How Malami is undermining Buhari’s anti-corruption war — Special prosecutor

… AGF refused to prosecute major graft cases

…seized cars, buildings released to suspects

Malami, unreliable anti-graft war partner –Sagay

Allegations not true, AGF very committed –Media aide

A prosecutor with the Special Presidential Investigation Panel for Recovery of Public Property, Oluwatosin Ojaomo, has accused the Attorney General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami (SAN), of withholding approval for the prosecution of hundreds of assets forfeiture and other criminal cases.

He explained that the cases were investigated and handed over to the AGF’s office by the SPIP on the directive of the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), in 2019.

The President had in September 2019 dissolved the SPIP, while directing the AGF to immediately take over all outstanding investigations and other activities of the SPIP.

The PUNCH had reported in November 2019 that over 500 case files were retrieved from the office of the disbanded panel. The report noted that an eight-man panel was set up by the Department of Public Prosecutions in the Ministry of Justice to review the heaps of files.

Meanwhile, according to the prosecutor, Malami has failed to file the cases in court in violation of the presidential directive and section 1 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2015.

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He cited the case of two brothers, Ibrahim and Tijjani Tumsah, who he said allegedly retrieved without due process 86 expensive vehicles and real estate seized by the SPIP on the orders of a Federal High Court.

The lawyer demanded the prosecution of the siblings and other cases in a letter with reference no. OOC/TOL/12N/07/2020 dated July 14, 2020, entitled, ‘Request for the prosecution of Ibrahim Tumsah and Tijjani Tumsah for contravention of the Recovery of Public Property (Special Provisions) Act, 2004,’ addressed to the AGF.

Copies of the letter were also sent to the President, his deputy, Prof Yemi Osinbajo (SAN); Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed Adamu; Chairman, Presidential Adviser Committee on Anti-Corruption, Prof Itse Sagay; Transparency International and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime.

The properties retrieved by the Tumsahs included four houses in Wuse 2 and Jabi and a quarry plant in Kuje, Abuja, as well as 86 exotic vehicles comprising Wrangler SUV; Audi ASL; Toyota Hilux van; Ford Taurus; Mercedes Benz S550; Mercedes Benz GL 550; Toyota Land Cruiser; Toyota Prado SUV and many other expensive vehicles.

They were said to have been unsealed under suspicious circumstances and returned to two firms, Integrated Service Insurance Ltd. and Integrated Bureau de Change Ltd., belonging to the defendants who were previously arraigned on two counts.

Ibrahim, is an ex-Director of Finance and Administration at the defunct Ministry of Power, Works and Housing, while his brother, Tijjani, is the former Vice Chairman of the dissolved Presidential Committee on North-East Initiative.

Tijjani was recently appointed the interim National Secretary, All Progressives Congress, headed by the Yobe State Governor, Mai Mala Buni.

The siblings were investigated by the SPIP, chaired by Okoi Obono-Ola, over their alleged failure to declare ownership of the properties while being public servants.

Obono-Obla and other members of the panel were removed in a controversial manner and were directed to handover the Federal Government’s properties in their care to the government.

The chairman of the panel was also declared wanted by the Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offences Commission.

However, Ojaomo said the cases against the Tumsahs were dismissed due to the decision by the Court of Appeal that the SPIP did not possess the statutory powers to institute criminal matters.

He disclosed that several attempts made by the panel to get authorisation from the AGF to file charges against many criminal suspects failed.

The letter read in part, “Until the removal of the members of the panel, your office refused to give the approval which led to the dismissal of the suit against the duo (Ibrahim and Tijjani) and other matters instituted by the panel.

“One would have expected you to use your good offices as the AGF to save this matter by taking over and prosecuting them, but the ones that were taken over by your office were either withdrawn or application made for them to be struck out.

“This action has struck big damage (sic) to the anti-corruption war of this government as most of the criminal suspects indicted after investigations are back to town enjoying the stolen assets.”

The petition observed that it had been close to one year since the SPIP was dissolved by the President with a directive that all the matters handled by the panel should be handed over to the AGF for review and possible prosecution.

“None of the suspects has been charged to court as the case files are currently being kept in view at your office without any action and in clear violation of section 1 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2015,” the lawyer admonished Malami.

Ojaomo requested the AGF to either re-enlist the case against Ibrahim and Tijjani Tumsah or prefer new charges against them “as the properties which were seized from them worth billions of naira had been returned to them under suspicious circumstances.”

The lawyer offered to prosecute the Tumsahs if the AGF grants consent in accordance with Sections 383(1) and (2) of ACJA, 2015, noting that “the war on corruption must be fought without any sacred cow as directed by President Buhari.”

