The Court of Appeal in Abuja has struck out two appeals by the federal government against a September 29, 2021 order of a Federal High Court barring it from reopening the trial of former Abia state governor, Orji Kalu, and his firm, Slok Nigeria Ltd on money laundering charges.
In two judgments on Wednesday, March 6, a three-member panel of the Court held that the two appeals filed by the federal government were defective.
Justice Joseph Oyewole, who authored and read the lead judgments in both appeals, upheld the objection raised by Kalu (now a serving Senator) and Slok.
The court found that the records of appeal in both cases were not properly compiled and certified as required under the Court of Appeal’s Rules and Section 104 of the Evidence Act.
It held that even if the breach of the court’s rule was to be overlooked, the court could not close its eyes to the non-compliance with the mandatory provision of the Evidence Act.
A defect the court painted out in the record of appeal was that the official of the trial court, who certified the records, did not indicate his/her designation as required by the Evidence Act.
Lawyer to the fed government, Oluwaleke Atolagbe said, given the court’s decision, the appellant will promptly refile new appeals to enable the appellate court to deal with the substance of the case.
The appeals were against the September 29, 2021 judgment by Justice Inyang Ekwo of the Federal High Court in Abuja prohibiting the Fed Govt from further prosecuting Kalu and Slok following an earlier judgment of the Supreme Court voiding the proceedings leading to their earlier trial and conviction.
Kalu was charged and tried with Slok and a former Account Director in Abia State Government House, Ude Jones Udeogu, for their alleged complicity in diverting the N7.1b from Abia State’s coffers.
The three were convicted and, while Kalu and Udeogu were sentenced to 12 and 10 years imprisonment, Slok was wound up.
But, upon an appeal by Udeogu, the Supreme Court in a judgment on May 8, 2020, set aside their trial and conviction because the trial judge, who was elevated to the Court of Appeal, ought not to have continued to hear the case.
In the judgment given in an appeal, marked: SC/62C/2019 filed by Udeogu, the Supreme Court ordered a retrial in the case.
Although Kalu and Slok were not appellants in the appeal by Udeogu, they (Kalu and Slok) later tendered the judgment before a Federal High Court Lagos and the court applied the judgment to them and set them free.
When the prosecuting agency, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) applied for a retrial, Kalu and his firm sued to challenge the move to retry them.
They argued among others, that a retrial would subject them to double jeopardy having earlier been tried and convicted on the same charge, an argument Justice Ekwo upheld in his September 29, 2021 judgment.
