The former governor of Taraba State, Jolly Nyame has been sentenced to 14 years imprisonment for fraud by a Federal High Court sitting in the Federal Capital Territory.
Nyame was charged on a 41-count for allegedly diverting N1.64 billion while he served as governor of the state between 1999 and 2007.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission presented various witnesses who alluded to the fact that Mr. Nyame approved the diversion of various funds amounting to over N345 million to a company, Saman global, within five weeks in 2005.
In its ruling, the court found Nyame guilty of breach of public trust involving his alleged fraudulent approval of N250m for the purchase of stationery and office equipment on December 30, 2004, among other allegations. According to the judge, Adebukola Bankole, the actions of the perpetrators under the watch of the ex-governor can be likened to the story of Alibaba and the 40 thieves.
The court had ruled against Nyame’s no-case submission in March. The case against Nyame started in 2007. The EFCC will help the fight against corruption if it does its due diligence before going to court and the court will augment this by delivering judgement within a short time. The protraction of this case is tantamount to justice denied.
If the judgement is implemented in full, it will be the biggest victory in the anti-corruption drive of the country.
