Court adjourns ex-Gov. Goje’s case

A Federal High Court sitting in Jos on Wednesday adjourned the five-year-old case against former Governor Danjuma Goje till November 22.
The judge, Justice Babatunde Quadri, adjourned the case to enable the prosecution tender the financial regulations and due process documents, which the witness talked about.
Quadri set out four days – November 22 to 25 – as requested by the prosecution for the continuation of hearing of the case.
Goje is standing trial along four others on a five-count bordering on financial dealings, including the contract on food supply to the Government House during his tenure as well as loan facilities taken from both Access and Union Banks.
At the resumed hearing, the EFCC prosecuting counsel, Wahab Shittu, led the eighth prosecution witness, Dr. Sani Gyauro, in evidence.
Shittu had applied for an adjournment to enable him tender the financial regulations and due processes documents mentioned by the Gyauro.
Shittu said: “My Lord, in view of the relevancy of the financial regulations and due process documents regarding the subject matter of food procurement, I wish to apply to the court to adjourn this case and give us four to five days.
“I wish to tender the relevant documents about the manner contracts for the procurement of food for the government during former Goje time was flaunted.”
Shittu said he had 16 witnesses, but the problem was logistics to bring them, adding: “If I can have the four or five days, I will take all of them and then close my case.”
Adeniyi Akintola (SAN), the Defence Counsel, did not object to the application, but said four days would be okay and not five days.
Akintola said: “As regards to logistics, we are also victims.
“I am not objecting to the application for an adjournment, but we hope that we shall be served with all the documents to be tendered on time so as not to put us in a tight corner, which might affect our proceedings.”