The Federal High Court, Abuja, has fixed Dec. 8 for committal proceeding against Rep. Sani Dan-Galadima over his inability to produce Faisal, son of Abdulrasheed Maina, in court to stand his trial.
Justice Okon Abang after taking arguments from counsel to parties in the case on Friday, adjourned the matter at the instance of Dan-Galadima, who stood surety for Faisal.
Mohammed Sheriff, counsel to the lawmaker, who represents Kaura-Namoda Federal Constituency of Zamfara, said in obedience to court order of Nov. 25, the surety had filed an affidavit to show cause why he should not forfeit the N60 million bail bond.
“We have filed an affidavit to show cause dated Nov. 30 and filed same day,” he said. Sheriff, however, said that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC)’s lawyer, Mohammed Abubakar, in response, served him with two processes today (Friday) in opposition to their request.
“We were served with two processes today (Friday); one exactly at 9 a.m. and the other at 9:55 a.m.,” he said. The lawyer prayed the court for an adjournment to enable him go through the response and file his reply in the interest of justice.
Responding, the anti-graft lawyer, Abubakar, admitted that two counter affidavits were filed and served on Friday morning. “The first one is dated and filed on Dec. 3 and second one is dated and filed on Dec. 4,” he said.
Abubakar said he had no objection to Sheriff’s application for an adjournment to allow him go through the processes. When the judge asked what the parties’ applications were all about, the EFCC lawyer informed the court that Dan-Galadima in his affidavit, prayed the court to give him time to sell the property with which he used for the suretyship to enable him generate the N60 million bail bond.
He said the lawmaker also claimed that he had always been in court for Faisal’s proceedings even when he jumped bail.
However, Abubakar said in their response, they urged the court to make an order for immediate forfeiture of the said property and that contrary to the legislator’s claim, there were days he was not in court.
Justice Abang adjourned the matter at the instance of Dan-Galadima until Dec. 8 for committal proceeding against the lawmaker. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Faisal is the son of Abdulrasheed Maina, former Chairman, the defunct Pension Reformed Task Team (PRTT), who is facing separate charges of money laundering involving about N2 billion before the same court.
Faisal was arraigned, on Oct. 25, by the EFCC on a three-count charge bordering on money laundering. The court had, on Nov. 26, 2019, admitted Faisal to bail in the sum of N60 million with a surety in the like sum who must be a member of the House of Representatives.
The court held that the surety must have a landed property anywhere within the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).The court, which also ruled that the lawmaker, who would undertake to always attend Faisal’s trial at each adjourned date, held that “where the surety fails without cogent reason, the court is at liberty to revoke the bail.”
However, Justice Abang had, on Nov. 25, summoned the legislator for disregarding court order that granted bail to Faisal Maina.
The judge had revoked the bail granted Faisal, ordered his arrest and directed that his trial would proceed in absentia, having been said to have jumped bail.(NAN)
