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Breaking: Union Gives Arik Air 15 Days Ultimatum, Calls it Slave Camp |The Source

July 31, 2020

By Adesina Soyooye

Just back to business, after months out of business, no thanks to COVID-19, Arik Air, once Nigeria’s most prominent Airline, is in for another problem. Its business may be shut down again if the National Union of Transport Employees, NUATE, carries out it’s threat.

The Union in a letter to the Managing Director/ CEO of the Airline, has given a 15-day ultimatum to meet its requests, or face the consequences.

In the face of the lockdown in the county, and other parts of the world, the Airline’s management had sent 90% of its staff on forced leave without pay.

The remaining 10% had their salaries slashed to almost the barest minimum.

At the time, NUATE, the umbrella union of Aviation Unions, had also written to the Airline’s management asking about what would become of the welfare of their members.

There was no response.

Subsequent letters were also not acknowledged.

One of the complainants is that the Airline had become a slave camp for their members where very few staff members are at work, and over-worked, while staff members who should help are still on forced life. “The slave-camp regime presently ongoing in Arik whereby one person is being compelled to perform the functions of five or more persons must be ended immediately. This is especially so as there are many staff still at home in forced leave”, NUATE said.

The Union, also, decried the continous placing of its members under forced unpaid leave, and called for its end, and payment of outstanding arrears.

Said the Union in the letter, “The subsisting practice of placing our members on unpaid leave must come to an end, and their outstanding arrears be paid without further delay.”

But many have asked where the Union thinks the Airline will get money from to pay, dismissing the Union’s stand as unreasonable and insensitive.

Since March, they argue, Nigeria’s airspace has been closed so, from where will the money come from?, they ask.

The Airline which paraded the most modern aircraft in Nigeria , and had a number of them, has become a ghost of itself, and is on receivership by AMCON. Their fleet is depleted, and it has lost its pride of place.

Following is the letter from the NAUTE to the Arik management.

“Our Unions welcome Arik Air Ltd back to flight operations after months of nationwide closure of airports due to the rampaging COVID-19 pandemic.

“You may recall that since Management’s unilateral declaration of unpaid leave for our members as stated in your mail of 23rd April 2020, our several interventions in matters that affect the well being of our members have been rebuffed by the Management.

“Our letters of 27th of April 2020 and 11th of May 2020 to Management still remain not acknowledged and unattended to till date, and we have no hope that this letter will be treated differently.

However, we are now compelled to state unequivocally that:

“1.Most importantly, staff Conditions of Service (CoS) documents must be signed-of, on or before the next fifteen (15) days, considering the understanding that management is aware of our last position on the outstanding singular item,

“2. The slave-camp regime presently ongoing in Arik whereby one person is being compelled to perform the functions of five or more persons must be ended immediately. This is especially so, as there are many staff still at home on forced unpaid leave.

“3.The subsisting practice of placing our members on unpaid leave must come to an end, and their outstanding arrears be paid without further delay.

While we are not under any illusion that Management is interested in engaging our Unions on the issues at hand, may you please note that this letter serves as a notice of 15 days to meet the above stated demands.

“Failure of Management to do as demanded would push us to the next stage, the consequences of which we shall not be held responsible.”

It was signed by:

Comrades Frances Akinjole, Ocheme Aba,

Deputy General Secretary

General Secretary, ATSSSAN NUATE, Comrade Umoh Ofonime T.,

Deputy General Secretary

NAAPE, and copied to Branch Chairmen and Secretaries.

As at the time of writing this report, there has been no response from the Airline’s management.

Full Text Of Magu’s Response To Allegations Against Him: Says “AGF Malami Interfered With Our Investigations, Gave Me No Chance” |The Source

The Source

July 30, 2020

On July the 6th, the fortunes of Ibrahim Magu, the suspended Acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, turned. Unarguably, the most feared man in Nigeria, he was the hunter, hunting down anybody perceived to be allegedly corrupt.

Magu, a Commissioner of Police, CP, became the Acting EFFC Chairman as an ACP. He has acted for five years, and still remained unconfirmed till the he was suspended from office.

But on this day, the hunter became the hunted. He was arrested in circmstances many felt were humiliating. He was on his way to a meeting at the Force Headquarters when he was accosted along the road, and rail-roaded to the Villa to face a Presidential Panel set up to investigate him. He was detained for nine days and given bail.

