The Supreme Court has dismissed an appeal filed by the Minister of Transportation, Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, seeking to stop his probe over an alleged N96 billion fraud while he was governor of Rivers State.
In a lead judgment prepared by Justice Emmanuel Augie and read by Justice Adamu Jairo, the apex court dismissed Ameachi’s appeal on grounds that the issue of not being given fair hearing does not arise, as no one is on trial.
Rivers State governor, Nyesom Wike set up a panel of enquiry into the alleged fraud.
Amaechi had prayed the apex court to stop Governor Nyesom Wike from investigating his eight years tenure as the governor of Rivers State.
The former governor predicated his objection to probe on the ground that it smacked of witch-hunt, an attempt to embarrass and humiliate him, as well disgrace him in view of his political differences with his successor.
Governor Wike, who constituted a 7-man panel through his counsel, insisted that the Commission of Inquiry headed by Justice George Omekeji was to look into how N96 billion was allegedly withdrawn from the Treasury of the State government and how it was expended.
The court also ordered Amaechi to pay the sum of one million to Wike as cost.