A director in the Federal Ministry of Finance has told a Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court in Maitama that the ministry and the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation (OAGF) were unaware of the withdrawal of N124.86 billion from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
Ali Mohammed, who appeared as the 10th prosecution witness (PW10) in the trial of former CBN governor Godwin Emefiele, gave the testimony during proceedings on Tuesday.
Mohammed was led in evidence by Abbas Mohammed, counsel to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
The finance ministry director told the court that the N124.86 billion transaction was classified in the ministry’s records as a “direct debit” by the apex bank.
According to him, the ministry became aware of the transaction after receiving a letter from an investigation team concerning about N154 billion reportedly withdrawn by the CBN.
Mohammed said he subsequently contacted the three divisions under his supervision to determine whether they had prior knowledge of the transaction.
He told the court that none of the divisions was aware of the withdrawal, despite the fact that the State and Public Finance Investment Division oversees the CBN.
The witness said he later wrote, through the permanent secretary, to the OAGF to determine whether the office was aware of the transaction.
He said the OAGF responded that it was also unaware of the transaction and described the money as a direct credit from the CBN.
Mohammed explained that he relied on the OAGF’s response before replying to the special investigator handling the matter.
Documents exchanged between the Federal Ministry of Finance and the OAGF were subsequently tendered by the prosecution and admitted in evidence after defence counsel Olalekan Ojo raised no objection.
Explaining one of the documents, Mohammed said it established that the N124.86 billion withdrawal was not known to the Federal Ministry of Finance.
He also explained the meaning of the term “direct debit” used in the document.
“Direct debit means it was withdrawn from the Central Bank of Nigeria without recourse of any office in Nigeria. That is what it means,” he told the court.
Mohammed further testified that the OAGF, which is supervised by the finance ministry, would ordinarily receive a directive before such a withdrawal could be made.
He added that the document before the court did not show that the finance ministry had directed the OAGF to make the withdrawal, particularly from the Consolidated Revenue Fund.
CBN Director Gives Further Evidence
Earlier in the proceedings, Hamisu Abdullahi, director of banking services at the CBN and the ninth prosecution witness (PW9), continued his testimony.
The prosecution referred Abdullahi to an email he had mentioned during cross-examination on May 4, 2026.
Abdullahi told the court that the email was generated from the CBN’s computer system, certified as a true copy and accompanied by a certificate of compliance.
According to him, the email conveyed a directive from the then CBN governor to recover a N1.4 billion debit in the receivables account from the Consolidated Revenue Fund.
The witness identified the document when it was presented to him.
The prosecution subsequently tendered the email and its accompanying certificate, with defence counsel Ojo raising no objection to their admission.
Presiding judge Maryanne Anineh admitted the documents as Exhibits AH1 and AH2.
Abdullahi was thereafter discharged from the witness box.
The court adjourned the case until Wednesday for cross-examination and continuation of the trial.
What Is the Emefiele Trial About?
Emefiele is being prosecuted by the EFCC on a four-count charge bordering on alleged disobedience to lawful directives and unlawful acts allegedly causing harm to members of the public in connection with the naira redesign policy.
The latest testimony introduces fresh evidence concerning the alleged movement of billions of naira from the CBN and whether relevant federal government financial authorities were aware of or authorised the transactions.
The testimony is part of the ongoing prosecution case against the former apex bank governor, who has pleaded not guilty to the charges.
