Ooni Of Ife Meets Ex-CBN Gov, Emefiele In Kuje Prison

The Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi Ojaja II, has paid a solidarity visit to the embattled former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele, at the Kuje Prison in Abuja.

Naija News reported earlier that the Yoruba traditional ruler and his wife, Temitope, were at the Kuje correctional center to secure the release of five prison inmates.

Reports obtained by this news platform on Wednesday morning also revealed that the Ooni of Ife begged for the release of Emefiele, a former Apex bank chief, on Tuesday.

It was gathered that the monarch visited Emefiele twice yesterday. The first time was said to be in the morning when he and his entourage toured the correctional center. He reportedly returned four hours later to continue his discussions with the former CBN governor.

Details of their meeting are yet to be made public, but reports claimed the monarch had lengthy meetings with Emefiele.

Recall that Emefiele was last month arraigned on a six-count charge bordering on procurement fraud by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

He was accused of using his position to confer a corrupt advantage on Sa’adatu Yaro, a staff of CBN, by awarding a contract for the procurement of 43 vehicles worth N1.2 billion between 2018 and 2020.

Before his arrest and arraignment by the EFCC, Emefiele had been in the custody of the Department of State Security (DSS) for over four months. However, when the DSS released him, he got rearrested by the EFCC.

Emefiele was put behind bars for his inability to meet his N300 million bail condition even after pleading not guilty to the amended charges against him.

The formerly respected citizen was granted bail in the sum of N300 million as well as two sureties in like sum, both of which must have certificates of occupancy and titles of properties within the Maitama district in Abuja.

He was also mandated to deposit all his travel documents with the Registrar of the Court with a warning to remain within the Abuja Municipal Council.

Naija News reports that the former CBN governor will remain in the Kuje Correctional Facility until 2024, when he can meet his bail conditions.