19th November, 2015
Jethro Ibileke/Benin
A High Court in Benin, capital of Edo state, presided over by Justice Esther Edigin, on Thursday struck out the case of alleged misappropriation of the sum of N113million belonging to the State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB), brought before it by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), against the former Secretary to the State Government, Dr. Simon Imuekheme and three others.
The three officials of SUBEB who were given clean bill of health by the court includes the former chairman of the SUBEB in the state, Joseph Emoabino, David Eson Igbinoba and Aghator Gaskin Efe.
The anti graft agency had in March 2014, dragged the officials before the High Court, accusing them of misappropriating N113 million belonging to SUBEB.
Justice Edigin while delivering the judgment, said that the prosecutor failed in his case when he charged the four accused persons under section 22, (5) of the ICPC Act 2000 which is no longer in existence, adding that the law in operation today is the 2003 ICPC Act which was authenticated by the National Assembly in 2007.
While dismissing the eight court charge against the accused persons, Justice Edigin cited several Supreme Court rulings which puncture the argument of the prosecution.
“From the pronouncements by the Supreme Court, I am convinced without any outa of doubt that corrupt practices and other related acts 2003 is in enforce of law. The corrupt practices and other related offences Act 2000 under which these persons were arraigned had seized to be part of the body of Nigeria law haven been repealed by section 55 of the Corrupt Practices and other Related offences Act 2003. So at the time the accused persons were said to have committed that offence stated in the charge, the 2000 Act was no longer in existence.
“Flowing from the above laws, I found the preliminary objections of all the four accused persons have merits and the 8 count charge on each and every one of them is hereby struck out,” Edigin said, adding that it would be travesty of justice to convict one under a none existence law.
Counsel to Imuekheme, O. A. Omonuwa (SAN), described the judgment as “an extraordinary exhibition of a mastery of law.”
“This is the type of judgment that Lord Denning was delivering in the UK. For many years now you see that the Judges in this country has been castigated, but we have very many sound Judges in this country. All the Judges needs is the enabling environment, support. What we did was to provide all the laws to the court and you can see that the court took time to go through all of these things and gave a fantastic judgment.
“That judgment is unassailable. This Judge has given her very best and anybody that reads that judgment in any part of the world cannot fault it.”
Reacting to the judgment, Dr. Imuekheme expressed gratitude to God for the judgment which pronounced him innocent of the charges preferred against him.
“I very happy. Am grateful to God that vindicated me today. I served this state meritoriously for 34 years. I am grateful to God and God will continue to deliver me from all the plans of the enemies,” he said.
It would be recalled that he judgment was delayed due to the prolonged strike action by the state judicial workers.