A Federal Ministry of Finance director, Dr Ali Mohammed, has told the FCT High Court in Abuja that former Central Bank of Nigeria Governor Godwin Emefiele was neither a signatory to the Federal Government account from which N124.86 billion was withdrawn nor linked to the transaction.
Mohammed, Director of Home Finance in the ministry, gave the evidence on Wednesday during cross-examination in the trial of the former CBN governor.
He also told Justice Maryanne Anenih that neither the Minister of Finance nor the Accountant-General of the Federation queried the withdrawal of the funds from the Consolidated Revenue Account.
Emefiele is standing trial before the court on a four-count charge filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission over alleged disobedience to the direction of law and an illegal act causing injury to the public.
He has pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Led in cross-examination by his counsel, Olalekan Ojo, SAN, Mohammed said there was no evidence linking Emefiele to the N124.86 billion withdrawal.
He said the money was not traced to the former CBN governor’s account and that Emefiele was not a signatory to the Federal Government’s Consolidated Revenue Account.
The witness also said he did not know that the funds had been withdrawn for the purpose of subsidising the Hajj pilgrimage.
“I was invited by EFCC in respect of the withdrawal of the N124.86 billion, but was neither interrogated on the circumstances that led to the withdrawal nor made any statement in respect of the same during my visit to the commission,” Mohammed said.
He added that EFCC officials did not show him any document linking Emefiele to the withdrawal.
Mohammed said three letters exchanged between the Ministry of Finance and the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation did not identify Emefiele as a signatory to the account.
“Of the three letters that emanated from the Federal Ministry of Finance and the Office of the Accountant-General, none of the letters suggested the name of Emefiele as a signatory to the consolidated revenue account,” he said.
He further told the court that the Ministry of Finance did not write to the CBN under Emefiele seeking the withdrawal of the money, despite advice from the Accountant-General of the Federation.
According to him, none of the correspondence indicated that Emefiele authorised the debit of N124.86 billion from the government account.
The witness said the ministry did not take further action after the withdrawal, apart from informing the special investigator appointed to examine the CBN’s activities that it was unaware of the transaction.
Earlier in his evidence, Mohammed explained how he became involved in the investigation of the withdrawal.
He said he received a letter from the special investigator appointed by President Bola Tinubu to investigate the CBN under Emefiele and subsequently convened an emergency meeting with the heads of the three divisions under his supervision.
Mohammed said the officials denied any knowledge of the N124.86 billion transaction.
He subsequently wrote to the Accountant-General of the Federation through the ministry’s Permanent Secretary seeking clarification.
According to him, the Accountant-General’s office also said it was unaware of the transaction and concluded that the withdrawal must have been made by the CBN.
Mohammed said the ministry communicated the findings to the special investigator.
He tendered the correspondence from the Ministry of Finance and the Accountant-General’s office before the court, with the documents admitted as exhibits without objection from Emefiele’s lawyer.
The witness also said he was unaware of whether former President Muhammadu Buhari obtained National Assembly approval for the use of the Ways and Means facility between 2016 and 2023.
Following the completion of the cross-examination, prosecution counsel Abbas Mohammed asked the court to discharge the witness.
Justice Anenih adjourned the case until November 26 for continuation of trial.
The EFCC alleged in charge number FCT/HC/CR/264/2024 that Emefiele, between October 19, 2022 and March 5, 2023, approved the printing of 375.52 million colour-swapped N1,000 notes at a cost of N11.05 billion without the recommendation of the CBN Board and the approval of the President.
The commission alleged that the action violated Section 19 of the CBN Act and caused injury to the public.
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