A monarch in Bayelsa, Emmanuel Emberru, has been banned from entering the U.K. for 10 years.
The monarch, who is the Amaowe of Aduku in Sagbama Local Government Area of Bayelsa State, Tuesday, narrated his ordeal to a Federal High Court, in Yenagoa.
A prosecution witness, Mr. Emberru told the court that consular officials at the British Embassy insisted that the ban remains in force unless the court case involving the forgery of his Companies’ Tax Clearance Certificates (TCC) exonerates him.
The case was filed by the Federal Inland Revenue Service, FIRS, which slammed a 16-count charge against four accused persons bordering on forgery of Companies TCCs, forgery of signatures of officials of the tax agency, and forgery of official rubber stamp of officials of the agency.
The documents were allegedly forged to enable the monarch travel abroad but were detected by the British Embassy officials.
On Tuesday, the Court adjourned hearing on the case to November 4 and 5.
The 61-year old traditional ruler, who is FIRS witness in the case, lamented that the Embassy denied him access to the U.K. to attend the wedding ceremony of his daughter because he tendered the two fake TCCs which were procured for him by the four accused persons.
Mr. Emberru claimed that he approached the revenue authority for TCCs but did not know that the TCCs issued to him by the accused were fake.
The FIRS had told the court that the four accused conspired and counterfeited Companies Income Tax Certificates for 2010, 2011 and 2012.
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