…Ngige allegedly approved seven NSITF consultancy, training and supply contracts worth N366.47 million in favour of Cezimo Nigeria Limited
ABUJA, NIGERIA- The iNews Times | Dr Chris Ngige, former Minister of Labour and Employment, who is standing trial on an eight-count corruption charge, after Six days of being remanded in custody, on Thursday obtained bail from a High Court of the Federal Capital Territory sitting in Gwarinpa, Abuja.I
n a ruling delivered by Justice Maryam Hassan, the court adopted the terms of the administrative bail earlier granted to Ngige by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). As part of the conditions, the defendant is to present a surety who must be a civil servant not below the rank of director and an owner of landed property within the FCT. He was also ordered to surrender his international passport and barred from travelling out of the country without the court’s permission.
Justice Hassan dismissed a preliminary objection raised by the EFCC against the bail application, holding that the court possesses the discretion to grant bail, provided such discretion is exercised judicially and judiciously, without imposing unreasonable or arbitrary conditions.
The matter was subsequently adjourned to January 28 and 29, 2026, for trial.
Ngige, who served as minister between November 11, 2015, and May 29, 2023, was arraigned on December 12 by the EFCC over alleged contract fraud exceeding N2.2 billion. He pleaded not guilty to the charges, but the court ordered his remand at the Kuje Correctional Centre pending the hearing of his bail application.
The charges include allegations of abuse of office and receiving kickbacks from companies awarded contracts by the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF). The EFCC alleged that Ngige used his office to confer undue advantage on associates by influencing the award of contracts to their companies, offences said to be punishable under provisions of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act, 2000.
The prosecution, led by Sylvanus Tahir, SAN, urged the court to deny bail, arguing that the defendant had earlier violated the administrative bail granted by the commission by failing to return his international passport after travelling abroad for medical reasons in October. The EFCC also cited the gravity of the charges, noting that a conviction could attract a minimum of five years’ imprisonment.
In response, defence counsel Patrick Ikwueto, SAN, appealed for bail, stressing that Ngige’s right to bail is constitutionally guaranteed and noting that he is a well-known public figure unlikely to abscond. He further complained that the defendant spent three days in EFCC custody before his arraignment and raised concerns about his health, arguing that prison facilities were inadequate to meet his medical needs.
Ikwueto maintained that the offences were bailable and did not attract capital punishment, urging the court to grant bail under any conditions it deemed fit.
According to the EFCC, Ngige allegedly approved seven NSITF consultancy, training and supply contracts worth N366.47 million in favour of Cezimo Nigeria Limited, a firm linked to an associate, in violation of Section 19 of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act. He was also accused of awarding multiple NSITF contracts to companies allegedly linked to his associates, including Zitacom Nigeria Limited, Jeff & Xris Limited, Olde English Consolidated Limited and Shale Atlantic Intercontinental Services Limited, with the contracts collectively valued at hundreds of millions of naira.
The commission further alleged that between May and June 2022, the former minister corruptly received various sums of money from NSITF contractors through different channels, including his campaign organisation and scholarship scheme, in contravention of Sections 17(a) and 19 of the Act.
