Sahara Reporters Latest News Today Friday 27th May 2022
Sahara Reporters Latest News Today and headlines on some of the happenings and news trend in the Country, today 27/05/22
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Anti-graft Group, CACOL Demands Resignation, Prosecution Of Senator Oduah Over NYSC Certificate Scandal
Stella Oduah
The Centre for Anti-Corruption and Open Leadership (CACOL), has called on Senator Stella Oduah to resign from the National Assembly if she cannot come clean from the allegation of perjury levelled against her.
The group, while it called for her immediate prosecution, asked the opposition Peoples Democratic Party, to immediately disqualify her from participating in the senatorial primary for Anambra State North District.
Stella Oduah
SaharaReporters had reported that the lawmaker representing Anambra North Senatorial zone did not complete her National Youth Service.
Following the report of SaharaReporters, CACOL, issued a statement on Thursday titled, “NYSC Certificate Scandal: CACOL Calls for Resignation and immediate Prosecution Of Stella Oduah.”
In the statement signed by Director of Administration and Programmes, Tola Oresanwo, on behalf of its Chairman, Debo Adeniran, CACOL said It was no longer news that Stella Oduah did not complete the mandatory NYSC as the leadership of the scheme had confirmed that she absconded from service.
The statement read, “In a letter by the Director-General of the NYSC which was signed on his behalf by the Director, Press and Public Relations, Eddy Megwa, the agency said Oduah commenced her NYSC programme in 1982 but absconded. The letter was in response to an inquiry by a group known as the Concerned Anambra North PDP Stakeholders.
“It was reported that in her CF001 forms submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission in 2019, Oduah claimed that she completed her NYSC but her certificate was missing along with other credentials.
“An affidavit she deposed to read in part, “Sometime in 2010 while in transit from Akili Ozizor in Ogbaru local government area to Abuja, I discovered that some of my personal belongings were missing.
“The missing documents are the originals of my West African School Certificate of 1978 from Zixon Secondary School Ozubulu, First School Leaving Certificate from St. John Odoakpu Onitsha; Bachelor of Science in Business Administration Certificate 1982 from St. Paul’s College Lawrence Virginia USA; National Youth Service Corps certificate 1983, national identity card, United States of America Social Security card with numbers in it.”
The group queried, “If she absconded from service where on earth did she see the NYSC certificate she claimed and swore on oath that is missing? Did she print the certificate by herself? Did she lie on oath? This even to a layman is known as perjury.
“What should not be encouraged, under any guise, is a reign of impunity as the country steers towards consolidation of its democratic culture. This scandal in which Mrs Stella Oduah is currently enmeshed is another major, monumental and massive disgrace not only to the hallowed chamber of the Senate where she is currently representing her constituency but to the country at large.
“It is saddening to note that it’s fast becoming a norm for public office holders and representatives of the people to parade fake credentials and with brazen arrogance and confidence still go ahead to swear on oath with bogus credentials in their possession. Although, we know that a Federal High Court had already ruled that possessing an NYSC certificate was not a condition for holding public office but what happened in a situation whereby the person lied on oath.
“We at CACOL hereby call on the leadership of the People’s Democratic Party, headed by Senator Iyorchia Ayu, to immediately disqualify Oduah who has been screened to contest in the primary from contesting.”
It added, “We also want to implore our election monitoring body, INEC, to intensify the process of screening political aspirants before they are cleared to contest elections. A joint and collaborative effort of all the security agencies would have helped to nip a national embarrassment like this in the bud.”
“Our current situation as a nation demands that public officers and representatives of the people should be seen to be above board and not people who are inclined to crime.
“It is in this regard that we, therefore, call on the lawmaker representing Anambra-North senatorial district, Stella Oduah to resign with immediate effect and we are also calling on the anti-graft agencies to start her prosecution without further delay,” the group stated.
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PDP Primaries: Nigerian Singer, Banky W Insists On Victory, Says House Of Reps Result Brandished By Opponent Is Fake
Nigerian musician and aspirant of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Olubankole Wellington, aka Banky W, has insisted that he won the PDP ticket to represent Eti-Osa federal constituency in Lagos State, noting that an election result showing he lost is fake.
