Northern Elders Reject President Goodluck Jonathan’s N20million “Gift”-PREMIUM TIMES

President Goodluck Jonathan’s patchy relationship with key northern political groups took a plunge at last week’s hyped visit of the region’s elders to the president, with the team’s last minute rejection of a N20 million presidential gift, those familiar with the matter have told PREMIUM TIMES.

The visit by the Northern Elders’ Forum, a touchy political gambit that has since generated discontent from some northern regional organizations, was made to confer with the administration on the way out of the current security challenge the country is facing.

The government has faced scorching attacks from the region’s leading class over its handling of the matter.

The meeting discussed the operations of the Joint Task Force military outfit, which the delegation told the commander-in-chief, were involved in extrajudicial killings and other excesses.

But those familiar with the proceedings say after the talks, the government, through an intermediary, offered the visitors about N20 million – branded as “kola from oga” (meaning honorarium from the president).

Presidential sources say the offering of huge cash to visitors is an infamous but routine  gesture in Aso Rock..   

The money was however rejected based on a “consensus” of the members of the group, after they were handed the cash in several bulky envelopes as they emerged from the meeting venue and made their way back to their bus.

“The president may not have been aware. But then, it is unlikely he knew nothing about it. But someone stationed near the bus offered the delegation the package,” one of oursources said.

PREMIUM TIMES could not independently verify the sequence of events during and after the meeting. Phone calls and text messages to presidential spokesperson, Reuben Abati, for comments were not answered or returned.

We however learnt that after the talks, said to have ended on a cordial note, members of the group were met as they were boarding a bus to exit the villa, by an administration representative who informed them of the monetary package.

Those who spoke to PREMIUM TIMES, many on anonymity, said the group considered the motive of the donation and reached an “automatic consensus” that the offer be rejected.

“The members were emphatic,” one source said. “When you review what has been going on at the National Assembly, you realize you need to be careful with such gifts.”

When contacted, a member of the delegation, Lawan Kaita, declined to comment on the monetary gift from the president’s office, directing all enquiries at Maitama Sule, who he said was leader of the delegation.

Mr. Maitama could not be reached for comments but another member of the delegation, Ango Abdullahi, confirmed that his team was offered huge cash after their meeting.

Prof Abdullahi, a former Vice Chancellor of the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, told PREMIUM TIMES the gesture from the administration may have been a reflection of “African hospitality” regarding visits.

“It is common practice in Africa that when you pay someone a visit, your host should extend hospitality,” he said. “But in our case, what was offered was turned down. It was an automatic consensus that it should be rejected because we have to be very careful.

He however could not confirm the amount offered his group although another source said the money should have been in the region of N20 million.

“No one had time the to count money,” Mr. Abdullahi said. “Once you don’t want it you don’t want it. There is no need to count.”

The offer of cash to the northern elders again underlines a longstanding culture in government houses where discretionary cash tills are kept, and arbitrarily deployed by aides and officials to “appreciate” guests to the chief executive - governors or the president.

This year, the state house budgets N436.4 million as honorarium and sitting allowance. The amount is expected to cater for regular state meetings such as council of state meetings, security and economic council meetings.

But its provisions, backed by separate wide monetary votes, also become handy for servicing presidential guests.

More than 15 members of the Northern Elders’ Forum attended the closed-door meeting with the president where they roundly condemned the tactics of the JTF in hunting down militants and keeping peace in the region that has seen several armed attacks.

Those in attendance included Prof. Ango Abdullahi, Yusuf Maitama Sule, Paul Unongo, Gen. Ishaya Bamaiyi(rtd), Lawal Kaita, Shehu Malami, Sanni Zango-Daura, Bello Kirshi, Mrs. Pauline Tallen, and Gen. Paul Tarfa(rtd).

Others were Bishop John Praise, Gen. IBM Haruna (rtd), Sen. Wash Pam, Rev. Yakubu Pam and Dr. Safiyat Mohammed.

The government’s delegation to the meeting included Vice President Namadi Sambo, Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Anyim Pius Anyim, Head of Civil Service of the Federation, Sani Sali, Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mohammed Adoke, and all ministers from the north.

The group reportedly told the president that although regional leaders were “appalled” by the activities of the Boko Haram sect, they were equally concerned about the behaviour of the security personnel deployed to protect lives and properties.

“The most charitable interpretation of their mode of operation is unprofessionalism,” the group’s leader, Yusuf Maitama Sule reportedly told the president.

They accused the Joint Task Force whose of summary executions and arson, carried out “in the name of fighting Boko Haram.”

“In Maiduguri alone, available records indicate the figures of those that were killed by the JTF to be in the thousands, most of whom were first apprehended/arrested before they were extra judicially executed,” they told the president.

