Farouk Lawan, a former member of the House of Representatives, was released from jail after serving a five-year sentence at Kuje.
In 2021, Lawan, who had previously played a significant part in Nigerian politics, was found guilty of taking a $500,000 bribe from Femi Otedola, the chairman of Zenon Petroleum and Gas Ltd.
On Tuesday, October 22, a video that captured Lawan’s release from Kuje jail went viral, reigniting debates about accountability and corruption in Nigerian politics.
The Supreme Court had sometime this year, upheld the Court of Appeal’s decision and affirmed Lawan’s sentence.
A five-member panel of justices unanimously decided that Lawan was guilty on count three of the three charges against him.
Lawan’s appeal was dismissed in the main judgment, written by Justice John Okoro and delivered by Justice Tijjani Abubakar.
The Supreme Court ruled that the appeal lacked merit. The court came to the conclusion that “the evidence was overwhelming, and the judgment of the Court of Appeal stands.”
In a high-profile case that rocked Nigeria’s political scene, Lawan’s legal battle came to an end when his five-year sentence for corruption was confirmed.
Prior to his conviction, which signaled a dramatic decline in his popularity, Lawan was a well-known personality and the former chair of the House Committee on Fuel Subsidy.