Ojaomo said he had not been sacked as SPIP special prosecutor, noting regrettably, that the AGF had refused to allow him to continue with his job.

He stated, “I was appointed as a special prosecutor, and I wanted to continue the cases. I was not sacked. The President only sacked the panel chairman and two members; I was not sacked and up till now, my letter of appointment is with me.

“I was supposed to continue prosecuting the cases, but he (AGF) has not allowed me to function. He was supposed to give the support to prosecute the cases; I have written several letters to him to allow me to prosecute the cases so I can recover money for the Federal Government. We are talking of over 600 cases.”

The prosecutor further said he had visited the AGF’s office several times and also met with him, but that Malami failed to respond favourably to his request.

He said, “Most of us that are ready to support the anti-corruption war have been hampered by the action of the AGF. I have also visited his office, they said they would get back to me, but they have not done so up till now. I met personally with the AGF and he promised to reach me, but nothing was done. They just want to hold on to the cases until the tenure of the President elapses.”

Allegations not true, AGF committed – Media aide

When confronted by the accusations against the AGF, his media aide, Dr Umar Gwandu, said Malami “is the one championing the anti-graft campaign of the government”, noting that the successes recorded so far were the result of his commitment.

He stated, “All the successes recorded in that direction were a result of his commitment especially in initiating and supporting justice sector reform, Executive Orders, anti-money laundering strategies, reparations and recovery of looted assets, among others.

“The current probe of the suspended acting chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Ibrahim Magu, is a practical demonstration of the commitment of the Attorney-General of the Federation to the anti-graft war. He spurs the fight against corruption in all its ramifications.”

Gwandu argued that the successes in the anti-graft efforts were recorded as a result of “the National Anti-corruption Plan by the Office of the Attorney-General of the Federation that saw to the provision of conducive atmosphere for coordinated operations among relevant agencies.”

Meanwhile, the Director of Press, Ministry of justice, Mrs Modupe Ogundoro, when contacted, did not respond to request for an update on the cases handed over to the AGF by the SPIP since last year.

Malami, not a reliable partner in anti-graft war — Sagay

Commenting on the allegation that Malami was sitting on 600 files, Sagay said he was not surprised, alleging that the AGF was not playing his part in the anti-graft war.

He stated that the AGF was at best lukewarm to the anti-corruption campaign, “if not hostile to it.”

Sagay, who shared his working experience with the AGF, also said Malami had discontinued cases being prosecuted by the EFCC without any rational explanation.

According to him, the Ministry of Justice under Malami had also withheld important documents and refused to cooperate with anti-graft agencies it was supposed to coordinate.

Sagay said, “My own experience with Malami is that he is very lukewarm to the anti-corruption war; he doesn’t play his own part. As AGF, he is supposed to coordinate common platforms involving the fight, common platforms where PACAC, ICPC and EFCC operate; he has not been forthcoming at all.

“There have been occasions where the ministry had withheld information, withheld documents and generally refused to cooperate with the other agencies and various bodies charged with the responsibility of the campaign. Yes, he is lukewarm, no question about it.

“So, I am not surprised that he is sitting on files because I have seen things before. He has entered nolle prosequi for cases being prosecuted by EFCC without any rational explanations.

“I don’t think Malami can be regarded as a reliable partner in the fight against corruption, he is at the very best lukewarm, if not hostile to it.”

Asked why his committee did not complain to the President about the AGF, the PACAC Chairman explained that they did not want to rush things, adding that the anti-graft agencies were still making progress despite Malami’s attitude.

He added, “In spite of that attitude, there is a lot of progress being made. The anti-corruption agencies went on regardless; that is where the whole idea of this insubordination (allegations against Magu) came in. But now, with the way things are, it is obvious that the time has come to reappraise the whole thing and to bring his role to that critical assessment that we are talking about.”

WASSCE: Don’t reopen schools until 2021, ASUU tells FG

The Academic Staff Union of Universities has said it supported the decision of the Federal Government to stop Senior Secondary School 3 pupils from partaking in the West African Senior School Certificate Examination earlier scheduled to commence on August 4.

The union advised the government to shut down schools until 2021 to ensure adequate preparations, citing the case in some countries such as Kenya.

Our correspondents had reported on Saturday that the Federal Ministry of Education met with officials of the West African Examination Council in Abuja and resolved to announce a new date for the examination.

The Minister of State for Education, Chukwuemeka Nwajiuba, had also said the government would consult with the four other countries under WAEC to set a new date, while announcing COVID-19 mandatory guidelines for schools which must be kept before July 29.

The ASUU President, Prof Biodun Ogunyemi, who made the recommendations in an interview said no reasonable government would take such chances unless parents would be told to sign an undertaking.

