Emefiele’s case as an example: When arrested, the way you appear in court the first time is important

This picture of Godwin Emefiele being led into the courthouse for his arraignment was pity pathetic. It shows that he is a new-comer to the business. How you will appear in the media when you are taken to court is very important. I learnt it the hard way and I can see that Emefiele was not taught by anyone with experience. Apparently, his lawyers did not know that the appearance of the defendant the day he is taken to court is everything. One important exception I would make here is this: If you are taken to the court from police, DSS, EFCC custody, you may not have the opportunity to look your best. But at least try to look the best you could under any circumstance. Here, Emefiele looks like a blind man being led by a social worker into a building. He should have looked confident, beaming with smiles, as a man who once ran the most important bank in Nigeria.

Now, let me explain the importance of appearing good even when you are being taken to the point of your execution. In Nigeria, if you are a truly an important person, it is 70% likely that you will be arrested and charged to court as a defendant. This is because Nigeria has a high tendency to use the criminal justice system to settle political scores. That practice went back to the colonial days. The trumped-up trial of King Jaja of Opobo was a stark example. Also, the trial and conviction of Awolowo and the trial and conviction of Obasanjo were other clear examples of settling political scores with criminal indictment and trials.

Of course, I am aware that there are really people who committed serious crimes and truly deserve to be charged to court and tried. Emefiele is probably one of them and cannot compared to Jaja or Awolowo. But my point, which was misunderstood, is that it is not the crime you committed that caused you to be charged and tried in Nigeria. To be charged and tried in Nigeria, there has to be the plus factor. That plus factor is far more important such that sometimes, the plus factor alone can cause you to be charged and tried without committing a crime. That is what happens, when a totally innocent person is charged and tried.

From the perspective of a student of law, a teacher of law, a legal practitioner, and a victim of abusive prosecution, I have gained remarkable experience about how the Nigerian criminal justice system serves as an instrument of political control or instrument of competition for political power in Nigeria. I have observed the system sufficiently well to speak with a compelling voice on the matter. During the time I was detained in Kuje Prison, I had the rare opportunity of interviewing 600 prison inmates. It was shocking what I discovered about the Nigerian system of justice through these interviews. The country will be shocked to hear what happens in reality, as opposed to what is written in the books. My research in the prison was so important to me such that I had to stay up several nights working so hectically in order to accomplish more before I was to be released from prison. Yes, as funny as it sounds now, I felt bad when I realized that I was leaving the prison before I could finish my research. My regret for being in prison was just that I could not be allowed to stroll out of the gate to visit friends in town and return in the evening.

My research, whenever it is released, will yield a treasure trove of information on how the Nigerian criminals justice system operates – the roles of various agencies such as the lawyers, the police, the EFCC, the DSS, the NDLEA, the courts (judges and other court staff), the correctional service. I was in the prison that had most of the Boko Haram defendants, the Shiite members, etc. When you interview 600 inmates, you will know a lot about how each person ended up in prison – what he did, or what he was accused of doing, how he was arrested, which police officers investigated him whether he was tortured or not, how he was charged, which court is trying his case. As he goes to court each time from prison, you keep a tab on what happens in the court each day, what the judge said, what his lawyer said. Through this process, you will learn what various judges do and how they work. So, I am actually a super expert on the administration of criminal justice in Nigeria. I don’t know any other single researcher who has interviewed and tracked 600 prisoners. So, take it from me when I tell you how a person being charged to court should prepare and appear in court for pictures. Continue Reading…

My journey into this course started accidentally. In 2011, I was framed-up by Mrs. Farida Waziri, then the head of the EFCC, and Ambassador Ade Adefunye, then Nigerian Ambassador to Washington. The Ambassador and some other Nigerian officials embezzled 27 million dollars of Nigerian money in Washington. When he was asked to account for the money, he claimed that the lawyer (my law firm) was yet to return $1.5 million. On a visit to Nigeria to discuss the matter with the Attorney-General of Nigeria, I was held at the airport by the EFCC. Ambassador Adefuye and Mrs. Waziri had cooked up allegations against me and I was watch-listed by the DSS. I was abducted, detained and eventually handed over to the EFCC. Farida Waziri and her men tried to get me to agree to something that would have allowed the Ambassador and his team to escape. I refused. They detained me in EFCC cell for a whole month. They conspired with Justice Talba to detain me. I call it conspiracy because Justice Talba issued an order that falsely claimed that I appeared before him, when in fact I was never taken to his court. That judge never set his eyes on me. Yet, he signed an order that he saw me. (Justice Talba is now a Justice of the Court of Appeals in Nigeria).

