A court of appeal in Abuja has ordered Okon Abang, judge of
a federal high court in Abuja, to withdraw from the trial of Gabriel Suswam, a
former governor of Benue state.
Suswam, now a senator, is being tried alongside Okolobia
Okpanachi, a former commissioner of finance in Benue.
In a unanimous judgment on Tuesday, a three-man panel
ordered that the case file be returned to Ahmed Mohammed, the judge who handled
the case from inception.
In 2015, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (
EFCC) had arraigned Suswam and Okpanachi before Mohammed on a nine-count
charge, bothering on money laundering and diversion of funds to the tune of
N3.1 billion.
However, the case was reassigned to Abang following
Mohammed’s recusal from the trial.
Mohammed’s withdrawal in 2019 was the second after he
announced a similar decision on June 6, 2016, but Ibrahim Auta, the then chief
judge of the federal high court, returned the case to him.
Mohammed had said he pulled out of the case because he was
being accused of receiving bribe to favour of the former governor.
Chinelo Ogbozor, Suswam’s counsel, had challenged the
reassigning of the case to Abang, arguing that she was not aware of the judge
disqualifying himself from conducting the trial as no prior notice was issued.
She added that it amounted to breach of the defendant’s
right to a fair hearing.
Although the appellate court in its judgment commended Abang
for conducting the trial, the court held that Mohammed was wrong to have
rescued himself from conducting the trial.
The court explained that its decision to return the case to
Mohammed was to correct the “error” made by Adamu Kafarati, the immediate past
chief judge of the federal high court.
Agim held that Kafarati did not “apply his discretion
correctly” when he re-assigned the case to Abang, instead of directing Mohammed
to continue with the trial.
“Unfortunately, the chief judge did not exercise his
discretion correctly. The re-assignment of the case to Justice Abang amounted
to a transfer in a matter that was part heard,” the judge who read the
judgement said.
“Four witnesses had already testified and an accused person
is entitled to a trial within a reasonable period of time.
“The action of the chief judge is an administrative one and
therefore, proceedings by justice Abang cannot amount to a nullity.
“The federal high court is one court and the Judges are the
same. It is within the administrative powers of the chief judge to re-assign
cases and any judge has the jurisdiction to hear to cases assigned to them by
the Chief Judge of the court.
“Our decision is merely to correct the error by the chief
judge. justice Abang was right to assume jurisdiction since he has the statutory
duty to obey the chief judge.
“Justice Abang has no powers to challenge or question the
chief judge. He has a duty to take a case assigned to him and deal with it. He
did what the law allowed him.
“In fact, if the ruling of Justice Abang did not touch on
the reasons given by justice Mohammed to rescue himself, this appeal would have
no life.
“Abang has shown commendable diligence in the trial. But
since Justice Abang went to determine the propriety of Justice Mohammed’s
recusal from the case, the appeal has live issues.”
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