Echotitbits – Nigeria News

Tag: corruption

  • Magu’s Troubles Likely Worsens as Buhari Receives Inquiry Report on Ex-EFCC Chairman

    Magu’s Troubles Likely Worsens as Buhari Receives Inquiry Report on Ex-EFCC Chairman

    No respite yet for the former Acting Chairman of Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ibrahim Magu, as his case resurfaced again at the State House in Abuja.

    This time, it’s the submission of the voluminous report by the Justice Ayo Salami-led Judicial Commission of Inquiry on the Investigation of Magu to President Muhammadu Buhari.

    Inside sources alleged that the report has essentially exposed Magu and he may have a lot to explain in the coming days.

    Speaking while receiving the report from Salami, Buhari reiterated his desire to make Nigeria a country that has no tolerance for corruption.

    According to him, “Corruption is present in all countries. Some governments treat it with levity. Some fight it all the time. I want Nigeria to be counted among those countries that do not tolerate but fight corruption.”

    In order to protect Nigeria’s political and economic systems, and the continuous existence of the Nigerian state from the serious threat of corruption, the President called on all stakeholders, and indeed every Nigerian to own the fight against corruption at their respective levels.

    Buhari pedged that the fight against corruption is one that must be fought without fear or favour, expressing his gratitude to members of the commission for their dedication and commitment to the fight against corruption.

    “The sad reality confronting us as a people is that there is corruption almost everywhere; at many levels of government, and nearly every stratum of our society. Mindful of the threat that corruption poses to us as a nation, this administration has specifically focused on the fight against corruption.

    “As a government, and in furtherance of our anti-corruption programme, we have since inception engaged in many reforms in removing corruption including but not limited to the enforcement of Treasury Single Account (TSA), strict implementation of the Bank Verification Number Policy and signing unto the Open Government Partnership. A lot of efforts have gone into building and development of our anti-corruption institutions.

    “We have so far kept faith with our promise and shall remain committed until Nigeria triumphs over the evil of corruption, attain a prosperous economic status and surmounts her security challenges.

    “However, the stark reality of widespread corruption becomes poignant when allegations of corruption touches on the leadership of an institution set up by law to coordinate and enforce all economic and financial crimes. It is an abomination that strikes at the root, and undermines the government’s anti-corruption programme.

    “It was in response to the serious allegations against the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission that I set up a panel headed by the Honourable Justice Isa Ayo Salami, retired President of the Court of Appeal, via an Instrument dated 3rd July 2020 pursuant to the Tribunals of Inquiry Act (Cap T21, LFN, 2004).

    “We recognise that there are more grounds to cover in the war against corruption, and we are prepared to go out to possess those lands by cutting off any stream that nourishes the seed of corruption and supports its growth.

    “Let it be known that in the fight against corruption, no one is too big to tackle, as no individual is bigger than the Nigerian state,” Buhari said.

    Also speaking at the brief event in Abuja, Salami said Magu and 113 witnesses appeared and testified before the commission, adding that 46 petitions and memoranda were presented by individuals and organisations with complaints against the suspended Acting Chairman, EFCC or both.

    Salami noted that the commission also embarked on a nationwide physical verification of recovered forfeited assets, comprising real estates, automobiles, vessels and non-cash assets.

    He commended the President for the initiative to dispose all forfeited assets “because of the poor condition of the assets we saw during our physical verification nationwide.”

    Noting that the four chairmen of EFCC since inception were from the police, the retired Justice of the Court of Appeal also recommended that in appointing a new chairman consideration should be given to candidates from other law enforcement or security agencies and core staff of the EFCC as provided in the EFCC establishment Act of 2004.

    He expressed profound gratitude to the President for giving the commission members a wonderful opportunity to serve the nation.

    Idowu Sowunmi

  • Health Journalism: How the Reporting of Covid-19 Has Transformed the Jobs of African Journalists

    Health Journalism: How the Reporting of Covid-19 Has Transformed the Jobs of African Journalists

    By Wole Elegbede

    Health journalists in Africa have been given fecund avenue to discuss the impact of Covid-19 on their works at the 16th edition of the African Investigative Journalism Conference (AIJC2020) hosted by the Journalism Programme of the University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa.

    This year’s conference (October 6-30) holds virtually for the first time because of coronavirus concerns, and boasts of being the African continent’s biggest gathering of journalists. The conference deals with varied topics where the journalists shared experiences and learn new skills, techniques and tools to enhance their work.