Banky W’s aide confirmed this to SaharaReporters on Thursday, saying the election result sheet was allegedly maneuvered by Aiboni Sam, his opponent in the primary election.
There have been controversies as to Banky W’s victory as an election result surfaced on Thursday, claiming that Banky W lost and Aiboni Sam was the winner.
But speaking, Banky W camp said, “Hello, please this result is false. We have spoken to almost all the leaders in the PDP. They are all working on it and have asked Banky to remain calm and allow them to sort it out. It appears that Sam allegedly was able to maneuver to get a result sheet in his favour, for an election that Banky Wellington won, which was witnessed by everyone.
“In attendance were officials from the INEC, DSS, former Deputy Governor of Lagos Mama Bucknor, National Delegate Captain Shelle, LGA Chairman Yusuf Arubiewe, the LGA Secretariat and the entire principal and adhoc Delegates from all of our wards.
“In the meantime, we must get every single PDP member and delegate in Eti-Osa and Lagos state to speak up for the truth and for justice and for their mandate that is trying to be stolen from them. This must not stand.
“This is the day of reckoning for the National and state leadership. Gone are the days when someone can ignore the will and desires of the people to impose a candidate on them. It is unfair and wicked. The people of Eti-Osa must speak up now, everywhere. Online on social media, on every whatsapp forum, on every possible phone call.
“The leadership of the PDP must hearken to the voice of the people. It is our mandate and no one can steal it from us. SPEAK UP EVERYONE. STAND UP EVERYWHERE. PUSH BACK. WE WILL WIN IF WE FIGHT THIS TOGETHER. #talkandDo #WeMove #PDP #BetterEtiOsa #BankyIsThePeoplesChoice.”
Earlier today, the controversy got heated up when human rights activist and convener of Concerned Nigerians, Deji Adeyanju, raised the alarm that Banky W was eventually not given the PDP ticket to represent Eti-Osa federal constituency, Lagos.
Deji who tweeted said, “PDP is cursed. Banky W didn’t get the ticket according to their latest evil scheme, all they care about is dollars…Kai, I’m sincerely tired of this country. We are in a serious mess. The generation of our children are in trouble.”
Also, Nollywood actor Yul Edochie immediately reacted saying, “My brother, politics in Nigeria is all about money. 90% of the political parties are set up to make money. They don’t care about the state of the country. That’s why APC sold form for 100m. When I ran for Governor in 2017 my party people nearly fought me because I wasn’t sharing money.”
However, Banky W has been advised by supporters to purchase nomination and expression of interest forms from another political party.
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Obi’s Resignation: A Fight Against Delegated Corruption On Behalf of Nigerians, By Bolaji O. Akinyemi
Just about two weeks ago I wrote an article titled; ” *Nigeria: A Nation* *At The Mercy Of* *Political Party* *Delegates”.** Where I established that the two leading political parties in Nigeria; APC and PDP as institutions cannot deliver the hope and yearnings of Nigerian electorates for a new Nigeria. That the system are constricpted against the evolution of productive leadership.
PDP, we were informed by APC in the build up to 2015 elections, that they spread corruption. Unfortunately, we have witnessed first hand the ground gaining of corruption and the consolidation of non state actors’ hold on the jugular of our nation like never before!
I made definite assertions and offered some pieces of advice, some of which are; “If I were a delegate of APC, I won’t shift support away from Osinbajo for a 100 million delegates’ package from any Aspirant. His only challenge, will be how to triumph through the lies and propaganda that his party has become in public perspective, going forward to general elections…
I went on to say: “to the delegates in PDP, it is quite unbelievable that any sane mind will be confused at making a choice for their party. Nigeria’s public system is a destroyer of merit and an enabler of corruption!
