18th December, 2025.
A Federal Capital Territory High Court sitting in Gwarinpa, Abuja, has authorized former Labour and Employment Minister, Dr. Chris Ngige, to continue on the administrative bail previously granted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.
Justice Maryam Hassan delivered the ruling on Thursday following arguments on a bail application presented by Ngige’s lead counsel, Patrick Ikwueto, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria.
The presiding judge directed the ex-minister to provide a surety who must be a Federal Government director with ownership of a landed property. Justice Hassan specified that the surety must deposit the property’s title documents alongside their international passport with the court registry.
This arrangement will remain in place until Ngige completes the process of retrieving his own international passport, which he claims was lost during a medical trip to the United Kingdom.
The anti-corruption agency had earlier placed Ngige on administrative bail based on self-recognition and instructed him to surrender his travel documents to the commission while providing one surety.
Ngige faces an eight-count charge involving alleged contract fraud and receipt of gratification totaling N2.26 billion. The EFCC alleges that the former Anambra State governor misused his position as supervising minister of the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund between 2015 and 2023 by awarding contracts to companies linked to his associates.
The charges include allegations that Ngige received N38.6 million through the Chris Nwabueze Ngige Campaign Organisation from Cezimo Nigeria Limited, N55 million through the Senator Chris Ngige Scholarship Scheme from Zitacom Nigeria Limited, and N26 million from Jeff & Xris Limited.
He was arraigned on December 12 and pleaded not guilty to all charges before being remanded at Kuje Correctional Centre pending the determination of his bail application.