    On 13th October 2020, there was a session on the topic “Journalism in the time of Covid” which dwelt on those issues and provided solutions on how journalists can navigate the complexities of reporting the virus. The session’s panel was moderated by Mia Malan, Editor-in-chief/Executive Director of Bhekisica Centre for Health Journalism in Johannesburg, South Africa, who opened up on the core issue of how the pandemic forced journalists to become emergency health reporters to “report on science research results and health policies that they were previously unfamiliar with”. She then posed thought-provoking questions like “Is this kind of situation good for health journalism or does it lead to misinformation, and how have business, investigative and political journalists cope with the situation?”

    Ferial Haffajee, influential South African journalist well-known for business, investigative and political reporting before the outbreak of the virus and who has never reported on a pandemic before now, said after her dive into reporting Covid-19 pandemic, she discovered the stereotype about the health beat as “soft” was wrong, adding that it is “probably the most vital of the beats; it’s literally a matter of life and death”.

    Hafajee has been able to overcome the challenges by her sheer resoluteness, and the epidemiological course she undertook in July this year in India together with other journalists from across the world. Journalists from 18 African countries participated in the training and a third of the total number of participants are non-health journalists.

    “For me, that (epidemiological course) is the way to go because it used every single technology, and then together with people like Dr. Taryn Young (an epidemiologist), it taught us how to ensure that we knew about vaccine trials, how to ensure that we understood the signs and that has been completely invaluable to me”, she opined.

    While on coronavirus beat, Haffajee learned that reporting the virus could lend itself to the methods of conventional investigation because of the fall outs of the disease such as Covid-19 corruption, police brutality, human rights abuses and unscientific vaccine claims.

    She said the reporting of Covid-19 “did become more conventionally investigative”, adding “that’s when we learned that all the billions of Rand (South Africa’s currency) that were being invested into the response in South Africa, but I know it’s also happening in the rest of Africa, was as usual being corrupted. We have to get at the top and watch how the money is planned and then how It’s spent, and for me, that’s where health reporting should go, in the next couple of years, to catch corruption before it happens”.

    Asha Mwilu, a Kenyan traditional television journalist and CNN African journalist of year 2016, disclosed that coronavirus changed her life and that she had to put aside her role as an editor to go to the field to report on the virus.

    “I started going to the markets and talking to people and seeing how coronavirus was affecting lives and livelihoods, and I just had to go back to the basics of reporting, and then I had to re-learn a lot of things”, she remarked.

    After Mwilu resigned from her post as Editor, Special Projects, Citizen Television, Kenya, she launched Debunk Media on July 1, 2020, where she currently serves as Founder/Editor-at-large. The platform came in the midst of Covid-19 and this development changed its orientation.

    “The plan was to launch Debunk in April, but we had to put it on hold”, she explains. “First and foremost, the content that we had created could not even resonate with the audience because everyone was talking about coronavirus. We had created content around issues like legalization of marijuana, feel good content around music but using data to drive those stories. What coronavirus did for us is to really center us into what Debunk Media wanted to do, and is now doing, which is putting data at the center of storytelling “.

    At a time that fatigue was setting in the coverage of the pandemic, her team decided to look for areas that had not been reported on, and learned how to scrape data from the web to give new dimensions to reporting the disease.

    Professor Taryn Young, an epidemiologist and Director of the Centre for Evidence-based Healthcare at Stellenbosch University, South Africa, who has collaborated effectively with journalists, said health reporters need basic knowledge of science and research assessment to be able to write critically on health, and to prevent misinformation.

    “Yes, I have seen misinformation and flawed research being reported in the media”, she disclosed. “An example is linked to the big difference between association and causation. For instance, there have been reports linked to smoking, that if you smoke more, you are less likely to become inflicted with Covid-19 but these studies are reported without critically about how big was the study. Was the result big enough to give a robust answer?”
    Speaking on the epidemiological course in which she was one of the hosts, Young said on a certain day at the event “there were more than 60 people online all joining to learn more about epidemiology, to learn more about different types of research designs, different types of bias, and talking about error, and also covering tips on how to critically appraise medical research”.

    Journalists and medical researchers need to work together to enhance the reporting of research findings, she suggests.

    In her own contribution, Ida Jooste, who works for the International Media Development Organization called Internews, said Covid-19 had brought many other areas of life into storytelling and cited the instance of mathematics and statistics.

    “It’s brought mathematics and statistics and dealing with numbers right into our faces every single day”, adding that this is something that journalists should learn to add to their understanding of Covid-19 reporting.

