– CCB, EFCC said Saraki borrowed huge sums of money running into billions from commercial banks to acquire several landed property in Lagos, Abuja and London – Saraki was also said to have failed to declare his ownership of several proprieties across Nigeria Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Bukola Saraki Details of how senate president, Bukola Saraki, a two-term governor of Kwara state looted the state dry has emerged. According to the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) Saraki allegedly syphoned Kwara state funds with the help of Guaranty Trust Bank (GTB) into his foreign account to buy property in London. This was contained in a joint response by the CCT and EFCC is contained in the counter-affidavit filed by the prosecution in the trial of Saraki on charges of false assets declaration.Saraki was said to have borrowed huge sums of money running into billions from commercial banks, particularly Guarantee Trust Bank and used the proceeds of the loan to acquire several landed property in Lagos, Abuja and London, while he was the governor of Kwara state. He was also alleged to have used public funds, running into billions from Kwara state government and lodged same in several tranches and in cash into his GTB account I GRA (Government Reservation Area), Ilorin, Kwara State. “Our investigation on the CCB Assets Declaration Forms for public officers filed by the defendant/respondent revealed the following: “The landed property listed as No: 42 Gerald Road, Ikoyi was visited by Mr. Ikechi Iwuagwu (Deputy Director, CCB), Miss. Geraldine Longsten (DSS) and Adamu Garba (EFCC) sometime in 2006 and discovered that the property was under construction. “Contrary to the declaration by the defendant that he was earning an annual income of N110, 000,000 from No: 42 Gerald Road, Ikoyi, Lagos, there were no tenants in the property as same was an empty land as at the time of the declaration. Contrary to the declaration by the defendant that he owned 15A and 15B Mcdonald, Ikoyi, Lagos as at the time of the declaration in 2003 our investigation revealed that the said property were acquaired in 2006 from the implementation committee on Federal Government Landed properties through his companies called Tiny Tee Limited and Vitti Oil Limited wherein he paid the sum of N396, 150,000 to the federal Government of Nigeria. “The defendant made an anticipatory declaration for the said 15A and 15B, Ikoyi, Lagos. The defendant acquired the property in the name of two companies because he could not buy two Federal government property in his personal name. “The defendant bided for and acquired 17, 17A and 17B Mcdonald, Ikoyi, Lagos from the Implementation Committee on Federal government Landed Property and paid an aggregate sum of N497, 200,000 to the Federal Government between October 2006 and 2007. Saraki was also said to have failed to declare his ownership of No: 3 Targus Street, Maitama, Abuja otherwise known as 2481 Cadastral Zone A06, Abuja which he acquired from one Alhaji Attahiru Adamu in his asset declaration form (of June 3, 2011.) and No: 42 Remi Fani-Kayode Street, Ikeja Lagos, which he acquired through his company, Skyview Properties Limited from First Finance Trust Limited on December 12, 1996. “Sometime in February 2010 the defendant obtained a loan of N375, 000,000 from GTB Plc in Nigeria, which he converted into 1,516,194.53 pounds sterling and gave instructions to the bank to transfer the entire sum to the united Kingdom in favour of Forts Bank SA/NV the purpose of which the defendant stated to be the full and final payment of mortgage redemption for the property he purchased in London,” Danladi said. CCT chairman, Danladi Umar has adjourned to March 24 for ruling and possible commencement of trial.
Friday, 18 March 2016
Tuesday, 12 January 2016
Ivanovic Set To Renew His Contract With Chelsea
Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanovic is already in talks with the club on his contract renewal.
According to The Times (UK), the Serbian is set to pen-down new terms with the London club.
It would be noted that the Serbian defender is yet to settle into the
new season, although has shown potentials of getting back to his old
self.
Possibly, Ivanovic may extend his contract for another one year as Chelsea continue the transformation process under new interim coach Guus Hiddink.
Meanwhile, there are reports that Jose Mourinho could be moving to Manchester United sooner than expected, as popular football agent Jorge Mendes is said to be in negotiations with the former English champions as they look to appoint the Portuguese.
According to The Times (UK), the Serbian is set to pen-down new terms with the London club.
Branislav Ivanovic
Possibly, Ivanovic may extend his contract for another one year as Chelsea continue the transformation process under new interim coach Guus Hiddink.
Meanwhile, there are reports that Jose Mourinho could be moving to Manchester United sooner than expected, as popular football agent Jorge Mendes is said to be in negotiations with the former English champions as they look to appoint the Portuguese.
