A former National Publicity Secretary of the Peoples Democratic
Party, Chief Olisa Metuh, has alleged that there is a secret plan by the
Federal Government to convict him of corruption.
Metuh, who is on trial before a Federal High Court sitting in Abuja for alleged corruption, was among six members of the PDP whose names were released by the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, to be among those who allegedly looted the treasury in 2015.
In a statement he personally signed in Abuja on Saturday titled “My Reply To The Media Trial,” Metuh said the statement by Mohammed had shown that he was facing two criminals trials on the same charge.
He said, “By this publication, the Federal Government has breached our constitution by seeking to burden me with two criminal trials on the same charge, one before Justice Okon Abang and the other before the media.
“The charge against me is that I received the sum of N400 million from the Office of the National Security Adviser to carry out duties assigned to me as the then National Publicity Secretary of the PDP by then President and Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
“The major crux of the prosecution argument is that I ought to have known that the money was a part of an alleged and yet to be proven unlawful activity of Col Sambo Dasuki (retd), former NSA to President Jonathan.
“The charge was brought regardless of the fact that neither President Jonathan who gave me the assignment and directed the release of the funds nor Col Dasuki (retd.), who effected the release of the funds have ever been interrogated nor even interviewed in this regard. As a matter of fact, officers of the office of the National Security Adviser have testified in court that the payment made to me followed all due process usually observed in the establishment.
“In view of the weakness of the case against me, the APC-led Federal Government resorted to all kinds of dirty tactics to dehumanise and intimidate me.
“They have done everything humanly possible to ensure complete persecution starting from bringing me to court in handcuffs (and parading the capture of Nigeria’s most wanted) to media trials and constant interference with my case.”
Source: The Punch
Metuh, who is on trial before a Federal High Court sitting in Abuja for alleged corruption, was among six members of the PDP whose names were released by the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, to be among those who allegedly looted the treasury in 2015.
In a statement he personally signed in Abuja on Saturday titled “My Reply To The Media Trial,” Metuh said the statement by Mohammed had shown that he was facing two criminals trials on the same charge.
He said, “By this publication, the Federal Government has breached our constitution by seeking to burden me with two criminal trials on the same charge, one before Justice Okon Abang and the other before the media.
“The charge against me is that I received the sum of N400 million from the Office of the National Security Adviser to carry out duties assigned to me as the then National Publicity Secretary of the PDP by then President and Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
“The major crux of the prosecution argument is that I ought to have known that the money was a part of an alleged and yet to be proven unlawful activity of Col Sambo Dasuki (retd), former NSA to President Jonathan.
“The charge was brought regardless of the fact that neither President Jonathan who gave me the assignment and directed the release of the funds nor Col Dasuki (retd.), who effected the release of the funds have ever been interrogated nor even interviewed in this regard. As a matter of fact, officers of the office of the National Security Adviser have testified in court that the payment made to me followed all due process usually observed in the establishment.
“In view of the weakness of the case against me, the APC-led Federal Government resorted to all kinds of dirty tactics to dehumanise and intimidate me.
“They have done everything humanly possible to ensure complete persecution starting from bringing me to court in handcuffs (and parading the capture of Nigeria’s most wanted) to media trials and constant interference with my case.”
Source: The Punch
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