The Federal High Court in Abuja presided over by Justice Emeka Nwite has granted former Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Bello, permission to travel to Mecca, Saudi Arabia, to perform the lesser hajj
The approval followed an application by Bello’s lawyer, Joseph Daudu, SAN to permit his Client to observe the last 10 days of Ramadan.
The motion, dated January 19 had sought the temporary release of Bello’s international passports to facilitate his travel during this year’s Ramadan, which runs from February 18 to March 19.
While presenting his matter in Court, Bello clarified that while he would have liked to spend the full 30 days of Ramadan in Mecca, he would limit his trip to 10 days to remain mindful of his ongoing trial by the EFCC.
“As said by my defence counsel, I have not travelled outside this country in the last eight years. I would have loved to spend the whole of Ramadan in Mecca and to observe Shittu Shawal immediately after Ramadan, but I will not want to take anyone for granted,” Bello said.
Surprisingly, Kemi Pinheiro, SAN, representing the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), did not oppose the motion.
Ruling on the application, Justice Nwite noted that the prosecution did not object to the application and ruled that Bello’s travel would be restricted to 10 days, beginning on March 13.
The court adjourned the matter until January 30 for the continuation of the trial.
