A former National Security Adviser, Col. Sambo Dasuki (retd.), may have been granted bail on the two charges he’s been prosecuted for, but he has so far, found it difficult to meet any of the conditions attached to the bail.
Dasuki is being prosecuted for two sets of charges before Justice Baba Yusuf and Justice Peter Afren, both of the Federal Capital Territory High Court, Abuja.
On Friday, December 18, Justice Yusuf granted bail to Dasuki and his co-accused persons in the sum of N250 million with one surety.
Dasuki is being tried before Justice Yusuf on a 19 count charge of misappropriation of about N32 billion meant for purchase of arms.
Other co-accused persons, who are also under the bail conditions imposed by Justice Yusuf, are a former Director of Finance and Administration in the Office of the NSA, Shuaibu Salisu; a former Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, Aminu Baba-Kusa; and his two companies, Acacia Holdings Limited and Reliance Referral Hospital Limited.
Meanwhile, Justice Peter Affen on Monday, December 21, granted another bail to Dasuki and his co-defendants with respect to 22 counts of misappropriation of about N13 billion.
In this case, Dasuki was granted bail in the sum of N250m with two sureties in like sum.
In both rulings, the judges ordered the accused to be remanded in Kuje prisons pending when ruling on their bail applications would be delivered.
However, as at Wednesday, which is the last working day, Dasuki and other accused persons were yet to fulfill the bail conditions.
Due to the stringent bail conditions, Punch Newspapers reports that the accused persons are having a hard time making bail.
A source privy to the developments was quoted to have said: “The condition, which they (the accused persons) are finding difficult to meet is getting a civil servant in the director cadre, who has N250m worth of property. In fact, the EFCC people are waiting for a civil servant who will come out to say that he has N250m.”
“The only problem we have is the fear by these potential sureties that they could be arrested by EFCC operatives, like it happened in the case of a former Governor of Adamawa State, Boni Haruna, whose surety suddenly withdrew after being intimidated by the EFCC.”
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