The Special Offences Court in Lagos dismissed the request by former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele for Justice Rahman Oshodi to re-cuse himself from his trial.
Justice Oshodi in his ruling on Wednesday struck out the request stating that the allegations of bias against him were un-substantiated. The court held that the basis of Emefiele’s request is insufficient to justify disqualification, adding that it must be personal or based on some judicial reasoning.
Earlier on Monday, Emefiele, represented by his lead counsel, Olalekan Ojo (SAN), requested that Justice Oshodi recuse himself from the case. The request was based on the argument that the judge’s decision to allow the prosecution to ask a leading question, which was previously objected to, compromised the defense’s ability to conduct a fair cross-examination of the witness.
