On Friday, a prosecution witness, Victor Onyejiuwa, testified at the Lagos State Special Offences Court in Ikeja, denying allegations of bribing the former Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor, Godwin Emefiele. Onyejiuwa, the Managing Director of Resource Computer Limited, claimed that the alleged $600,000 bribe related to a contract he executed for the CBN was paid to John Ayoh, the former Director of Information Technology at the apex bank.
Under cross-examination by Emefiele’s lawyer, Mr. Olalekan Ojo, SAN, Onyejiuwa detailed his communications with Ayoh, which were conducted via WhatsApp. He revealed that the first payment of $400,000 was made in Lagos, followed by a second payment of $200,000 in Abuja.
Onyejiuwa clarified that he never received any official authorization from the CBN management to pay a bribe for the contract awarded to his company. He stated that Ayoh was the one who signed the contract award and completion documents.
Despite Ayoh’s departure from the CBN, Onyejiuwa continued to secure contracts with the bank until 2019, while Emefiele was still governor. During this period, he was paid on time and no bribe was demanded. “I have never met him (Emefiele) before. My dealings with the CBN management were through Ayoh. I executed the contract while Godwin Emefiele was still the CBN governor,” Onyejiuwa stated.
When questioned if he had discussed the $600,000 bribe with any CBN deputy governors to verify Ayoh’s authority to collect the money, Onyejiuwa responded negatively. He also confirmed that Ayoh did not show him any communication with Emefiele regarding the money.
Asked by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) if he had a letter demanding a bribe, Onyejiuwa said he did not. He confirmed that the money was delivered directly to Ayoh in his office, with an IT department official signing off after the payment was made.
Godwin Emefiele and his co-defendant, Henry Omoile, are facing trial on 26 counts, including abuse of office and alleged fraud involving $4.5 billion and N2.8 billion. Both defendants have pleaded not guilty to all charges.
Onyejiuwa had previously testified that in 2017, after securing a contract for ‘enterprise storage and servers’ from the CBN, a senior official informed him that his payment would not be approved unless he paid certain sums. After much pressure, Onyejiuwa arranged the payments totaling $600,000. “Within two or three weeks after, the payment was made. That is what happened,” he said.
The trial is adjourned until July 9 and 10 for continuation.