    The author:
    Elegbede is a Multimedia journalist and Project Director of Press Attack Monitor, a platform that exposes press freedom violations in Nigeria. He was chosen by the Journalism Program (Wits Journalism) of the University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa, as a fellow of the African Investigative Journalism Conference 2020 hosted by Wits Journalism.

  • FEC Approves 1.6bn for e-Government Procurement Platform to Check Corruption

    FEC Approves 1.6bn for e-Government Procurement Platform to Check Corruption

    The Federal Executive Council (FEC) presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari on Wednesday approved N1.6billion for the establishment of the e-Government Procurement Platform to address corrupt practices in the government’s procurement system.

    The Director-General, Bureau of Public Enterprises, Mamman Ahmadu, said the new platform would help eliminate corruption as well as enhance the country’s procurement process.

    President Buhari presides over Federal Executive Council (FEC) Meeting in State House on 14th Oct 2020. Photo: Femi Adesina

    He said: “Today, BPP presented a memo on e-government procurement. E-government procurement has the potential of improving the procurement process, eliminate corruption, and reduce the leak time in the procurement process itself.

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    “There have been a lot of complaints about the long time it takes to go through the due process. With the establishment of this, we will reduce that time.

    “It also removes subjectivity from the process. There have been lots of complaints about subjectivity in the approval process that will be dealt with squarely when it is eventually launched,” he said.

    According to him, the step taken by the government is in line with the current global trend.

    “E-government procurement is a global trend and from the research carried out by the World Bank, it had been established that countries that have taken off with e-government procurement have witnessed exponential economic growth and they have stimulated ICT in those countries.

    “It will reduce corruption to the barest minimum because it will reduce the human interface within the process. The overall cost is about N1.6 billion,” he said.

    The Minister of Power, Saleh Mamman, who also addressed the correspondents on the outcome of the meeting, said the Council approved Nigeria’s contribution of two million dollars for the West African Power Pool (WAPP)

    He expressed the hope that the contribution would in turn generate income for Nigeria, to cushion the dwindling oil revenue.

    According to him, the power pool being a common entity of countries in West Africa, plays a role of coordination and synergy among countries, as well as boosting electricity supply in the region.

    Mamman also said the regional power pools would be of great assistance in case the national grid of any of the member states fails.

    “The pool is about having synergy within the West African region. The decision has been taken by ECOWAS, it’s for the generation of electricity in the region, so as to have a more constant and steady power supply.

    “It’s like the national grid in Nigeria, so we are going to have a regional grid. It means in case there is a failure in one country, another can supplement it. The $2 million is a contribution,” he said.

    Also shedding more light on the electricity pool, the Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed said all ECOWAS countries had been contributing annually to the cost of transmission of electricity in the region, since the establishment of WAPP in 1999.

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    He said: “The West African power pool is made up of all west African countries because each member state contributes annually to the cost of power transmission across the pool. Because the consequence is that if there is a problem in one country it could inadvertently affect the other country.

    “It’s a common pool and every country has its own section and our contribution for this year is $2 million.

    “It’s not as if we are giving two million dollars to ECOWAS, we are simply paying our own contribution to the transmission from Nigeria to other West African countries and viz-visa”, the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reported.

  • Corruption isn’t in Buhari Government, Accusers are Petty- Senate President Lawan Defends

    Corruption isn’t in Buhari Government, Accusers are Petty- Senate President Lawan Defends

    Nigerian Senate President Ahmad Lawan on Monday says those who accuse President Buhari’s government of being corruption ridden are petty.

    The Senate President said this after the second national summit on diminishing corruption and the launch of the national ethics and integrity policy by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), ìn Abuja.

    In his words, the current administration has done “so well”.

    Lawan added that no previous government ever hinged its campaigns on fighting corruption like the Buhari-led government, and that it had never left corruption cases unattended.

    “I don’t know who they are and I don’t know what their facts are. But I will not speak to speculations; I speak to facts. I want to see the facts that there’s more corruption in this administration than the previous administrations,” Lawan said.

    “You will recall that in a particular former administration, we know that somebody once said that what people accused the government of corruption was simple stealing. This administration does not see anything that appears like corruption or thievery and leaves it untreated. So, I believe it depends on who is talking.

    “If you have opposition, it is likely the opposition will tell you there’s so much ‘persecution’ of the opposition, that there’s so much corruption in this administration than the previous one. But we know the previous administrations.

    “Let me be a bit more decent and maybe non-political. But I want to tell you that this administration has done so well because we campaigned on the basis of three pillars of anti-corruption, the fight against insurgency and insecurity across the country, and the revitalisation of our economy.

