The trial of former Kogi State governor, Yahaya Bello, over alleged N110.4 billion fraud continued on Wednesday as the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) presented additional bank records before the Federal Capital Territory High Court, Maitama, Abuja.
Gatekeepers News reports that Bello is standing trial alongside Umar Oricha and Abdulsalami Hudu on 16 counts bordering on criminal breach of trust and money laundering. The case is being heard by Justice MaryAnne Anenih.
At the resumed proceedings, the prosecution, led by Kemi Pinheiro (SAN), continued the cross-examination of the sixth prosecution witness (PW6), Mashelia Bata, a compliance officer with Zenith Bank.
Under cross-examination by defence counsel to the first and second defendants, Joseph Daudu (SAN), the witness was questioned on entries contained in Exhibit S1, a statement of account earlier tendered in evidence.
PW6 explained that the “description” column in the statement reflected transaction details, pointing to entries such as a N10 million cheque issued to Hudu on January 20, 2016, and another cheque payment of N2,454,400 to Halims Hotels and Tours, Lokoja. He, however, said he did not know the purposes for which the funds were utilised.
Daudu also drew the witness’ attention to Exhibit X1, identified as the account opening documents of a company account domiciled at Zenith Bank’s Lokoja branch. PW6 testified on several inflows and outflows recorded in December 2016, including a N74.37 million credit from the Kogi State Internal Revenue Service and a N10 million cheque issued to Mohammed Jami’u Sallau.
The prosecution further called PW8, Gabriel Ocha, a compliance officer with First City Monument Bank (FCMB), who tendered documents relating to Kunfayakun Global Limited covering transactions between 2018 and 2024. He testified on entries including a N30 million debit to the American International School, as well as several N10 million web transfers and NIBSS inflows dated November 1, 2021.
Another witness, PW9, A.D. Ojoma, a compliance officer with Sterling Bank, tendered the statement of account of Bespoke Business Solutions Limited. He identified several large credit entries, including payments running into hundreds of millions of naira from the Kogi State Internal Revenue Service in 2019.
Justice Anenih adjourned the matter until Friday, January 16, 2026, for continuation of trial.
Bakare calls for urgent reforms in justice sector
Meanwhile, the Serving Overseer of Citadel Global Community Church, Pastor Tunde Bakare, has called for urgent personal and institutional reforms to tackle what he described as “entrenched corruption” within Nigeria’s justice system.
Bakare made the call while delivering the keynote address at the 22nd Chief Gani Fawehinmi Annual Lecture (Fawehinmism), organised by the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Ikeja Branch, with the theme ‘Integrity Deficiency in the Justice Sector: Whither the Legal Profession’.
He warned that the persistent integrity deficit among judges and lawyers had turned the justice system into a “haven of corruption,” cautioning that without deliberate ethical reforms, Nigeria risks remaining in perpetual bondage.
The lawyer-turned-pastor lamented that many judges now view the bench as a “work-chop,” citing political interference in judicial appointments and conflicting court judgments as major challenges confronting the sector.
According to him, lawyers and judges must return to the principles of “ethical lawyering,” anchored on contentment, patience and diligence, stressing that members of the legal profession are the primary custodians and defenders of the rule of law.
Bakare argued that meaningful reform must begin with personal transformation, starting from the training of aspiring lawyers. He said ethical values should be deliberately instilled in universities and the Nigerian Law School, with greater emphasis on professional responsibility and integrity.
Kogi Poly rector advocates capital punishment for corruption
Also speaking on the anti-corruption discourse, the Rector of Kogi State Polytechnic, Lokoja, Salisu Usman, has advocated that corruption should be treated as a capital offence in Nigeria’s legal system.
Usman, a professor of Political Science, made the call while delivering the 37th Inaugural Lecture of the Federal University, Lokoja, at its Adankolo Campus. His lecture was titled ‘Corruption Versus Corruption: Unpacking the Wuru-Wuru of the Anti-Corruption Crusade in Nigeria’.
He said stiff punishment would discourage corrupt practices which, according to him, have caused “havoc, devastating effects and setbacks” to Nigeria’s development.
According to Usman, the Federal Government must urgently confront corruption, which he said has battered the country’s global image. He argued that scarcity of basic living essentials, including clean water, creates fertile ground for corruption, noting that amenities such as boreholes are often turned into so-called “democracy dividends” for political leverage.
In his welcome address, the Vice Chancellor of the Federal University, Lokoja, Prof Olayemi Akinwumi, said the inaugural lecture remains a core academic tradition that allows professors to share the outcomes of years of teaching, research and reflection.
