N6.2bn Fraud: Jang floors EFCC as court dismisses 17 count charges against ex-governor

By Kingsley Chukwuka

Plateau State High Court sitting in Jos the Plateau state capital on Friday September 2, 2022 discharged and acquitted former governor of Plateau State Sen. Jonah Jang and cashier in the office of the secretary to the Plateau state Government Mr. Yusuf Pam who was standing trial of embezzling the sum of N6.3bn.

The former governor ruled Plateau State from 2007 to 2015.

The duo are being prosecuted before Justice C. L. Dabup of Plateau State High Court by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission EFCC for embezzling. The money was meant for small and medium scale enterprises and SUBEB funds running into billions .

While delivering her judgment, the presiding judge Justice Dabup said the EFCC has  failed to proof the allegation of misappropriation, diversion of public funds entrusted to the former Governor Sen. Jonah Jang.

The court also quashed all the 17 count charges labeled against the former Governor and the government cashier adding that the case instituted against them lacked merit and hereby discharged and acquitted the two accused.

Our correspondent recalls that Sen. Jang and Pam have been standing trials since 2018 for alleged criminal breach of trust and misappropriation of funds during his tenure as governor of the state.

Justice Dabup said the EFCC couldn’t prove the burden or established beyond reasonable doubt allegations of 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10&17 labeled against the former Governor and the cashier stressing that the court can’t secure any conviction brought by the prosecution under section 135 subsection 1&2 of 2011 which is inline with the 1999 constitution as amended .

Beside EFCC presented fourteenth witness (PW14), a Chief Superintendent of the Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offence commission (ICPC), Taiwo Oloronyomi, who testified against the defendants.

The crux of the matter is pertaining the withdrawal of monies through cheques approved by the Permanent Secretary, Office of the Secretary to the State government, which was taken to the first defendant (Jang) ,the court said it didn’t find substantive proof of evidence showing that the accused personally siphoned or divert such monies to his account .

Meanwhile counsels to Jang , Mike Ozekhome (SAN) and S. Olewale applauded the court for doing justice to the case saying it is Vic ory for Democracy.

Similarly, the former governor Jonah Jang in his reaction commended the  judiciary for standing firm on the side of truth and justice.

According to him, “the judicial journey of the past 4 years is not something to wish even the greatest of your enemies stressing that it was not only distracting but robbed him  of the time and attention to pursue personal goals”.

Jang said he had planned on retiring to his home place in Du but unfortunately, had to go out of his way to keep sourcing funds to pay his lawyers to secure representation in court, adding that genuine as those efforts are, freedom is better.