Capital market probe: EFCC to arraign Hembe next week

Hon. Herman Hembe

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission will arraign two serving members of the House of Representatives – Herman Hembe and Azubuogu Ifeanyi –before a court on May 17.

An Abuja High Court on Thursday gave leave to the EFCC to arraign Hembe and Ifeanyi, for alleged diversion of public funds.

The two lawmakers were until recently, the chairman and deputy chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Capital Markets and Institutions, respectively.

Hembe and Ifeanyi presided over the probe of the near collapse of the capital market until the Director General of the Securities and Exchange Commission, Ms Arunma Oteh, brought a bribery allegation against them.

Oteh accused Hembe of demanding a bribe of N39m from SEC for the hearing and an additional N5m.

The SEC DG also alleged that Hembe received money from the commission to enable him to travel to the Dominican Republic for a conference which he did not attend. She said he did not refund the money to the commission.

The development led to the suspension of the probe, before it was restarted by a new panel of the House headed by Ibrahim El-Sudi.

The court, presided by Justice Abubakar Sadiq Umar, granted the EFCC leave to prefer criminal charges against the two lawmakers, based on findings from investigations conducted by the anti-graft agency into the bribery allegations.

Ruling on an application by the EFCC counsel, Mr. Onjefu Obe, seeking leave to prefer criminal charges against Hembe and Ifeanyi, Umar held that the motion has merit, going by the proof of evidence tendered against the accused persons.

In the charge brought against the lawmakers, the EFCC alleged that Hembe and Ifeanyi converted to their own use, the sum of $4,095 given to them by the SEC as travelling allowance to a conference in Dominican Republic in October, 2011.

The offence is contrary to Section 308 of the Penal Code Act, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004.

The two-count reads, “Count One: That you Hon Iorwase Herman Hembe sometime in October 2011 in Abuja within the Judicial Division of the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, dishonestly converted to your own use, the sum of $4,095 (four thousand, and ninety-five dollars) being money given to you by the Securities and Exchange Commission as your travelling allowance to PUNCTA CANA, Dominican Republic, to attend a conference which you did not attend and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 308 of the Penal Code Act, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria (Abuja) 2004 and punishable under Section 309 of the same code.

“Count Two: That you, Hon. Azubogu Chris Emeka Ifeanyi, sometime in October, 2011 in Abuja within the Judicial division of the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, dishonestly converted to your own use the sum of $4095 (four thousand, and ninety-five dollars) being money given to you by the Securities and Exchange Commission as your travelling allowance to PUNCTA CANA, Dominican Republic, to attend a conference which you did not attend and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 308 of the Penal Code Act, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria (Abuja) 2004 and punishable under Section 309 of the same code.”

The Hembe-led panel was sacked following allegations of conflict of interest and bias levelled against him by Oteh during a public hearing.

Hembe had denied the allegations. In an address to the House of Representatives, he said he neither demanded nor took any bribe from the SEC DG.

Rather, he claimed that he “fought hard to resist any such temptation.”

He said SEC made overtures to the committee through a memo ahead of the probe, and vowed to go to court to clear his name.

Following the development, the House of Representatives directed its Committee on Ethics and Privileges to investigate the bribery allegations.

The House also set up an ad hoc committee on capital market, headed by El-Sudi from Taraba State, to take over the probe.

Oteh was accused of spending N30m during her eight-month stay at the Hilton Hotel, Abuja and N850,000 on a single day on food.

She was also accused of compromising her office by engaging two employees of the Access Bank Plc on secondment to her office.

Hembe said the development led to a situation which placed a firm that should be under SEC’s watch at an unfair advantage.

However, Oteh had alleged that Hembe was out to tarnish her image.

Hembe had, in his response to Oteh’s allegations, said he would subject himself to a probe by the EFCC and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission.

He was reportedly quizzed by the EFCC before the anti-graft agency approached the Abuja High Court to seek leave to prefer criminal charges against him.