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ASSETS DECLARATION: Court dismisses charges against Ekweremadu, as govt lawyer disappears with case file
The case of non-declaration of assets instituted against Senator Ike Ekweremadu has been struck out by a Federal High Court in Abuja.
Ekweremadu was the former deputy president of the Nigerian Senate.
The case against him was struck out on Monday by the court presided over by Justice Binta Nyako.
The defunct Special Presidential Investigation Panel for the Recovery of Public Property, led by Okoi Obono-Obla instituted the case against Ekweremadu in 2018.
The panel had accused the former deputy president of the Nigerian Senate of refusing to declare his assets without reasonable excuse.
However, after Obono-Obla was disgraced out of office and President Muhammadu Buhari dissolved the panel in 2019, the office of the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) took over the matter.
When the matter came up in the court on Monday, the prosecuting counsel from the AGF office, Mr Pius Akutah, told the court that former counsel in charge of the matter had disappeared with the case file.
Akutah prayed the judge to order the former counsel to release the file to the AGF office.
READ ALSO: Magu didn’t say corruption caused coronavirus, media trying to twist his words —EFCC
But the judge refused to oblige the request. She instead struck out the case.
Earlier, counsel to Ekweremadu, Chief Adegboyega Awomolo (SAN), had prayed the judge to sack the case.
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