Senator Joshua Dariye, the former governor of Plateau State, has claimed that his conviction on corruption charges brought by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) was politically motivated.
Dariye said this during an interview on Channels Television.
“My issue was political in the sense that the same charge was taken to Kaduna High Court, Justice Liman dismissed that case,” he said.
“They were not happy, they carried the same document to the Plateau State House of Assembly and the whole amount we are talking about is ₦1.1 billion.”
During the interview, Dariye broke down the amount he was accused of, saying ₦800 million went into the Plateau State account, ₦100 million went to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) South-West, and ₦100 million went to ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo’s campaign organization, among other things.
The ex-governor put the amount of money missing at ₦4 million, describing it as a commission on turnover.
If he wanted to steal, he would have laundered the money in commission and turnover, according to the former Plateau governor.
He added, “The judge asked if Mr Dariye wanted to convert money into his personal use, will he use his letterhead and write the bank ‘Pls distribute as follows?’”
“I am a chartered accountant and I wouldn’t have been that foolish. If I wanted to steal, I would have lodged the money in Commission and turnover but that never happened.
“But because it was politically motivated, the other vehicle of prosecution – EFCC – became the only veritable tool. I don’t think there was any sense of justice but I leave the rest to God. Time will tell.”
Dariye was sentenced to 14 years in prison after being convicted of stealing ₦1.16 billion while serving as Plateau governor from 1999 to 2007.
However, his sentence was reduced to ten years by the Court of Appeal in Abuja, while his conviction was upheld by the Supreme Court.
In April 2022, President Muhammadu Buhari granted him and ex-Taraba governor Jolly Nyame presidential pardons. They were, however, released on August 8 by the Nigerian Correctional Service (NCoS).
The Herald had reported that the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) had filed a lawsuit against President Muhammadu Buhari, asking the court to “declare illegal, and incompatible with the oath of office, and public interest the recent pardon granted to former governors of Plateau State, Senator Joshua Dariye, and Taraba State, Rev Jolly Nyame who are serving jail terms for corruption.”
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