Worse in this system, are Customs Service and others like it, where slush has damaged the values of officers in the system. It is therefore incomprehensible that a debate will even take place at deciding who will be a better President between Obi, who as governor of Anambra, made an investment on behalf of his state from which the state is still earning income and Atiku, who as Vice President, supervised the sales of Aluminum Smelting Company, *an investment of* *2.5 billion dollars for* *250 million dollars!…*
Why we are still hoping that APC delegates will in the understanding of the time we are in give ticket to the likes of Osinbajo, Bakare against those who are prepared to buy Nigeria to rule her. Obi has finally interpreted the body language of delegates in PDP and has taken a bow from the party. With the allegation of change of delegates’ list from Anambra state, it will be ridiculous for him to have stayed to contest against a principal he gave the respect of not visiting his state, Adamawa, during his consultations with delegates across the country! To know that such individuals lack decorum and will result to political brigandage in Obi’s state and he still continues in the race would have been a betrayal of that thing for which he is being celebrated, intelligence!
I further affirmed that: “the exigencies of the time has taken this contest away from the likes of Bola Ahmed Tinubu and his compatriot, Atiku Abubakar, the work to be done needs a younger, intelligent and competent personality with strength of character for leadership”!
If party delegates are lost to this reality, Nigerians are not! At no time in our political history has the awareness to break from political culture of cash and carry been this overwhelming!
Osinbajo will have a huge political marketing to do in case he wins the primary. He is no doubt the best in the race for APC, but a good product may find it difficult to be sold from a shop noted for fake products; I said.
Obi has been fantastic thus far, he has sold himself very well keeping to issues.
Our appeal is to the delegates of the devil and the deep blue sea to give us the best of their demons. As the saying goes, a known devil is better than an unknown angel!
The truth is, any disappointment in this regard may see the emergence of a new party in power. That new party will be the one presently positioned to harvest the fruit of a mismanaged APC and PDP primaries which seems inevitable!
May I plead with all party delegates to make the best aspirant their candidate, so that at the general election, the choice will be made from among their bests, I finally submitted.
Obi, like Osibajo is a good product on a bad shelf. This move is sacrosanct, to give a good product a deserving shelf life and value. It is left to Osibajo to stay with APC or take his value to a corresponding shelf!
Obi, in his resignation letter addressed to PDP National Chairman, left no one in doubt of his intention to still contest 2023 elections on the terms and conditions he had championed during his political consultations when he stated; “our national challenges are deep-seated and require that we each make profound sacrifices towards rescuing our country. My commitment to rescuing Nigeria remains firm, even if the route differs.
Obi’s exit from PDP was a thought through, legendary step, APC boat will no doubt be rocked by the high-handedness of the cabal and their proxy in power and the fallout of that will obviously be harvest in the alliance Obi will be building in the next few days. A day advantage in politics can equal years of efforts if strategically utilized! One thing this season will be remembered for is that when the 3rd force was a mirage, Obi made it a miracle. Win or lose, our political architecture is finally re-designed. May I join all true nation builders to wish Peter Obi well going forward to *2023.
*Dr Bolaji O.** *Akinyemi* is the President, *Project* *Victory Call* *Initiative, (A.K.A PVC* *Naija).*
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E2%80%94-controller Disgraced DCP, Abba Kyari Is Safe, Does His Daily Routine Like Other Prison Inmates — Controller General Of Corrections Reacts To Reports Of Attack
The Controller-General of Corrections, Haliru Nababa, has reacted to reports that a disgraced Deputy Commissioner of Police, Abba Kyari, was attacked by co-inmates while asleep.
This was disclosed in a statement released by the Controller of Corrections on Thursday.
He said Abba Kyari as one of the over 800 inmates in the location was secure.
Nababa assured Nigerians that there was no cause for alarm as he (Kyari) was comfortable.
“The authorities of the Nigeria Correctional Service (NCoS) did not and has no cause to request for the transfer of Abba Kyari or indeed, any inmate to any other detention centre outside its jurisdiction because there is no justification for such a request.
“Abba Kyari is safe and sound and goes about his daily routine like any other inmate, unharmed. Those playing pranks with his detention are warned to desist from such unpatriotic acts as they may be asked, through formal litigation, to justify their statement.
“The Controller-General of Corrections, Haliru Nababa, is determined to continue to upscale inmates’ welfare, safe and humane custody with fervour and therefore will not be distracted by inane publications,” the statement noted.
