MAINA: Court summons Falana, Magu, others after witness named them in corruption trial

After a witness in the on-going corruption trial of te Pension Reform Task force former boss Abdulrasheed Maina named them, Attorney-General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami (SAN), a former Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Ibrahim Magu, and human rights lawyer, Lagos lawyer Femi Falana (SAN) are to appear before an Abuja high court soon.

“You are commanded in the name of the President and commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to attend before this court… to give evidence on behalf of the 1st defendant (Maina),” a summons from the court read.

Falana has already received it, and he said he was ready to appear before the court in order to address allegations that he allegedly bought one of the properties recovered by Maina.

“I am delighted that the learned trial judge has provided me with the golden opportunity to shed light on the needless controversy,” he told the Punch.

Falana, a rights lawyer and critic of the administration, has been associated with Magu many times in some  corruption allegation in court nd before special panels.

A witness last week said he bought on the cheap a multi-billion naira property forfeited to  to the EFCC—when Maina investigated the rot in the pension scheme in 2010.

The Lagos lawyer had earlier denied the allegation, saying it was a property AMCON recovered from debtors, and the deal didn’t jell out. Falanaa denied having anything to do with Magu or Maina.

Miana was on the run in UAE and other countries until 2019 when he walked in, and was late arrested.

He was appointed in 2010 by former President Goodluck Jonathan to head the pension reform task force.

But in 2012, the suspect was accused of pulling off a big fraud scheme in the region of N100bn, and in 2013, he was dismissed by the Federal Civil Service Commission following a recommendation by the Office of the Head of Service.

After using the court to buy time as the Senate issued a warrant of arrest on him for failing to appear before the house, Maina finally skipped out.

He jumped bail twice, before he was finally grounded in Kuje Prison.

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His accomplice, Stephen Oronsaye, an ex-Head of Service, has been facing trial before an Abuja high court snce 2015.

Others summoned include: the Director of Compliance, Central Bank of Nigeria; an official of the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies, Ibrahim Kaigama; a representative of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission, G.T Idris; and a former Kano State Commissioner of Police, Mohammed Wakil.

Also summoned are: Hassan Salihu of the ICPC and M. Mustapha of Zenith Bank Plc.