In an effort to conclude the case against former chairman Task Force on PENCOM, Abdulrasheed Maina, a Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has summoned the Attorney General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami (SAN), former Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crime Commission (EFCC), Ibrahim Magu and a human right lawyer, Femi Falana (SAN).
Other personalities summoned by the court include; the Director of Compliance, Central Bank of Nigeria; an official of the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies, Ibrahim Kaigama; a representative of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission, G.T Idris; and a former Kano State Commissioner of Police, Mohammed Wakil.
The court summoned as sighted by Vigil360 partly reads; “You are commanded in the name of the President and commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to attend before this court… to give evidence on behalf of the 1st defendant (Maina).
Falana in his response when contacted confirmed that he has received the summon and will definitely appear before the court to testify as requested by the law, being one of those who allegedly bought one of the properties from Maina.
Falana said, “I am delighted that the learned trial judge has provided me with the golden opportunity to shed light on the needless controversy.”
Maina was an Assistant Director in the Ministry before he was appointed to head the pension reform task force by former President Goodluck Jonathan in 2010.
However, in the year 2012, Maina was alleged to have diverted the pension fund scheme amounting to N100 billion, and by the year 2013, he was in a controversial manner dismissed from the Federal Civil Service Commission following a recommendation by the office of the Head of Service.
Subsequently, Maina was invited by the Senate Joint Committee on Public Service and Establishment for State and Local government Administration, followed by an arrest warrant issued against him by the panel.
Maina ignored the Panel and headed to court to sue the Senate and the then Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed Abubakar after the police declared him wanted when he went into hiding.
In July 2015, Maina was charged by the EFCC alongside Stephen Oronsaye and two others before a Federal High Court on 24 counts of charges bordering on procurement fraud and obtaining by false pretense.
Oronseye and two others appeared in court and pleaded not guilty but Maina defaulted and that lead the anti graft to declare him wanted.
Maina fled to the United Arab Emirate where he kept lobbying government officials in the Buhari administration for a soft landing.
He later returned to the country where he was controversially promoted to the rank of a Director at the Ministry of Interior. There was an outcry from the public and that made the government make a U-turn on its decision, and Maina was dismissed once more and rearrange before the court for an N2billion fraud.
His son Faisal, who is a co-defendant has jump bail and since then has remained at large.