Jonathan’s fight against corruption is mere talk, says United States

US Government Dismisses Nigeria’s War Against Corruption As Hot Air





US Sec. of State Hillary Clinton and President Goodluck Jonathan of Nigeria
By SaharaReporters, New York


The United States has again dismissed Nigeria’s anti-corruption efforts as mere talk, describing the Goodluck Jonathan era as one in which the government is not implementing the law, and officials engage in corrupt practices with impunity.
“Massive, widespread, and pervasive corruption affected all levels of government and the security forces,” it said of Nigeria in its 2011 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices, which was submitted to Congress by Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton. The department submits reports on all countries receiving assistance and all United Nations Member States to the U.S. Congress in accordance with the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 and the Trade Act of 1974.


“There was a widespread perception that judges were easily bribed and that litigants could not rely on the courts to render impartial judgments,” said the report in its segment on Nigeria. “Citizens encountered long delays and alleged requests from judicial officials for bribes to expedite cases or obtain favorable rulings.”
It described the efforts of the Economic and Financial Commission (EFCC) as “largely ineffectual,” and stated that President Jonathan in November 2011 removed the EFCC Chair, Farida Waziri, after credible allegations appeared that she was engaged in corrupt practices.


“Public officials, including the president, vice president, governors, deputy governors, cabinet ministers, and legislators (at both federal and state levels), must comply with financial disclosure laws, including the requirement to declare their assets before assuming and after leaving office,” noted the report. “Violators risked prosecution, but cases rarely came to conclusion.”


Notable here would be President Jonathan, who has refused to declare his assets, igniting speculation as to the depth and spread of his wealth, and how that may be responsible for his fear of confronting corruption, including prosecuting Mrs. Waziri after firing her for “credible allegations” of corrupt practices.


On other subjects, the performance of the government was also indicted. For instance, on “Respect for the Integrity of the Person,” the report stated that the government or its agents committed numerous arbitrary or unlawful killings. This would corroborate the argument of many Nigerians about the inability of the security forces to solve crime, and that the government is responsible for them.


“During the year the Joint Task Force (JTF)…conducted raids on militant groups and criminal suspects in the Niger Delta and Borno State, resulting in numerous deaths and injuries to both alleged criminals and civilians,” said the report. “According to credible eyewitness accounts, the JTF committed illegal killings during attempts to apprehend members of the extremist group Boko Haram (“Western education is anathema,” in Hausa) in Borno State and surrounding areas.”


Similarly, the report said that security service personnel, including police, military, and State Security Service (SSS) officers, regularly tortured, beat, and abused demonstrators, criminal suspects, detainees, and convicted prisoners. “Police mistreated civilians to extort money. The law prohibits the introduction into trials of evidence and confessions obtained through torture; however, police often used torture to extract confessions.”
The loudest and most damaging comment in the report is to be found in three words: “at/by year’s end,” in the sense of futility and the Nigerian government’s penchant for long, drawn-out, inconclusive activity, such as prosecution or investigation, during 2011.


Examples:
The Code of Conduct Tribunal commenced the trial of former governor of Lagos State Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu…There was no decision in the case by year’s end;
In October the EFCC arrested four former governors…Ogun governor Otunba Gbenga Daniel, former Oyo governor Chief Adebayo Alao-Akala, former Nasarawa governor Alhaji Aliyu Akwe Doma, and former Gombe governor Muhammed Danjuma Goje. Their trials began in December and continued at year’s end.
In May 2010 authorities arraigned former PDP national chairman Vincent Ogbulafor on 17 criminal counts of corruption and money laundering in the amount of 2.3 billion naira ($14 million). Ogbulafor filed a petition to dismiss the charges. There were no new developments in the case by year’s end.


In August 2010 Attorney General Mohammed Adoke announced that the government could not authenticate the Pius Okigbo Panel report on former military president and General Ibrahim Babangida, which charged that Babangida mismanaged 12.4 billion naira ($76 million) during his administration. The civil society group Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) accused the attorney general of a cover-up. A federal high court was scheduled to announce a ruling on July 28, but did not do so by year’s end.


Civil society groups introduced a number of cases at the national and state level to test the FOIA during the year. For example, in September the SERAP brought a case against the Oyo State government after being denied access to information on state funding for primary education. The case continued at year’s end.
On September 12, members of the police unit Operation Famou Tangbei (OFT) raided the home of Freddie Philip Ockiya in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State. Members of the OFT arrested Ockiya and took him to the local police station. His family searched for him until September 21, when his body was discovered at the morgue. The family filed a suit against members of the police and government in a federal high court. The inspector general of police disbanded the OFT in late September, but authorities did not arrest any members of the OFT in connection with Ockiya’s death by year’s end.


