FG charges Ekweremadu with non-declaration of assets

The federal government has filed charges against Ike Ekweremadu, deputy senate president and Bassey Akpan, senator representing Akwa Ibom north-east district, for alleged failure to declare their assets.

The suit against the lawmakers were filed before a federal high court in Abuja by the special presidential investigation panel for the recovery of public property.

On Wednesday, Celsus Upong, the prosecution lawyer, had complained about the difficulty in issuing service to the senators.

John Tsoho, the presiding judge, ordered that the charges and other accompanying papers be served on the defendants through the clerk of the national assembly.

After granting the orders for service through substiteuted means, the judge fixed October 22 to hear the suit against Ekweremadu and November 19 for Akpan.

In March, Festus Keyamo, a senior advocate of Nigeria (SAN), filed a suit on behalf of the federal government seeking a temporary forfeiture of alleged undeclared assets traced to Ekweremadu.

Twenty-two properties were reportedly traced to the deputy senate president, nine in Nigeria, two in the UK, eight in Dubai and three are in the US.

Following the purported discovery, TheCable reported that Abubakar Malami, attorney general of the federation (AGF), had filed a false declaration of assets charge against Ekweremadu before the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT).

Ekweremadu is said to have failed to disclose the foreign assets in his declarations to the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB).

The deputy senate president has denied all the allegations.