Admin l Tuesday, March 12, 2019
PLATEAU, Jos, Nigeria – The trial of a former governor of Plateau State, Jonah Jang, continued with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, presenting more witnesses against him and Yusuf Gyang Pam, a cashier of the Office of the Secretary to the State Government.
They are being prosecuted on a 12-count charge bordering on misappropriation of state funds to the tune of N6.3 billion. They are alleged to have been complicit in the fraudulent diversion of special funds released by the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, for disbursement to small and medium enterprises in the state, under the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Funds, MSMEDF, two months to the end of Jang’s tenure in 2015.
Testifying as a prosecution witness, Tapchi Yakubu Tashok, a staff of Zenith Bank Plc Jos main branch, while being led in evidence by Rotimi Jacobs, SAN, admitted to knowing Pam.
She said: “I know the second defendant as the cashier of the cabinet office, and he is the one that always comes to the bank for huge withdrawals, and when he comes they will confirm the tendered cheques while they proceed to process his payment. Once there is no much cash available to accommodate the withdrawal, they source from other branches and sometimes have to seek approval to withdraw from the CBN.
“If the withdrawal involves a huge sum, we go to the CBN to move it with the bullion van from the CBN to our branch; we offload and ascertain that the cash is complete, we then go ahead, and debit the transaction, while he signs. He mostly usually comes around with Hilux van and escort to convey the cash from the loading bay.”
She further testified in her evidence-in-chief that the said withdrawals were made on April 7, 8, 9, and sometimes around March 2015.
Under cross-examination by Mike Ozekhome, SAN, counsel for Jang, she told the court that she never had any dealings with the first defendant, and had never seen him during any such withdrawal from her branch.