In April 2010 the Maiduguri High Court found that in 2009 police detained and subsequently killed Baba Fagu, the father-in-law of then Boko Haram leader Muhammad Yusuf, following violent clashes between police and militant members of Boko Haram in four northern states in 2009. The court ordered the federal and state governments to pay 100 million naira ($617,000) as compensation to Fagu’s family. The Borno State government challenged the Maiduguri High Court’s decision and appealed the judgment. At year’s end the case remained in the Court of Appeals in Jos, Plateau State.
In 2009 soldiers arrested Muhammad Yusuf. Credible media reports claimed that police executed Yusuf, whose bruised body subsequently was seen at state police headquarters with multiple bullet wounds. While police initially admitted killing Yusuf in custody, they subsequently claimed he died while trying to escape.
Buji Fai, a former state government official suspected of funding Boko Haram, also reportedly died in custody along with Fagu. Later that year, then president Yar’Adua pledged to conduct a full investigation of the Boko Haram uprising, including the circumstances surrounding Yusuf’s death, but authorities had not publicly released the results of the investigation by year’s end. On July 19, five police officers were arraigned in the federal high court in Abuja for the murder of Yusuf. The court granted bail to four of the officers, while one remained in custody. The case continued at year’s end.


A panel established by Plateau State to investigate the killings of approximately 700 civilians by security forces in the Jos North local government area in 2008 attributed the violence to provocation by religious leaders as well as violence by political parties and local government officials. The panel’s full report, released in April 2010, linked persons wearing uniforms to impersonate police with many of the killings; the report did not find definitive evidence of police or military involvement in extrajudicial killings. By year’s end authorities had neither charged nor punished anyone for the killings. In February 2010 President Jonathan called for a second investigative committee following an outbreak of violence earlier in the year. In September 2010 this body, known as the “Lar Committee,” submitted its recommendations… 


However, the committee’s recommendations had yet to be implemented, and neither the federal nor the Plateau State government set up truth and reconciliation committees by year’s end.
Police use of excessive force, including live ammunition, to disperse demonstrators resulted in numerous killings during the year. For example, on February 11, Ekiti police reportedly shot and killed five persons protesting the announcement of the relocation of a federal university to Oye-Ekiti that the state governor previously had promised would be located in the Ado-Ekiti community. Authorities had neither charged nor punished anyone for the killings by year’s end.


On August 14, police in Anambra State reportedly shot five persons at a roadblock after they would not pay a bribe of 20 naira ($0.13). One of the passengers reportedly died at the scene, while the other four were rushed to a hospital, where they were pronounced dead. Eyewitnesses stated that the driver claimed to already have paid 20 naira but could not produce a receipt that the policeman demanded. When the driver attempted to leave, the police opened fire. A police representative confirmed that one person was killed and three were rushed to the hospital. There were no developments in the case by year’s end.


For example, on October 16, police reportedly shot and killed Victor Emmanuel in Bayesla State after he criticized the police for extorting money from passing motorists on the road from his church. On October 28, police officials announced that the accused officers received an “orderly room trial” that could lead to dismissal or prosecution; however, the case remained pending at year’s end.
Courtesy www.saharareporters.com

The demonising of Buhari ~ Bucky Hassan.

Let me start by saying I am not saying whether or not Buhari should run in 2015 (that is up to him), but right now, I believe he is a better alternative than GEJ. 

Why is it that those who hate Buhari froth at the mouth and describe him as a military dictator without necessarily describing all our other Military leaders in the same way?

Ironsi, Gowon, Muritala, Obasanjo, Buhari, Babaginda, Abacha, Abubakar, are the Military leaders who have all ruled Nigeria at one time or the other. Why aren't all the others also called Military dictators when we speak about them? Taking out Ironsi and Muritala (tenure too short), most honest impartial Nigerians will agree that the only one for whom the terms 'honest' and 'non-corrupt' spring to mind is Buhari. 

His detractors say scornfully that he overthrew a democratic government! If the Government of Shehu Shagari's 2nd republic NPN in 1983 was democratic, I will renounce my citizenship and relocate to the Moon! Under the NPN, the election of 1983 was so flawed and rigged, that it said to be one of the worst we have ever had. The West went up in flames after the results. In Ondo state, citizens were being arrested and tortured, opposition politicians were shot in their homes and a whole host of illegal extra-judicial activities were being carried out by the Police and Security forces. 

Nigerians DANCED in the streets when they heard the news of the coup. For ordinary Nigerians, Buhari's 1983 coup was not a coup but deliverance and rescue from a power-drunk, CORRUPT ruling political elite class who had looted the treasury dry, turned Nigerians into paupers and were determined to see us eat from dustbins (as said by a prominent NPN minister).

To those who say that anyone who overthrows a civilian govt is evil, I'll ask them if they consider OBJ who handed over to a civilian govt in 1979 before then later becoming a civilian president in 1999, as a better ruler and influence on Nigeria, than Buhari who kicked out a civilian govt and ruled Nigeria for 18months? Buhari also has the calm humble temperament that has enabled him to serve under every Govt but this current one. (Working for others is not really one of the attributes of a dictator ... LOL). 

OBJ is a multi-Billionaire in Dollars as is every other Nigerian leader other than Buhari. Even the greatest of Buhari's detractors has not been able to find evidence of any theft under his watch and in the places he has served.

Buhari did more in his 18 months as leader of Nigeria than others have done in 8years. Nigeria was changing. Corruption was becoming a byword no-one wanted to be associated with, contracts were being awarded on merit and not nepotism (and were being carried out), government and civil servants began working for the Nigerian people again, WAI (War Against Indiscipline) became a noun and a verb as Nigerians queued up and began to learn the values of good citizenship again. 

