Contract Scam: Court Grants Kaduna Deputy Speaker Bail

A Federal High Court sitting in Kaduna today granted bail to Deputy Speaker, Kaduna State House of Assembly, Mr. Dogara Mato, and six officials of Lere Local Government Area of the state accused of involement in a N30 million contract scandal.
The Deputy Speaker and other local government officials were charged before the court by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for alleged conspiracy in contract inflation amounting to N30 million.
The other accused persons are: Mr.  Kabiru Tahir Malali, Mr. Ahmed Yahaya, Mr. Bili Amos, Mr. Yushu’a Aboki, Mrs Hannatu Liya and Mr. Eric Alhassan.
The Presiding Judge, Justice Marcellous Awokenlehin, in a bail application ruling, granted  the accused persons bail in the sum of  N1.5 million each with two sureties who must be directors in the Federal Civil Service and must have landed property in Kaduna, for the deputy speaker, while the others will have assistant directors in the Kaduna State Civil Service and possess similar property in the state.
The judge had on the 14^th of January 2013, remanded the deputy speaker in the EFCC custody and the other six suspects in prison when they were first arraigned before the court.
He, however, fixed the 10th and 11th February, 2013 for hearing of the case.