Jolly Nyame, former governor of
Taraba state, has been sentenced to 14 years in prison.
Nyame was charged on 41 counts of
fraud but was found guilty on 27.
The federal capital territory
high court gave him no option of fine.
The court blamed him for
financial recklessness and brazen display of executive power without following
due process.
The Economic and Financial Crimes
Commission (EFCC) had charged Nyame to court for allegedly diverting N1.64
billion while he served as governor of Taraba between 1999 and 2007.
The EFCC presented various
witnesses who alluded to the fact that Nyame approved the diversion of various
funds amounting to over N345 million to a company, Saman Global, within five
weeks in 2005.
In its ruling, the court found
Nyame guilty of breach of trust involving his alleged fraudulent approval of
N250m for the purchase of stationery and office equipment on December 30, 2004,
among other allegations.
Earlier, the trial had been
stalled by successive appeals by Nyame challenging the validity of the charges
against him by the EFCC in July 2007.
In 2016, the supreme court
dismissed the defendant’s appeals against the validity of the charges.
According to the judge, the
actions of the perpetrators under the watch of the ex-governor can be likened
to the story of Alibaba and the 40 thieves.
A round of applause to the person who deserved it
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