Recall that in March 2022, the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja Kari and six others that are facing drug trafficking charges with him should be moved to the Kuje Correctional Centre.
The court ordered the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, (NDLEA), to transfer the defendants to prison custody, shortly after they were denied bail.
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Journey to Grenada and Reparations for Slavery By Azu Ishiekwene
Nigeria’s spectacular crises in almost every facet of its national life are inescapable. They cling like your skin. And for your sanity, you must detox from time to time.
I hope this trip to Grenada, through Afghanistan, helps.
Instead of writing about killings of the most bestial variety up and down the country, an economy on life support, insecurity, ASUU strike, men fighting for Allah and those defending them, the politics of 2023 that has left even politicians confused and enthroned delegates as royalty, I’ve decided to comment on a topic in which I recently renewed interest.
In a recent special report, Laura Trevelyan, a BBC anchor and correspondent, visited her ancestors’ former slave plantation in Grenada. In that report, sights and sounds in the Caribbean Island reminded slave owners and the enslaved about the grim legacy of slavery.
By the time Britain abolished African slavery in 1833, the British Slave Compensation Commission paid its 46,000 slave owners a whooping sum of £20million, or 40 per cent of its expenditure in 1834.
“In a family email chain, I learned that the Trevelyans received about £34,000 for the loss of their ‘property’ on Grenada – the equivalent of about £3m in today’s money,” Trevelyan said.
In America, after the abolition of slavery, the government, through the Homestead Act of 1862, created a new asset ownership model for white Americans but denied the same to former slaves.
In a book co-authored with Kirsten Mullen, William Darity, a professor of public policy, wrote: “Black families received no assets while large numbers of white families received substantial assets as a starting point for building wealth in the United States.”
A system which compensated a people who had already profited from a brutal practice but left the actual victims of the cruelty impoverished, genetically sick, eternally oppressed and their region glaringly underdeveloped can only fuel the feeling of inequality and deprivation Black people suffer in many Western countries.
For this reason, Caribbean countries are calling for reparations for the atrocities of the past. Thus, they have all set up National Commission on Reparations for Slavery.
In a speech in London in 1992, late MKO Abiola told his audience, that the demand for reparation was based on a tripod of moral, historical and legal arguments.
As a group, the idea of reparations for slavery is being championed by the Caribbean Community or CARICOM, a 20-member economic, cultural and political bloc.
The idea of reparations for slavery is not new. Since the end of the American Civil War, there have been calls for reparations in one form or another. It also became one the passions of the late business mogul and politician, MKO Abiola.
Arguably the richest black man of his era, Abiola was famous for his philanthropy. Not many, however, remember that he also deployed his enormous resources towards the campaign for reparation to Africa from its old colonial masters.
Racism of all shades and forms is a direct fallout of slavery and although reparations will not undo the inhuman system of centuries ago, many argue that it will at least demonstrate remorse by the perpetrators and bring closure to the victims.
Many are also calling on the US government and the British monarchy to lead the reparation process. And their cold shoulders on the matter have been met with condemnation and protests among Black communities in Africa, the Caribbean and Europe.
In March, Prince William and Kate Middleton faced protests in Jamaica, the Bahamas and Belize during their Caribbean tour. In 2021, Barbados dropped the Queen of England as head of state in the presence of her son, Prince Charles.
Jamaica is mulling a similar symbolic gesture.
In the US, where 74 per cent of African Americans favours reparation while 85 per cent of white people opposes it (according to an Associated Press poll), the H.R. 40 bill which proposes to create a commission to study slavery and discrimination has been gathering dust since 1989. And although there seems to be a renewed interest in confronting systemic racism and inequality by the present administration, it is yet to be seen whether Biden’s fresh appetite has reparations for restitution on its menu.
In 2019, Republican Senator Mitch McConnell admitted that slavery was America’s “original sin” but argued that slavery was abolished so long ago that no one currently alive was responsible for it. In response, journalist and author Ta-Nehisi Coates countered the lawmaker by reminding him that the US was still paying out pensions to the descendants of Civil War soldiers despite no one being alive who signed those treaties!