    “So, no administration or political party, in the history of Nigeria that fought its campaigns on the basis of fighting corruption in Nigeria. In fact, there were administrations that never mentioned corruption in their entire tenure.

    “This administration has stood firmly, trying to fight corruption, and I want to believe that those who are saying there’s more corruption in Nigeria today than before are simply trying to be partisan or petty.”

  • PDP seeks President Buhari’s resignation over insecurity, corruption scandals

    PDP seeks President Buhari’s resignation over insecurity, corruption scandals

    Nigeria’s main opposition party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), says President Muhammadu Buhari should resign over what it described as failure to tackle insecurity and attempting to turn a blind eye to allegations of corruption.

    The call for Buhari’s resignation was made by the National Chairman of the Party, Mr Uche Secondus at a news briefing held in Abuja Friday.

    The party Chief in his remark titled, ‘Nigeria on a Free Fall as Corruption, Insecurity Engulfs Our Nation,’ said rising insecurity across the country has exposed the poor leadership in the military and ruling class.

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    He said, “What we are witnessing in our country today is a total collapse of the nation, the country is on a ventilator gasping for air, under such circumstance. President Buhari should do the honourable thing required of an elder statesman in situations like this, throw in the towel and save the country from ruins.”

    Read the full statement by Mr Secondus below:

    Being Address of the National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Prince Uche Secondus at a media briefing on the state of the Nation at the PDP National Secretariat, Wadata, House, Abuja. On July 24, 2020.

    “Nigeria in a free fall, as corruption, insecurity engulfs the Nation”

    Preamble.
    Gentlemen of the press, I have had to call you again to discuss the frightening developments in our country.
    As an opposition party, the PDP has screamed endlessly to high heavens but it’s becoming very clear to all that the ears we are targeting are deaf as nothing on ground shows that there is a government in this country.
    No attempt is being made from any corner to stem the freighting tide in our land.
    No effort is being made from any angle to halt the on-going free fall being witnessed in all fronts in the country. Nigerians have become helpless and have come to accept and live like citizens of nations without leader and with no direction.
    Where do we start looking at the state of the nation when all segments of governance have collapsed.

    Insecurity.
    Nothing establishes the fact that there is no governance in the country more than the worsening state of insecurity. Having exhausted their propaganda of winning the war on terrorism only in their press releases, as reality endowed on all, both the military and political leaders are now helpless and confused.
    What the Nigerian Senate did on Tuesday when it asked the service chiefs to resign was to show to the World that there is no executive arm of government in place.
    Having few months back advised the executive to sack the service chiefs for having outlived their relevance and re-engineer the military for the emerging challenges, and having watched the security situation in the country grow from worse to worse, the legislators have limited option but to do what they did at least to show the people they represent that they are sensitive to their plights.
    Not even during the three-year brutal civil war did we witness as much as over 300 soldiers absconding their duties and pouring abuses on their commander. Only poor leadership from the military and the polity can drag down morale of soldiers to such a pitiable level. The Presidency rising immediately to challenge the Senate shows also the level of confusion in the system.

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    Corruption.
    Since transparency International said few years ago that the worst corruption was going-on in Nigeria under this regime, the situation has continued to worsen.
    It has now become a bazar with no pretense about it with all critical agencies of government including the anti-graft body themselves grossly engulfed in it.

    The nation’s economy is walking to depression because we are least in recession and it’s being fast-tracked by the widening scope of corruption involving operatives at the high places.

    The free for all corruption going on all over the place leaves us with the impression that the country is dying and there has been a scramble for what one can get out of it before the final demise.

    It’s very disheartening that as the looting and the re-looting of the nation’s resources are going on under the watch of the acclaimed anti-corruption President no serious reactions is coming from government that prides itself to be fighting corruption.

    Rather than confront the already exposed corruption cases, the government deliberately takes cautious steps to play it down with a view to protecting their members who are neck-deep in the growing sleaze.

    “After providence decided to expose the massive fraud going on in the nation’s anti-corruption agency, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, in the last five years, rather than bring it to the fore, the Presidency in the great cover-up decided to take the investigation including the interrogation of suspects to Aso Rock Villa behind camera where all the exposed issues are kept away from the public glare.

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    We are aware that after the massive fraud exposition involving critical members of the administration, subtle moves are on behind the scene to free culprits and save the face of the government at the expense of the nation.

    This has been the case since this administration came in 2015 disguising as an anti-corruption regime while in reality looting the country dry.