The investigation stemmed from a petition against him to the President, alleging misconduct, including insubordination and corruption. The petition was written by the Attorney General of the Federation, AGF, Abubarkar Malami, SAN.

Now, Magu has been given the opportunity to defend himself on the 22 allegations listed against him. He did so in writing to the Panel headed by a retired President of the Court of Appeal the Hon Justice Ayo Salami.

In his response, he said that the AGF was interfering with the EFCC, in the areas of investigation, assets recovery, and was laid back in extradition cases. He ,also, alleges that Malami gave him no chance.

He vehemently denied all the allegations against him, and vigorously defended his integrity.

Following is Magu’s full response as obtained exclusively by Premium Times.

RE: ALLEGED CASE OF CONSPIRACY, ENRICHMENT, ABUSE OF PUBLIC OFFICE, AND OTHER INFRACTIONS

The above subject matter refers:

2: Your Excellency, permit me to express my profound gratitude for the unique opportunity you afforded me to defend myself of all the allegations levelled against me and the Commission. This is a demonstration of your commitment to the fundamental principle of justice which is ‘fair hearing’.

Ordinarily, Sir, the petition against me would have been answered by a simple response that:

3.1 Under my watch, no assets were sold and the proceeds thereof fraudulently converted.

3.2 The investigation conducted by the Commission in respect of P&ID has been timely, exemplary and has been commended by English Courts, with Justice Butcher commenting that Nigeria has established seismic fraud against P&ID. Further, Nigeria’s off-shore lawyers are relying on over 5,000 pages of documents and evidence availed to them from the EFCC investigation of this saga.

3.3 Neither I nor the EFCC, have ever threatened any Judicial Officer in the discharge of our official functions.

3.4 There has been no mismanagement of and lack of transparency in the management of recovered assets under my leadership of the Commission.

3.5 There has been no diversion of proceeds from recovered assets or personal enrichment on my part.

3.6 The EFCC has in a timely and exemplary fashion responded to information and documents whenever required, not just in the Paris Club Refund investigations, but in respect of other investigations.

I am however aware that when a lie is told over and over again, it acquires the semblance of truth. Therefore, it is necessary that I engage in a detailed rebuttal of the false allegations against my person and the Commission, otherwise it acquires the flavour of truth. On the contrary, in several cases under investigation, recovery and management of assets, the office of the HAGF (Honourable Attorney General of the Federation) has either interfered with the process or has been less cooperative and supportive.
Also, the laid back approach of the office of the HAGF particularly in cases of extradition has not been particularly helpful.
Sir, without attempting to blow my trumpet in respect of the achievements we have recorded in the fight against corruption under the leadership of his Excellency President Muhammadu Buhari, that contrary to the assertion that I was not acting in the overall best interest of the country and the policies of this Administration, I wish to state that my service and records of achievements have been commendable. A comprehensive list of the key achievements of the Commission under my leadership is attached and marked Annexure 1.
Sir, I have gone through the petition upon the service of same on me and I found that the allegations contained therein are in 6 folds. I wish to respond to each and every one of these allegations as follows:

ALLEGATION (A) FINAL REPORT OF THE PRESIDENTIAL COMMITTEE ON AUDIT OF RECOVERED ASSETS (PCARA): MISMANAGEMENT AND LACK OF TRANSPARENCY IN MANAGING RECOVERED ASSETS.

RESPONSE:

I unequivocally deny this allegation as same is untrue and merely calculated to tarnish my name, the Commission, and the giant strides this administration has achieved in the fight against corruption and recovery of proceeds of unlawful activities.

Ii. Your Excellency. contrary to the allegations contained in paragraph (A-5X) of the petition, I know as a fact and verily believe that:

(a) Not a dime of the recovered funds was fraudulently converted to my personal. I challenge my accuser to produce evidence of such fraudulent conversion.

(b) It is the international best practices in audit to have an entry and exit meeting. During the exiting meeting, parties are expected to thoroughly review and reconcile documents/data to enable the auditee to present necessary explanations to clear any grey area.

(c) Contrary to the established international best practice and the principle of fair hearing as enshrined in section 36 of the 1999 Constitution, the report of the PCARA and the documents analyzed before making the purported findings contained in Paragraph 5 of the petition were never made available to the Commission to respond and clarify.

