians to succeed, underlining that if the agency fails, Nigeria fails. He noted that the efforts done are now benefiting the value of the naira and the foreign market.

Meanwhile, the EFCC has issued a copy of the charge sheet for alleged N80 billion fraud against the immediate past governor and his counsel, Abdulwahab Mohamed.

Following Bello’s absence from court, Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court in Abuja issued an order on Tuesday.

He was not present for his arraignment on a 19-count charge of suspected money laundering totaling ₦80 billion.

The judge cited sections 384(4) and (5) of the Administrative and Criminal Justice Act 2015, which directed counsel to the immediate past governor to obtain a copy of the charge.

The court ruled that if personal delivery of a legal process on a defendant was impractical, substituted measures could be used instead.

Justice Nwite further stated that it was apparent that the former governor failed to appear in court for his arraignment.

Despite Bello’s initial reluctance, Justice Nwite ordered Mohammed, his counsel, to accept the allegations and evidence.

The judge rejected the senior counsel’s request that a junior lawyer on his team, AI Musa, accept the accusations on behalf of the former governor.

Adedayo Adedipe, a member of Bello’s legal team, told the court that his client would have made himself available but was frightened of not receiving a fair hearing and justice.

He stated that Bello was ready to appear in court to answer the EFCC’s 19-count indictment against him.

Adedipe sought the court to cancel the ex-parte arrest order it had previously issued against the former governor, claiming that his client had not yet received the charge at the time of the order.

Bello claimed that the EFCC was an illegitimate institution. According to him, the Federal Government did not confer with the 36 states of the Federation before implementing the EFCC Act in the National Assembly. He noted that Section 12 of the 1999 Constitution, as modified, needed the several Houses of Assembly to ratify the act before it could take effect.

However, the EFCC’s attorney, Kemi Phinheiro, asked the court to dismiss the application, stating that the arrest warrant should be valid until the defendant comes for trial.

He argued that Bello lacked the legal authority to file many applications while in hiding.

Last Monday, Justice Nwite issued a bench warrant against Bello in response to an EFCC motion.

The EFCC then proclaimed the former governor wanted for failing to appear in court and dodging criminal charges.