    “After their double speak on fuel subsidy and prizing, they have recorded the highest amount of subsidy in the petroleum sector while running the show in utmost secrecy with the President presiding as both the President and the Petroleum Minister.

    As we speak, the big corruption cover-up is on-going in critical sectors, the Nigeria Ports Authority, NPA, the Maritime Sector, the Customs, the Federal inland Revenue Service, FIRS, Nigeria Social Insurance a Trust Fund, NSITF, North East Development Commission, NNPC crude Oil sale to China, etc.

    Nothing brings out the exact character of President Buhari’s administration to corruption than the on-going free for all fraud at the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, where the so-called forensic auditors sent in by the President to unearth a fraud are themselves becoming visible accomplice to the crime. The Senate has already indicted the Interim Management Committee, IMC, and the supervising Minister Senator Godswill Akpabio. A commission set up to helping the suffering people of Niger Delta has become a bank for APC
    members.

    Fraud at a glance.

    100mb crude oil sales to China by Sahara energy as reported over 2.5b dollars

    Over N1.3 trillion spent between 2015 and 2019 with N4.923b of NDDC spent outside the budget.

    NSITF N3.4b fraud

    The growing fresh fuel Subsidy fraud

    Unaccounted for N100b for North East commission.

    Not to talk of the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs in the name of covid-19 palliatives

    Fraudulent acquisition of banks, telecom companies amounting to billions of dollars by cabals in this administration.

    Efcc blockage of N100b tax laundering petition involving a high profile person in APC

    Conclusions.

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    Gentlemen of the press, the state of our nation today requires that all hands must be on deck especially you media practitioners who should not relent in holding public officers accountable.

    Nigerians should not be distracted by the drama playing out at the various fraud case hearings whether in Aso Villa with Ibrahim Magu or at the National Assembly with two Ministers Akpabio and Chris Ngige, entertaining Nigerians, they are designs to remove public attention to the real issue.
    In this country under the watch of President Buhari and his APC, we have found ourselves in the environment as the French economist, Federico Bastiat said that “when plunder becomes a way of life for a group of men in a society, over the course of time they create for themselves a legal system that authorizes it and a moral code that glorifies it” .This regime has found a code for corruption and they now glorify it and make fun of it.

    Finally, gentlemen of the press what we are witnessing in our country today is a total collapse of the nation, the country is on ventilator gasping for air, under such circumstance, President Buhari should do the honourable thing required of an elder statesman in situations like this, THROW IN THE TOWEL because Nigeria is on and save the country from ruins.
    Thanks for your attention and God bless.

     

  • EFCC: More officials get suspension, one begs President Buhari for reversal

    EFCC: More officials get suspension, one begs President Buhari for reversal

    About 12 officials of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) officials have been suspended indefinitely.

    According to a report by The Nation Newspaper,  all 12 officials received their letter of suspension on Monday.

    The Nation Newspaper quoted a source to have said: “After being in limbo for one week, we got our suspension letters on Monday.

    “We were informed that the suspension is indefinite. We have taken it in good faith. But most of us have not received queries in our career.

    “We have not even appeared before any disciplinary committee. We appeal to President Mummadu Buhari to intervene by reversing the suspension”, the source said.

    Meanwhile, the Justice Ayo Salami-led Presidential Investigation Committee (PIC) probing acts of corruption in an agency that In itself has the mandate to tackle corruption, has interrogated more officials of the EFCC.

    Report has it that some officials handling sensitive investigations have been quizzed by the PIC.

    Among officials said to have appeared before the PIC included crack investigators, zonal heads and those in the Legal Unit of the agency.

    An official who was quizzed stated that the session with the PIC wasn’t a friendly session.

    The official also revealed that a coordinator who was grilled said to the panel that: “service and loyalty to Nigeria guided their conduct in office rather than sentiments.”

    The official noted however, that despite the uneasy atmosphere during the session with the PIC, “we were able to make some clarifications on our performance in office”.

     

  • NDDC Probe: Akpabio implicates National Assembly members as Acting MD ‘slumps’

    NDDC Probe: Akpabio implicates National Assembly members as Acting MD ‘slumps’

    Most contracts from the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) are awarded to members of the National Assembly, says the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Sen. Godswill Akpabio.

    The Minister made the revelation on Monday when he appeared before the House of Representatives committee on NDDC, who are probing trillions of Naira allocated to the commission for the development of the oil rich region over the years.

    Akpabio’s comment, which apparently opened another cankerworm in the ongoing probe, erupted as he was being grilled about NDDC expenditure amid a forensic audit during the public hearing by members of the House of Representatives committee on NDDC.

