A Special Offences Court sitting in Ikeja, Lagos, has adjourned proceedings until Wednesday, 26 February, to rule on whether the trial of former Central Bank Governor, Godwin Emefiele, will proceed under the current judge.

Justice Rahman Oshodi deferred his ruling after Emefiele’s counsel, Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) Olalekan Ojo, requested that the judge recuse himself from the case on grounds of alleged bias. A similar request was made by another SAN, Kazeem Gbadamosi, representing Emefiele’s co-defendant, Henry Omoile.

Emefiele is facing a 19-count charge related to alleged gratification and corrupt demands, brought against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). His co-defendant, Omoile, has been charged on three counts concerning unlawful acceptance of gifts by public officials.

During Monday’s proceedings, EFCC lead counsel, Rotimi Oyedepo (SAN), concluded the evidence-in-chief of a key witness, Adetola John, a former personal assistant to the ex-CBN governor.

Leading the witness, Oyedepo revisited his previous testimony from November 2024, in which Adetola stated that he received $400,000 in cash from John Ayoh, a former ICT director at the CBN, and delivered it to Emefiele in his office.

The witness also affirmed that he managed correspondence and visitors at the CBN Lagos office, while another aide, Eric Odoh, performed similar duties at the Abuja office.

During questioning, Oyedepo presented a WhatsApp message from Odoh, retrieved from Adetola’s phone by EFCC investigators. However, the defence objected, arguing that the document was for identification purposes only and had not been admitted as evidence. They also contended that the witness should not be required to read or comment on it.

Justice Oshodi overruled the defence’s objections, citing Section 224 of the Evidence Act, which permits leading questions on introductory or undisputed matters. The witness was subsequently allowed to read from the document.

Following this, defence counsel Ojo expressed dissatisfaction with the ruling. Instead of proceeding with cross-examination, he and his team orally applied for the judge to recuse himself, arguing that his decision had unfairly prejudged the case.

Ojo claimed that the judge’s ruling implied that the $400,000 collected by Adetola had already been proven to have been delivered, thereby undermining the defence’s ability to cross-examine the witness fairly. He insisted that Justice Oshodi should step down from the trial.

In response, EFCC counsel Oyedepo opposed the application, dismissing it as a delay tactic.

“In this proceeding, your lordship has ruled against the prosecution on multiple occasions. If the defence is dissatisfied with any ruling, they have the right to appeal,” Oyedepo argued.

“There is no evidence of bias. This application is merely an attempt to stall the trial. The court previously granted an accelerated hearing, and I urge this honourable court to direct the defence to proceed with cross-examination.”

Justice Oshodi adjourned the case until 25 February to rule on the recusal request.

Earlier in the proceedings, Emefiele’s counsel also informed the court of a separate application seeking permission to appeal a ruling from 8 January 2025, which affirmed the court’s jurisdiction to hear the case.