(d) That I was not invited by the Committee to defend myself and the Commission before the purported findings were made. That fair hearing demands that I should not be indicted without being heard.

(e) The existing structure in the EFCC on the recovery of assets and the management of same will not allow any form of mismanagement of recovered asset to be perpetrated. In the Commission under my watch, funds are recovered vide bank drafts in favour of the Commission and lodged in the recovery accounts domiciled with the Central Bank of Nigeria. (1) Sir, even when cash is recovered during execution of search warrant, such funds are meticulously counted, kept in safe custody of the Exhibit Keeper and lodged in the recovery account.

(g) I am not a signatory to these accounts and the funds therein. I have never approved withdrawal from any of the Commission’s recovery accounts for my personal benefit.

(h) There is nowhere I have reported the Naira equivalent of the foreign currency recoveries. As a matter of standard practice and procedure, the Commission under my leadership reports foreign currency recoveries and not the Naira equivalent of same.

(i) The Commission under my leadership has never converted foreign currency recoveries to Naira.

(j) The allegation in paragraph 561) of the petition is untrue because I did not manipulate data of the Commission’s recoveries.

(k) While I cannot confirm the source of the figures quoted in paragraph 5(ii) where the Commission was alleged to have under-reported the sum of N39, 357,608,119.43, I am aware that by a letter dated the 24th March 2017, Mr President instructed me to forward the status of various recoveries the Commission made from May 2015 till the date of the letter. Attached and marked Annexure 2 is a copy of the letter.

(l) On receipt of the aforesaid letter, I promptly compiled a comprehensive list of the recoveries and forwarded same through a letter dated 7th April 2017. My letter of 7th April 2017 is attached and marked Annexure 3. My report to Mr President was supported with relevant source documents.

(m) The purported under-reported sum of N39, 357,608,119.43 was admitted by the Petitioner to have been lodged in the recovery account domiciled with the Central Bank of Nigeria which is not under my total dominion and control. This demonstrates the falsity of the accusation of diversion of forfeited assets wrongly levelled against me.

(n) The Commission in the exercise of its statutory duties is empowered to make recoveries for the Federal Government, State Governments, private individuals and corporate bodies and as such not all funds in the recovery account belong to the Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN).

(o)The period analysed by the PCARA report in paragraph 5 of the petition is not stated.

(p) The figures reported by PCARA may not have taken note of third party recoveries that would have been transferred to the respective beneficiaries directly. Such direct beneficiaries include:

(i) Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS),

(ii) Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).

(iii) Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON).

(iv) Nigerian Customs Service.

(v) Commercial Banks.

(vi) Other Corporate Organisations and

(vii) Individuals.

Iii. The allegation in paragraph 5(iii) of the petition is vague and not supported by any particular instance, thus I am unable to respond with precision. However, it is trite that the figure standing to the credit of an account is susceptible to changes as a result of interest element and bank charges. The amount of money at the time the Commission obtains forfeiture order changes with time, either as a result of bank charges or inflows into the account after the interim order was made. It can, therefore, not be expected that the amount stated in the application before the order of interim forfeiture is made will remain static.

The allegations in paragraphs 5(iv), 5(v) and 5(vi) of the petition are untrue as I did not refuse to oblige the request of the Honourable Minister of Finance seeking necessary clarification in respect of our various recoveries.

The allegations in paragraph 5(vii) of the petition are equally false. Upon my assumption in office, I have taken various steps to prevent wastage of physical assets including landed properties, motor vehicles, vessels, etc just to ensure that the FGN derives the maximum economic value and benefits from such properties.

On the issue of MT GOOD SUCCESS. MT DERBY and MV THAMES referred to in the Petition. I also know as a fact and verily believe that:

(a) On the 30th of October, 2015 His Lordship, Hon. Justice O.E. Abang in a well-considered judgment forfeited to the FGN the following (Attached and marked Annexure 4 is the enrolled order of the said judgment).

The vessel MT Good Success.
1,459 metric tons of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) onboard the vessel.
the sum of N66,069,505 and $975,694.50 in FCMB Plc account of Hepa Global Energy Limited, the owner of MT Good Success.

