IMMEDIATE past Kogi State Governor, Alhaji Yahaya Bello has refuted the claim of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) Chairman, Ola Olukoyede that he withdrew the sum of $840,000 from state government coffers to pay for his children’s school fees. The clarification was contained in a statement by Yahaya Bello’s Media Office, made available to News Point Nigeria, Friday. According to the statement, Yahaya Bello’s children have attended the American International School, Abuja well before he became Governor and he has paid fees for his children as and when due and without fail. See full statement below: MEDIA OFFICE…
Author: Farouk Abbas
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Summoned To Show Cause Why He Shouldn’t Be Committed To Prison A KOGI State High Court sitting in Lokoja has ordered the Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Ola Olukoyede, to appear in court on May 13, 2024, to show cause why an order of committal should not be made against him for allegedly disobeying court order. The EFCC boss is facing a contempt charge for carrying out “some acts upon which they (the EFCC) have been restrained” by the Court on February 9, 2024, pending the determination of the substantive Originating Motion. Justice I. A. Jamil, delivering…
CHIEFTAINS of the ruling All Progressives Congress have said that an unbiased assessment of the alleged media trial of the immediate past Governor of Kogi State, Yahaya Bello, by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission goings showcases grounds for strong suspicion of vendetta. The Stakeholders, who spoke at a press conference in Abuja on Friday said, while the public was being misled into the erroneous impression that the EFCC was trying to fight corruption, “it is actually just a pretense in furtherance of a personal vendetta on behalf of, and, at the behest of persons in government intent on the…
A COALITION of Civil Society Organisations has kicked against the increasing media trial of the immediate past Governor of Kogi State by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, saying the development is “grossly unprofessional and uncalled for.” The No Corruption Coalition, at a press conference on Thursday in Lagos, said it decided to add its voice to call for the respect of the rule of law, owing to the growing concern about the recent avoidable crisis between the Commission and the Governor. The acitivists said the outburst of the EFCC Chairman, Ola Olukoyede, which revealed that no formal letter of…
THE money laundering trial of a former governor of Ekiti State, Ayodele Fayose, could not proceed on Thursday owing to the absence of the trial judge, Justice Chukwujekwu Aneke of the Federal High Court, Lagos. Justice Aneke was said to be away on an official assignment, prompting the adjournment of the case to July 1 for the continuation of trial. Fayose is being prosecuted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for an alleged N6.9bn fraud and money laundering. He was first arraigned on Oct. 22, 2018, before Justice Mojisola Olatotegun, alongside his company, Spotless Investment Ltd, on an…
‘EFCC Boss Should Be Held In Contempt Of Court’ HUNDREDS of Civil Society Organisations took to the streets in Lagos on Wednesday to protest “the continued disrespect for the rule of law and undue harassment of a citizen of Nigeria” by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission. The activists condemned the fact that the EFCC chairman failed to provide any documentary evidence of an official invitation sent to former Governor of Kogi State, Yahaya Bello, yet the Commission declared him wanted and had subjected him to “unprecedented and reckless media trials despite a subsisting Court order which protected him at…
THE Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has arrested former Minister of Aviation, Hadi Sirika, over an ongoing N8,069,176,864.00 money laundering probe. The indicted former Minister of Aviation arrived at the Federal Capital Territory Command of the EFCC at about 1:00 pm on Tuesday, this newspaper can confirm. Our correspondent, who was at the Wuse office of the EFCC, observed the embattled former minister’s arrival at the anti-graft agency’s Abuja office. Following his arrival at the command, Sirika is currently meeting with EFCC investigators to answer questions on alleged fraudulent contracts awarded by him to a company known as Engirios Nigeria…
IMMEDIATE past Kogi State Governor, Alhaji Yahaya Bello has refuted the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission’s (EFCC) claim about inviting him for questioning immediately after his tenure, saying, ‘we challenge the EFCC to produce a copy of this invitation, including the delivery date and the recipient’s name/endorsement’. According to Bello’s media office, no formal invitation was ever sent to the former governor and they are confident the EFCC cannot produce any evidence to the contrary. See full statement below: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE RE: ‘YAHAYA BELLO: EFCC NEVER DISOBEYED COURT ORDER’ EFCC LIED AGAIN Our attention has been drawn to a…
THE Minister of Education, Prof. Tahir Mamman, on Monday, said the Federal Government is considering the adoption of 18 years as the entry age for admission into universities and other tertiary institutions of learning. The minister also accused underage students of being responsible for some of the problems being encountered in higher institutions. The President of the Academic Staff Union of Universities, Prof. Emmanuel Osodeke, described the proposition by the Federal Government as a welcome development. “We are in full support. It is the right thing. What the minister said is the correct thing,” ASUU President told our correspondent in…
HEARING on the appeal instituted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission against an interim order of the Kogi State High Court restraining the Commission from arresting, detaining, harassing or prosecuting Yahaya Bello, pending the determination of the substantive originating motion for the enforcement of his fundamental human rights, suffered a setback on Monday, as the Court of Appeal failed to sit. The appropriateness of the siege on Bello’s residence by operatives of the Commission last Wednesday had elicited a heated debate across the country, particularly with the realisation that there had been a restraining order against such action, which…
