Again, FG fails to produce Dasuki in court

Trial of the former National Security Adviser, NSA, Colonel Sambo Dasuki, before Justice Yusuf Baba of the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory yesterday, suffered temporary setback following failure of the Department of State Security Services to produce him in court. Dasuki is facing corruption charges before the court in the sum of N6 billion slammed against him by the government since last year. At the resumed hearing of the matter yesterday, witnesses in the case were assembled in the court by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, the trial was however, scuttled by the failure of the Department of State Security Services, DSS, to release Dasuki to EFCC for onward movement to the Abuja High Court for the trial. Counsel to the EFCC, Mr Oluwaleke Atolagbe, informed Justice Baba Yusuf that he had made serious efforts through the EFCC to contact the DSS to produce Dasuki in court and regretted that as at the time the court was sitting, his efforts did not yield fruitful result. He informed the court that there was no indication that the former NSA would be brought to court for the trial even though the witnesses are in court and that also Mr. Rotimi Jacobs (SAN), who was supposed to be the lead prosecution counsel was at the Court of Appeal for a different matter. Atolagbe appealed to the court that the matter be stood down pending the arrival of Mr. Jacobs to come and shed more light on the absence of Dasuki. However, counsel to Salisu Shuaib, a former Director of Finance in the Office of the National Security Adviser, Chief Akin Olujimi (SAN), said the coming to court of Jacobs would be inconsequential in the absence of Dasuki. Olujimi, a former Attorney General of the Federation, and Justice Minister, AGF, told the court that the prosecution had failed to produce the defendant in court and ought to admit that and asked for adjournment. He informed Justice Yusuf that it is settled in law that trial cannot go ahead in the absence of the defendant in a criminal matter and prayed the judge to grant adjournment for the prosecution to enable them take steps to produce Dasuki in court on the next adjourned date. In his own submission, counsel to Aminu Baba-Kusa, a former Executive Director at the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, Mr Solomon Umor (SAN), informed Justice Yusuf that; “ordinarily the prosecution ought to apply for a bench warrant against Dasuki for his failure to appear in court for trial, but noted that in the instant case, the prosecution could not do so, because they are the one responsible for his absence due to his unwarranted detention. Justice Baba Yusuf in a short ruling held that that it was the responsibility of the prosecution to produce the defendant in court as required by law, but regretted that the prosecution has unfortunately abdicated this responsibility today as far as this case is concerned. He granted an adjournment of the trial till May 23, 2016.