Agreeing on reparations for slavery is already a contentious issue. However, the form or forms they should take is even more controversial. While some are pressing strongly for direct cash payments, others think reparations should come in the form of investment in infrastructure, education and health sectors of descendants and former colonies.
Either way, agitators agree that the first step towards reparations is for the beneficiaries of Black slavery – US, Britain, The Netherlands, France, Spain, Portugal, Belgium, Germany, etc – to own up, admit that slavery was a cruel act and tender an unreserved, unequivocal apology to former slaves and their descendants.
No healing process kicks off without an admission of guilt and that first step, although the most difficult on the part of former slave masters, is the soothing balm former slaves and their descendants desire and deserve.
If anyone is in doubt, they should look back at the decision of the UK government in 2013 to express “sincere regret” and offer compensation for the acts of torture that British colonial government carried out against Kenyans fighting for liberation from colonial rule which was greeted with jubilation in Nairobi and beyond.
I think the West will eventually bow to the pressure coming from Caribbean countries on the issue of reparations for slavery in the forms of investment and cooperation. But without the zest of MKO and the eminent persons group, who is still bothered about reparations to the Africa?
Not known for half measures, MKO convened and sponsored the first world conference on reparations at the Nigeria Institute of International Affairs, Lagos, in 1990 and formally inaugurated the reparations campaign.
In 1991 the Heads of State and Government of the defunct Organization of African Unity during the 55th Summit of the Council of Ministers passed a resolution recognising the injustice of slavery and demanded Africa’s right to reparations.
Not much is heard about this legacy of MKO anymore, notwithstanding the fact that the continent needs such conversations more than ever before.
Although there are many reasons the disparity in the median distribution of wealth in the US tilts significantly in favour of white families ($188k for whites compared to $24k for blacks), the lingering slave-related legacy is one of them.
Analysts have estimated the cost of reparations within the US alone at between $10trillion and $19trillion, depending on model and excluding the demands of Caribbean countries.
It sounds like a huge sum of money, but how much is enough to pay for the physical, emotional and medical loss of slaves and their descendants? If denominated in today’s currency, what is the monetary value of the forced, torturous labour Black slaves put up with in plantations in the Americas?
However, beyond the big figures and arguments for and against reparations, individuals such as Trevelyan can take baby steps towards compensating descendants of slaves. In her case, she was able to trace descendants of some of her ancestors’ slaves in Grenada.
When she asked if giving money to help Grenadian students with higher education amounts to empty gesture, she was told that it would be a great symbolic gesture. “Think of the impact if every one of the slave-owning families did the same thing,” she was told.
Maybe we should start from there.
Ishiekwene is the Editor-In-Chief of LEADERSHIP
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E2%80%98one Lagos APC Governorship Aspirant, Wasiu Threatens Court Action Over Irregularities, ‘One-sided Primaries’
A governorship aspirant under the All Progressives Congress in Lagos State, Oluwo Olawale Wasiu, has accused the state executives of the party of violating the party’s electoral guidelines during the Thursday’s primaries.
According to him, the electoral guidelines of the party mandated the Screening Committee to screen aspirants and release results within 24 hours of concluding the screening exercise. However, this was not complied with.
Wasiu, in a short statement alleged that the election was one-sided and involved delegates who were “handpicked” by just one of the party’s factions in the state sidelining every other aspiring delegate who bought the APC Delegates Nomination Forms.
He threatened to take court action if the party leadership did not resolve the issue.
He wrote, “Today, May 26, 2022, a purported “Governorship Primary Election” of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Lagos State is being held at the Mobolaji Johnson Stadium, Onikan.
“According to the organisers of the event, the eligible “Delegates” to vote at the “Governorship Primary Election” are those handpicked by just one of the APC factions in Lagos State, through a sham Delegates Congress purportedly held in the 245 Wards of Lagos State on 18th and 19th of May 2022.
“The one-sided Congress, which excluded all the other aspiring delegates that bought the APC Delegates Nomination Forms, was conducted in gross violation of the APC Electoral guidelines, APC Constitution and the Electoral Act.
