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Emefiele naira redesign trial enters final stretch as court allocates 10 hearing days
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EFCC witness confirms Buhari’s approval, insists redesign was to be done locally
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Court urges counsels to keep faith with dates to ensure speedy conclusion
An FCT High Court sitting in Abuja has fixed 10 fresh hearing days to conclude the corruption trial instituted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) against former Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor, Godwin Emefiele, over the controversial naira redesign policy.
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Justice Maryann Anenih set the dates following a consensus reached by EFCC’s lead counsel, Rotimi Oyedepo (SAN), and Emefiele’s lawyer, Olalekan Ojo (SAN), as part of efforts to fast-track the case which commenced in 2024.
The trial is scheduled to run on February 3 and 10; April 1 and 2; May 11, 12, 13 and 14; as well as June 9 and 10, during which proceedings are expected to be concluded.
Justice Anenih urged both parties to strictly adhere to the timetable, assuring that the court would make adequate provisions to accommodate the matter within the fixed dates.
At the resumed hearing, an EFCC witness, Emere Chinedu, an operative of the commission, told the court that the Presidency under former President Muhammadu Buhari approved the naira redesign initiative.
According to the witness, the approval was conveyed to the EFCC in writing but came with a condition. “The State House gave approval for the naira redesign, but with a proviso that it must be done locally,” he said.
Chinedu, who headed the Inter-Agency Probe Panel that investigated Emefiele, disclosed that the former CBN governor made six extra-judicial statements between October 26 and November 2, 2023, while responding to allegations levelled against him.
Under cross-examination, the EFCC witness declined to confirm claims credited to Emefiele that a former EFCC Chairman, Abdulrasheed Bawa, first suggested the naira redesign to President Buhari. He maintained that the anti-graft agency lacked the power to initiate changes to the national currency, noting that any such action could only be advisory.
Chinedu also admitted that video clips showing Nigerians lamenting hardship during the naira redesign were downloaded from the internet by the probe panel and tendered as exhibits, adding that the panel did not interview the broadcasters or individuals featured in the footage.
Further cross-examination of the witness has been adjourned to February 3, as the court moves closer to the conclusion of one of Nigeria’s most closely watched financial crime trials.