The Federal High Court sitting in Abuja will, this morning, decide who is the actual owner of the $15 million alleged to have been offered by a former governor of Delta State, James Ibori, to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in 2007.
There has been a legal tussle between the Federal Government and the Delta State government as to the ownership of the said money.
The money was alleged to have been offered former chairman of EFCC, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, as bribe, in order to compromise the investigation of alleged fraud against him (Ibori).
The judgment would also put to rest, the unending claims and counter-claim being laid on the money by several interest groups and individuals.
At the adoption of final brief of argument in the case, the Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice in Delta State, Chief Charles Ajuyah, had told the court that the money belonged to Delta State based on the strength of affidavit evidence by the current chairman of the anti-graft agency, Ibrahim Lamorde, that it was offered as bribe to the commission by Ibori.
He further informed the court that the affidavit evidence by Lamorde had proved beyond doubt that the money belonged to Delta, having been offered while Ibori was in office.
The counsel also drew the attention of the court to another statement by Dr Andy Uba, now a senator, that his residence in Asokoro, Abuja, was used by the former governor to channel the money to EFCC, which was later kept in the custody of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
Besides, Ajuyah contended that no individual, group or organization could lay claim to ownership of the money outside Delta State, because all documents in possession of EFCC and in the court indicated that the money came through Ibori.
He then urged the court to order the return of the money to the state as bona fide owner.
In its objection, the Federal Government insisted that the money be forfeited to it because of the failure of Delta State to prove beyond doubt that the money came from the treasury of the state.
Counsel for the Federal Government, Rotimi Jacobs, cited section 17 of the Advance Fee Fraud, which, he claimed, empowered the court to order forfeiture of such abandoned money to the Federal Government with or without conviction of anybody.
He submitted that the affidavit of EFCC officials, which linked the money to Ibori and which Delta was using as a weapon, was just a mere deposition that could not help the case of the state.
He further argued that it was too late for Delta to lay any claim to the money, having earlier sued the Federal Government, EFCC and deposed in an affidavit that no money was lost or removed from any of its accounts under Ibori and that he (Ibori) was just being harassed and intimidated by EFCC then.
He then asked the court to order that the money be paid into the Consolidated Revenue Federation Account for Nigerians and to dismiss the Delta case for being baseless.
After listening to arguments of both parties, the presiding judge, Justice Gabriel Kolawole, fixed today for judgment.