Then we are told that Buhari is an Islamic fundamentalist. Hmmmm, going back to 1983, there is no evidence that his govt had any zeal to impose Islam on the rest of Nigeria. Then we are informed of the speech a few years ago where he talked of the beauty of Sharia law and how muslims should encourage its spread all through Nigeria? No offence but Christians say things like that all the time - many christians openly talk about spreading the gospel all through Nigeria. Does it make them fundamentalists or desirous or forcing Christianity on Nigeria? Of course not. If we compare the supposedly 'Born Again' Christian presidents OBJ and GEJ against Muslim Buhari, whose life and reputation is more upright? Who has tried to stamp out corruption in Nigeria? Who does not have the evil stench of 'Corrupt thief' clinging to their garments?

Baboons and dogs, blood flowing in the streets, cats and dogs raining from the sky - incitement to violence. He personally ordered his followers to kill the Youth Corpers after the elections. Numerous allegations are thrown around. Now unto the facts! The elections of 2011 were not the first where violence took place after results were released. Previous elections had seen violence in the East, in the South West, in the North etc etc. No other leader before 2011 was demonised when their supporters went on rampage after believing elections were rigged (which they usually are). To all those who refuse to acknowledge the truth, Buhari went on BBC Hausa within 24hours of the rampage beginning and asked his supported to stop rioting and appealed for calm and an end to the bloodshed. As for baboons and dogs, now I do not claim to have a working understanding of Hausa, but those who do have explained that it is a metaphor. It is used to signify a battle would be fierce, it is particularly used for sporting events! Now unless we believe that when the English say it is raining Cats and Dogs, we actually expect to see cats and dogs dropping out of the sky, so also can we not believe that when a man uses a well-known proverb/ metaphor, it is an incitement to violence which also calls Nigerians dogs and baboons!

I did NOT support Buhari's candidacy in the last election (and I absolutely did NOT support GEJ's either), but let us acknowledge the truth is the truth. If a Nigerian leader's anti-corrupt zeal, service to the nation, and unflinching honesty is to be emulated, we have only one example before us. His name is Buhari.

Decree 2 and 4 are blots on Buhari's legacy and I do not think he is perfect in anyway, but by golly gosh, compared to the evil of the others, he should be nominated for best ex-Nigerian leader ever...

Alleged N6.5bn fraud: Sylva docked, remanded in EFCC custody

Trial of the former governor of Bayelsa State, Mr Timipre Sylva, who is facing corruption charges preferred against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, kicked off on a dramatic note, yesterday, as a Federal High Court in Abuja ordered his remand in prison custody.

However, the order was reversed barely two minutes after it was made yesterday, with presiding Justice Adamu Bello directing the EFCC to keep the accused person in its custody till tomorrow when the merit of his application for bail would be determined.

Former Bayelsa State Governor, Timipriye Sylver sandwiched by Economic and Financial Crimes Commission officials after his case was adjourned by to June 7th at the Federal High Court, CBD, Abuja. Photo by Abayomi Adeshida 05/06/2012

Shortly after, Sylva who was docked at exactly 11:20 a.m, pleaded not guilty to the six-count criminal charge entered against him by the anti-graft agency, his counsel, Chief Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, begged the court to either grant him bail on self recognition or on liberal terms.

Bail application

Moving the bail application dated May 27, Fagbemi pleaded the court to take cognizance of the fact that the accused appeared for trial yesterday on his own volition.

He said: “My lord, I wish to stress the point that the offences for which the accused is standing trial are bailable offences. Secondly, the accused person, on his own volition, came to court to answer to the charge preferred against him. He has never been declared wanted, at least, there is no such evidence before this court.

“The main purpose of bail is to ensure the attendance of the accused person at the trial. My lord, enough facts and reasons have been adduced to warrant your lordship to grant the application for bail.

“We further urge your lordship to take into consideration the exaltation of the Supreme Court on the issue of bail and presumption of the accused persons’ constitutional right to innocence until his culpability is proved no matter the insinuation outside or the blackmail. My lord should consider the Supreme Court ruling in the case of Saidu Vs State, 1982, 13 NNSC, page 70, particularly at page 82, delivered by Justice Obaseki, JSC.

“Until proved guilty under appropriate laws of the land, the accused has right to walk the street, breathe Nigerian air and walk free like every other innocent man. This is why I urge my lord to make the condition for his bail liberal.

“He should be released on self recognition as former governor of Bayelsa State and the fact that he willingly submitted himself for trial.”

The said bail application was supported by an affidavit of 12 paragraphs sworn to by one Akeem Umoru.

EFCC opposes bail application

However, the EFCC, in a 16-paragraph counter-affidavit deposed to by one Seyi Bakare on May 25, opposed the bail request, saying it previously found it very difficult to trace the whereabouts of the accused person who it said vanished into thin air immediately the charge was filed.