Ogunyemi said, “Look, Kenya has said they have closed all their schools till next year (2021); they too have exams to write. Safety first. If it means closing the schools until next year to safeguard the lives of Nigerian children and safeguard the health of all Nigerians, so be it.

“So, if that will help us to address cases that can lead to increase in mortality, I think Nigerians should go that way and all of us should see reason for it. If they need to cancel admission for the year, it is good for them. Life matters first, people must have life first before they can go to university. Are the universities ready to work now?

“Our position is that they should not experiment with the lives of our children. Nobody can tell; the situation may soon normalise and they can do their exams and there is another opportunity for external candidates around November. So, it’s not as if the door is totally closed.”

The ASUU president added that the union had not seen any evidence to show that schools were secured for students to go back.

He said, “The first thing that should be tackled is whether schools are safe. And if the schools are not safe, why do you want to carry out an experiment with the lives of our children? An attempt to send back the children to school at a time there is a spike in COVID-19 cases in Nigeria is like experimenting with the lives of our children.

“If they put all the things in place, including social and physical distancing, sanitisers, kitting the children as we see in other places, decontamination with water flowing in the schools and all the gadgets, why not? So, if government can meet all these conditions, then they can reopen the schools. But if they cannot meet all these conditions, they should not experiment with even 10 students in any school.”

Meanwhile, the National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools has said that its members are ready for school reopening and that as part of measures to curtail the spread of COVID-19, it has directed its members to open schools for about four hours daily.

NAPPS in an exclusive interview with one of our correspondents noted that since the Federal Government had given the directive on school resumption for terminal classes, it was relating with its members nationwide on a number of safety protocols to put in place.

The NAPSS National President, Chief Yomi Otubela, said, “Our association, as the registered umbrella body of private schools in Nigeria, has been interfacing with Federal Government representatives, including the Ministry of Education and other agencies, concerning how to combat the spread of COVID-19.

“The fact that pupils are returning to school does not mean that we are going to spend the total hours as it used to be in the past. We are considering a little time of about three to four hours in school. This is to ensure that there is no room for children to go on break and play around the premises.

“And we have also discussed with our members that there should be staggered resumption. Staggered resumption means that if the JSS3 class comes to school by 8am, SSS3 can come by 9am and the Primary 6 classes can come by 10am. This is to ensure that we don’t get the entrances and the exits crowded.”

The president noted that schools had been instructed to have infrared thermometers, and also avoid teachers marking students’ books manually.

death –Doctor whose patient died after cosmetic surgery

Blogger, others threatening to stone me to 

Dr Anuoluwapo Adepoju

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Dr Anuoluwapo Adepoju, the operator of Med Contour Services Limited, speaks to ALEXANDER OKERE about the death of one of her clients after an alleged botched cosmetic surgery at her clinic in Lagos

There were complaints about the standard of your services. For how long have you been practising as a surgeon and what exactly do you do?

I am a graduate of the College of Medicine, University of Lagos. I am a duly registered member of the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria, a member of the Nigerian Medical Association and physician member of the American Academy of Cosmetic Surgery. I am a cosmetic surgeon and have been practising since 2018. I am into cosmetic surgery – minimally invasive and non-invasive procedures. I have been doing non-invasive procedures for quite some time now. I have been doing minimally invasive procedures since 2017/2018.

There is an allegation that you market your services?

Basically, what I upload on Instagram is to educate the public about what I do and make them know that these things can be done in Nigeria and they are not as bad as they think. I don’t market my services.

It was alleged that the services you provide are actually unsafe. What is your reaction to that?

It is false. If out of about 1,000 patients, only three patients said the procedures are unsafe, I don’t think that (allegation) is credible. The numbers are there.

What is your response to complaints that you uploaded bloodied body parts and obscene photos of women who have undergone or were undergoing cosmetic procedures in your clinic?

We don’t show blood. We show the procedure we have done. We show the part of the body we have worked on. We don’t disclose patients’ information unless they have authorised us to do so. We only display body parts we have worked on, like the abdomen, back and the bum, and we cover the sensitive parts of the body when doing so.

What about the criticism that you play and dance to secular music while performing the procedures?

There is no law that says you cannot play music in your (surgical) theatre. It is not against the medical practice to play music in the theatre. You do what makes you happy and concentrate. If you love to play music while reading or working, no one will say you shouldn’t. If I need to exercise my legs after standing in a particular position for so long, can’t I move about? There is no law that says you shouldn’t move about or shake your legs a bit or shake your body a little while working. We do continuous motion. So once in a while, you can do anything that makes you relaxed while working. Like I said, the procedures are minimally invasive. I’m neither performing a heart or brain surgery. I’m also not performing an invasive surgery that requires all my attention. Those complaining about the procedures do not know and I try to educate them in my own little way. I hope Nigerians will do more research and see how these things (cosmetic procedures) are done so that they can make constructive criticism.

