A leading opposition politician and critic of Nigeria's President Muhammadu Buhari appeared in court on Monday on corruption charges, less than a week after he stepped down as state governor.
Peter Ayodele Fayose pleaded not guilty to 11 counts of criminal breach of trust and theft totalling nearly USD 18 million.
The Federal High Court in Lagos was told that Fayose, 57, and his company, Spotless Limited, took the cash to fund his 2014 campaign to become governor of the southwestern state of Ekiti.
The case was adjourned until Wednesday and Fayose was remanded into the custody of Nigeria's main anti-corruption agency, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
Fayose is one of the most prominent members of Nigeria's main opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and tried to secure the ticket to run against Buhari at elections next year.
He stepped down as governor on October 16 after a controversial election for his successor that was mired in claims of vote-buying by the PDP and the ruling All Progressives Congress.
As governor, he had immunity from prosecution.
He has been held and questioned since last Tuesday, when he voluntarily turned up at the EFCC's offices in Abuja with a crowd of supporters, wearing a T-shirt saying: "EFCC I'm here."
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