TheCable

Danladi Umar, chairman of the Code of Conduct of Tribunal (CCT), has queried the choice of Festus Keyamo, a Lagos-based lawyer, as counsel of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in the charge which the commission filed against him last week.

On behalf of the EFCC, Keymao filed a two-count corruption charge against Umar at a federal high court in Abuja on Friday.

Umar was accused of demanding a bribe of N10 million from one Rasheed Taiwo, a former customs official who was facing false assets declaration charges before the CCT.

The anti-graft agency had cleared the CCT chairman of the same allegation in 2016.

Speaking through Ibraheem Al-Hassan, his spokesman, Umar said Keyamo representing EFCC in the case raises moral concerns.

Al-Hassan said fresh allegations came to the fore after Senate President Bukola Saraki was acquitted by Umar in June 2017.

“Allegations were made and of course after it was made there were series of attempts to exonerate our boss. In fact, they have exonerated our boss twice now,” he said.

“Shortly after the case of Saraki, issues began. After the acquittal on the no case submission, we began to receive a lot of bashing from some online media organisations. They alleged that the chairman received money from Saraki in order to give him the judgement. We did not take it seriously; we just allowed it as it came.

“The next day we saw in the media that they will revisit the case after they had cleared him. We were all waiting to see what will happen until last Friday when they (EFCC) went to court through Festus Keyamo.

“Festus Keyamo is the legal representative of the man that the chairman allegedly collected money from. He is the one standing on his behalf before CCT chairman.

“We begin to get confused though maybe because we are not learned people but we felt that morally how can you be defending case here and prosecuting the person the that you are defending case before him. We felt morally that is not right.

“It is left for the system to prove you right or wrong. The procedure and the power that play that exists between Keyamo defence in our court and filing case against the chairman is causing us a lot of concern.”

When contacted for reaction, Keyamo said: “No comment.”