Obiano is to, among other things, produce two directors in the Federal Public Service with verified landed properties in Abuja as sureties
So, although granted bail, he is still in the custody of the anti-corruption agency until he perfects his bail conditions.
By Ishaya Ibrahim, News Editor
The immediate past governor of Anambra State, Willie Obiano, has been granted bail by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
But the conditions attached to the bail, TheNiche reliably gathered are rather too stringent and almost impossible for the former governor to meet.
He was arrested the same day he handed over to his successor, Professor Chukwuma Soludo on March 17, as the Anambra State governor.
According to the chairman of the EFCC, Abdulrasheed Bawa, Obiano has now been granted administrative bail.
Bawa disclosed this to journalists in Abuja today on the sideline of the 5th Annual General Assembly (AGA) of the Network of Anti-Corruption Institutions in West Africa (NACIMA).
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Bawa said the former governor had been granted bail but added that he was still in custody because he had yet to perfect his bail conditions.
Though he did not elaborate on the conditions for the bail, TheNiche gathered that Obiano was to, among other things, produce two directors in the Federal Public Service with verified landed properties in Abuja as sureties.
A group, Nigeria Renewal Movement, said such stringent bail condition was evidence of EFCC’s bad faith.
“If any further evidence of bad faith in the ongoing persecution of the erstwhile governor is needed, the EFCC has already provided it. It gave very stringent conditions for Chief Obiano to be granted bail.
“Even if there are such directors, how many of them will be willing to come out to declare ownership of such properties in a case involving the EFCC directly? The conditions for Chief Obiano’s release are almost impossible to meet,” the group said in a statement made available to TheNiche.
But the EFCC boss dismissed claims that Obiano’s arrest was political, saying, “Nothing political about the arrest of the former Anambra State Governor, Wille Obiano. He has been granted bail. But we await (when) he fulfils his bail conditions.”
Obiano was arrested last Thursday at about 8:30 pm by the anti-graft agency at Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos on his way out of the country.
He was later moved to Abuja where he is being quizzed over alleged mismanagement of N42 billion and contract inflation.