The Court of Appeal in Abuja yesterday upheld the conviction of former governors of Taraba and Plateau states, Reverend Jolly Nyame and Joshua Dariye on reduced jail terms.
While Nyame’s term was reduced from 14 to 12 years, Dariye’s was reduced from 14 to 10 years.
The two former governors who are already serving jail terms at the Kuje Prisons in the FCT following their convictions by an FCT High Court in April and June, had applied for a review of their sentences.
In his ruling, Justice Emmanuel Akomaye Agim awarded a cumulative fine of N500 million against Nyame in line with the provisions of Section 315 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA) as added penalty for criminal breach of trust.
Nyame, who was convicted for misappropriation of about N1.64bn following his arraignment in 2007, had claimed that part of the funds transferred to his personal accounts, including the N101m for presidential visit, were part of his ‘security votes’, which do not need to be accounted for.
Justice Agim said it was inconceivable that a public official would believe that he can take public funds without accounting for how it was spent or returned to government coffers as anything outside that is “stealing”.
He said official corruption should be treated as a crime against humanity such as genocide.
On Dariye’s post-sentence appeal against conviction for diverting the state’s N2bn ecological funds, Justice Stephen Adah ruled that awarding the maximum sentence provided by the law was excessive since he is a first time offender.
Counsel to Nyame, Ahmed Raji (SAN), said he intends to study the judgment and advise his client on the next line of action, adding that some of the decisions made by the judge were not canvassed at the hearing of the appeal.
