FORMER governor of Enugu State, Chimaroke Nnamani, yesterday got leave from a Federal High Court in Lagos to travel abroad to treat an undisclosed ailment.Nnamani, who looked pale at the hearing of his motion on notice filed by his counsel, Rickey Tafar (SAN), had urged the court for a leave to travel overseas for what his doctor described as 'a long overdue medical treatment'.The accused, who is also a former senator, was last year re-arraigned alongside his erstwhile commissioners and some of his companies on a 124-count charge of alleged money laundering and economic crime to the tune of about N5 billion by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).However, in a motion on notice dated March 28, 2012 and brought pursuant to Order 24, Rules 1,2, 3 of the Federal High Court Civil Procedures Rules 2004 and Sections 6(6) (E), 36(5) and 41(1) of the 1999 Constitution as amended, Nnamani prayed the court for an order to travel abroad on the ground of ill health.In support of the motion was a five-paragraph affidavit, a written address and four exhibits marked exhibits AB1, AB2, AB3 and AB4, as well as a six-paragraph additional affidavit dated March 29 and an exhibit marked CC1, which was a medical report byDr.Segun Dawudo, physician to Nnamani, stating the need for the former governorto go on urgent medical therapy overseas.But counsel to the EFCC, Richard Mogaji, ina 12-paragraph counter-affidavit dated April 3, opposed the application on grounds thatit was not supported with sufficient material disposition to warrant the court to grant it.According to the prosecution,the medical doctor in Exhibit AB1 failed to disclose the nature of the ailment nor did he state that he was an experton the ailment inhis letter.The prosecution counsel, who relied on the case of Abacha v. the State,reported in the Federated Weekly Law Report (FWLR) Part 98 P. 83, at Pages 899-900 where the Supreme Court in that case refused the applicant's motion for failing to disclose the nature of his ailment but rather using the sickness as an alarm, urged the court to dismiss the application.But Tafar, in his reply on point of law, stated that the case cited was not relevant as it was an application for a bail.He, therefore, urged the court to grant the application, as he had presented sufficient materials before the court, including the qualification of the medical doctor who wrote the letter, to enable the court exercise its discretion judiciously.In his ruling on the application, the trial judge, Justice Charles Archibong, overruled the prosecution's objection and granted Nnamani leave to travel abroad and come back the next adjourned date.The judge subsequently adjourned till July 24, 2012, for the continuation of trial to allow the applicant complete a course of treatment stated by the medical doctor in his letter.
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