Iyabo Obasanjo Reappears, Remanded in Police Custody

Hi Omolade.

Good write up,i give a thumb up

Keep it up.


It is often said that evil that men do will not only live after them

but with them also.We r expecting the baba too to face trials


It serve her right.Obasanjo Bello should have been imprisoned at the Maitama Police Station instead of bn

accomodated in the DPO office.I think the DPO too did not respect court order.The court ordered remanded in prison.



 



thor=omolade link=topic=1673.msg74264#msg74264 date=1211320315]
After spending several weeks in hiding, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Health, Senator Iyabo Obasanjo-Bello, yesterday appeared before the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court over allegations of graft.
This is coming as the Senate yesterday said that it would not abandon her.
She was alleged to have collected N10 million from the Ministry of Health to fund the committee’s capacity-building seminar in Ghana from March 16 to 20.
The N10 million was said to be part of the unspent N300 million 2007 budget of the Health Ministry, which was shared by top officials of the Ministry as Christmas gifts.
Obasanjo-Bello has been evading arrest by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) officials since the matter was charged to court.
She was charged along with 10 other top officials of the Ministry, including two former Ministers - Professor Adenike Grange and Mr. Gabriel Aduku - for sharing the proceeds of corruption.
In an attempt to avoid journalists at the court premises yesterday, she was smuggled out of the court through the judge’s chambers and taken by riot policemen to a waiting white 18-seater Toyota bus with registration number Abuja AU 329 YAB, which sped off the vicinity around 12.17 pm.
Obasanjo-Bello had arrived the court at 8.47am in a Land Cruiser Toyota Sports Utility Vehicle (SUV) with registration number MY 456 AAA.
The trial judge, Justice Garba, asked her to return to court tomorrow to properly take her plea, but her lawyer, Bankole Akomolafe, insisted that if the threat by the EFCC to arrest the accused was considered and the fact that she voluntarily appeared in court, it would be better for her to take the plea immediately.
Bankole argued that it was not the first time Obasanjo-Bello appeared in court as she had always done so through her lawyer.
The charge was read out to her and she pleaded not guilty.
The accused, whose offence was contained in counts 55 and 56 of the charge, was alleged to have collected N10 million from the Ministry of Health knowing that the money was stolen from the unspent budget from the Ministry.
Moving the application for her bail, Akomolafe pointed out  that the accused was a commissioner for health in Ogun State and a senator of the federal republic.
He argued that having reported to court on her volition, she had demonstrated responsibility and would not jump bail, urging the court to admit her to bail on liberal terms.
Opposing the bail application, EFCC lawyer, James Binang, said because of the ugly antecedent of the case, there are some facts the complainant wants to place before the court through affidavit.
He urged the court to deny the accused bail, as she is facing a joint trial involving other accused persons who were ordered to present formal application before they enjoyed the discretion of the court.
He said Grange, despite her office, obeyed the court order by filing formal application, which was responded to by the prosecutor.
He said he wished the same gestures were extended to the applicant in the instant case even as he cited sections 341 and 342 of the Criminal Procedure Code and the case of Ahmed Elebute, who he said was a senator and made himself available to court.
Binang urged the court to discountenance the application and treat Obasanjo-Bello the same way the other accused were treated, as “a sauce for the goose is a sauce for the gander”.
But just before the judge could say anything on the application, Obasanjo-Bello’s lawyer, Akomolafe, expressed fear about sending his client to the EFCC custody.
He said the anti-graft body had consistently harassed the accused and it would be fair if she was remanded in police custody pending the ruling on the application for bail.
Justice Garba denied the bail and adjourned ruling till tomorrow while fixing hearing in the substantive matter for 5th of June 2008.
He, however, ordered that the accused be remanded in Maitama police station, a distance of less than two kilometres from the court.
When Obasanjo-Bello arrived at the Maitama Police Station on Nile Street at about 3pm, she was detained in a private room upstairs near the office of the DPO, Alhaji MD Shehu.
Security at the police station was immediately tightened while the main gate was locked.
It was not clear whether she was allowed to receive visitors, but several vehicles with tinted glasses were parked within the vicinity of the police station.
Sources however said she broke down emotionally when she was brought in and had refused to eat.
Speaking with Senate correspondents, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Media and Information, Senator Ayogu Eze, said: “I am aware that she has appeared in court. We commend her decision to honour the invitation by the court.
“Senate expected no less. There was nothing to compel her before to appear before the court. The law will take its course because we expect no less.
“As a law abiding citizen, she has decided to answer the court summons. She is one of us and we will stand by her throughout her trial.”
Obasanjo-Bello had not been seen in public since April 8, 2008 when the EFCC told the Abuja High Court that she was “at large.”
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Posted: at 22-05-2008 12:35 PM (15 years ago) | Newbie

runs in the blood.cant blame her,she's provin she isnt a bastard.

Posted: at 8-06-2008 09:34 PM (15 years ago) | Gistmaniac

Baba iyabo

Posted: at 19-08-2015 10:09 PM (8 years ago) | Hero