Orji Uzor Kalu

Akin Kuponiyi

Former Governor of Abia State, Orji Uzor Kalu has hired a 12-man team of lawyers, including six Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SANs) as Federal High Court sitting in Lagos has fixed June 2, 2020  to hear an application seeking his release from prison.

The application is pending before Justice Mohammed Liman.

Orji is serving a 12-year jail term at the Correctional Service Centre in Kuje, Abuja for looting N7.65 billion belonging to Abia State.

The application was filed on May 12 asking the court to nullify his conviction.

Justice Mohammed Idris  who had been elevated to court of appeal, on December 5 2019, convicted Kalu and a former Director of Finance in the Abia State Government House, Ude Jones Udeogu of the offence of fraud.

Udeogu was sentenced to 10 years imprisonment.

However, following Udeogu’s appeal, the Supreme Court on May 8 held that the fiat issued to Justice Idris to conclude the case after he had been elevated to the Court of Appeal was “a nullity”.

The apex court set aside Idris’ verdict “as it relates to the appellant (Udeogu)” conviction

It ordered Udeogu’s freedom and the retrial of his case.

Kalu is now contending that no legal basis exists for his continued incarceration following the Supreme Court’s judgment which declared Udeogu’s trial a nullity and freed him.