A prosecution witness in the ongoing trial of the Senate President, Dr Bukola Saraki, at the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) over alleged false assets declaration, on Wednesday, revealed that Saraki’s name did not appear on any of the document linking him to any of the properties located in Maitama District of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.
The witness, Micheal Wetkas, who made the revelations under cross examination by the counsel to the Senate President, Paul Usoro, told the Tribunal that the Power of Attorney of the properties located at Plot 2481 and 2482, Cadastral Zone, Abuja, allegedly owned by Saraki, was made on June 3, 1993, with two parties, David Baba Akawu and Carlisle Properties and Investment Limited.
He said Saraki’s name was not mentioned in the Power of Attorney which was made about 10 years before the Senate President became governor of Kwara State.
According to the witness, “even though the documentation of the said properties was in the name of Carlisle Properties and Investments Limited, we believe they belong to the defendant, because the company belongs to him.”
On the ownership of said company, whose certificate of incorporation was tendered before the Tribunal, the witness said Saraki’s name was never mentioned in the ownership of the firm, explaining further that the name on the certification of incoporation was one Oluwatoyin Ojora and Babs Trading and Manufacturing Limited, adding that the two owners were allotted 10,000 shares each in the company.
In the certificate of incorporation of Carlisle Properties and Investment Limited obtained at the Corporate Affairs Commissions (CAC) by the EFCC, Wetkas, who was asked to read out the name of the defendant on the document, simply told the Tribunal that he could not see Saraki’s name on the certificate.
Usoro observed that the certificate of incorporation of the sold Babs Trading and Manufacturing Company Limited alleged to have being owned by Saraki was not tendered in evidence, the witness said that the CAC was still searching for it.
When asked to tender the letter written by the EFCC to CAC requesting for that certificate, he told the Tribunal that the letter was also not available.
When it was 4.00 p.m, the lead counsel for the defence, Chief Kanu Agabi asked for an adjournment, but the request was opposed by the prosecution counsel, Rotimi Jacobs, insisting that they have spent 10 days in cross examining the witness.
This position infuriated a member of the Tribunal, Atedze Williams, who urged Jacobs to be considerate for the Bar and to the Bench.
He reminded the prosecution counsel that the Tribunal had to wait for additional one hour for him and his witness to arrive and when it was time to adjourn, he remembered that he had to conclude the trial.
