ABUJA — In a landmark judgment that significantly reshapes Nigeria’s anti-corruption landscape, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court has convicted a former member of the House of Representatives, Hon. Onamusi Onadeko, while ruling definitively that legislative aides and political appointees are public officers.  

​The decision, delivered by Justice Chizoba Oji, wraps up an extensive eight-year legal battle led by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC).  

​Background of the Case

​Hon. Onadeko, who previously represented the Ogun East Federal Constituency from 1999 to 2003, was originally docked by the ICPC in 2017. He faced an 11-count amended charge tied to his actions while serving as a Senior Legislative Aide (SLA) to the late Senator Buruji Kashamu between 2015 and 2019.  

​The anti-graft agency accused Onadeko of utilizing two private entities—Stanton Engineering Limited and Haines and Baines Limited—to manage and execute N68.7 million worth of constituency projects. These projects encompassed the procurement of ambulances, hospital equipment, and primary healthcare drugs, alongside classroom construction across six communities in the Ogun East Senatorial District.  

​The ICPC maintained that Onadeko's dual role in managing companies that benefited directly from public contracts violated Sections 12 and 19 of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act, 2000. He was additionally charged with making contradictory statements under oath concerning his directorship in Haines and Baines Limited, breaching Section 25(1)(b) of the ICPC Act.  

​A Pivotal Legal Defense Overruled

​During the trial, defence counsel Wahab Olatoyebi argued that his client could not be legally classified as a public officer. The defence submitted that because Onadeko's appointment as an aide was temporary and non-pensionable, he fell outside the statutory category of public officers liable under anti-corruption provisions addressing abuse of office.  

​Justice Chizoba Oji firmly rejected this argument. Drawing on the defendant's official letter of appointment and invoking the Supreme Court precedent in Federal Government of Nigeria v. Farouk Lawan, the court ruled that legislative aides and political appointees sustained by public funds are indeed public officers.  

​The court underscored that this classification applies universally, regardless of whether the appointment is short-term, fixed-term, or non-pensionable.  

 

Judgment and Sentencing

  • ​Conviction: Justice Oji found Onadeko guilty on Count 11 for making inconsistent statements during the anti-corruption investigation. However, the court discharged and acquitted him on counts 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10.  

 

  • ​Sentence: Following a plea for leniency by the defence, the court sentenced Onadeko to nine months' imprisonment with an optional fine of N50,000.  

Broader Implications

​Legal analysts have hailed the judgment as a critical precedent for transparency in governance. By formally establishing that Personal Assistants (PAs), Special Assistants (SAs), Senior Special Assistants (SSAs), and Legislative Aides (LAs/SLAs) are public officers, the ruling closes critical accountability loopholes concerning public fund management and the execution of constituency projects by political aides.