“The Lagos State APC State Exco, headed by one pastor Cornelius Ojelabi, is complicit in the exercise of this blatant rape of democracy in APC Lagos.
“We also note that the Screening Committee, which was inaugurated by the APC National Headquarters to screen all Governorship Aspirants in Lagos State, has refused to publish the results of the screening exercise as of the time of this press release.
“The approved Election Guidelines of the APC mandates the Screening Committee to release its results within 24 hours of concluding the screening exercise, so as to give participating aspirants an opportunity to appeal the outcome of the screening at the APC Screening Appeals Committee.
“I cannot understand why the Screening Committee chose not to contact the aspirants screened by them, either by phone call, text message, written letter, or any other means of communication, considering their decision to withhold the results of the screening. This is a serious breach of aspirants’ fundamental rights to fair hearing, as enshrined in the Nigerian Constitution.
”It is clear that my candidacy in the 2022 APC primary elections has generated massive positive excitement from party members and Lagosians generally. It has also created serious discomfort for those who are afraid of my message of a new agenda and accountability in governance.
“These discomforted powerful individuals have even gone to great lengths to prevent me from participating in the primary election of today by excluding me in a manner similar to the last Edo State episode where a sitting governor was denied participation in the internal democracy process of his party.
“The resultant effects of that misadventure still live with the party till date. The extent to which these same individuals have succeeded in their desperate scheming will become apparent when the Screening Committee eventually decides to “release” the results of the screening (which is already 12 days in arrears), however the will of the people will not be subverted.
”I implore my teeming supporters to remain calm and law abiding, despite the provocations. We will continue to seek redress from the internal dispute resolution mechanisms of the party, without foreclosing the enforcement of our rights to seek justice in the Court of Law.”
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E2%80%93-shehu-sani-reacts No Difference Between PDP Party Delegates, Bandits Collecting Ransoms – Shehu Sani Reacts After Losing Kaduna Governorship Ticket
Shehu Sani
A former Senator and governorship aspirant, Shehu Sani, has criticised the results of the governorship primaries conducted by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Kaduna State.
Sani alleged that the voting process was distorted by bribery and corruption with delegates collecting money to vote for unqualified candidates.
Shehu Sani
He said, “There is no difference between bandits who collect ransom and delegates who collect money to vote.”
Sani had vowed not to bribe delegates to vote for him.
”No one should pay any delegate on my behalf. I don’t believe in the political rituals of paying to be elected. That is inconsistent with my ideological and moral beliefs,” Sani said before the election on Wednesday, according to Premium Times.
Sani, who secured just two votes, was defeated by a former member of the House of Representatives, Isah Ashiru, in the race for the PDP governorship ticket.
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Ruling Party, APC Female Aspirant In Plateau State Kidnapped On Day Of Primaries
An All Progressives Congress (APC) House of Assembly aspirant in Plateau State in the 2023 general elections, Na’anyil Magdalene Dakogol, has been kidnapped.
Dakogol is the only female aspirant in her ward contesting the ticket of Qua’an Pan South State Constituency.
Magdalene was kidnapped on the day her party conducted the primaries.
According to Daily Trust, Na’anyil Magdalene was on her way to meet with delegates of the party ahead of the primaries scheduled for Kwalla town of Qua’an Pan LGA of the state, when she was abducted.
“The Honourable was to see a delegate on Wednesday but they gave her 5:30am on Thursday for her to meet them. She left alongside her brother to Goeragas and they could not locate the house, her brother came down of the car and went into the community to make inquiries.
“He left her inside the car, but to his greatest shock, he did not see her when he came back. Her phones were all inside the car but he could not see her,” a source said.
The spokesperson of the Plateau Police Command, Ubah Gabriel, confirmed the development, saying the Commissioner of Police had sent a tactical team to rescue the victim.
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N2billion Fraud: Court Adjourns Trial Of Ex-Head Of Service, Oronsaye To October
A Federal High Court in Abuja has adjourned the alleged pension fraud trial against the former Head of Service of the federation, Stephen Oronsaye, to October 5 and 7, 2022.
At the resumed hearing of the case on Thursday, Oronsaye was cross-examined by the prosecution counsel, Oluwaleke Atolagbe.
