Halliburton: Fayose justifies claim of Buhari wife's involvement

Posted by admin | 8 years ago | 1,996 times



Ado Ekiti: Councel to Governor Ayo Fayose of Ekiti state, Chief Mike Ozekhome, SAN, has replied the wife of President Muhammadu Buhari, Mrs Aisha Buhari through her councel, Mary Ekpere & Co, saying the governor's claim as regards her involvement in the infamous Halliburton scandal was correct and justified in law.

Ozekhome insisted that there are documentary evidences to support the governor's claim that Mrs Buhari was indeed mentioned in the scandal.

In the letter dated July 8, 2016, Ozekhome affirmed that the statement made regarding the involvement of Mrs Aisha Buhari in the Halliburton scandal was "correct and justified in law, having regard to a court judgement convicting one Mr William Jefferson for Bribery in the Halliburton case."

Councel to the president's wife, Mary Ekpere & Co, had written to Governor Fayose in June 22, 2016 demanding a retraction of the governor's statement that the President's wife was involved in the Halliburton scandal, threatening legal action if the retraction was not made within five days.

However, Ozekhome said the statement of Fayose was correct and justified, having been factually premised on an existing court judgement.

The letter read, "Our client has reffered to us your letter dated June 22, 2016, on alleged defamation of the character of your client, Her Excellency, Mrs Aisha Buhari, the wife of Muhammadu Buhari, GCFR, with firm instruction to reply to and reject same in its entirety.

"Our client states and reaffirms categorically that the statement he made as regards involvement of Mrs Aisha Buhari, the wife of President Buhari, in the Halliburton scandal, is correct and justified in law; having regards to a court judgement convicting one Mr William Jefferson for bribery in the Halliburton case.

"Therein, the name of the President's wife featured conspiciously. At page 22 of the said judgement delivered by the United State's District Court, Eastern District of Virginia, Alexandria Division USA, in criminal No. 1: 07CR209, the said Mr William Jefferson was sentenced at 9:00 am on November 13, 2009, by Mark D, Lytle. Your client Mrs Aisha Buhari was specifically mentioned in the judgement.

The judge reffered to Exhibit 36-87 in the following words, for clarification; "See also Government 36-87 (6/26/02 $170,000 wire transfer from account in Nigeria in the name of Aisha Buhari to an account in the name of the ANJ Group, LLC, identifying "William Jefferson as Beneficiary)...Given the age of the defendant, the severity of the sentence calculated by the Probation Office, the defendant's frequent travel overseas and unexplained wire transfers from overseas location to financial accounts used by the defendant, the defendant cannot rebut the presumption at sentencing that he is a risk of flight.

The said William Jefferson is currently serving a jail term in the USA and to the best of our client's knowledge; the judgement has not been challenged, or set aside by any Appellate court of law anywhere in the world.

"The statement of His Excellency, our client, is therefore correct and justified, same having been factually premised on an existing court judgement above reffered to."

On the immunity enjoyed by Governor Fayose, against civil and criminal proceedings, the Senior Advocate of Nigeria said; "Your attention is also hereby drawn to Section 308 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999, as altered, on the immunity enjoyed by our client from civil or criminal proceedings for the period that he occupies the office of the governor of Ekiti State.

"You may therefore advice your client to wait until after 16th of October, 2018, when our client's tenure expires. When that happens, we shall join issues with your client in a competent court of law, in the event that your client does not have a change of heart."


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