What can you say about the case of one Mrs Nneka Onwuzuligbo, who was said to have undergone a procedure at your clinic but died later?

The patient had a cosmetic procedure done with us. The procedure was successful. The patient was awake during the procedure. She was fine. She had a medical issue and was referred to a facility where she could be managed. She was there for about 31 days and later died.

What medical issue did she have?

I cannot state that for the sake of confidentiality.

Was it an issue that could result in death?

If managed properly, a patient should not die.

Where do you think things went wrong in the case of the deceased?

When a patient undergoes a cosmetic procedure, there are certain rules they should follow. For example, if you do a liposuction and transfer fat to the buttocks, you are not meant to seat on them (buttocks) for some time. A patient is then placed on a medication. So, anything could have gone wrong and I do not know what could have gone wrong (in her own case).

Did her family contact you or complain to you when she developed a complication?

They told me what was going on. I remember visiting her at the hospital and helping her financially at some point.

Did the family accuse you of being responsible for her death?

Yes, they did. It was what they were told – that I was responsible for her death.

Were you aware she had an underlying medical condition before she had the cosmetic procedure?

No. It was few days after the cosmetic procedure that I got to know about her condition. She started to show some signs and we ran some tests for more investigations and that was how we found that she had an underlying condition. Usually, we take a detailed history to be sure the patient is fit for surgery. We also run baseline investigation. And we did all of that. So, I guess the patient wasn’t aware that she had the condition. It is just like when you have malaria – you may feel it but you are not sure it’s malaria.

What did you advise her to do?

Because it was out of our scope, it was our duty to refer the patient to someone who would manage her better, and we did refer her to an institution to give medical care. She was there for 31 days before she passed on. We referred her to a multi-specialty hospital that has the department where her condition could be managed.

Two other persons, one Taiwo Temilade and one Marlene Oluwakemi, were also said to have lodged complaints against you. Do you know them?

One of them was my patient who went to a different facility to have a free surgery done; I was not the one that performed the procedure. All of a sudden, she came back to say that what we did for her wasn’t appropriate. Marlene is a patient whom we helped out after she reached out to us about her waist and all of that. We decided to offer help during my birthday. I called a senior colleague of mine who performed the procedure on her. Complaints about my services are frivolous. People who have real issues will come to the hospital and we will manage them, not go on the social media.

You were accused of not providing certain documents to the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Council which received complaints from your clients. Is that true?

They (FCCPC) are not meant to regulate or investigate a medical facility. The Nigerian Medical Association wrote to them and told them not to continue with their investigation. They (FCCPC) did not call me. They did not serve me a letter to say that they would like to find out what happened. They saw a social media publication, jumped at it without calling me to investigate. There was no search warrant. They met a locked facility, broke the gate, broke the door, went in, took pictures and posted them, saying that they were sealing the facility based on reasonable suspicion of illegal activities. This is something I have not been able to come to terms with it. They are just trying to bully my person and practice, because they say they are a Federal Government agency.

Is your clinic registered under the government and recognised by the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria?

Yes, it is.

Why didn’t you appear before the commission as alleged by the Chief Executive, Dr Babatunde Irukera?

I wasn’t served. I wasn’t called. I wasn’t given a letter. They did not inform me about anything. It was in court they charged me, and even the judge scolded the chief executive, who was the prosecutor. I don’t know what it is but one thing I know is this man has an agenda.

Have you been threatened by anyone in respect of the case you are involved in?

I have been getting threats from a particular blogger. The blogger’s followers say they are going to maim me. Some of them say things like I should be stoned to death. They sent me messages on Instagram but they are not my followers.

Adeboye unveils handwashing machines for schools

The General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, Pastor Enoch Adeboye, has unveiled integrated handwashing and sanitiser dispensing machine for use by schools as they prepare for resumption as directed by the Federal Government.

Adeboye urged the schools to cooperate with the government and make an adequate provision for preventive measures against COVID-19.

The cleric unveiled the machine fabricated by the Redeemer’s College of Technology and Management at the Redemption Camp, Mowe, Ogun State, saying it was in preparation for the much-anticipated resumption of schools in the country.

He noted that he looked forward to the resumption of academic activities in the country.

He said, “The machine which was fabricated as a measure to check the spread of the coronavirus in preparation for the reopening of schools has  features which include leg pedal designed to dispense soap, water and hand sanitiser; it has a water storage tank and also has a tissue paper holding device.”

