Justice Maryanne Anineh of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court, Maitama, Abuja, on Monday, May 11, 2026, admitted in evidence newspaper publications tendered by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in the trial of former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Ifeanyi Emefiele, over the alleged unlawful naira redesign.
While leading the eighth prosecution witness (PW8), Jegede Oluwasegun, an official of the National Library, in his testimony, prosecution counsel, Rotimi Oyedepo, SAN, presented certified copies of The Punch, ThisDay, Vanguard, Daily Sun, and The Nation newspapers containing reports on the alleged unlawful naira redesign, alongside payment receipts for the purchase of the newspapers.
According to Oyedepo, the witness and documents were presented in response to a motion on notice filed by the defence counsel on March 31, 2026, requesting the prosecution to produce all press releases and newspaper publications regarding the alleged unlawful act.
The documents were tendered and admitted in evidence without objection from the defence.
During cross-examination by defence counsel, Olalekan Ojo, SAN, the witness stated that his duties included attending to the information needs of readers and certifying newspaper documents. He added that he was neither the author of the newspaper publications nor in a position to speak on their contents, as his role was limited to certifying the newspapers.
Godwin Ifeanyi Emefiele is being prosecuted by the EFCC on a four-count charge bordering on the alleged unlawful printing of new naira notes.