According to EFCC lawyer, Mr Festus Keyamo, “this court has absolute discretion to either grant or refuse bail, but we urge the court to consider in this particular case, the efforts we expended to bring the accused person to court. This court has judicial notice of that fact.

“An accused person who has shown propensity to bolt away at the slightest threat of the long arms of the law around him cannot be trusted to present himself for trial.

“That the offence is bailable is not sufficient reason to grant bail, it is the availability of the accused person to face his trial that is more important. My lord, if evidence is strong and direct, the Supreme Court said trial courts should be very weary in granting bail.

“We ask the court to deny the bail application and remand the accused person. We are ready to commence trial.”

The prosecuting counsel further maintained that the only reason it did not charge Sylva to court while he was still in office was owing to the immunity clause, stressing that the same High Court had earlier okayed three of his former principal aides for prosecution over the same charge upon which he was docked yesterday.

Contending that the case against the accused person is weighty, EFCC prayed the trial court to allow him to remain in custody pending the determination of the substantive suit.

After listening to arguments from both sides, trial Justice Bello ordered that the accused be remanded in Prison custody.

Before the judge could land on his ruling, Sylva’s lawyer, Fagbemi, sprang to his feet and implored the court to vary the order and allow his client to be kept in the custody of the EFCC.

Sequel to a no objection stance by EFCC lawyer, Justice Adamu conceded to the request, adding that Sylva should be granted access to his lawyers.

Vanguard gathered that aside bank officials and Bureau de Change operators that allegedly helped the accused to launder funds from the Bayelsa State treasury, eight of his former aides had already volunteered to testify in court as prosecution witnesses.

EFCC had in a charge it filed on February 24, alleged that the erstwhile governor pilfered about N6.5 billion from the Bayelsa State treasury while he was in power.

The anti-graft agency maintained that the said fraud was perfected between October 2009 and February 2010.

EFCC alleged that the accused person looted public funds under false pretence of using the monies to augment salaries of the Bayelsa State government, just as it identified three persons whose Bank accounts it said was used as conduits pipes for transfer of the illicit funds.

Names of the said accomplices were given as Habibu Sani Maigidia, a Bureau De Change Operator with Account No. 221433478108, in Fin Bank, Plc, Enson Benmer Limited with Account No. 6152030001946, in First Bank, Plc and one John Daukoru with Account No. 04800250000418, in United Bank for Africa Plc.

Though EFCC secured an order of the court to paste the charge at the Abuja residence of the ex-governor after his whereabouts could not be ascertained, however, denying allegation that he was on the run, Sylva, through his media aide, Mr Doifie Ola, issued a statement on April 11, expressing his readiness to stand trial.

According to the statement, “With respect to insinuations in sections of the media on the whereabouts of Chief Timipre Sylva, especially since the Abuja High Court granted the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) leave to paste its summons on the gate of his Abuja residence, we wish to clarify that Sylva is not on the run.

“He is not a fugitive from justice. Since January 27 when the Supreme Court removed him as Governor of Bayelsa State, Sylva has been a private citizen. As a private citizen, he has the right to move freely to wherever he wishes. It is surprising how his whereabouts had become a subject of conjecture and controversy.

“Sylva is a firm believer in the law and has been at the forefront of efforts to etch respect for law, rules and regulations on the national conscience.

“To set the record straight, Sylva has decided to keep a low profile because he does not want his security to be compromised. The whole world has been living witness to the brazen disrespect for our laws which those charged with the maintenance of law and order in the land have exhibited since the outbreak of their riotous governorship adventure in Bayelsa State. If those we all should rely on for our security could so blatantly run riot on our laws and liberties, it is not hard to determine the extent they can go against the one they have openly declared the target of all their illicit manoeuvres in the state.

“The charges brought against Sylva by EFCC are not new. They are charges for which some former and serving officials of the Bayelsa State Government have already been standing trial since April 2010.

“What the EFCC has done is to simply add Sylva’s name. Specifically, the suit brought against Sylva by the EFCC involves N2.45 billion Bayelsa State funds, not N6.450 billion as a section of the media has reported. This is because charges one, five and six refer to the same money. This is government money used for government business. Since 2010 when the matter went to court, no evidence has been produced by the prosecution to support the claim of money laundering and other financial crimes against any of the defendants.

“The last time we checked, no agency of the law has extended any invitation to Sylva, which he did not honour. As far as we know, he has not been declared wanted by any authority, local or international.

“Sylva is a believer and advocate of the rule of law. He is, as usual, undaunted and will face the current onslaught squarely. Sylva will take the necessary legal steps to discharge the present canards,” he added.

The six count charge upon which he was remanded yesterday reads: “That you, Timipre Sylva, as Governor of Bayelsa State, with others now at large, sometime between October, 2009 and February, 2010, at various places in Nigeria, including Abuja, within the jurisdiction of the Federal High Court did conspire to commit a crime to wit: conversion of properties and resources amounting to N2,000,000,000.00 (Two Billion Naira) belonging to Bayelsa State Government and derived from an illegal act, with the aim of concealing the illicit origin of the said amount and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 17(a) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition Act), 2004 and punishable under Section 14(1) of the same Act.

