16th February, 2024
By Paul Dada
The Supreme Court has declared the appeal of the Federal Government against the reversal of the conviction of former Niger-Delta Minister, Godsday Orubebe on allegation of breach of Code of Conduct for Pubic Officers, incompetent.
In a judgment on Friday, a five-member panel of the apex court dismissed the appeal by the Federal Government.
Reading a lead judgement prepared by Justice Mohammed Lawal Garba, but read on Friday
The Supreme Court has dismissed the appeal filed by the Federal Government against the reversal of the conviction of former Niger-Delta Minister, Godsday Orubebe on allegation of breach of Code of Conduct for Pubic Officers.
In a judgment on Friday, a five-member panel of the apex court held that the appeal by the Fed Govt was incompetent.
In the lead judgment prepared by Justice Mohammed Lawal Garba, but read by Justice Emmanuel Agim, the apex court held that the appellant did not obtain leave of the court before filing its appeal. Based on this, the Supreme Court deemed it as incompetent.
The Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) had on October 4, 2016 convicted of breach of Code of Conduct for public officers. He had been alleged in a single-count charge that he failed to declare a property at Plot 2057, Asokoro District, Abuja, in any of the asset declaration forms which he submitted to the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) while serving as a minister.
But Orubebe denied the allegation as he said he had sold the property before becoming a minister.