Walter Onnoghen, the suspended Chief Justice of Nigeria, submitted his asset declaration form to the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) in 2010, the first defence witness told the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT).
Lawal Olanrewaju Busari, a driver to Justice Onnoghen, narrated how the country’s suspended top jurist obtained and submitted his form at the ongoing trial of false declaration of assets preferred against him (Onnoghen) by the Federal Government.
Read Also: CCB Director, Two Others To Serve As Defence Witnesses In Onnoghen’s Case
Led in providing evidence by Adegboyega Awomolo, the lead defence counsel, Busari, who claimed to have been serving as Onnoghen’s driver since 1999, he drove the suspended CJN to the CCB office on July 28, 2010, to obtain the assets declaration form.
The defence witness said Justice Onnoghen prevailed on him (Busari) to pick up his own form.
He said: “On getting there (CCB office), he (Onnoghen), collected assets declaration form.
“After he was given the form, he said, ‘Alhaji are you not going to collect your own?’ He said, ‘collect it’.
“We got back to the office, I filled my own.
Busari also informed the tribunal that he paid the sum of N200 for the oath-taking aspect of the declaration form at the treasury office of the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory in Abuja on November 3, 2010.
He added that he submitted Justice Onnoghen’s declaration form alongside his at the CCT office in Abuja on November 4, 2010.
The defence witness said: “On November 3, 2010, My lordship gave me N200 to pay into the treasury account for the assets declaration form.
“I collected the receipt from the cashier and I gave the receipt back to my lord.
“On November 4, 2010, we – myself and his lordship – submitted our forms back to CCB, Asokoro Office. I don’t know the name of the person who collected the forms from me, but I know she was a woman, light in complexion.
“She received my form and that of my lordship. I was not given any acknowledgement copy that day. She asked me to come back to collect the acknowledgement copy.
“When I went back they demanded my ID card, which I showed them. I met a man who went inside and brought out a bulk of acknowledgement slips. They searched for my name and they found many bearing Lawal but were not mine.
“Later they found my own bearing Olanrewaju Lawal which was mine. He then gave it to me.”
Awomolo attempted to submit the receipt as an exhibit but Aliyu Umar, the lead prosecuting counsel, objected to the document’s submission.
Danladi Umar, the CCT Chairman, overruled the prosecution and admitted the receipt as an exhibit.
Discussion about this post