Addressing newsmen after the unveiling, the RECTEM Rector, Dr Stella Mofunanya, remarked that the college which had embarked on e-learning following the closure of schools occasioned by the spread of the pandemic, deployed the fabricated machines to all entrances to students’ halls of residence.

“Others are lecture halls, laboratories, workshops among others. Adequate preparation for resumption has also been made with the production of customised nose masks, face shields in large quantity and the World Health Organisation-recommended alcohol-based hand sanitisers which would be distributed to the students and staff on resumption,” she said.

Mofunanya assured the fumigation of the halls of residence, classes, laboratories and offices prior to reopening.

Mother sentenced to 35 years in prison for beating her son to death with shower head for soiling himself.

Mother sentenced to 35 years in prison for beating her son to death with shower head for soiling himself

 

37-year-old JoAnn Cunningham has been sentenced to 35 years in prison for beating her son to death with shower head because he soiled himself. 

The mother who pleaded guilty to the first degree murder of her son Andrew "AJ" Freund in 2019, must serve 100% of the sentence and if released at age 72, must serve a further three years of mandatory supervised release and register as a felon who has committed violence against children.

Though the boy's family had hoped for the maximum 60 years behind bars for the 41 separate charges Cunningham and her husband, Andrew Freund Sr, faced between them, Judge Robert Wilbrandt who delivered the sentence on Friday afternoon said his decision was based on the fact that the murder charge to which Cunningham pleaded guilty did not include the aggravating factors of the original charges.

The couple had called to report that their son was missing on April 18, 2019. While an investigation found no trace of the boy or of an abduction at home; the police did find squalid conditions, bags of used syringes, chains and locks on the windows and doors of AJ's room and a combination lock on his closet.

A search of Cunningham's phone unearthed a video which had been shot on March 4: “AJ is seen laying on a bare mattress in a crib in a room I recognized to be his bedroom," Detective Edwin Maldonado of the McHenry County Sheriff’s Office, wrote in an affidavit. "In the video, a female with a voice consistent with JoAnn’s is holding the phone and videotaping. She is berating AJ for urinating on his bed."

The officer said that in the video the child is naked except for bandages around his wrist and hips; he is covered in bruising, Action News Jax reported. When confronted with this video, police said Freund confessed and showed them the shallow grave where he had buried his son.

Govt Urged To Retrieve Looted Properties, Prosecute Culprits

As the various allegations levelled against Ibrahim Magu, the suspended Acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), continue to generate reactions, the Federal Gov­ernment has been urged to retrieve all re-looted properties that has been sold at giveaway prices from whoev­er bought them.

Sunday Independent in separate interviews with legal practitioners and human rights activists advised that the Justice Ayo Salami panel should recommend the immediate retrieval of such assets from the buyers while investigation and due diligent prosecution of all indicted persons should be carried out.

While some of them said that anybody who bought the property innocently should retain what he bought without liability, but that the fraudulent officer should go to jail, some are of the opinion that any person and cronies, as culprits being in possession of looted cum stolen property, should be made to face the wrath of the law.

However, they called for an open and fair hearing for Magu and any­one that might be investigated or put on trial, as they said that if the alle­gations were investigated and found to be true, it would be a great setback to President Muhammadu Buhari’s anti-corruption crusade.

Femi Aborishade, a human rights lawyer, said though the EFCC under Magu embarked on media trial of its suspects and that Nigerians should not assume that Magu was guilty of the allegations, they remained alle­gations and he should be presumed innocent until proven guilty in the court of law.

He said that the allegations against Magu should not end at the level of the presidential investiga­tion panel, but that he should be charged to court along with others suspected to have helped themselves illegally, if found culpable.

He added that the loot should not only be retrieved but all those found guilty should be brought to justice by serving jail terms as the courts may deem fit under the law.

Goddy Uwazurike, a lawyer, stat­ed that re-looting and looting are both financial crimes and that it is a gross breach of duty and confidence for an officer entrusted with the re­sponsibility to betray such.

“There is a higher punishment for a person entrusted with respon­sibility than an ordinary looter. Any innocent purchaser for value retains the property he bought. The fraud­ulent officer will go to jail but the innocent purchaser has no liability. It is for the government to investi­gate and confirm the innocence of a buyer,” he said.

Uwazurike also said that any bank that colludes with officers to steal money or manipulate banking records has committed multiple offences and so should bear the li­ability.

Onyeisi Chiemeke, a Lagos-based lawyer, said the principle should be that no public fund should be looted.

“Something is wrong when we begin to fear that that which has been recovered may be taken again. But fundamentally, we need to query a system that makes it possible for public office holders to steal public fund,” he said.