After one month in detention, they were forced to take me to court. The day I went to court for the first time, I had the opportunity of dressing up in a suit. But I felt that the world should see how poorly I was treated. So, I decided to go to court in the same T-shirt and sweat pant I was wearing in EFCC cell. In other words, I chose not to dress up for the court. It did not occur to me that the then EFCC media man, a rougue, Femi Babafemi, had conspired with Omoyele Sowore to photograph me and ridicule me in the Sahara Reporters blog. So, instead of getting the sympathy of the world as I had expected, the image the people saw was the image of Emeka Ugwuonye that had been finally broken. The people did not see the defiance and the courage with which I resisted Farida Waziri the huge conspiracy she led against me. I learnt my lesson.

When I was detained in Kuje, somebody actually paid for me to be placed in handcuffs on one occasions when I was being taken to court. The warders did not put handcuffs on me throughout the journey from prison to court. They do not put handcuffs of certain inmates they respect. They respected me and were very nice to me. But that day, they were asked to put handcuffs on me. Their leader said to me when the prison vehicle arrived at the court premises: “Barrister, don’t be offended. We are going put handcuffs on you today. We don’t want to get into trouble. But somebody from the headquarters just called us and told us to put handcuffs on you when we get to the court”. I understood. Somebody had paid money so that I would caught on camera in handcuffs. The pictures were to be used in humiliating me in the social media. I smiled and told the warder not to worry that he should put the handcuffs on me. But the other warders present who knew what was happening decided to sabotage the source of the instruction that I be placed on handcuffs. They did place me on handcuff, but before I came down from the vehicle, they asked me if I could see anybody trying to photograph me. I saw David Aiyedegbon, the man I have been fighting with. He and his driver were positioned with their phones to photograph me. Apparently, he was the one that wanted me photographed in handcuffs. I informed the warders. They moved quickly and seized their phones. That way, I was handcuffed as they were instructed, but my enemies did not get the opportunity to photograph me in handcuffs. So, it is very important to understand that your enemies are happy to see you shabby and depressed as you arrive at the Court. For that reason, always look your best. You all remember that picture of Olisah Metuh in handcuffs while walking up the stairs of the courthouse? Somebody probably paid for that picture.

If you are ever going to be arraigned in court, dress well, look well, smile to the camera, be bold and defiant. Do not look the way Emefiele looks in this picture. Despite his problems today, he was a leader of important institution. He commanded billions. Yes, he probably stole money. But that is how they all are. Is there any of these men from DSS DG to the President and Governors who have a clean hand? That is the tragedy of Nigeria. None of the leaders is morally qualified to judge anybody. Did you remember Magu, the former EFCC Chairman? Did you remember the allegations they leveled against him when they sacked him? Was Magu ever convicted? No! This Emefiele that is being dragged; was he not supported by President Buhari all the way? He was Buhari’s best man. Emefiele gave APC/Buhari 500 billion naira for their 2019 campaign. That money was illegal and corrupt. In Nigeria, people committed the highest crime known to man, which is treason, and they became heads of state through that. Look at Bawa, the last EFCC Chairman. He was there moralizing and arresting people. But look at where he is today. So, don’t be carried away by emotions. Emefiele stole money and may God punish him for that. But do not be naïve enough to think that even those detaining him are clean. A different regime, a different gang, and these ones can also be in detention. If DSS is serious and truly caring about law and order, let them explain what happened to the BVAS machines and what prevented them from functioning during the elections. If I were the head of DSS and I want to do my country a favor, I would use the enormous power I have to make sure that INEC would not mess up the destiny of Nigerians.

If you are familiar with Nigerian history, you will be beyond shocking. I was reading the reactions of the people over the arrest of Emefiele. If you ask the average person what Emefiele did to hurt him, he will point at the botched Naira redesign. But that is not what Emeflele was arrested for. The fact is that Emefilele is believed to have stolen over a billion dollars of Nigerian money. But again, that was not why he was arrested. He was arrested because he didn’t share that money well. There are more people in government who stole more, but shared it better. They are the heroes of the day. Emefiele did not share his well. Otherwise, why can’t they just charge him to court for the offence and allow the law to take its course?

Some people who read my writings may think I am encouraging theft and bad deeds. Not at all. I am just being realistic. I don’t want to be deceived as most of you have been deceived. If you think that the objective of government is to do good by the people, then you are too naive. Continue Reading…