…Ex-lawmaker to finish jail term, S’Court rules
…Affirms ex-BPE DG Okoh’s imprisonment
A former member of the National Assembly representing Bagwai/ Shanono Federal Constituency of Kano state, Hon Farouk Lawan is to complete his five-year-term in jail, the Supreme Court has ruled.
This is coming after the apex court, Friday, dismissed an appeal by the former lawmaker against the judgments of the lower court which imprisoned him.
A Federal Capital Territory High Court had sentenced Lawan to seven years imprisonment for receiving a $500,000 bribe while serving as the chairman of the House ad-hoc committee investigating the fuel subsidy fraud in 2012.
The trial judge, Angela Otaluka, held that Lawan demanded $3million and received $500,000 from Femi Otedola in 2012 to remove Otedola’s oil company, Zenon Oil and Gas,from the list of firms indicted for fraud in the fuel subsidy regime.
She also held that Lawan was guilty of all three counts of corruption and bribery. Not satisfied, Lawan approached the appellate court where his jail term was reduced from seven to five years but not done, he approached the apex court, urging it to set aside the judgments of the lower courts.
Court affirms
Reading the lead judgment, Justice Tijani Abubakar upheld the decision of the appeal court and dismissed the appeal.
He said, “It is crystal clear that the failure of the trial court to call for allocutus does not affect the sentence passed on the appellant. This issue is resolved against the appellant. I find no merit in this appeal. It is hereby dismissed by me and affirmed the judgment of the court below which affirmed the conviction and the sentence of the appellant to five years imprisonment for count three on the charge. The appeal is hereby dismissed.”
How Mr. Integrity got enmessed
In 2018, businessman, Otedola, accused the former House of Representatives member of demanding a $500,000 bribe from him to remove his company, Zenon Petroleum and Gas Limited from the list of oil companies allegedly involved in fuel subsidy fraud.
Standing as a witness at a Federal Capital Territory High Court in
Abuja in 2021, Otedola said, Lawan removed his company from the list of indicted oil companies after he collected the money, adding that he was expected to pay a balance of $2.5 million to the lawmaker.
He said the money was given to him by the Department of State
Services to set a trap for Lawan after he wrote a petition against him.
Otedola said he petitioned the DSS immediately Lawan demanded the bribe.
“Lawan said he was going to exonerate my company after giving him the money, security cameras were mounted in my living room to capture the exchange of money between me and the defendant
“The video is with the DSS, the money was given to him in two tranches $250,000 each,” he said.
Consequently, the court found him guilty of the three charges against him and sentenced him to seven years imprisonment for the first count, seven years for the second count; and five years for count 3.
The jail terms were to run concurrently. The court also ordered him to return the $500,000 bribe in 2021.
Prior to his unceremonious and self-inflicted fall from grace, Farouk Lawan was the face of integrity in the National Assembly as he was perceived as one of the most honest members of the House of Representatives.
He shot into limelight riding the mantra of uprightness but little did
Nigerians know that the cloak he wrapped around himself was just a front. He was to be brought down by his own greed and insatiable quest for money.
Best remembered for his schemings in the parliament between 1999 and 2011, Lawan was the ringleader who played key roles in the emergence of five speakers of the House of Representatives, including Salisu Buhari, late Ghali Umar Na’Abba, Aminu Bello Masari, Patricia Etteh, and Dimeji Bankole.
…Upholds ex-BPE DG Okoh’s imprisonment
In a similar development, the Supreme Court on Friday affirmed the decisions of the lower courts which imprisoned the immediate-past Director General of the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE), Alexander Okoh, for contempt of court.
In addition, the apex court slammed a fine of N10 million on Okoh who was sacked by President Bola Tinubu on January 8, 2024.
The BPE and Okoh appealed to the highest court to overturn the lower court’s decisions that led to his imprisonment for refusing to grant ownership of the Aluminum Smelter Company of Nigeria to BFIG Group Corporation.
In 2004, the BPE advertised an application of interest for bidders for the privatisation of the Aluminium Smelter Company of Nigeria.
At the end of the exercise, BFIG won the bid and BPE notified the company with a letter dated June 17, 2006. Nevertheless, the BPE nullified the bid result, which led to a long legal dispute.
BFIG’s case was dismissed at the lower courts but the Supreme Court allowed the appeal in 2012.
The apex court ordered the BPE to rescind its decision to cancel the bid and hand over the company to BFIG but the BPE refused.
In April 2019, BFIG initiated contempt proceedings against the BPE and Okoh.
The court then ordered that Okoh be remanded in prison for at least 30 days until he purged himself of the continued disobedience of the court and further contemptuous conduct.
In December 2019, BPE prayed for a stay of execution of the committal order against Okoh, the Appeal Court in a unanimous ruling affirmed the Abuja Federal High Court order.
Not satisfied with the judgment, the BPE approached the apex court for redress.
Reading the lead judgment on Friday, Justice Tijani Abubakar resolved all the issues against the appellants.
Abubakar tongue-lashed the BPE and Okoh for disobeying several orders issued on the matter, describing their actions as “scandalously shameful and disgraceful.”
He said, “The above application leaves no one in doubt that the appellant disobeyed the other of this court, especially the order that restrained the appellants or their agents from reselling, negotiating, or transferring the company. This is a flagrant disobedience to the order of this court.
“Court orders are meant to be obeyed and must be obeyed. The appellants treated the order of this court with total disdain and disrespect.
The conduct of the appellants is scandalously shameful and disgraceful.
“Agencies of government must respect the law. Nobody in this country is above the law. The appellants are not to choose the order of the court to obey or not. For this reason, I resolve the issues against the appellants.
“This appeal deserves to be dismissed and it is thereby dismissed. The judgment of the appeal court is affirmed. The cost of N10m is awarded against the appellants. The cost is to be paid personally by the second appellant (Okoh) in addition to going to prison.
