Agboro Omowera, a witness of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), on Monday, said that the embattled former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele, used his position to award contracts to his wife, Margret, and brother-in-law.
Emefiele allegedly approved the payment of the total sum of N97.9m in favour of Architekon Nigeria Ltd, where both are directors.
According to the anti-graft agency, the N97.9m contract was for the supply of office furniture to the CBN.
The investigator said 10 persons acted on the documents with which the contracts were awarded.
He claimed that the buck stopped at Emefiele’s table, being the CBN governor at the time.
He said, “Ten persons acted on the documents awarding these contracts.
“There are 10 minutes and one approval, so one person takes the responsibility.
“He (Emefiele) is the head of the CBN and the buck stops at his table.”
When the defendant’s counsel, Mathew Burkaa (SAN), asked the witness if Emefiele conferred a corrupt advantage on himself, he said, “No. Why I said no is because we limited our investigation to his relatives and associates and not him.”
Earlier, Omowera, while being led in evidence by the counsel for the EFCC, Rotimi Oyedepo (SAN), told the court that the findings of his investigations showed that Emefiele conferred a corrupt and unfair advantage on Architekon Nigeria Limited and April 1616.
According to him, Emefiele’s wife, Margaret Omoyile, is listed as a director of Archtekon Nigeria Limited.
He added that Emefiele’s wife used her maiden name to register the company.
According to him, the company was awarded several contracts to supply over 45 Toyota Hilux vehicles, with a price range of N854,700,000 to N99,900,000.
Omowera said, “In the second company, April 1616 Investment Limited, we also discovered that one of the directors of that company by name, Sahadatu Ramalan Yaro, was a director of April 1616 Investment.
“We discovered that the company was incorporated a few days after her employment with the CBN and she was posted to CBN Lagos office.
“In 2018, the company started to enjoy the patronage of the CBN in the procurement of particular vehicles, Toyota branded motors.”
The trial judge, Hamza Muazu, subsequently adjourned the matter till April 25 to continue the trial.