Rivers APC Apologises To Professor Wole Soyinka
The Rivers state chapter of the All
Progressives Congress (APC) has tendered an apology to Nobel Laureate,
Professor Wole Soyinka on the recent accusation by the Rivers state
government against him.
Recall that the Rivers government recently expressed shock when it found that the ex-governor of the state, Rotimi Amaechi had spent N82 million to host Soyinka to a three-hour dinner.
Austin-Tam George, the state commissioner for information and communication, made the disclosure while addressing journalists on Tuesday, January 5, at the Government House in Port Harcourt.
The Rivers APC chairman, in the state, Davies Ikanya, tendered the apology through his Senior Special Assistant (SSA) on media and public affairs, Chief Eze Chukwuemeka Eze.
Eze said: ”On behalf of the good people of Rivers State, we hereby tender an unreserved apology to Prof. Wole Soyinka and assure him that Wike’s vile attempt to link him to an imaginary corruption has failed.
”The accusation is nothing but the ranting of a drowning man looking for whom to pull into the stinking pool. But Wike has over-reached himself this time, because Prof. Soyinka is globally renowned as a man of unimpeachable integrity, who has never been associated with corruption in his over 80 years on earth.
”The fact remains that Wike is currently in a pit full of faeces, looking for whom he will splatter the faeces on; sadly, he remembered our revered Nobel laureate. As rightly observed by Prof. Soyinka, Wike is ready to splatter sewage in all possible and improbable directions.
”The Rivers APC noted that Wike, in his desperation to demonise Amaechi and whoever that is associated with him, must have forgotten that his panel of enquiry, which investigated the former governor’s tenure, exonerated him of any financial misdeeds.”
”For Wike to try to disparage a respected personality like Prof. Soyinka in this manner only exposes him as a drowning man looking for any tool to stay afloat. If Wike is sure of his records, why doesn’t he go to court to retrieve the N82 million? ”
The party stated that the achievements of the Amaechi administration could not be wished away or cancelled through cheap blackmail.
Meanwhile, Soyinka has described the statement by the Rivers state government as ‘abominable distractions.”
In a statement issued on Wednesday, January 6, the Ogun-born professor said it was never his business to look into the catering logistics of the numerous luncheons, dinners, institutions, etc. that he attends all over the world.
Reacting to the allegation, Amaechi urged Wike to go to court if he has any cases of fraud or misappropriation of state funds against him instead of what he called ”silly distractions. ”
Recall that the Rivers government recently expressed shock when it found that the ex-governor of the state, Rotimi Amaechi had spent N82 million to host Soyinka to a three-hour dinner.
Austin-Tam George, the state commissioner for information and communication, made the disclosure while addressing journalists on Tuesday, January 5, at the Government House in Port Harcourt.
The Rivers APC chairman, in the state, Davies Ikanya, tendered the apology through his Senior Special Assistant (SSA) on media and public affairs, Chief Eze Chukwuemeka Eze.
Eze said: ”On behalf of the good people of Rivers State, we hereby tender an unreserved apology to Prof. Wole Soyinka and assure him that Wike’s vile attempt to link him to an imaginary corruption has failed.
”The accusation is nothing but the ranting of a drowning man looking for whom to pull into the stinking pool. But Wike has over-reached himself this time, because Prof. Soyinka is globally renowned as a man of unimpeachable integrity, who has never been associated with corruption in his over 80 years on earth.
”The fact remains that Wike is currently in a pit full of faeces, looking for whom he will splatter the faeces on; sadly, he remembered our revered Nobel laureate. As rightly observed by Prof. Soyinka, Wike is ready to splatter sewage in all possible and improbable directions.
”The Rivers APC noted that Wike, in his desperation to demonise Amaechi and whoever that is associated with him, must have forgotten that his panel of enquiry, which investigated the former governor’s tenure, exonerated him of any financial misdeeds.”
”For Wike to try to disparage a respected personality like Prof. Soyinka in this manner only exposes him as a drowning man looking for any tool to stay afloat. If Wike is sure of his records, why doesn’t he go to court to retrieve the N82 million? ”
The party stated that the achievements of the Amaechi administration could not be wished away or cancelled through cheap blackmail.
Meanwhile, Soyinka has described the statement by the Rivers state government as ‘abominable distractions.”
In a statement issued on Wednesday, January 6, the Ogun-born professor said it was never his business to look into the catering logistics of the numerous luncheons, dinners, institutions, etc. that he attends all over the world.
