Court Halts EFCC’s Arraignment of Yahaya Bello

The Federal High Court in Abuja has halted the arraignment of Yahaya Bello, the former Governor of Kogi State, citing the absence of his legal team. Bello, facing a 19-count charge over alleged involvement in an ₦80.2 billion fraud, was scheduled to enter his plea before Justice Emeka Nwite. However, none of his lawyers were present in court when the case was called.

The prosecution, represented by EFCC counsel Kemi Pinheiro (SAN), argued that the arraignment could proceed since Bello was physically present. Pinheiro emphasized that the law does not mandate the presence of defense counsel for an arraignment to take place.

Justice Nwite disagreed, stating it would violate fair hearing principles to compel Bello to plead without his lawyers, particularly since they were not notified about the revised hearing date. He clarified that the situation would have been different if the defendant had no legal representation at all.

To ensure justice, the judge directed the court to serve a hearing notice to Bello’s lawyers and postponed further proceedings to December 13. Meanwhile, Bello is to remain in EFCC custody until the next hearing.