Court sends Wole Soyinka’s man & ex minister of steel Olu Agunloye back to prison over $6bn fraud
A Federal High Court in Abuja on Wednesday ordered the remand of former Minister of Power and Steel, Olu Agunloye, in Kuje Correctional Service over an alleged $6 billion fraud.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission arraigned Agunloye before the Federal High Court in Abuja on Wednesday, where he pleaded not guilty to the charges read against him.
The judge, however, ordered that the embattled former minister be remanded in Kuje Correctional Service pending when bail would be granted.
Confirming the development in a statement on Wednesday, the spokesperson for the EFCC, Dele Oyewale, said Agunloye was arraigned on seven counts bordering on fraudulent awarding of contracts and official corruption.
Oyewale said, “The EFCC on Wednesday, January 10, 2024 arraigned a former Minister of Power and Steel Development, Olu Agunloye before Justice J.O Onwuegbuzie of the Federal Capital Territory High Court, Apo, Abuja. He was arraigned on seven count charges bordering on fraudulent award of contract and official corruption.
One of the counts read, “That you, Olu Agunloye, whilst being the Minister of Power and Steel on or about the 22nd day of May, 2003 in Abuja, within the jurisdiction of this honourable court awarded a contract, titled ‘Construction of 3,960mw Mambilla Hydroelectric Power Station on a Build, Operate and Transfer Basis” to Sunrise Power and Transmission Company Limited without any budgetary provision, approval and cash backing and you thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 22(4) of the Corrupt Practices and other Related Offences Act, 2000.”
Another count read, “That you, Olu Agunloye, on or about the 10th of August, 2019 in Abuja, within the jurisdiction of this honourable court, corruptly received the sum of Three Million Six Hundred Thousand Naira (N3,600,000.00) through your Guaranty Trust Bank account no.0022530926 from Sunrise Power and Transmission Company Limited and Leno Adesanya for having conveyed the ‘approval of the Government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria for the construction of the 3,960 megawatts Mambilla Hydroelectric Power Station’ in favour of SPTCL which you did whilst serving as the Minister of Power and Steel without the approval of the Federal Executive Council contrary to and punishable under Section 8(1)(a) and (b) of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act, 2000.
“He pleaded not guilty to all the charges when they were read to them. Thereafter, prosecution counsel, Abba Muhammed prayed the court for a trial date and to remand the defendant in a Correctional Centre. Defence counsel, Adola Adedipe, SAN, informed the court that he has filed a bail application for the defendant and prayed the court to grant him bail and commit him to the custody of the EFCC.
“Justice Onwuegbuzie ruled that the defendant be remanded in Kuje Correctional Centre and set Thursday, January 11, 2024 for hearing on the bail application.”
The EFCC had in December declared the former minister wanted over an alleged case of corruption and forgery.
Agunloye was a minister under former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s government (1999-2003).
He has since been at the centre of the controversy about the Mambilla project.
He was accused by Obasanjo of illegally awarding the project’s contract without the Federal Executive Council’s consent.
Agunloye has since denied the allegation.
