The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) and some other civil society groups on Thursday lauded the 12-year prison sentence handed down to ex-Gov. Orji Uzor Kalu of Abia, by a Federal High Court in Lagos.<\/p>\n
DAILY POST reports that Justice Mohammed Idris convicted Kalu on 39 counts of N7.2 billion fraud and money laundering preferred against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.<\/p>\n
Justice Mohammed sentenced Kalu to 12 years in prison for N7.65 billion fraud.<\/p>\n
Reacting, the Executive Director of SERAP, Mr Adetokunbo Mumuni, hailed the judiciary for justice delivery.<\/p>\n
Mumuni said that the judiciary was playing its part in the anti-graft war.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat we see now is that the judiciary is trying to live up to expectations; what must be done has to be done.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe facts of the case have been properly reviewed, evidence thoroughly analysed; there is no basis for querying the judgment; however, let us see the reaction of Orji Uzor Kalu\u2019s counsel to the verdict.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf his counsel wants to appeal, they have the right to do so, but if the allegations and evidence are anything to go by, I believe justice has been properly served irrespective of whoever is involved,\u201d he told NAN.<\/p>\n
Mr Malachy Ugwummadu, the National President of the Committee for the Defence of Human Rights (CDHR), noted the role the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA) played in the speedy trial of the case.<\/p>\n
Ugwummadu hailed the provisions ACJA which prevented the trial from starting de novo (from the beginning) when the trial judge was elevated to the Court of Appeal.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe speed with which this case was adjudicated has everything to do with the ACJA that now allows that a trial judge, though elevated, can return to conclude an ongoing criminal proceeding.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe ACJA is explicit, it is proactive, it is definitive, it allows a judge, who started a trial and got elevated to a superior court, to return to conclude proceedings.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is exactly what happened here. Orji Uzor Kalu was arraigned before Justice Mohammed Idris, who within the period of the trial, was elevated to the Court of Appeal. Today, he delivered that judgment.<\/p>\n
\u201cTo that extent, it is remarkable because it touches on the speedy dispensation of justice. What obtained before now, was the matter starting de novo with the transfer or elevation of the judge,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
According to the CDHR president, the judgment proved that no individual is above the law.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe law remains the law. The fact that Sen. Orji Uzor Kalu defected to the All Progressives Congress (APC) from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) did not provide a cover for him.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis judgment has established a precedent; but giving the calibre of the defendant, we are likely going to see an appeal against the judgment,\u201d Ugwummadu said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) and some other civil society groups on Thursday lauded the 12-year prison sentence handed down to ex-Gov. Orji Uzor Kalu of Abia, by a Federal High Court in Lagos. DAILY POST reports that Justice Mohammed Idris convicted Kalu on 39 counts of N7.2 billion fraud and money laundering […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":62,"featured_media":18534,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[24,14],"tags":[1208,1207,641],"class_list":["post-18532","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-policy","tag-abia","tag-acja","tag-serap"],"yoast_head":"\n