    The Minister had been invited by the lawmakers on Friday to defend his actions as Minister of Niger Delta Affairs and shed more light on financial misappropriation within the NDDC.

    “We cannot close down the Niger Delta Development Commission because of the fact that we are doing (a) forensic audit,” he said.

    “The NDDC plays a vital role in ensuring the peace and security of the region and 90 percent or more of the resources of the country come from there.

    “If you close it down in totality all you will have is chaos. You will have a lot of, not just militancy; you will have a lot of insurrection.

    “So it is important that people who have gone to court, people who genuinely did jobs should be paid for their jobs. For me, I am not against it because, of course, who are even the greatest beneficiaries? It is you people.”

    A member of the committee took him up on his “you people” allegation and asked him to clarify.

    “I just told you that we have records to show that most of the contracts in the NDDC are given out to members of the National Assembly,” the ex-Senator said.

    Meanwhile, the Acting Managing Director of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Daniel Pondei, who also appeared before the House of Representatives committee seems to faint during the grilling session on Monday.

    The committee is in its fourth day of public hearing as it investigates alleged financial misappropriation at the agency.

    The controversy had seen strong allegations of corruption traded between the Minister and the former MD of the NDDC, Joi Nunei, who appeared before the lawmakers via Zoom on Friday.

    Pondei had been grilled for over an hour when he slowly slumped over his desk, appearing to faint.

    Several people present at the hearing rushed to his aid, propping him up and attempting to stabilise him, with the proceedings halted.

    He then appeared to be in a seizure with a man holding open his mouth as others held him upright.

    After he appeared to regain and lose composure intermittently, he was moved out of the session.

    The development led to a brief discussion about the next step to take. A move to have the session adjourned was shouted before the Deputy Chairman of the Committee, Hon. Thomas Ereyi-Tobi, called for a 30-minute recess.

    Lawmakers investigating corruption allegations in the NDDC had on Friday summoned Pondei and the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Senator Godswill Akpabio, to appear before them today (Monday) as the country sought to understand how budgetary allocations to the agency had been spent.

    This is not the first time an appearance by the NDDC MD before the lawmakers will come to a halt under dramatic circumstances.

    The NDDC boss had walked out on the lawmakers on Thursday, last week, after accusing the Chairman of the Committee, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, of being an interested party in the investigation.

    He said as long as Tunji-Ojo presided over the investigation, the Commission would not get a fair hearing. He then refused to make presentations before the committee and walked out.

    Angered by the move, the lawmakers resolved to issue a warrant of arrest compelling Professor Pondei to appear before the lawmakers and make a proper submission.

    The lawmakers, however, decided to summon him again, and at the start of his appearance, he apologised for his action.

    Although he said he “regretted” the incident which happened last week, before he was questioned by the lawmakers, the Chairman of the Committee recused himself from the session, leaving Hon. Thomas Ereyi-Tobi, the Deputy Chairman of the Committee to preside.

     

  • NDDC: Buhari speaks on unfolding drama, orders coordinated investigation

    NDDC: Buhari speaks on unfolding drama, orders coordinated investigation

    Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari Thursday broke silence over the ongoing unfolding drama over the probe of the budgetary allocations to the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC).

    Speaking for the first time on the attacks and counter attacks between and around persons, institutions, and the commission, Buhari expressed his strong determination to get to the root of the problem undermining the development of the Niger Delta and its peoples in spite of enormous national resources voted year after year for this singular purpose.

    The President directed that there should be better coordination among security and investigating agencies with the National Assembly to ensure that his administration’s effort to bring sanity, transparency and accountability to the management of the large amount of resources dedicated to development of the Niger Delta sub-region is not derailed.

    According to him, auditing firms and investigative agencies working in collaboration with National Assembly Committees to resolve the challenges in NDDC must initiate actions in a time-bound manner and duly inform the Presidency of the actions being taken.

    The President also directed timely sharing of information and knowledge in a way to speedily assist the administration to diagnose what had gone wrong in the past and what needs to be done to make corrections in order to return NDDC to its original mandate of making life better for people in Niger Delta.

    Buhari, in a statement by his Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, said the administration wanted to bring about “rapid, even and sustainable development to the region.”

    The President gave firm assurance that his administration would put in place a transparent and accountable governance framework, not only in NDDC but in all other institutions of government.

    Idowu Sowunmi

  • ‘How Magu Allegedly Re-loots Recovered Funds’

    ‘How Magu Allegedly Re-loots Recovered Funds’

    Suspended Acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ibrahim Magu, has been accused of re-looting funds recovered by the commission as well as bribery.

