13th May, 2011
Four days after securing their bail before a Federal High Court where they are being tried, suspects behind the massive scam perpetrated at the Budget office of the office of Head of Service of the Federation, Dr. Sani Teidi Shuaibu and Mrs. Phina Ukamaka Chidi, are still inside the high walls of the Federal Maximum Prison in Kuje Area Council of the Federal Capital city.
Both suspected scammers and those they used as conduits to cream away a princely sum of N4.56 billion from the Pension funds, were granted bail by Justice Adamu Bello last Monday.
The term of the bail was for the sum of N10 million with one surety each in like sum. The surety, the court insisted, must be property owner who will have to deposit title to the property with the court for verification and authentication by the court Registrar.
The property, according to the court, must not worth less than N10 million.
Investigations at the court on Friday indicate that their release orders have not been signed by the judge as they are yet to fulfill the bail conditions.
As at the time of filling this report, only one of the suspects standing trial alongside the duo as the 9th accused person had fulfilled the conditions of his bail with his release order for the prison authorities awaiting the judge’s endorsement.
P.M.NEWS findings reveal that Dr. Shuaibu and Mrs. Chidi were having difficulty securing a willing surety who will deposit title documents with the court to guarantee that they will be around to face their trial if released from prison.
Reports from the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, indicate that some people may no likely come forward easily to stand sureties for the accused persons owing to the nature of their alleged crimes which had contributed significantly to the plight of pensioners across the nation.
Pensioners are often times directed to go through one rigorous procedure or the other before they can receive their entitlements and so end up dying in the process.
Dr. Shuaibu and Mrs. Chidi were alleged to have defrauded the pension fund through the use of eight other accused persons and 24 companies including phoney ones.
The 134-count charge slammed upon them by the anti-graft agency, bordered on diversion of pension funds, abuse of office, using ghost pensioners to pay millions of naira into their accounts on monthly basis and diversion of the funds through awards of fictitious contracts to companies which they manage.
By Nnamdi Felix / Abuja