Former commissioner for Finance in Akwa Ibom State, Bassey Albert, who was Wednesday released on bail by a Federal High Court in Rivers State has spoken to his supporters for the first time after his release.
Mr Albert, a serving senator and governorship candidate of the Young Progressives Party (YPP) in the state, was sentenced to 42 years in prison for corruption by a Federal High Court in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State.
The senator who represents Akwa Ibom North-East District was convicted on corruption charges preferred against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
The trial judge, Agatha Okeke of the Federal High Court in Uyo, had on 1 December 2022 convicted the senator on all the six-count charges against the senator and sentenced him to seven years in prison for each count, totalling 42 years.
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The term is to run concurrently – he is to spend seven years behind bars.
The senator was taken to Ikot Ekpene Custodial Centre to serve his jail term after the judgement.
Addressing supporters and the people of the state in his new year message posted on Facebook on Sunday, Mr Albert described the 28 days he spent in the prison as “unjust incarceration.”
There was heavy gridlock in Ikot Ekpene and Uyo as supporters and party members thronged both cities in a motorcade to welcome the senator, a gesture he described as “unforgettable.”
