The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission on Monday urged the Federal Capital Territory High Court, Gwarimpa, Abuja, to deny former Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige, bail over what it described as a clear breach of the administrative bail earlier granted to him by the Commission.
Ngige was arraigned before Justice M. A. Hassan on an eight count charge bordering on alleged contract fraud and acceptance of gifts amounting to N2,261,722,535.84. The charges were filed by the EFCC following investigations into transactions linked to his tenure as minister.
Arguing against the bail application, prosecution counsel, Sylvanus Tahir, SAN, told the court that Ngige failed to return his international passport to the EFCC after being permitted to travel abroad on medical grounds. Tahir said the former minister had undertaken to return the passport on November 19, 2025, but did not do so until he was later arrested by the Commission.
The prosecution further questioned the explanation offered by the defendant, noting that Ngige claimed he could not obtain an affidavit of loss in the United Kingdom but chose to return to Nigeria to obtain one. According to Tahir, nothing prevented the defendant from filing the necessary police report and affidavit in London where the alleged loss occurred.
“What stopped him from obtaining a relevant police report from London?” Tahir asked the court. “The logical thing to do was to depose an affidavit of loss in that country. What does the Nigerian police know about a loss of passport in the UK?”
He maintained that Ngige was in gross violation of the administrative bail granted by the EFCC and warned the court to exercise caution in considering a fresh bail application. Tahir argued that granting bail under similar terms would undermine the provisions of Section 162 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2015.
“What we are saying, my Lord, is that the defendant is in gross breach of the administrative bail granted by the EFCC. Suddenly, he is asking this court to grant him bail on similar terms. Let us not shoot ourselves in the leg,” he said, adding that the totality of the case called for extreme caution. He urged the court to refuse the bail application and instead order an accelerated trial.
In response, counsel to the defendant, Patrick Ikweato, SAN, asked the court to admit Ngige to bail, stating that all grounds for the request were clearly set out in the application before the court.
“I am asking my Lord to admit the defendant to bail. The appeals are stated in the application. We rely on all the processes as well as the written application,” Ikweato told the court.
Justice Hassan adjourned the matter to Thursday, December 18, 2025, for ruling on the bail application.