(b) Upon the delivery of judgment the owners of MT. Good Success appealed and also filed motion for stay of execution which was dismissed by the Court of Appeal on the 13th July, 2016. See HEPA GLOBAL ENERGY V FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA (2016) LPELR-41288 (CA).

(c) Before the stay of execution was filed, I ensured that the FGN took economic benefit of the funds forfeited by the trial Court from the account of Hepa Global Energy, by following the money from FCMB up to the confirmation of its receipt by the CBN. Attached and marked Annexure 5(a)-(f) are relevant documents showing my effort in this regard.

(d) Furthermore, in a bid to ensure that the FGN took the economic benefit of the MT Good Success and in demonstrating my total commitment for accountability and transparency in the process of disposition of the forfeited asset, the Commission under my leadership wrote a letter to the Honorable Attorney-General Federation (HAGF) reference number EFCC/SC/JUS/07/101 dated 24/03/16 titled “NOTIFICATION TO DISPOSE” of MT GOOD SUCCESS, recommending the disposal of the vessel and the processes to be adopted. The said letter is attached and marked Annexure 6.

(e) The Commission did not receive any response from the HAGF to our letter dated the 24/03/16. However, through memos dated 10th and 23rd November 2016 the Lagos Zonal Office of the Commission informed the Commission’s Directorate of Asset Forfeiture Recovery and Management (D-AFRM) of the correspondence from the Nigerian Navy (NN), which is the physical custodian of all detained and forfeited vessels, stating that MT GOOD SUCCESS had sunk. The memos are hereby attached and marked Annexure 7a and 6b respectively.

(f) The letter indicated that the owners of the vessel appealed against the judgment forfeiting the vessel and applied for a stay of execution which was rejected by the Court. The letter from the Nigerian Navy (NN). attached to the aforesaid memos stated that when the vessel was experiencing ingress of water, the NN made an effort to relocate the vessel from Lagos Anchorage and made contact with the Commission’s Lagos Office for evacuation of the products but this could not be actualized before the vessel submerged.

(g) Pursuant to the above recommendation a meeting was held with the Flag Officer Commanding Western Naval Command wherein he explained that the vessel had sunk but same could be salvaged, after incurring heavy costs, as only very few companies, such as Julius Berger, have the equipment and capacity to salvage the vessel

(h) The report of the meeting was conveyed through a memo dated 19th December 2016 wherein it was recommended that all vessels in the custody of the Navy listed in the memo including MT Good Success should be salvaged, evacuated and disposed of, if possible. The said memo is hereby attached as Annexure 8.

(i) The recommendation was accepted as indicated in the minute on the aforesaid memo (Annexure 8) wherein I directed the then Secretary to the Commission to expedite action on the due process of auction

(j) The then Secretary to the Commission, Mr Emmanuel Aremo, directed the then Head of Procurement Mr Olushina to issue a letter of engagement to Pinnacle Trading and Investment Nigeria Limited for the disposal exercise.

(k) The letter issued to Pinnacle Trading and Investment Nigeria Limited was later discovered not to have complied with statutory procurement procedures provided under the Public Procurement Act, 2007 and therefore the Commission’s management directed the revocation of the letter and publication of a disclaimer. The action was taken when it was discovered that the personalities behind Pinnacle were also behind another company known as Omo-Jay Nigeria Limited being prosecuted by the Commission for illegal oil dealings in the Niger Delta.

Vii. In respect of the vessel MT DERBY, I also know as a fact and verily believe that:

The Commission had set in motion the process of disposal of the content of the vessel when Honourable Justice Idris of the Federal High Court, Lagos Division, gave an order that the Automated Gas Oil (AGO) onboard the vessel PSV Derby shall be sold by the Registrar of the Court in collaboration with the Prosecutor and Defence Counsel while the proceeds of the sale shall be dealt with as the Court may direct pending the determination of the charge. The Court order of 7th April 2017 is hereby attached and marked as Annexure 9.

Ii. Whilst the Commission was taking assiduous steps towards enforcing the order of his Lordship, the HAGF commenced a fresh process for the disposal of the vessels mentioned above. In so doing, the HAGF did not respond to the letter written to him by the former Secretary to the Commission recommending the disposal of MT Good Success. Rather the HAGF commenced his own process of disposing of not only MT GOOD SUCCESS but other vessels already forfeited by the Commission including MT ASTERI, MT DERBY, MV THAMES and in any others connected to pending court cases.