Reacting to the allegation, Amaechi urged Wike to go to court if he has any cases of fraud or misappropriation of state funds against him instead of what he called ”silly distractions. ”
#ThankAbacha - Nigerians React To $300Million Refund
Report surfaced yesterday, January 11, that the government of Switzerland had concluded plans to transfer the sum of $300 million recovered from the family of former military dictator, General Sani Abacha to the Nigerian government.
The fund to be transferred is said to be part of an estimated $5 billion stolen and kept in foreign accounts by late Abacha.
The country has in the past 10 years reportedly received over $1 billion from the Swiss and American governments and these recovered funds have been trailed with controversy as past administrations have been accused of misappropriating the fund.
Following report of the loot that would be returned, Abacha is now trending on Twitter, with some Nigerians thanking him for saving the money for the country. Some said the former military dictator did not still the money but only saved it for the future.
Late Sani Abacha
The country has in the past 10 years reportedly received over $1 billion from the Swiss and American governments and these recovered funds have been trailed with controversy as past administrations have been accused of misappropriating the fund.
Following report of the loot that would be returned, Abacha is now trending on Twitter, with some Nigerians thanking him for saving the money for the country. Some said the former military dictator did not still the money but only saved it for the future.
Monday, 11 January 2016
Ex-PDP Chairman Toyo Accuses Akpabio Of Squandering N4T
Otu Ita Toyo, the former chairman of the
Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Akwa Ibom state chapter, has accused
former governor of the state Godswill Akpabio of squandering N4trillion
during his administration.
Speaking in an interview with Premium Times, Toyo said Akwa Ibom state is broke.
He said: “Today we are broke. Is that possible, after N4 trillion?
“If you have N4 trillion and you become broke, it means you’ve not been doing something right.
“There is so much want in Akwa Ibom. There are real men who have lived a life of contentment in the past, but today they can’t feed their family.
On his defection to the All Progressives Congress (APC), Akpabio said what he was witnessing now wasn’t the kind of Akwa Ibom he envisaged when he conducted the governorship primary that produced Akpabio.
“I was looking for an Akwa Ibom where the state chairman of our party will call the government and say ‘listen, our party wants to achieve this, we are not here to build big houses and undergrounds and swimming pools, and local government chairmen buying 20 cars and building houses all over the country.
“If the Supreme Court says we should go for a re-run of the governorship election in Akwa Ibom state, I have no doubt that the APC will win the election.
“The people voting for APC will be largely PDP people who are unhappy with the way they were treated in the PDP.
“And that puts the blame squarely on the head of those who ran the party in the state in the past eight years, and those who ran the government in the last eight years.”
Toyo added that he would not support Udom Emmanuel who won the 2015 governorship as a candidate of the PDP.
According to him, his problem with Emmanuel was that he was the cause
of the political dispute that brought division and tension in the
state.
“It is not his making. I wish they had not dragged him into this. They have probably abandoned him and gone up to the senate.
“He’s got to manage it and he doesn’t even have the capacity in terms of experience to manage it.”
The ex-chairman also criticised the attempt by the PDP to resurrect the argument on the zoning of the governorship seat in Akwa Ibom state.
He said it was fraudulent in the first place for the PDP to have used senatorial district basis, instead of linguistics groupings, to zone the governorship of the state in the 2015 election.
“They are not true to the PDP zoning system which we all subscribed to many years ago. And they did not inform anybody when they changed the format, and therefore that cannot by any stretch of imagination be the subsisting PDP zoning system.
“This business of zoning on senatorial district is an afterthought by a fraudulent cabal who wants to hoodwink the people of the state and come in (to government) through the back door.
“Even if we come to Eket Senatorial District and we want to choose a governor from there, will you go to Awa which has had a governor before? Is that zoning? Chief Clement Isong was from Awa, in Onna local government area.
“Okay, let’s continue to push the senatorial district argument. If you were to choose on senatorial district basis, a deputy to a governor from Eket Senatorial district, where would that deputy come from? Is it not Uyo Senatorial District, given that the immediate past governor was from Ikot Ekpene Senatorial District?
“How come the deputy governor is from Ikot Ekpene Senatorial District?
“Their argument is that ‘Oh, we don’t want two Ibibio persons to occupy the offices of the governor and that of the deputy governor’. How come you are talking about linguistic grouping in the deputy governorship position, but you use senatorial district when talking about the governorship?”