The former Head of Service reiterated that he was both Principal Secretary and Permanent Secretary, State House and that he was appointed Head of Service in 2009.
When asked why he remained a signatory to an account he handled even while he longer worked at the State House, Oronsaye told the court that the then president asked him to continue managing the account.
Oronsaye and his co-defendants are standing trial on charges of money laundering involving N2billion.
The judge, Justice Inyang Ekwo, adjourned the matter until October 5, October 6 and October 7 and ordered parties to obtain records of the proceedings in the case so far.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had alleged in the charges that the defendants siphoned the money through a biometrics enrollment contract purportedly for the reform of the civil service pension system.
The former Head of Service is standing trial along with Osarenkhoe Afe, the Managing Director, Fredrick Hamilton Global Services Limited.
The anti-graft agency closed its case with the testimony of its 21st prosecution witness, Mr Umar Tilde, having tendered numerous documents to support its allegations against the defendants.
One of such documents tendered was a judgment that convicted and jailed Abdulrasheed Maina, a former chairperson of the defunct Pension Reform Task Team (PRTT).
Tilde, a Compliance Officer with Zenith Bank Plc, however, told the court that Oronsaye was at no time a signatory to the federal pension accounts.
He could also not ascertain whether Oronsaye ever made an endorsement for withdrawal from the pension accounts.
The witness said it was Shuiab Sani Teidi, Eunice Chide, Mohammed Kaltung Ahmed, Hassan Mohammed and Attah Danladi that were signatories to the pension accounts.
The prosecution closed its case after Tilde’s testimony and Oronsaye was called to open his case.
Oronsaye, on opening his defense, accused the anti-graft agency of deliberately witch-hunting him following a presentation he made before the National Assembly while he was still in office.
He told the court that he ran into trouble after he defended an Executive Bill on the EFCC at a point when the commission itself mounted strong opposition against the said bill.
According to him, shortly after he returned to his office at the end of his presentation at the National Assembly, the anti-graft agency, summoned him to its office.
He told the court that the EFCC alleged that he was being investigated following a petition against him but that the commission had yet to show him a copy of the petition.
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E2%80%98unknown-gunmen%E2%80%99-troubling-anambra-are-igbo-other-states-%E2%80%93-governor-soludo ‘Unknown Gunmen’ Troubling Anambra Are Igbo From Other States – Governor Soludo
Governor Chukwuma Soludo of Anambra State, has said that Igbo people from other states are the “unknown gunmen” terrorising the state.
Soludo stated this in during his state broadcast where he declared a 6pm to 6am curfew in seven Local Government Areas of the state, where the activities of the hoodlums were prevalent.
The governor who also banned the use of tricycle of in many in the affected LGA, said the curfew would remain in place until peace is restored.
“Let us be very clear. These criminals causing mayhem in Anambra, albeit of disparate groups and gangs, are Igbos (dominantly from other South-East states) whose real objective is lucrative criminality and foisting their idolatrous religion on the region
“Unfortunately, every criminal gang (including cult groups) claims to be a “liberation movement”, making it difficult to differentiate between any genuine agitators from criminals. Unfortunately also, the criminals now dominate the space,” he said.
According to him, Anambra is the prime target because it is the most lucrative location for kidnapping for ransom in the South-East.
He also stated that with their immense propaganda machine funded largely by their sponsors from abroad, they have tried everything to indoctrinate the people with all kinds of false emotive narratives, and divert attention from their real objectives.
According to him, they claimed to be “fighting for the people”, and yet randomly kill the same people, destroying their livelihood, and stopping their children from going to school.
“What has agitation got to do with kidnappings including kidnapping of priests of God, invasion of churches and tabernacles including desecration of the Alters of God? Why is it that everywhere they gather and in every camp they operate, there is a Deity/idol to which they routinely offer blood in sacrifice?”
“From accounts of those kidnapped and later freed the stench of dead bodies in the camps cry up to heaven. We see videos of them and their idol worship; we note their threats to priests and bishops, including threatening to take over some churches?” he asked.
According to Soludo, “they have failed, and would continue to fail.”
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