From wheelchair to neck brace, former governors, ex-ministers and other members of the Nigerian elite facing trial have always used one thing or the other to get some sympathy from their fellow compatriots.
The former Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) governor Godwin Emefiele, when he was first arraigned by the Department of State Services (DSS) in July 2023 over illegal possession of firearms, arrived the Federal High Court in Ikoyi, Lagos, holding a copy of the King James Version (KJV) of the holy Bible, which he tucked inside a red paperback.
Emefiele is now being prosecuted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on a fresh four-count charge, one of which accused him of approving the printing of N684,590,000 notes at the rate of N18.96 billion.
Then in February this year, when he was arraigned by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on a 12-count charge bordering on alleged mismanagement of public funds to the tune of N10billion, former Governor of Kwara State Abdulfatah Ahmed, turned up at the Federal High Court sitting in Ilorin holding a copy of the holy Qur’an.
The two former governors are still facing trial and it is unclear what impact or effect holding holy books is having on their respective cases
