False Asset Declaration: Supreme Court Dismisses FG’s Appeal Against Orubebe.
In a significant legal development, the Supreme Court has, on Friday, dismissed the Federal Government’s appeal to overturn the Court of Appeal’s decision, clearing the former Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Mr. Godsday Orubebe, of false asset declaration charges.
Back in 2015, Orubebe faced charges for allegedly failing to disclose his properties in the asset declaration forms submitted to the Code of Conduct Bureau during his tenure as a minister from 2007 to 2011.
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The charges were based on the violation of Section 15 of the Code of Conduct Bureau and Tribunal Act Cap 15 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004, punishable under Section 23(2) of the same Act. Orubebe, however, pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Explaining his position, Orubebe stated that he did not declare a particular plot of land as his asset in 2011 because he had sold it to his landlord before making the last asset declaration while leaving office.
Despite his plea, the Code of Conduct Tribunal ordered the forfeiture of the property, which the former minister failed to declare, to the Federal Government. In response, Orubebe challenged the tribunal’s judgment at the Court of Appeal.
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The Court of Appeal, in its judgment, overturned the tribunal’s decision, which had earlier convicted Orubebe and confiscated the undeclared asset. Unsatisfied with this outcome, the Federal Government proceeded to file an appeal at the Supreme Court.
However, in delivering the lead judgment, Justice Emmanuel Agim deemed the appeal incompetent. He stated, “The appeal is incompetent. Prior leave of the court was not obtained to file a mixed fact of law. It is hereby struck out.”
This decision marks a significant development in the legal proceedings surrounding Orubebe’s case, adding another layer of complexity to the ongoing narrative.
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