Posted by From GODWIN TSA, Abuja on
Former Adamawa State Governor, Boni Haruna who has spent almost a week in the custody of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) was charged before a Federal High Court, Abuja division on Tuesday over alleged embezzlement of N93 billion public funds.
Former Adamawa State Governor, Boni Haruna who has spent almost a week in the custody of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) was charged before a Federal High Court, Abuja division on Tuesday over alleged embezzlement of N93 billion public funds.
The former governor was arraigned before Justice Adamu Bell on a 21-count charge along with Mr. Mohammed Inuwa Bassie, a member of the state House of Assembly who was his special adviser when he (Haruna) was governor.
Though he moved an application through his counsel, Mr. Rickey Tarfa (SAN), seeking to be admitted into bail, the EFCC counsel, Jonathan Yusuf Pam told the court that the commission needed more time to respond to the application.
Justice Bello accordingly allowed the commission time to enable it to respond to the bail application and ordered that the former governor be remanded in the EFCC custody till the next adjourned date, Thursday this week.
According to the charge sheet, the suspects were accused of conspiracy and alteration of some figures in a document to defraud the state.
Haruna, who was clad in grey suit and pink shirt, was brought to the court at about 10a.m. in a Peugeot Expert bus with registration number AA 698 NBB.
The former chief executive of Adamawa was arrested by the EFCC at about 5.30 p.m. last Thursday over allegation of corruption while serving as governor of the state from 1999 to 2007.
He was picked up by security operatives attached to the anti-graft commission at his residence in Abuja along with the member of the State Assembly from Jada Constituency, Mohammed Bassie.
Before his arraignment Haruna had threatened to approach the court to ask for the enforcement of his fundamental human right if the commission failed to arraign him. Under the 1999 Constitution, an accused is not to be detained for more than 48 hours.
He was supposed to have been arraigned last Friday but the commission said it was yet to get some other accused it intended to arraign with the former governor.
Haruna who spoke through his counsel on Monday said that he was about to file an application before the court for the enforcement of the fundamental right of his client.
According to Tarfa, 'We expected the EFCC to arraign him in court last Friday but they failed to show up with the accused. We also expected them to come to court today (Monday) with our client, they did not come. If by tomorrow (yesterday) they fail to arraign him, we will file an application in court for the fundamental human right of our client.
'They can't keep him without charging him to court properly. We will approach the court for his release if they refuse to charge him to court properly."
Tuesday's arraignment confirmed that a joint trial was planned for Haruna and his alleged accomplice, who was accused of assisting him in the alleged looting of Adamawa State between 1999 and 2007.