    Magu, who is currently being interrogated by a Presidential Investigation Committee on the EFCC-Federal Government Recovered Assets and Finances from May 2015 to May 2020, headed by retired Justice Ayo Salami, has been accused of mismanagement and lack of transparency in managing recovered assets by EFCC.

    A final report of the presidential probe panel obtained by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) had seriously indicted and implicated Magu on various allegations levelled against him.

    The new facts have emerged on how interest rates accruing from N550 billion recovered by EFCC in the period under review were allegedly re-looted.

    Read Aldo… You’re unfit to lead an agency like EFCC, PDP condemns Magu 

    Magu is now expected to disclose the whereabouts of the missing interest funds running into millions of naira.

    NAN also observed that the Final Report of Presidential Committee on Audit of Recovered Assets (PCARA) that covered the period of May 29, 2015, to November 22, 2018, had also confirmed the concerns of the public about contradictory recovery figures emanating from Magu.

    “It is quite disturbing that conflicting figures are being circulated in the public space by EFCC as the amount of recovered funds.

    “For foreign currency recoveries, EFCC reported a total naira equivalent of N46,038,882,509.87, while the Naira equivalent of the foreign currency lodgments was N37,533,764,195.66, representing a shortfall of N8,505,118,314.21.

    “These inconsistencies cast serious doubt on the accuracy of figures submitted by EFCC. It is the committee’s view that EFCC cannot be said to have fully accounted for cash recoveries made by it.

    “While EFCC reported total Naira recoveries of N504,154,184,744.04, the actual bank lodgements were N543,511,792,863.47. These discrepancies mean that EFCC’s actual lodgment exceeded its reported recoveries by N39,357,608,119.43.

    “It must be pointed out that the discrepancy of more than thirty-nine billion naira does not include interest accrued in this account since it was opened.

    “It, therefore, casts serious doubt on the credibility of the figures and means that a substantial amount of money has not been accurately accounted for.

    “Failure to report on the interest on actual lodgements clearly establishes that the interest element of over N550 billion has been re-looted relating to the period under review.

    “This is an apparent case of manipulation of data in a very brazen and unprofessional manner and this has greatly eroded the public confidence in the anti-corruption efforts,’’ the report stated in part.

    Read Also…. Buhari Breaks Silence on Magu, Says Suspended EFCC Acting Chairman Not Above the Law

    NAN also reports that PCARA revealed how the investigative reports on EFCC’s activities by the Nigeria Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU) exposed acts of corruption and money laundering against some EFCC officials, including Magu.

    “The NFIU reports established that the Acting Chairman has been using different sources to siphon money from EFCC, and in some cases collecting bribes from suspects.

    “The report has shown that a particular Bureau de Change, owned by Ahmed Ibrahim Shanono linked to the Acting Chairman based in Kaduna has more than 158 accounts and has been receiving huge sums of funds.

    “The link to Magu was also established by the payment of N28 million to Falana who is a close associate and ally of the Acting Chairman,’’ PCARA report further revealed.

    NAN reports that the Salami probe panel is expected to continue sitting on Monday, while Magu’s lawyer, Oluwatosin Ojaomo, had on Friday applied for an administrative bail for his client, who is facing corruption and other charges before the panel.

  • Buhari Breaks Silence on Magu, Says Suspended EFCC Acting Chairman Not Above the Law

    Buhari Breaks Silence on Magu, Says Suspended EFCC Acting Chairman Not Above the Law

    President Muhammadu Buhari Saturday broke silence on the travails of the suspended Acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ibrahim Magu.

    The President explained that the guiding principle of his administration is that there are no sacred cows, adding that when allegations are made against the chief executive officer of an institution, the chief executive officer has to step down from his post and allow for a transparent and unhindered investigation.

    Buhari noted that a series of documented allegations were made against EFCC under the leadership of Magu, which led to the constitution of an investigative panel in compliance with the extant laws governing the convening of such a body.

    “A series of documented allegations were made against the Ag. Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). Following a preliminary review of the allegations leveled against the Ag. Chairman and several other members of his staff, there were grounds for a detailed investigation to be conducted.

    “Hence, an investigative panel was constituted in compliance with the extant laws governing the convening of such a body.

    “As is the proper procedure, when allegations are made against the Chief Executive of an institution, and in this case an institution that ought to be seen as beyond reproach, the Chief Executive has to step down from his post and allow for a transparent and unhindered investigation.

