Nyako threatens to sue EFCC for libel
Fatimah Abdullahi
A former Governor of Adamawa State, Murtala Nyako, who is being prosecuted along with his son, Abdul-Aziz, and others for N29bn fraud charges, has threatened to sue the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission for defaming his character while opposing his application for bail on July 8.
One of his lawyers, Mohammed Bakari, revealed this in a statement on Wednesday. According to him, the anti-graft agency had defamed his (Nyako) character by imputing that he had a hand in the death of two of its witnesses.
He said it was untrue that the witnesses died mysteriously, describing the claim by EFCC’s prosecutor, Rotimi Jacobs (SAN), and the deposition in the commission’s counter-affidavit as “baseless, wicked and unfounded allegation”.
Nyako explained that contrary to EFCC’s insinuation, two out of the 31 persons lined up as prosecution witnesses died in hospitals after battling with certain known ailments.
He said, “They neither died at the same time nor slumped and died as insinuated by the EFCC.
“While one died in a hospital in Abuja, the other died in a hospital in Yola shortly after he returned from a complicated medical treatment abroad.
“It is therefore unfair, unjust and uncharitable to accuse Nyako and his son of the death of the two persons, who as every human being has a sure date with death.
“This is totally unethical and Admiral Nyako has already decided to sue both the EFCC and their lawyer for defamation of character.”
