Justice Maryam Aliyu Hassan of the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) has granted former Minister of Labour, Dr. Chris Ngige, bail on liberal terms pending the trial of charges against him.
The judge, on Thursday, adopted the administrative bail earlier granted to Ngige by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on self-recognizance, as part of the bail conditions.
In addition, Justice Hassan ordered Ngige to present a surety who must be a Federal Government director. The director must own landed property in the FCT with a Certificate of Occupancy, deposit the original certificate with the court, and surrender their international travel passport to the court registrar.
Pending the fulfillment of these conditions, Ngige will remain in Kuje Prison on remand.
Justice Hassan affirmed that the charges against Ngige are bailable offenses, noting that the Constitution presumes every defendant innocent until proven otherwise. She also cautioned courts against imposing excessive or stringent bail conditions that could amount to a de facto refusal of bail.
Ngige, a former governor of Anambra State, was arraigned on December 12, 2025, on an eight-count charge of corrupt practices by the EFCC. He pleaded not guilty to all charges.
His lawyer, Patrick Ikwueto, SAN, applied for bail on December 15, 2025, but the EFCC, represented by Sylvanus Tahir, SAN, opposed it. The EFCC argued that Ngige previously jumped bail, failed to return travel documents, and did not report to the agency until re-arrested.
Justice Hassan has scheduled the trial for January 28 and 29, 2026.