Adeola Soetan, National Coordi­nator, Democracy Vanguard, in his own view said the suspicion that the recovered loots are being re-looted has been a sing-song over the years.

He said that there must be open and fair hearing for Magu and anyone that will be investigated or put on trial can defend themselves properly.

“I have no problem that the Pres­ident, whose mantra is anti-corrup­tion war is trying to look into the books of the EFCC or any other an­ti-graft agency. But, we must insist on open and fair hearing for Magu and anyone that will be investigated or put on trial so that they can defend themselves properly.

“All allegations are still specula­tive until when the panel submits its report and Magu is put on trial if need be and if found guilty that will be a great setback to the remnant of Buhari’s anti-corruption crusade. It will be very embarrassing for anti­corruption czar to be caught stealing recovered loot.

He said that Nigerians will lose total confidence in EFCC, ICPC and government’s anti-corruption war.

“It is a common knowledge that no mega fraud is successful without the connivance of the banks because most Nigerian banks are owned by big public thieves and the banks are purposely created for racketeering, this is the reason while the economy is going down, banks are declaring huge profit in billions. Our banks are part of the channels of looting by the corrupt bourgeois class; the institu­tion is not developmental at all.

“Government can retrieve any recovered assets sold to anyone or organisation illegally that breaches the rules. It may take some legal trip and time but it is possible if the gov­ernment has the courage.

Wale Ogunade, another legal practitioner, said that though they are still investigating the matter but that there is no smoke without fire.

He said there is no transparency, that what Magu ought to have done is to announce and make public the details and addresses of the seized properties and put it on the website of the EFCC for Nigerians to see, but since that was not done, it gives room for suspicion.

“These recovered assets that have been re-looted obviously is a shame­ful thing for it to be re-looted. Gov­ernment can retrieve any assets that has been illegally acquired or taken or gotten by fraud.

“The proper thing to do is to be publicised and it would be done through a public auction where everybody have assess and not that it would be locked and some people will have access to the detriment of others, so to me government has all the right to retrieve those assets that were found out to be sold to cronies, friends and relatives of Magu or any of his persons that are so involved,” he said.

Oladotun Hassan, Chairman Eti-Osa Bar Forum, stated that it is not new as previous chair of the anti-graft agency had had similar penchant records of grabbing and re-looting.

“Magu’s probe presumably is premeditated attrition to settling political scores amongst the highest echelons and gladiators eggheads of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), but to Nigerians and global community it expository reality show on how we are fundamentally unprepared for succinct democracy in Nigeria.

“Inevitably, there ought to be due diligent, prudent, fidelity and untainted disclosure in accordance with the EFCC Act of proper records of account of all material evidences and recovered assets and properties, particularly the discovered missing 322 out of the 836 recovered proper­ties in March, 2018 and other alleged corruptive tendencies.

“Unfortunately, most of the for­feited re-looted properties and pro­ceeds of corruption were found in custody of top EFCC officials, cro­nies and associates of the Acting Chairman and other recommend­ed beneficiaries, wherein records show they were clandestinely sold at a giveaway price.”

Oladotun stated that the probe panel needed to treat such accom­plice’s persons and cronies as cul­prits being in possession of looted cum stolen property if found cul­pable then the full wrath of the law should take its course.

“It is unacceptable fact and im­proper to re-loot recovered assets, it consequently amounts to deceit, lack of transparency, unlawful possession of recovered properties, nondisclo­sure and concealment of facts, lack prudential accountability, distortion and mutilation of official records.

Speaking further, he said the con­spiracy theory is unprecedented and highly expository to see how banks are now brokers and conduits of cor­ruption in Nigeria, in gross violation of the Central Bank of Nigeria’s Es­tablishment Act.

“It is illegal and unprofessional conduct for those identified finan­cial institutions to utilize or inter­fere with recovered financial assets in their custody in an unjustified manner.

“Highly regretful and improper to see how banks are also alleged to be conniving with EFCC to di­vert, steal looted funds by allowing the commission to place monies in interest yielding accounts, is rather compromising, fraudulent and crim­inal, such financial house needed to be vicariously liable for the acts of their staffs, while such staff be pun­ish for such criminal infractions,” Oladotun added.

Suraju Olanrewaju, Chairman, Human and Environmental Devel­opment Agenda (HEDA Resource Centre), said he is convinced that a huge percentage of the allegations are not true and they are just delib­erately concocted to give Magu a bad name.

“I was shocked seeing media re­port saying Magu did not declare the interest on the recovered N500 billion. He did not just recover N500 billion, he recovered N543 billion and even in the letter from the Office of the Attor­ney General, it saves the money in the CBN account.