Chief Otu Ita Otoyo had defected to the APC yesterday, January 10, alongside a former senator, Aloysius Etok, and a former member of the House of Representatives, Eseme Eyiboh.
The decampees including the ex-chairman of Ibesikpo Asutan local government area and many others were received into the party at a prayer summit and reception held in honour of Obong Umana Umana, the APC candidate, in the last governorship election.
Speaking in an interview with Premium Times, Toyo said Akwa Ibom state is broke.
He said: “Today we are broke. Is that possible, after N4 trillion?
“If you have N4 trillion and you become broke, it means you’ve not been doing something right.
“There is so much want in Akwa Ibom. There are real men who have lived a life of contentment in the past, but today they can’t feed their family.
On his defection to the All Progressives Congress (APC), Akpabio said what he was witnessing now wasn’t the kind of Akwa Ibom he envisaged when he conducted the governorship primary that produced Akpabio.
“I was looking for an Akwa Ibom where the state chairman of our party will call the government and say ‘listen, our party wants to achieve this, we are not here to build big houses and undergrounds and swimming pools, and local government chairmen buying 20 cars and building houses all over the country.
“If the Supreme Court says we should go for a re-run of the governorship election in Akwa Ibom state, I have no doubt that the APC will win the election.
“The people voting for APC will be largely PDP people who are unhappy with the way they were treated in the PDP.
“And that puts the blame squarely on the head of those who ran the party in the state in the past eight years, and those who ran the government in the last eight years.”
Toyo added that he would not support Udom Emmanuel who won the 2015 governorship as a candidate of the PDP.
Otu Ita Toyo, ex-pdp chairman alleges Godswill Akpabio squandered N4trillion
“It is not his making. I wish they had not dragged him into this. They have probably abandoned him and gone up to the senate.
“He’s got to manage it and he doesn’t even have the capacity in terms of experience to manage it.”
The ex-chairman also criticised the attempt by the PDP to resurrect the argument on the zoning of the governorship seat in Akwa Ibom state.
He said it was fraudulent in the first place for the PDP to have used senatorial district basis, instead of linguistics groupings, to zone the governorship of the state in the 2015 election.
“They are not true to the PDP zoning system which we all subscribed to many years ago. And they did not inform anybody when they changed the format, and therefore that cannot by any stretch of imagination be the subsisting PDP zoning system.
“This business of zoning on senatorial district is an afterthought by a fraudulent cabal who wants to hoodwink the people of the state and come in (to government) through the back door.
“Even if we come to Eket Senatorial District and we want to choose a governor from there, will you go to Awa which has had a governor before? Is that zoning? Chief Clement Isong was from Awa, in Onna local government area.
“Okay, let’s continue to push the senatorial district argument. If you were to choose on senatorial district basis, a deputy to a governor from Eket Senatorial district, where would that deputy come from? Is it not Uyo Senatorial District, given that the immediate past governor was from Ikot Ekpene Senatorial District?
“How come the deputy governor is from Ikot Ekpene Senatorial District?
“Their argument is that ‘Oh, we don’t want two Ibibio persons to occupy the offices of the governor and that of the deputy governor’. How come you are talking about linguistic grouping in the deputy governorship position, but you use senatorial district when talking about the governorship?”
Chief Otu Ita Otoyo had defected to the APC yesterday, January 10, alongside a former senator, Aloysius Etok, and a former member of the House of Representatives, Eseme Eyiboh.
The decampees including the ex-chairman of Ibesikpo Asutan local government area and many others were received into the party at a prayer summit and reception held in honour of Obong Umana Umana, the APC candidate, in the last governorship election.
SwitzerlandTo Return $300m Abacha's Loot To Nigeria
Switzerland’s government has concluded plans
to transfer to the Nigerian government, the sum of $300 million
recovered from the family of former military dictator, General Sani
Abacha.
This disclosure was made known by the minister of foreign affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama on Monday, January, 11.
The fund to be transferred is said to be part of an estimated $5 billion stolen and kept in foreign accounts by the late military ruler.
So far, the country had reportedly received over $1 billion in the past 10-year from the Swiss and American governments and the recovered funds had been a subject of controversy as past administrations were reportedly said to have misappropriated the fund.
According to Premium Times report in December 2015, the former minister of finance, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, with the approval of ex-president Goodluck Jonathan, allegedly authorized the diversion of N61.4 billion($300 million and £5.5 million) from the funds recovered from Abacha, to the office of the national security adviser, Sambo Dasuki, about three weeks before the 2015 presidential elections.
