Matters Arising In The “Bobrisky” And “Cubana Chief Priest” Naira- Mutilation Trials

By Raymond Nkannebe

The decision of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to proceed against persons involved in the public abuse of the Naira, has continued to attract significant public attention. It was always going to be. “Spraying of the Naira” had unwittingly become a popular Nigerian culture. And let us face it, nearly all of us are guilty as charged.

To be sure, the resurgent campaign must have received impetus by the persons whom the anti-graft commission has elected to proceed against in stemming the tide of what Hon. Justice Abimbola Awogboro of the Federal High Court, described as a ‘menace’. From what we now know, it is clear that the anti-graft commission was deliberate in its choice of scapegoats in this regard: few persons capture the public eye more than the controversial cross-dresser Idris Okuneye, popularly known as “Bobrisky” and more recently, “Mummy of Lagos”; and internet celebrity, Pascal Okechukwu, popularly known as “Cubana Chief Priest”. And so, in driving the message home that abuse of the Naira in whatever form is out-lawed, the EFCC couldn’t have been more precise in its choice of ‘victims’.

However, whilst the jurisdictional powers of the EFCC to prosecute for the offence of abuse of the Naira as codified in Section 21(1) of the Central Bank of Nigeria Act (2007) remains controversial against the backdrop of the decision of the Supreme Court in Nwobike v FRN (2021) LPELR-56670 (SC) wherein the Court situated the extent of the prosecutorial powers of the Commission, the recent conviction of Bobrisky by Hon. Justice Awogboro of the Federal High Court and arraignment of Cubana Chief Priest before Hon. Justice Kehinde Ogundare of the Federal High Court, raises potential jurisprudential questions that border on degree of evidence and proof.

To start with, as of today, there is no known judicial precedent on the offence of abuse of the Naira vis-à-vis the parameters of its proof. The two principal penal instruments in Nigeria: the Criminal Code applicable to the Southern States and the Penal Code, applicable to the Northern States, interestingly are silent on the offence of abuse of the Naira, much less the ingredients of the offence. For its part, Section 21 of the CBN Act short of describing the various incidences of abuse of the Naira, does not set out what the prosecution must prove, to secure conviction. It would appear that much of that had been unwittingly left to the science of adjudication.

I suspect that it is in this regard, that some analysts have contended that Bobrisky might not have been properly advised by counsel, in his election to plead guilty to the four-count of charge bordering on abuse of Naira for which he has now been incarcerated for six months with the potential stigma of being an ex-convict. These critics, in their arguments, contend that it would have been difficult, in a proper trial, for the Commission to have proven the alleged offences against the controversial cross-dresser, as there exist loopholes in the law that would have operated to resolve any doubt arising from the trial in his favour.

Whilst presenting its case against Bobrisky, the EFCC it appeared, relied on his extra-judicial confessional statement wherein the cross-dresser admitted under caution that he was the person in the four video clips shown to him where he was seen spraying the Naira at different locations within Lagos metropolis. Added to his plea of guilt, it was clear that the prosecution had done more than enough. In the words of the trial judge, “upon the admission of guilt by the defendant, testimony of PW1 and following the evidence tendered, the defendant is declared guilty as charged”.

One is given to assume that the strategy of Bobrisky and his legal team was to appeal to the sentiment of the Court and make a case for leveraging the controversial platform of the defendant, to sensitize the general public on the criminal dimension of abuse of the Naira. This much, is seen in his plea of allocutus: “I am a social media influencer, with five million followers; and in all honesty, I was not aware of the law. I wish I can be given a second chance to use my platform to educate my followers against the abuse of the Naira”.

As it turned out, the trial Judge was more minded to make an example of Bobrisky to serve as a deterrent to potential offenders. “Enough of people mutilating and tampering with our currencies. It has to stop. His, will serve as a deterrent to others” His Lordship declared.

Unlike Bobrisky, Cubana Chief Priest and his legal team must have learnt quickly that taking the high road does not always pay. By pleading not-guilty to the charges against him, the controversial socialite, looks prepared to push the substantive and procedural aspects of the offence of abuse of the Naira, to its limits. Criminal trials are not a tea party. A daunting responsibility rests on the prosecution to prove the entire ingredients of the offence as well as the guilty mind of the accused person; what is popularly referred to as the mens rea of the offence in criminal law parlance.

In this wise, the Commission would be expected to prove that the currencies sprayed by Cubana Chief Priest during the event on 13^th February 2024 at Eko Hotel were actually issued by the Central Bank of Nigeria as per Section 21(1) of the CBN Act. It will be interesting to see how this will be proven by mere video evidence without producing some of the Naira bills and their serial numbers and successfully linking them to the defendant as forming part of those which he was seen spraying at the event.

Thus, I imagine that the eventual decision to be reached in the case, will once again test the age-long principle that what amounts to ‘truth’ or ‘fact’ within the context of court-based adjudication, is only what can be proven by real evidence. In the meantime, it will be interesting to see what Cubana Chief Priest and his legal team have up their sleeves as the parties prepare to present their respective cases in Court.

Yet, irrespective of the outcome of the matter, there is no question that much-needed awareness has been brought to the illegality of engaging in all forms of abuse of the Naira; particularly the fashionable spraying of the Naira at parties, nightclubs and other social gatherings. It is perhaps another proof of how effective law enforcement can recalibrate the moral and social fabrics of society.

A lawyer and public interest commentator, Nkannebe can be reached via raymondnkannebe@kenahialaw.com