ICPC Secures Conviction of Ex-Lawmaker Onadeko, Court Affirms Legislative Aides Are Public Officers

By Johnson Arua

The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has secured the conviction of a former member of the House of Representatives, Hon. Onamusi Onadeko, in a corruption case that lasted eight years.

Onadeko, who represented Ogun East Federal Constituency between 1999 and 2003, was prosecuted by the anti-graft agency over his role in the award and execution of a ₦68.7 million constituency project contract while serving as Senior Legislative Aide to the late Senator Buruji Kashamu, who represented Ogun East Senatorial District from 2015 to 2019.

The ICPC alleged that Onadeko used two private firms—Stanton Engineering Limited and Haines and Baines Limited—to execute constituency projects, despite serving as Managing Director of one company and a nominal Director of the other. The projects included the procurement of ambulance vehicles, supply of drugs and medical equipment to primary healthcare centres, and construction of classrooms in six communities across Ogun East Senatorial District.

According to the Commission, the arrangement violated Sections 12 and 19 of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act, 2000, which prohibit public officers from using their positions for personal benefit.

The anti-corruption agency also accused Onadeko of making contradictory statements during its investigation. It told the court that the former lawmaker had sworn in a June 30, 2016 affidavit that he was a director of Haines and Baines Limited, but later denied being either a shareholder or director of the company in a statement made to investigators on May 5, 2017.

During the trial, the defence argued that Onadeko could not be prosecuted under the ICPC Act because his appointment as a Senior Legislative Aide was temporary and non-pensionable, insisting that he did not qualify as a public officer.

However, delivering judgment on July 30, 2026, Justice Chizoba Oji of the Federal Capital Territory High Court dismissed the argument. The court relied on Onadeko's letter of appointment and the Supreme Court's decision in Federal Government of Nigeria v. Farouk Lawan to hold that legislative aides are public officers within the meaning of the ICPC Act.

Justice Oji found Onadeko guilty on Count 11 for making inconsistent statements but discharged and acquitted him on Counts 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 9 and 10. Following a plea for leniency by the defence, the court sentenced him to nine months' imprisonment with an option of a ₦50,000 fine.

The ICPC described the judgment as a landmark decision, saying it affirms that Personal Assistants, Special Assistants, Senior Special Assistants, Legislative Aides, Senior Legislative Aides and other political appointees who receive salaries or allowances from public funds are public officers under the ICPC Act, regardless of whether their appointments are temporary, fixed-term or non-pensionable.