A Federal Capital Territory High Court in Abuja has ordered the remand of Usman Yusuf, former Executive Secretary of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), at the Kuje Correctional Facility.
Justice Chinyere Nwecheonwu issued the order following Yusuf’s arraignment on Monday where he pleaded not guilty to a five-count amended charge of fraud brought against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
Yusuf is accused of abusing his office to gain undue benefits between 2016 and 2017, including awarding contracts without following procurement procedures.
After his plea, Yusuf’s counsel, O.I. Habeeb, requested his client be held in EFCC custody pending a bail application hearing. However, Justice Nwecheonwu overruled this, stating that once arraigned, the custody of the accused transfers to the Nigerian Correctional Service. She thus ordered Yusuf’s remand at Kuje Correctional Centre until the bail application could be heard.
The case is adjourned to February 12, 2025, for the hearing of the bail application.
The detention of Yusuf has elicited strong reactions, notably from Atiku Abubakar, the 2023 presidential candidate for the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). In a tweet on Friday, Atiku described Yusuf as a “fierce and unyielding social critic,” suggesting his arrest might be politically motivated. He stated, “Though the charges against him have been festering since the previous administration, it is impossible to ignore the strong likelihood that his detention is politically motivated.”
Atiku further criticized the Tinubu administration, saying, “The Tinubu government, despite being riddled with individuals who themselves are embroiled in scandals and investigations by both local and international authorities, continues to use the very machinery of the state to silence its critics. It weaponises these pending investigations to suppress all opposition.”