Okonjo-Iweala had said that the fund which was not approved by the National Assembly was meant for the purchase of arm to prosecute the war against insurgency.
Meanwhile, a fresh report showed that Jonathan reportedly left N13.6 billion loot recovered from f Abacha in the Nigerian treasury.
This new fact was disclosed by Benue state governor, Samuel Ortom in a chat journalists at the end of the National Economic Council (NEC) meeting presided over by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo at the state house, Abuja.
Switzerland’s government has concluded plans to return Abacha’s loot
The fund to be transferred is said to be part of an estimated $5 billion stolen and kept in foreign accounts by the late military ruler.
So far, the country had reportedly received over $1 billion in the past 10-year from the Swiss and American governments and the recovered funds had been a subject of controversy as past administrations were reportedly said to have misappropriated the fund.
According to Premium Times report in December 2015, the former minister of finance, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, with the approval of ex-president Goodluck Jonathan, allegedly authorized the diversion of N61.4 billion($300 million and £5.5 million) from the funds recovered from Abacha, to the office of the national security adviser, Sambo Dasuki, about three weeks before the 2015 presidential elections.
Okonjo-Iweala had said that the fund which was not approved by the National Assembly was meant for the purchase of arm to prosecute the war against insurgency.
Meanwhile, a fresh report showed that Jonathan reportedly left N13.6 billion loot recovered from f Abacha in the Nigerian treasury.
This new fact was disclosed by Benue state governor, Samuel Ortom in a chat journalists at the end of the National Economic Council (NEC) meeting presided over by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo at the state house, Abuja.
CBN Lifts Ban Cash Deposit Of Dollars, Others
In order to stem the tide of growing foreign
exchange crisis, the Central Bank of Nigeria has finally lifted the ban
stopping commercial banks from accepting cash deposits of foreign
exchange from customers.
This announcement was made by the CBN governor, Godwin Emefiele, in
Abuja on Monday, January 11, saying that the new directive takes
immediate effect.
He added that the CBN discontinue its sales of foreign exchange to Bureau de Change (BDC) operators.
The CBN governor accused the BDCs of excessive greed and rent-seeking practices, Premium Times reports.
He stressed further that BDC operators will now have to source for their foreign exchange from autonomous sources.
Emefiele disclosed measure will be put in place so that no operator violate the country’s anti-money laundering laws, stating the CBN would deploy more resources to monitor closely the sources of foreign exchange by the BDCs.
He said: “These measures are not intended to be punitive on anyone or any group,” the CBN governor explained.
“Rather it is meant to ensure that the CBN is better able to carry out its mandate in an effective and efficient manner, to guarantee the preservation of our scarce commonwealth, and that our hard-earned financial system stability remain intact to the benefit of all Nigerians.”
Meanwhile,the fiery preacher and general overseer of The Latter Rain Assembly, Lagos, Pastor Tunde Bakare, had released his state of the nation address tagged ”Roadmap to successful change”.
Bakare, who was the running mate to President Muhammadu Buhari in the 2011 presidential elections under the banner of the Congress for Progressive Change , called for the prosecution of the CBN governor, Emiefiele, because of the role of the apex bank in the widely publicised ongoing arms probe deal.
File photo of CBN governor,Godwin Emefiele
He added that the CBN discontinue its sales of foreign exchange to Bureau de Change (BDC) operators.
The CBN governor accused the BDCs of excessive greed and rent-seeking practices, Premium Times reports.
He stressed further that BDC operators will now have to source for their foreign exchange from autonomous sources.
Emefiele disclosed measure will be put in place so that no operator violate the country’s anti-money laundering laws, stating the CBN would deploy more resources to monitor closely the sources of foreign exchange by the BDCs.
He said: “These measures are not intended to be punitive on anyone or any group,” the CBN governor explained.
“Rather it is meant to ensure that the CBN is better able to carry out its mandate in an effective and efficient manner, to guarantee the preservation of our scarce commonwealth, and that our hard-earned financial system stability remain intact to the benefit of all Nigerians.”
Meanwhile,the fiery preacher and general overseer of The Latter Rain Assembly, Lagos, Pastor Tunde Bakare, had released his state of the nation address tagged ”Roadmap to successful change”.
Bakare, who was the running mate to President Muhammadu Buhari in the 2011 presidential elections under the banner of the Congress for Progressive Change , called for the prosecution of the CBN governor, Emiefiele, because of the role of the apex bank in the widely publicised ongoing arms probe deal.
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