Adoke: A Vindication of the Just

Like a pack of cards, the corruption charges filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission against  former Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Mohammed Bello Adoke, have crumbled, further exposing the commission’s poor investigation and prosecution, Wale Igbintade writes

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 former Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Mr. Mohammed Bello Adoke, last week finally surmounted every plot to convict him or hang corruption allegations on his neck since he left office in 2015.

As part of President Muhammadu Buhari’s government’s efforts to hold individuals accountable for their actions during the previous administration led by Goodluck Jonathan, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) brought charges against Adoke. These charges stem from his purported involvement in transactions linked to the alleged defrauding of Nigeria of approximately $1.8 billion. Central to the accusations are Adoke’s alleged roles in the complex ownership transfers concerning the OPL 245 dispute with Malabu Oil and Gas Limited.

Adoke promptly filed a suit marked, FHC/ABJ/94/446/2017, against the then AGF, Abubakar Malami, praying to be freed from any criminal liability in respect of the transactions and declaring his prosecution by the EFCC null and void.

In his defence, Adoke argued that his actions in the deal were carried out under the direct orders of President Jonathan, thus making him immune from prosecution. He petitioned the court to deem his prosecution by the EFCC as unlawful. However, Attorney General Malami contested the claim, insisting that Adoke should stand trial.

But in her ruling, Justice Binta Nyako declared that Adoke could not be held accountable for his involvement in the OPL 245 transactions. She reasoned that Adoke merely executed lawful directives from President Jonathan, absolving him of any wrongdoing in the deal.

Justice Nyako resolved all the issues raised for determination in favour of Adoke and dismissed the preliminary objection raised against the suit by Malami. She granted four of Adoke’s prayers but refused one which sought a declaration that his prosecution was null and void.

The judge noted that contrary to the defendant’s contention that the plaintiff exceeded the directive of the President and in the process committed a crime, Exhibits 19 and 20, which remained uncontradicted and unchallenged, confirmed that the plaintiff actually remained within the confines of the lawful directives given to him by the president and is therefore protected by law.

THISDAY gathered that Malami himself had in his reasoned legal opinion to the EFCC confirmed that he had reviewed the Settlement Agreement and could not find any illegality in the transaction.

Even the then Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu, had also written an opinion to the President through the Chief of Staff, Abba Kyari, where he explained that the transaction was for the benefit of the country as it would enable the development of the oil block.

Despite these exonerating opinions and the subsisting judgment of Justice Nyako, the EFCC under Ibrahim Magu in 2020 proceeded to charge Adoke and others for corruption, money laundering and other sundry offences. 

This he did through two criminal charges prepared against him at the Federal High Court in Abuja and the Federal Capital Territory High Court.

While the charges at the Federal High Court bordered on money laundering, those of the Federal Capital Territory High Court were on fraud, bribery and conspiracy.

In the charges before the FCT High Court, EFCC charged Adoke along with Aliyu Abubakar of Malabu Oil and Gas Limited, Nigeria Agip Exploration Limited, Shell Ultra Deep Nigeria Limited, and Shell Nigeria Exploration Production Company Limited (SNEPCo).

The anti-graft commission accused the former AGF of collecting a gratification of N300 million from Abubakar over the OPL 245 resolution. It also accused him of conspiring with other defendants to “commit the offence of public servant disobeying direction of law with intent to cause injury or to save a person from punishment or property from forfeiture.”

But Adoke denied all the allegations, maintaining that he was a victim of political victimisation by former President Buhari on behalf of the late General Sani Abacha’s family who felt cheated in the OPL 245 transaction.

Delivering his judgment on March 28, 2024, Justice Abubakar Kutigi dismissed the charges against Adoke, saying the EFCC failed to adduce credible evidence to prove the allegations contained in the charge. The judge proceeded to reprimand the EFCC for filing “frivolous” charges against the former AGF.

While upholding the no-case submission filed by Adoke, Justice Kutigi commended the prosecution for conceding that it did not have sufficient evidence to oppose the no-case application, but he criticised the anti-graft agency for wasting four years prosecuting the case.

The judge added that the defendants ought not to have been charged in the first instance, stressing that the allegation of illegal tax waivers granted to Shell and Eni was not corroborated by the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) or any authority.

Justice Kutigi said the EFCC failed to prove its charges of fraud, bribery and money laundering and ruled that the defendant has no case to answer, adding that the EFCC did not provide the necessary evidence to prove the alleged N300 million bribe said to have been given to Adoke by Aliyu Abubakar.

“It is argued that people can be arrested circumstantially. But every trial, more so, a criminal trial is a different ball game which must be undertaken with utmost care and attention to detail, particularly, the quality of the evidence and availability of witnesses.

“It cannot be right or fair, that in this case, for example, nearly about 30 counts in the case involving forgery, the documents subject to these counts were not presented in evidence and material evidence led to situate the elements of forgery.

 “I must therefore make the point that the whole trial process, whatever its inherent imperfection, is entirely evidence-driven, evidence which requires quality and probative value. This is so whether it is at this stage of situating a prima facie, as in the present situation, or at the point of determining guilt, or otherwise of the defendants.”

With the absence of evidence, the judge stated that allowing the proceedings to continue is to inflict undue hardship and injustice on the defendants. 

“In my final analysis, and for the avoidance of doubt, my firm decision on the basis of the provision of section 302 of the ACJA 2015 is that the evidence adduced by the prosecution on record is not sufficient to justify the continuation of this trial.” 

The money laundering allegations against the former AGF also came as a result of the commission’s desperation to nail Adoke at all costs. Hence, it failed to conduct a proper investigation of the case.

In 2011, Adoke had taken a mortgage of N300 million from Unity Bank to buy a property valued at N500 million from Abubakar. However, he failed to pay his own equity contribution of N200 million and the mortgage was cancelled in 2013.

Abubakar said he returned the N300 million to Unity Bank after finding a new buyer – the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

But in 2017, the EFCC accused Adoke of handing the dollar equivalent of N300 million to Rislanudeen Mohammed, then acting Managing Director of Unity Bank, to refund the loan.

The commission said it was a breach of money laundering laws as it was above the N10 million threshold allowed, arguing further that a Bureau De Change (BDC) – which the bank used to convert the dollar to naira – is not a financial institution. It accused Adoke and Abubakar of conspiring to commit the offence of money laundering.

Mohammed, in his testimony as a prosecution witness for the EFCC, claimed he collected $2 million cash from Adoke and gave it to a BDC to convert to naira to refund the mortgage. He said after the money was repaid, the bank returned the land documents to Abubakar and closed Adoke’s mortgage account.

Mohammed, however, said it was not a case of money laundering since a BDC is legally a financial institution. He said he did not report the transaction to the security agencies such as the EFCC and the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) because there was nothing suspicious about it, and that his office did not reprimand him as he did not commit any offence.

Delivering a ruling on the no-case submission, filed by the former AGF, Justice Inyang Ekwo held that the EFCC failed to establish a prima facie case against Adoke. He also held that the anti-graft agency did not provide any evidence to prove the essential elements of Adoke’s offence.

THISDAY gathered that Mohammed later apologised to Adoke in private, saying the EFCC had threatened to arrest his wife and daughter if he did not agree to testify — albeit falsely — that he collected the cash directly from the former AGF.

Adoke said even the former acting Chairman of EFCC, Ibrahim Magu, who oversaw the charges, has also apologised to him.Responding to the judgments in a statement, Adoke described them as a vindication, adding that despite his ordeal in the hands of the EFCC, his faith in Nigeria remains unshaken.