The lead counsel to the former governor, Abdulwahab Mohammed, made the undertaking before the court on Friday, May 10, following the court’s rejection of his request to suspend the trial.
According to Mohammed, former governor Yahaya Bello was not afraid to be arraigned, but he was concerned about his safety in the hands of the anti-graft agency in Abuja, Leadership reported.
The defence counsel further told the judge that the life of his client had been under consistent threats in the FCT, which was why he had to go underground.
Justice Nwite announced the agreement that the former governor would submit himself to a court trial in his remark that the EFCC is a law-enforcement agency and would not act against the constitution.
According to the court, Bello was not the first former governor to be invited by the EFCC and would not be the last.
The court also maintained that the charges against the former governor were still mere allegations and that the law presumed such an accused person innocent until proven guilty.
Justice Nwite urged the defence lawyer to prevail on the former governor to respect the law and order of the court as a law-abiding person.
Mohammed then thanked the judge for the counsel after the assurance that the EFCC would not do anything untoward and that Yahaya Bello would appear in court.
TimesNow.com.ng earlier reported that Yahaya Bello, the immediate past governor of Kogi state, did not dress like a lady to flee the country and evade arrest.
The image claiming that the former governor dressed in female attire after he was declared wanted by the EFCC was fact-checked.
After conducting a Google Reverse Image Search on the image, it turned out to be a manipulated photo of Jane Nnamani, the late wife of the former Senate president, Ken Nnamani.
Source: TimesNow.com.ng