THE Kenya Police Service has arrested fleeing Binance executive, Nadeem Anjarwalla, as the International Criminal Police Organisation moves to extradite him to Nigeria within the week. Government sources familiar with the case who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to speak on the matter confirmed the development to our correspondent on Sunday night. One of the sources said, “Binance executive, Nadeem Anjarwalla, has been arrested by the Kenya Police Service, and he would be extradited to Nigeria this week by INTERPOL.” Another source noted, “As we had said before that Anjarwalla would be extradited, he has…
THE Court of Appeal in Abuja will today (Monday) hear the appeal lodged by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission against the order of a Kogi State High Court which restrained the anti-graft agency from arresting the immediate-past governor of Kogi State, Yahaya Bello. The Kogi court, in a ruling on February 9, 2024, restrained the EFCC from “inviting, arresting, detaining, prosecuting” Bello pending the determination of a fundamental rights suit he filed before the court. The anti-graft agency approached the Federal High Court in Abuja last Wednesday to get an arrest warrant while the Federal High Court in Kogi…
THE Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) governor Yemi Cardoso says the apex bank’s FX reforms have made the naira the best-performing currency globally. Nigeria’s currency lost massively against major currencies in the past few months. But Cardoso who spoke on Saturday in a briefing on the sidelines of the just-ended World Bank/IMF Spring Meetings in Washington DC, United States, said the CBN’s foreign exchange reforms are paying off. “April saw the naira emerge as the best-performing currency globally, supported by bullish sentiment from leading international investment institutions,” he said. “Our FX market is experiencing robust activities with turnover reaching levels…
IN a bid to salvage the dwindling performance of Kano Pillars Football Club in the ongoing Nigeria Premier Football League season, the Kano State Government has issued a three-game ultimatum to the team’s management and technical crew. The ultimatum, announced by the Acting Commissioner of Youths and Sports, Hon. Hamza Safiyanu Kachako, on Friday, underscores the urgency of the situation. “The recent string of disappointing results by Kano Pillars is of grave concern to the state government,” Kachako said. “We recognize the importance of Kano Pillars to the people of Kano State, and it’s imperative that decisive action be taken…
THE Arewa Youth Consultative Forum (AYCF) has called on the Economic and Financial Crime Commission (EFCC) to thread with caution regarding unconfirmed allegations of corruption against the immediate past Governor of Kogi State, Yahaya Bello. The forum averred that, the fact that the case is already in court awaiting determination, the anti-graft agency should not take the laws into their hands, making all efforts to tarnish the image of the former governor despite not being convicted of any offence. “We are worried on whose authority or interest the anti graft agency is carrying out their actions despite the disclosure by…
GOMBE State Government is poised to unlock the full potential of the Wawa-Zange Grazing Reserve towards enhancing food security, economic prosperity, and livestock productivity in Gombe State. This indication was given by the Gombe State Coordinator of the Livestock Productivity and Resilience Support (L-PRES) Project, Professor Umar Bello Abubakar while receiving a delegation from Wawa-Zange Community during a courtesy call in his office. Recognizing the long neglect of animal production in Gombe State, Professor Abubakar highlighted Governor Inuwa Yahaya’s commitment to upscaling productivity and ensuring food security while maximizing the benefits of the reserve, which is one of the largest…
TWO loyalists of the Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, including the lawmaker representing the Aboada West Constituency of the state House of Assembly, Sokari Goodboy; have been arrested at the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. Also arrested by the police was a chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party in the state identified as Ezebunwo Ichemati. The duo was allegedly arrested by policemen outside the venue of the National Executive Committee meeting of the PDP in Abuja on Thursday. In a viral video seen by our correspondent, a lady who claims to be a member of Fubara’s media team, said the two…
– Say, Rush To Arrest Yahaya Bello Despite Appeal Court Hearing Shows Political Persecution ANTI-CORRUPTION Civil Society Organisations have advised the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission not to desecrate the courts in the course of carrying out its constitutional role of fighting corruption. The CSOs and human rights crusaders cautioned the EFCC and other anti-graft agencies against trampling on the rights of supposed suspects of corruption in order to avoid breaking a law to enforce another law. The activists, who spoke at an emergency press briefing in Lagos on Thursday, noted specifically that the recent public face-off between the EFCC…
THE Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has adjusted the previous blunder of September 2015 date in their charges against former Kogi state governor, Alhaji Yahaya Bello, his media office revealed. Recall the EFCC had accused Yahaya Bello of converting over N80bn Kogi State funds to personal use in September 2015, even before he became Governor. According to the media office, in a bid to amend that embarrassing charge, the EFCC approached another court stating that about N80 billion was now stolen by Bello in February 2016, arguably in less than three weeks after he assumed office for the first…
THE Kwara State Government is set to renovate the indoor sports hall of the state stadium at the cost of N2.06bn to make it an ultra-modern sports facility. The sports hall was constructed under the administration of Brigadier-General Agbazika Innih (retd.) in 1977. Speaking with sports writers in Ilorin on Wednesday, the chairman of the state’s sports commission, Bola Magaji, said previous administrations in the state had neglected the indoor sports hall, adding that it led to its decadence. Magaji, who said that Governor Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq was determined to bring the stadium back to its pride, added that the renovation…