“Every Nigerian knows that the Federal Government operates Trea­sury Single Account (TSA), which is domicile with the Central Bank of Nigeria. Every Nigerian should by now know that you can’t keep Fed­eral Government money again in the commercial bank, even the one that was recently allowed under the COVID-19 arrangement, the Feder­al Government had to issue a state­ment specifying those banks where you can domicile some of the con­tributions.

“There is a recovery account in the central bank so if there is any money that you will find in the commercial bank that is collected with the recovery process, it would be those money that were actually traced with those accounts that the EFCC would have applied for to the bank and to the court to have inter­im forfeiture or where they placed ‘post no debit’ instruction that can be in the bank pending the conclusion of the investigations or the prosecu­tion process and the moment that is forfeited, there is no way you can disgorge interest from the principal.

“The whole amount is moved to the treasury account by that bank that is a concern, so there is actually no way somebody could have done an arrangement with that.

“There is the allegation that over 300 properties cannot be accounted for where are they, list them recov­ered from who? So, it is not just suf­ficient enough to say he recovered over 500 properties and they say they could not account for over 300 where are they? Some of the allegations are fabrications.”  

FG Approves NICTIB 2 For Network Extension Into Hinterland

The Federal Government has approved the National Information Communications Technology Infrastructure Backbone (NICTIB II) for the extension of the network to the northern part of the country.

Prof. Mohammed Abubakar, Managing-Director, Galaxy Backbone (GBB), made this known during a facility tour by the Emir of Gombe, Alhaji Abubakar Shehu-Abubakar lll, on Saturday in Abuja.

Abubakar explained that NICTIB I focused on South-South, South-East and South-West, while NICTIB II was focused more on the North East and North West of the country.

“The farther network will provide a backbone,” the GBB boss said.

Abubakar said that the network connectivity made it possible for organisations, enterprises and individuals to communicate and was best using the NICTIB II project.

He, however, gave an assurance that the network would be equally distributed so that every city would have the same backbone and use the fibre comfortably.

“Recently, there is an approval from the government to go on with the NICTIB II project.”

“When we bring the network, we will try to distribute it to all the cities so that anywhere you are, you can use the fibre.”

“We were able to pull the fibre cables from Lagos to some parts of the South-South, we came to South East (Enugu) and we came to Calabar and Port Harcourt.”

“We came to Makurdi, Nasarawa State and Abuja.  So, we now have our presence in terms of fibre optics along those routes.”

“The NICTIB II is focusing on the hinterland that is toward the northern part of the country.”

“We will roll out this particular backbone infrastructure to move from Abuja to Plateau, Gombe, Bauchi, Maiduguri, Kano, and the northwest.”

“That is what we are doing and it will cover most of the states in the north, apart from what we call the Metro Fiber Network in major cities,” he said.

On e-commerce, Abubakar said that the NICTIB II would make lots of economic activities easier, by making people buy and sell without necessarily travelling outside the country when put in place.

“There is e-commerce where you can request what you want to buy and make payment. The goods will be supplied from any part of the world without spending money to travel.”

“This will reduce the cost and ultimately boost the issue of whatever kind of business transaction you are making. It will bring a lot of economic activities when putting in place.”

“The direction at which the world is moving is what we call Fortran industrial revolution, this is main knowledge-based such as the GSM and internet,” Abubakar said.

In his response, the Emir, who was accompanied by his entourage, expressed delight, thanked the government and commended the GBB for going a long way with the NICTIB II project.

He said that the project would go a long way in helping people, especially in the rural areas in terms of communication, businesses and other things that required the use of the fibre.

“We are very glad and we cannot wait to start enjoying this fibre in Gombe State,” the Emir said.

Sanwo-Olu to empower one million youths with digital skills by 2023

The Lagos State Government led by Governor Babajide SanwoOlu, through the office of the Special Adviser on Education, Mr. Tokunbo Wahab, has kicked off ‘Jobs Initiative Lagos’ – an initiative targeted at young people in eight Lagos-based tertiary institutions.

The initiative aims at providing complementary training of students in their ultimate and penultimate year in entrepreneurship, employability and basic digital skills required for the workplace.

The essence of the programme is to account for the documented gaps in current curriculum that bedevils the employment market and to increase labour employability of graduates in Nigeria’s Centre of Excellence.

Candidates who complete the programme will get an opportunity to be featured on a jobs portal from where partner corporate organisations can select fresh graduates for recruitment.

This initiative will run alongside a more robust digital skills campaign ‘Digital Skills Initiative Lagos’ (www.dsilagos.ng) aimed at empowering over one million young people in the state by 2023 with digital skills, which will invariably position Lagos as the Tech Hub of Africa.

