Justice S. J. Bukur, the presiding Judge of the Plateau State High Court sitting in Langtang has described as unusual the manner in which Low Land Micro Finance Bank carried out some transactions with the Plateau State Commissioner for Special Duties, Hon. Dr. Hitler Dadi.

The management of the Low Land Micro Finance Bank in Langtang had dragged Dadi to court for allegedly defrauding it of well over N1.7 million while serving as the Chairman of Langtang South Local Government Area of Plateau State.

Witnesses were presented to the court in support of the arguments that the accused person actually carried out the transactions with the bank, prompting the court to open a window for self defence.

However, when Dadi appeared in court personally to defend the allegations, the atmosphere became glaring that there were lapses on the side of both parties, to a large extent that the most controversial aspect that the accused also collected N600,000 became silent.

Dadi told the court that he remembered collecting N300,000 from the bank officially, but not the N20,000 also said to have been collected from the MD of the Bank on personal grounds.

On cross examination by the counsel to the Bank, B. Abbah, he demanded to know from Dadi how he came to know the bank.

Dadi said in October 2009 when he became the Chairman of Langtang South LGA, he was not aware that the local government had an account with the bank, but later told that a personal account had also been opened for him.

According to him: “I was informed by the MD that he has opened an account for me and I issued a N1 million GT Bank undated cheque on the technical ground that I must credit my account before I will be able to operate it.

“As at the time the cheque was presented, the account was not funded to clear the overdraft sum which I gave the cheque as security. But in the same month I was suspended as the Local government chairman, I gave my son N200,000 to pay to the bank and shortly after the matter was taken to the court I paid the remaining balance.”

Dadi said after he had paid some of the money, he was expecting that the bank will honourably return the cheque to him, but did not.

He also said that as a banker too, he was aware that it is a common knowledge that overdraft facilities attracts interest, stressing that if he were to pay any interest whatsoever, it will be within the N100,000 that was not paid instantly.

Having listened to the arguments from both defendant and the plaintiff’s counsel who took much of the time on why the transactions were done without proper documentation was due to the influence of the accused, the judge intervened by asking the plaintiff’s counsel to shift attention from the technicalities but face the bases on ground.

According to the judge: “The transaction was unusual to banks transactions as the one entered into between Micro Finance Bank and Hitler Dadi.

Based on this, the defence counsel asked for the discharge of Dadi.

But the Judge adjourned to July 27, 2017 for counsel to both parties to file their written addresses for adoption and await the decision of the court in the matter.