A Federal high court sitting in Abuja, Wednesday, March 16, rejected an application by Alex Badeh, a retired chief air marshal and former chief of Defence Staff, seeking to stop further hearing on the 10-count criminal charge the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, preferred against him. Badeh had through Samuel Zibiri, SAN, his counsel, challenged the jurisdiction of the court to try him on the basis, which he said was grossly defective.
Badeh in his application dated March 15, argued that the charge did not disclose any offence known to money laundering Act, insisting that the charge lacked legal validity. Relying on section 220 of the Administration of the Criminal Justice Act, 2015, the former military chief urged the court to hear and determine the application first before delving into full-blown hearing of the substantive charge against him.
“Where the court is informed of the pendency of an application challenging its jurisdiction, the court is enjoined by plethora of legal authorities to settle the issue of jurisdiction first”, Zibiri argued.
However, Rotimi Jacobs, SAN, counsel to the EFCC, urged the court to disregard the application, saying it was a deliberate ploy by the defendant to stall the commencement of his trial. Jacobs argued that sections 221 and 396(2) of the ACJA, 2015, provided that any objection challenging jurisdiction of the court or validity of a criminal charge must be considered alongside the substantive case. He contended that it was late in the day for Badeh to raise the objection since his trial had already commenced.
In his ruling, Justice Okon Abang, presiding judge, said there are laid down procedures for the prosecution of criminal cases under the ACJA. “Having regards to section 396(2) of the ACJA, the application can only be considered alongside the substantive issue and ruling delivered along with judgment on the matter.
“Section 221 of ACJA said objection shall not be entertained during proceeding or trial on the ground that a charge is defective. The court can only entertain and make findings on the application at the end of the proceeding and ruling delivered when the matter is decided.
“Right of the defendant to be heard has been preserved till the end of the proceeding. It would have been a different matter if this is a civil matter or if it was raised before the enactment of the ACJA. As at today, the law has changed.
“The application is hereby refused. The prosecution is hereby directed to call its first witness for the trial to commence now”, the Judge held.
He, however, gave the prosecution seven days to respond to Badeh’s objection to the trial. The former CDS is facing trial over allegation that he fraudulently diverted about N3.9billion from account of the Nigerian Air Force in 2013.