“That you, Timipre Sylva, as Governor of Bayelsa State, with others now at large, on or about the 22nd of January, 2010, at Abuja, within the jurisdiction of the Federal High Court, converted the sum of N380,000,000.00 (Three Hundred and Eighty Million Naira), property of the Bayelsa State Government, through the account of one Habibu Sani Maigidia, a Bureau De Change Operator with Account No. 221433478108, in Fin Bank, Plc, which sum you knew represented the proceeds of an illegal act with the aim of concealing the nature of the proceeds of the said illegal act and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 14(1) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition Act) 2004 and also punishable under section 14(1) of the same Act.

“That you, Timipre Sylva, as Governor of Bayelsa State, with others now at large, on or about the 5th of February, 2010, at Abuja, within the jurisdiction of the Federal High Court, converted the sum of N50,000,000.00 (Fifty Million Naira), property of the Bayelsa State Government, through the account of one Enson Benmer Limited with Account No. 6152030001946, in First Bank, Plc, which sum you knew represented the proceeds of an illegal act with the aim of concealing the nature of the proceeds of the said illegal act and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 14(1) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition Act) 2004 and also punishable under section 14(1) of the same Act.

“That you, Timipre Sylva, as Governor of Bayelsa State, with others now at large, on or about the 5th of February, 2010, at Abuja, within the jurisdiction of the Federal High Court, converted the sum of N20,000,000.00 (Twenty Million Naira), property of the Bayelsa State Government, through the account of one John Daukoru with Account No. 04800250000418, in United Bank for Africa, Plc, which sum you knew represented the proceeds of an illegal act with the aim of concealing the nature of the proceeds of the said illegal act and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 14(1) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition Act) 2004 and also punishable under section 14(1) of the same Act.

“That you, Timipre Sylva, as Governor of Bayelsa State, with others now at large, sometime between October, 2009 and February, 2010, at various places in Nigeria, including Abuja, within the jurisdiction of the Federal High Court did conspire to commit a crime to wit: inducing Union Bank, Plc, with the intent to defraud, to deliver to Bayelsa State Government the sum of N2,000,000,000.00 (Two Billion Naira), under the false pretence of using the amount to augment salaries of the Bayelsa State Government and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 8(a) and punishable under section 1(3) of the Advance Fee Fraud and other Fraud Related Offences Act, 2004.

“That you, Timipre Sylva, as Governor of Bayelsa State, with others now at large, sometime between October, 2009 and February, 2010, at various places in Nigeria, including Abuja, within the jurisdiction of the Federal High Court induced Union Bank, Plc, with the intent to defraud, to grant an overdraft facility of the sum of N2,000,000,000.00 (Two Billion Naira) to the Bayelsa State Government under the false pretence of using the amount to augment salaries of the Bayelsa State Government and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 1(1)(b) of the Advance Fee Fraud and other Fraud Related Offences Act, 2004 and punishable under section 1(3) of the same Act.”

Former Gov. Gbenga Daniel After My Life, EFCC Witness-PREMIUM TIMES

A key witness in the N200m corruption case against the former governor says he has received phone calls asking him to stop his testimony or be killed.
A key witness at the on-going trial of the former Ogun State Governor, Gbenga Daniel, failed to show up in court on Tuesday alleging threat to his life by the former governor.
Adeluola Babatunde, an official of Skye Bank Plc who managed the accounts of Blue Chapel Nigeria Ltd, a company through which Mr. Daniel allegedly siphoned state funds, was presented as the first witness of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). Mr. Babatunde gave his first witness account early last month, presenting bank documents to support his account.
At the resumed hearing on Tuesday, however, the witness did not show up and a medical report was presented as an excuse. The medical report tendered in court from Solar Medical and Dental Centre, Abeokuta, described Mr. Babatunde's ailment as "headache, fever, abdominal pain and elevated blood pressure".

Counsel to the EFCC, Rotimi Jacobs, told the court that shortly after the previous sitting, the witness became a subject of death threats, hence his fear to honour further appearances.
Mr. Jacob said he had been informed by the Investigating Police Officer that the witness has been receiving phone calls from strange people believed to be linked to the accused, warning him to cease from witnessing against the accused.
The attorney said that following this development, the witness has expressed reluctance to continue his testimony. Mr. Jacob also said the witness believes that reporting the matter to the police in Abeokuta would further endanger his life.

"Your Lordship, shortly after you stepped down at the last sitting, the prosecutor witness began receiving death threat messages that if he continues to give evidence, he would be killed.
"Only this morning, a counsel brought a medical letter about him. This confirms the fear that he is being threatened as earlier informed us," Mr. Rotimi said.
In response, counsel to the accused, Tayo Oyetibo, said the prosecutor's submission is faulty. He further accused the EFCC of threatening the witness.

