Justice Olubunmi Oyewole, sitting at the Lagos High Court, will, today (Monday), hear the bail application pending appeal of George and five others who were sentenced to jail last month.
Chief George and others approached the court to grant them bail, pending the determination of their appeal at the Court of Appeal. Specifically, George, PDP’s former Deputy National Chairman and erstwhile chairman of Nigeria Ports Authority (NPA), Architect Aminu Dabo, former MD of the NPA, Captain Olusegun Abidoye, Abdullahi Tafida, Zanna Maidaribe and Sule Aliyu were on October 26 convicted of contract splitting and disobedience of lawful orders.
In their individual affidavits, in support of their motion for bail, they averred that it takes the better part of the year to get records of appeal in a matter of this magnitude compiled and transmitted to the Court of Appeal.
In the affidavit deposed to on behalf of Bode George, the PDP chieftain was praying the Court to grant him bail on medical ground, saying that he was hypertensive with arthritis and, therefore, needed frequent and constant monitoring and medical treatment to avoid complications. He promised not to jump bail if his application was granted by the Court.
However, in opposing the application for bail, Counsel to the EFCC, Festus Keyamo said that for a court to favourably consider an application for bail, the medical report must be signed by a doctor who was a specialist in the field of medicine that could cater for that type of illness. See the case of Adams v. A.G Federation (2006) 11 NWLR (pt. 991) pg. 341 and Abacha v. State (2002) 5 NWLR (Pt. 761) 638 at 675 – 676, H-A.
“This crucial deposition is missing in the defendant’s affidavit and even Exhibit C does not state the special training of the doctor in relation to the alleged illness of the Applicant,” Keyamo said. According to the prosecution, the medical reasons given by George were not credible and did not constitute special circumstances.
The EFCC said that George could no longer be presumed innocent to warrant bail for him, adding that there was no congestion at the Court of Appeal as stated in Bode George’s application.
Meanwhile Mr Ope Fatinikun, spokesman of the Nigeria Prison Service had said that all convicts, no matter how highly placed, must conform to the rules and regulations of the prison. This, he said, included the wearing of prison uniform. He dismissed the reports that George had refused to wear prison uniform.
“For anybody to be taken to prison, it means that he has committed an offence and, therefore, must follow the dictates of the prison services. No matter the status of the person, he must obey,” he said.