 High Court can be admitted as evidence in the case between Mr. Ali Bello and the Incorporated Trustees of American International School.){kind=link}
The Federal High Court in Abuja has scheduled May 8 to determine whether a judgment from the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court can be admitted as evidence in the case between Mr. Ali Bello and the Incorporated Trustees of American International School.
Before proceeding with the cross-examination of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission’s (EFCC) third witness, Nicholas Ohehomon, who represents the school, the defense counsel, Joseph Daudu (SAN), sought to submit the FCT court ruling.
The judgment reportedly addresses issues related to school fee payments and refunds, a matter relevant to the ongoing trial of former Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Bello.
Additionally, the defense attempted to present receipts for the recertification of the judgment documents.
However, the EFCC’s lead prosecutor, Kemi Pinheiro (SAN), objected, arguing that the prosecution had not yet closed its case.
He cited Section 232 of the Evidence Act, asserting that the defense could not introduce documents at this stage.
In response, Daudu contended that admissibility in both civil and criminal cases depends solely on relevance.
He referenced Sections 4, 5, and 6 of the Evidence Act, insisting that once a document is deemed relevant, it should automatically be admissible.
According to him, the judgment in question upheld the fee agreement, making it pertinent to the case.
He further argued that since the witness, Ohehomon, represented the American International School, the documents should be accepted as evidence.
Daudu dismissed the prosecution’s objection as speculative, stating that the EFCC was unaware of the defense’s intended use for the documents.
Pinheiro, however, urged the court to reject the submission, arguing that the defense had not established that the document met the requirements of Section 232 of the Evidence Act.
Following the arguments, Justice Emeka Nwite scheduled May 8 for a ruling on the admissibility of the judgment and May 9 for the continuation of the trial.
Earlier in the session, Pinheiro had asked the court registrar to present Exhibit 13P1 to the witness, Ohehomon, who identified it as a telex from a bank sent to the school via email by Ali Bello.
The witness also confirmed that Exhibits 13P2 to 13P4 represented fund transfers made by Forza Oil and Gas for the school fees of specific individuals. Similarly, he identified Exhibit 13P5 as a telex from Whales Oil and Gas to the school.
During questioning, the EFCC’s counsel asked the witness to confirm the names on four payment receipts, to which he responded that they belonged to four children of the former governor.
At this point, Daudu interrupted, insisting that the witness should read the names directly from the receipts rather than rely on the prosecution’s prompting.
The defense was unable to proceed with cross-examination as the court had to adjourn for a ruling on the admissibility of the FCT High Court judgment.