Mr. Oyetibo claimed that the EFCC has been threatening Skye Bank to support the commission in the trial to ensure that the accused is indicted, and with the refusal of the bank to succumb, the prosecution witness now became the target of elimination by the commission.

"The man is afraid of his life. Who is not afraid of EFCC? The allegation must not be swept under the carpet. The IPO must be disclosed. The preliminary investigation this morning shows that it is the prosecutor threatening the witness because he is not cooperating with them. We are ready to continue with the case, if EFCC has other witnesses," he said.

Mr. Daniel has been arraigned at a High Court in Ogun State on a 38 count charge over the alleged misappropriation of about N200million.
The presiding Judge, Olanrewaju Mabekoje, in his ruling, gave the EFCC another opportunity to present the witness. He fixed further hearing on the matter for June 29, July 9 and July 12.

"Prosecute Them And Jail Them Or Shoot Them" Says Gen. Buhari On SaharaTV

Former Head of State, Major-General Muhammadu Buhari has urged the government of President Goodluck Jonathan to prosecute those involved in corruption- related scams, jail them or shoot them. The former presidential candidate of the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) made the demand during a candid interview with SaharaTV over the weekend.
Discussing the $6.8 billion dollars fuel subsidy fraud, the N155 billion Malabu oil block scam, and the N36.8 billion police pension scheme, Gen. Buhari declared: “Just use the documentary evidence and prosecute them and jail them or shoot them.”

Gen. Buhari, who recently announced a possible presidential run in 2015, said that “literally nothing is happening,” currently to stamp out corruption.

“If we want to survive as a nation, a viable one, we have to do something extremely serious about corruption,” the retired General said.

Known as "saigaskii" (Hausa for someone speaks the truth), a no-nonsense man of discipline who was even described by former President Olusegun Obasanjo as “upright,” Buhari said that he would consider helping the current regime to bring justice to corrupt officials.

But he made it clear that this could happen only if, “the government shows that it can punish whoever steals, whoever takes public funds from the treasury whether it is in the local government, state, or in the Central Bank.”

He also said that if he were leading the country as President, he would have the courage to jail anyone involved in the scams.

“Why not?” he asked. “I did it under a different system before.”

The interview, conducted by SaharaTV’s Omoyele Sowore, was part of a special edition of SaharaTV that focused on Nigeria’s 13th anniversary of its return to democracy in 1999.

“What happened even from 1999 until now, we used to have Nigerian airways, we used to have Nigerian shipping [lines]…and the roads were not too bad…where are they now?” Buhari asked SaharaTV’s Omoyele Sowore.

Last week’s Democracy Day observations, commemorating the transition from military rule, were low key. Many, including Buhari, expressed their frank disapproval with the current regime and the inability of the Goodluck Jonathan administration to contain the rampant violence that has terrorized the nation.

Describing the level of insecurity as “intolerable,” Buhari explained that without addressing its root causes and consequences, insecurity will continue to move the country backward.

“Insecurity leads to unemployment, factories are closed, infrastructure has collapsed, social services have collapsed, education, there is no health care,” said the Katsina State native. He continued, stating that Nigerians know the problems because they are living in a state of total insecurity, where violence can erupt anywhere...any time.

Furthermore, he said, the violence committed by Boko Haram has no relation to religion, despite what its members claim.

“No religion allows hurting the innocent--no religion,” Buhari said during the interview.

Buhari himself has repeatedly been accused of encouraging violence at some point or another in his political career. During the 2011 president election season, Buhari faced heated criticisms over his comments that the 2011 elections must not be rigged unless the nation was prepared for a mass revolt comparable to the those that unfolded in Egypt and Tunisia.

Thus, while the international community heralded the 2011 elections as the most credible in Nigeria’s democratic history, they were subsequently marred by post-election violence which claimed the lives of 800 people and displaced 65,000, according to the United States Institute of Peace.

Many believe that Buhari triggered that violence, just as many believe that Buhari’s latest remarks about “bloodshed to come” in 2015, is another call for violence.

But during the SaharaTV interview, Buhari explained that his statements-- including the one translated as “if what happens in 2011 should happen again in 2015, by the grace of God, the dog and the baboon will all be soaked in blood”--expressed in Hausa, were misinterpreted.

“Only those who know the Hausa culture, who are in it, can understand it,” Buhari said.

He claimed that he was simply making an assertion regularly made by politicians throughout the country--that the citizenry should demand for their votes to be counted.

Buhari put it this way: “If you go to the market, when people put their wares, they keep their eyes on it. Even if a fly drops, lands on it. They will see it. So I say, if they [Nigerians] will keep their votes like that.”

The Congress For Progressive Change founder also addressed the internal turbulence within the CPC party, specifically the vote of no confidence on the National Executive Committee passed by some renegade party state chairmen. Notably, on SaharaTV, CPC’s national public secretary Rotimi Fashakin blamed the PDP of helping to incite the violence.

It’s a move that Buhari called “illegal” as well as a plan aimed at having him sacked.