    “EFCC does not revolve around the personality of an individual, and as such cannot be seen through the prism of any individual.

    “Therefore, the suspension of Mr. Ibrahim Magu, allows the institution to continue carrying out its mandate without the cloud of investigation hanging over its head.

    “EFCC has many good, hardworking men and women who are committed to its ideal and ensuring that the wealth of our country isn’t plundered and wherein there is an act of misappropriation such person(s) are brought to justice,” Buhari said, in a statement by his Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu.

    The statement added that the embattled EFCC acting chairman was being given opportunity to defend himself in accordance to the rule of law.

    “Mr. Magu is being availed the opportunity to defend himself and answer the allegations against him. This is how it should be, as is the fact that under the laws of Nigeria every citizen is presumed and remains innocent until proven guilty.

    “We must realise that the fight against corruption is not a static event, but a dynamic and ever evolving process, in which the EFCC is just one actor; and as we continue to work towards improving our democratic process so shall every institution of ours also embark on that journey of evolution.

    “What is however important is that there must be accountability and transparency and our people must realize that they would be held to account. This is the building block in the fight against corruption, the establishment of the concept of Accountability and the recognition of the rule of law.

    “Those who see Mr. Magu’s investigation, as a signal that the fight against corruption is failing, have unfortunately, missed the boat.

    “There is no better indication that the fight is real and active than the will to investigate allegations in an open and transparent manner against those who have been charged to be custodians of this very system.

    “Under this President and Government, this is our mantra and guiding principle. There are no sacred cows, and for those who think they have a halo over their heads, their days are also numbered.

    “Mr. Magu was not immune – and regardless of the obvious embarrassment that potential acts of wrongdoing by him, given the office he held, may appear for the government.

    “No other administration in the history of Nigeria would have moved to bring into the light and public domain such an allegation,” the statement pointed out.

    Meanwhile, the President has urged African leaders to ensure the immediate actualisation of the Common African Position on Assets Recovery (CAPAR), as the continent celebrated Anti-Corruption Day on July 11.

    Buhari, in a letter to President of South Africa, Cyril Ramaphosa, Chairman of African Union, asked for a re-commitment to the anti-corruption war by leaders on the continent to engender an “integrated, prosperous and peaceful Africa, driven by its own citizens, representing a dynamic force in the international arena.”

    The Nigerian President, in a statement by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, lamented that “the massive corruption being perpetrated across our national governments has created a huge governance deficit that has in turn created negative consequences that have worsened the socioeconomic and political situation in Africa.”

    The letter by Buhari reads in part: “As Your Excellency is aware, the continental fight against corruption has been premised on an irreducible minimum that can pave the way for Africa’s transformation.

    “In this effort, the emphasis has been on the continent’s collective determination to forge resilient partnerships among our national governments, civil society organisations and other interest groups, such as women, youth and the physically challenged, to ensure improved socio-economic, political and security development and ultimately, the improvement of our continent.

    “The concern of the African Union is that the massive corruption being perpetuated across our national governments, has created a huge governance deficit that has in turn created negative consequences that have worsened the socio-economic and political situation in Africa.

    “Your Excellency may recall that these continental concerns led our colleagues at the African Union, to appoint my humble self as the African Union Anti-Corruption Champion. I believe that the efforts and focus of the Nigerian Government at home, partly informed this decision as well as the need for Africa, as a continent, to recommit herself to the fight against corruption and the imperative to free resources for meaningful development.

    “I am, therefore, in full support of the call for the issuance of a continental message to commemorate this day, on July 11, 2020, to re-commit the African Union to the continental fight against corruption, including through a robust approach to assets recovery, hence the need for a strategic framework on a Common African Position on Assets Recovery (CAPAR).

    “Happily, in February 2020, at the 33rd Ordinary Session of the Assembly of the African Union in Addis Ababa, CAPAR was adopted. In my view, the African Union must go beyond the mere annual celebration of the Africa Anti-Corruption Day by moving swiftly to operationalize the African Common Position on Assets Recovery by all member states. This is an excellent way to drive Africa’s Agenda 2063, for an ‘integrated, prosperous and peaceful Africa, driven by its own citizens, representing a dynamic force in the international arena.’

    “As current Chair of our Union, I sincerely commend to you, this suggestion that seeks to call our leaders in Africa to recommit ourselves to this very important task of reclaiming our continent from the vice of systemic corruption.

    “Please accept, Your Excellency and Dear Brother, the assurances of my highest consideration.”

    Idowu Sowunmi