A Director in the Federal Ministry of Finance, Dr Ali Mohammed, has told the FCT High Court in Abuja that former Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor, Godwin Emefiele, was not a signatory to the Federal Government’s consolidated revenue account from which N124.86 billion was withdrawn.

The witness, who testified in Emefiele’s trial over alleged disobedience to the direction of law and illegal acts, also said neither the Minister of Finance nor the Accountant-General of the Federation queried the withdrawal at the time.

During cross-examination by Emefiele’s counsel, Olalekan Ojo, SAN, Mohammed said the N124.86 billion was neither traced to Emefiele’s personal account nor was there any document before him linking the former CBN governor to authorising the withdrawal.

He further testified that the Ministry of Finance did not write to the CBN under Emefiele requesting the withdrawal and that none of three letters from the ministry and the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation identified Emefiele as a signatory or authorised the debiting of the funds.

The witness said he was invited by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) over the withdrawal but was neither interrogated about the circumstances surrounding the transaction nor asked to make a statement.

Mohammed also told the court that he was unaware that the money was withdrawn for the Hajj pilgrimage subsidy and had no knowledge of the public transactions that led to the CBN debiting the Federal Government account.

He said the Ministry of Finance only informed the special investigator appointed to probe the CBN under Emefiele that it was unaware of the transaction.

According to him, after receiving a letter from the special investigator, he summoned an emergency meeting with the heads of three divisions under the ministry's Home Finance Unit.

The officials reportedly denied knowledge of the N124.86 billion withdrawal.

He subsequently wrote to the Accountant-General of the Federation through the ministry’s Permanent Secretary seeking clarification.

The Accountant-General’s office, he said, also denied knowledge of the transaction and concluded that the withdrawal must have been carried out by the CBN.

The relevant correspondence from the Ministry of Finance and the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation were tendered and admitted as exhibits without objection from Emefiele’s counsel.

Emefiele is facing a four-count charge in connection with the redesign of the naira.

The EFCC alleges, among other things, that between October 19, 2022 and March 5, 2023, he approved the printing of 375.52 million colour-swapped N1,000 notes at a cost of N11.05 billion without the recommendation of the CBN Board and the approval of the President.

He pleaded not guilty to the charges.

After the cross-examination, prosecution counsel Abbas Mohammed asked the court to discharge the witness and adjourn the case.

Justice Maryanne Anenih adjourned the matter until November 26, 2026, for continuation of trial.