Nonetheless and in spite of the CPC crisis, Buhari seems to be willing to engage in the 2015 election.

“Why should I refuse to participate in taking the challenge for the fourth time to present myself to Nigerians again?” asked the 69-year-old statesmen during the interview.

He said that if he doesn’t run and if the 2015 CPC nominee does not get elected, the party may “die a natural death.”

And for Buhari, that would mean an “unacceptable” loss, and a pass at a chance to restore social justice.

“…unless we go back to social justice, the survival of this country and the sustained development is going to be extremely in doubt,” Buhari concluded.
Watch the full video on SaharaTV.

DANA Plane Crash & the Limits of Prayers By Rudolf Ogoo Okonkwo

Maimuna Anyene was killed with all her kids in the ill-fated flight 992

Some people who know me well very often ask me why I lost my religion. I don’t yet know why, but I will tell you when.

After many years of being cajoled and dragged and mandated to go to church, one of the few things I learned was that once you die, you are dead. Your report card is sealed. Nothing can change it. I was taught that after death what comes next is judgment. It doesn’t matter if you cool off a little bit in Purgatory. You next court appearance after death is on Judgment Day.

So it baffles me when people pray for the dead. What would such a prayer accomplish? Would it change the grade the dead scored based on his or her life on earth? Would prayers alter the evidence accumulated against the dead? Would it change the judge’s verdict? How would our supplication for the dead to rest in peace be fulfilled if his work on earth had earned him a place without peace?

I believe the only use of mourning after death is for the living to reflect on their lives. It is okay to recall the life of the dead and the impact the dead made in the lives of the living. But as far as influencing what happens when the dead gets to the Great Beyond, I believe that is what is called ‘medicine after death.”  If there are people who need prayers after a death, it is the living and not the dead.

I hereby pray for Nigerians who are still living following the deaths that occurred due to the Dana plane crash of June 3, 2012. I pray for those Nigerians who will board a Nigerian plane today and tomorrow. I pray that the technicians who will work on the plane will not choose a short cut in their maintenance work. I pray that the pilots will have the strength of character to refuse to fly a faulty aircraft. I pray that the government officials charged with supervising and inspecting airlines and making sure that they are maintained and are fit to fly do not collect bribes and just sign off on works they did not see.

Of course, prayers are not enough. Rather than prayer, people who really wish to help can take concrete steps to ensure that the technicians do their job; that the pilots fly only air-worthy planes; and that the government agency overseeing airlines diligently monitors what the airlines are doing. It is needless to say that a whistleblower is more valuable than a prayer warrior.

I know that before I finish this prayer, many more Nigerians would have died unnecessary deaths. Whatever day it is that you are reading this, ten times the number of deaths in the plane disaster occurred this day. Some kids died in Nigeria from convulsion due to fever their parents could not control because they had no money to buy children’s Panadol. The Nigerian roads, ever in bad shape, took their own share of Nigerian blood today. Those who had accidents, who would have lived had our hospitals been well equipped, died of their injuries. There are always those women who died daily during childbirth. Kids killed by water borne diseases due to a lack of clean water.

You may not know about these people because they are not under your radar. They do not run the banks. They do not speak for corporations. They do not lecture at your universities. They do not appear on Nigerian idol. They have never sat inside a plane that you have sat in. They are ordinary men and women, children and teens, in villages and small towns across Nigeria. Your life has not intersected with theirs. When you drive across their rural abode, you often ponder why people still live the way they live. You shake your head and move on to your fenced mansion.

You don’t have to pray for them when they die. You don’t even know how many of them die everyday. The president does not fly down to their villages to visit the hospital where they died. The governor of their state does not declare three days of mourning even though the story may get to him about the beautiful twins killed when a fire consumed their home. Their local government chairman does not shed tears for them. Of course, the Lagos newspapers will not put their pictures on the front page. If ever their story filters into your ears it joins “one of those things that happen to unfortunate people.”

But death they died. And if my religion taught me anything, judgment will await them too. The same way it will await the president when he dies. And the governor when he dies. And the general when he dies. And the police chief when he dies. And the civil servant when he dies. And the government contractor when he dies. And the other leaders who have failed to provide for the welfare and well-being of the people when they were in position of authority. Death is the common denominator that ultimately levels the playing field.

We live as if the prayers we would receive when we die could wash away our sins. It doesn’t. It shouldn’t. It couldn’t. It’s like saying that prayers can change your grade after you have turned in your examination paper. If it did, the whole purpose of the examination is defeated. If, however, you are convinced that prayer washes away the sins of the dead, then, we are not doing enough of it.

Just as prayers cannot shield us from punishment, so can it not do for us the work we are supposed to do for ourselves. The goal of prayers is not to cajole and drag and mandate God to come and interfere on our behalf. The limit of prayers begins where your responsibility starts.

How did that son of a Kenyan student put it? “Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we've been waiting for. We are the change that we seek.”

We – taking action. Not prayers, muttered on our knees.

Please correct me if I’m right.