Students in secondary schools in Lagos would have access to well-trained instructors while those out of school would access digital skills training and various internship opportunities as they complete the programmes.

The projects are being coordinated by LoftyInc Allied Partners Limited – an innovation development company that develops start-up teams, manages innovation programmes, and facilitates impact projects in West Africa

We’ll release facts about Flying Officer Tolulope Arotile’s death today — NAF

The Nigerian Air Force (NAF) has pledged to give details of its preliminary investigation into the circumstances surrounding the death of Nigeria’s first female combat helicopter pilot, Flying Officer Tolulope Arotile on Sunday.

Its Director Public Relations and Information, Air Commodore Ibikunle Daramola, had linked the pilot’s death to a car accident at the NAF Base in Kaduna in a statement.

It was reported that Arotile was knocked down by a reversing vehicle driven by an old schoolmate, who was excited to see her.

 

Daramola, in a statement on Saturday, said: “The Nigerian  Air Force (NAF) tomorrow, 19 July 2020, hold a press conference to give details on the outcome of its preliminary investigation into the circumstances surrounding the death of Flying Officer Tolulope Arotile which occurred on 14 July 2020.

“The event will take place at the Air Marshal MD Umar Blue Room at Headquarters NAF Abuja at 2 pm. Accordingly, members of the press are please invited to cover the event.”

The NAF’s spokesperson had in an interview with one of the national newspapers disclosed two persons have been arrested for questioning over the pilot’s death.

Unpaid salaries: Ekiti Labour gives 14-day strike notice to Fayemi

The Ekiti State organised labour, has given a 14-day notice to Governor Kayode Fayemi to pay all outstanding benefits to workers or face indefinite industrial action.

A letter dated July 16 and addressed to Fayemi, said the ultimatum commences from Monday, July 20 and lapses on August 3, within which the governor is expected to redeem his pledge or face mass action.

The letter was jointly signed by the Chairmen of Nigerian Labour Congress, Com. Kolapo Olatunde, his counterparts in the Trade Union Congress, Com. Sola Adigun and Joint Negotiating Council, Com. Kayode Fatomiluyi, as well as their Secretaries.

In a statement made available to journalists in Ado Ekiti, on Saturday, the labour demanded immediate payment of outstanding workers’ promotion arrears, deductions, salaries, allowances, bonuses and other benefits within the stipulated time, to avert industrial strife in Ekiti. It regretted that they had written over five letters to the governor reminding him of the need to redeem his pledge, but without correspondence responses, which they branded as an act of “betrayal”.

“Arising from foregoing, we felt dazed and betrayed by the state government for not reciprocating our patriotic zeal and disposition to the state corporate governance by not acceding to any of workers’ demands since the beginning of the present administration which is now close to two years. This is painful.

“On the strength of the above , the state government is hereby called upon to implement all the above listed items within the next fourteen days with effect from Monday, 20th July, 2020 failure,  workers shall embark on 3 days warning strike commencing in the mid-night of Monday, 3rd August, 2020.”

Reeling out the grey areas that needed to be resolved to avert impending strike, the organised labour said: “We considered it sacrilegious, the non-implementation of financial benefits arising from the letters of promotion given to all deserving workers from years 2015, 2016,2017,2018 and 2019 and advancement. “Pay three months gross salaries arrears and five months deductions for State Workers and Secondary School teachers. Six months gross salaries and six months deductions for Local government workers and Primary School Teachers”. The organised labour frowned at the attitude of the State Government for not injecting more funds into car and Housing loans to enable more workers have access. “Also, hazard allowance for Health workers working under this ravaging COVID-19 Pandemic should be paid with immediate effect”, labour demanded. The labour said it was appalled by the planned deduction of 15 per cent from gratuities and pensions payable to pensioners without due consultation, saying the unions will support any popular decision taken by the pensioners on the matter. It urged the government to finetune arrangements for the signing of the final agreement for the implementation of the N30,000 new minimum wage across the board. (Vanguard)

COVID-19: No reported cases in the last 24 hours

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has claimed no state reported a new COVID-19 case within the last 24 hours.

NCDC, however, announced 653 outstanding cases which pushed the total number of confirmed cases to 36,107.

In an update on its official website, the agency put the death rate at 778, active cases at 20,391, discharged cases at 14,938 and samples already tested at 209,446.

It read: “On the 18th July 2020, 653 new confirmed cases and 6 deaths were recorded in Nigeria. No new state has reported a case in the last 24 hours.

“Till date, 36107 COVID-19 cases have been confirmed, 14938 cases have been discharged and 778 deaths have been recorded in 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory.”

Of the 653 new cases reported from 28 states, 115 are in Lagos, 85 in Kwara, 80 in Enugu and 78 in FCT Abuja