A High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), sitting in Gwarimpa, has ordered the continued remand of former Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige, at the Kuje Correctional Centre, Abuja, pending the determination of his bail application on December 18.
Justice Mariam Hassan made the order on Monday after hearing arguments from counsel on whether the former minister should be granted bail. Ngige was first remanded on December 12, following his arraignment on an eight-count charge filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
Ngige is being prosecuted for alleged abuse of office and corrupt receipt of gifts from contractors of the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF) during his tenure as supervising minister between September 2015 and May 2023.
At the bail hearing, Ngige’s counsel, Patrick Ikwueto (SAN), urged the court to grant bail on health grounds, assuring that his client would not jump bail or interfere with prosecution witnesses.
However, the EFCC, through its counsel, Sylvanus Tahir (SAN), opposed the application, describing Ngige as a flight risk. Tahir told the court that the anti-graft agency had earlier granted the former minister administrative bail and allowed him to travel abroad for medical treatment, but he allegedly failed to report back.
He added that Ngige did not return the international passport released to him for the trip and only claimed it was lost after he was rearrested, an explanation the prosecution described as an afterthought. He urged the court to refuse the bail application.
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Justice Hassan adjourned the matter to Thursday for ruling.
Ngige is the sole defendant in the charge marked FCT/HC/CR/726/2025. In the charge, the EFCC alleged that he used his position as supervising minister of NSITF to confer undue advantage on companies owned by his associates through the award of multiple consultancy, training, supply and construction contracts running into several hundreds of millions of naira.
The companies listed include Cezimo Nigeria Limited, Zitacom Nigeria Limited, Jeff & Xris Limited, Olde English Consolidated Limited and Shale Atlantic Intercontinental Services Limited, with the total value of the contracts put at over N2 billion.
The former minister is also accused of corruptly receiving gifts totalling over N119 million through organisations linked to him, including a campaign organisation and a scholarship scheme, from NSITF contractors while performing his official duties.
The alleged offences are said to contravene Sections 17(a) and 19 of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act, 2000, and are punishable under the relevant provisions of the Act.