Iii The firm of DIPO OPESEYI & Co wrote a letter dated 12th of September, 2017, informing the Commission of its engagement by the HAGF to obtain forfeiture order against vessels and dispose them. The letter is hereby attached and marked as Annexure 10.

Iv To support his disposal of the vessels. the HAGF through a letter ref: no: HAGF/ARMU/RMDOVSC/2017/1 dated 23rd January, 2018 informed the Commission that the firm of DIPO OPESEYI & Co had undertaken forfeitures on his behalf and requested the Commission to work with the firm to reconcile the orders obtained by the firm. The letter of the HAGF dated the 23rd of January, 2018 is attached and marked as Annexure 11.

The Commission further received a letter dated 6th February, 2018 from the firm of DIPO OPESEYI & CO titled FHC/ABJ/741/2017 & FHCIABJ /CS/742/2017-FRN V. UNKNOWN PERSONS reiterating its engagement by the HAGF and the steps he has taken. The said letter is hereby attached as Annexure 12.

Vii The attachment to the above letter revealed that MT GOOD SUCCESS, MT DERBY & MT THAMES were among the one hundred and thirty six (136) forfeited vessels. These are the vessels for which I am now being accused of mismanaging despite the engagement of a private legal firm by the HAGF to forfeit and dispose them.

(vii) I also know that by a letter reference number HQ/011/78/98/93/A/VOL.1/21 dated 14th of February, 2020 addressed to the Acting Chairman of the Commission, the Nigerian Navy informed the Commission that the HAGF by virtue of FGN OFFICIAL GAZETTE No. 163 Vol. 106 of 2019 directed the Navy to allow Omoh Jay Nigeria Limited to evacuate the content of MT PEACE and MT ASTERIS. Attached as Annexure 13 is the said letter.

(viii) Also, by a letter reference number SH/COS/34/25/A/475 dated 22/2/18, the Chief of Staff to the President directed the Commission not to take any step towards the sale, disposal or other dealing with the recovered and forfeited assets unless otherwise directed. The said letter is hereby attached and marked as Annexure 14.

(ix) By a letter dated 18th May 2018 the firm of SANI & CO Solicitors, acting on behalf of FSS Nigeria Limited, an auctioneer engaged by the Commission, informed the Commission that the Ministry of Defence and HAGF had by appointments and advertisement commenced the process of engaging other auctioneers to dispose the vessels thereby taking away the opportunity given to this auctioneer by the Commission to dispose the vessels through transparent due process. The aforesaid letter is attached and marked as Annexure 15.

The aforesaid law firm of SANI & CO wrote a similar petition to the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) against the Commission and the HAGF for undertaking double disposal process of the same assets. The Commission was invited to BPP to respond to the allegation

By a letter ref. No: MOD/PROC/GEN/346/1 dated 21st June 2018 the Honorable Minister of Defence informed the Commission of the approval of Mr President to the Ministry of Defence to dispose the vessels. The letter of the Ministry of Defence to the Commission and the letter conveying the approval of Mr President to the Honorable Minister of Defence are attached and marked as Annexure 16.

(xii) The HAGF through the Head of Asset Recovery and Management Unit of the Ministry of Justice, Ladidi B. Mohammed, wrote a letter to the Commission with reference number HAGF/ARMU/RMDOVS/2017/11 dated 27th July 2018 requesting for access to the vessels for valuation by Omo-Jay Nigeria Limited, Federal Ministry of Works and Housing and *Dipo Okpeseyi & Co. The letter is attached and marked as Annexure 17.

(xiii) In demonstrating my total commitment towards ensuring that the FGN derives the full economic benefit and in other to prevent the dissipation of forfeited assets, on the 17th of July, 2018 I wrote a letter to his Excellency, the Vice President Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, SAN (Chairman, Presidential Committee on Asset Recovery) wherein I informed him of the steps taken by the Commission to prevent economic loss as a result of the depreciating nature of the forfeited assets, the challenges we are encountering and the need to urgently dispose of the perishable and depreciating forfeited assets. The letter is attached and marked as Annexure 17.

That in relation to the ALLEGATION contained in paragraph (5ix) of the petition I also know as a fact and verily believe that:

(a) The Commission did not make any conflicting submissions of returns in respect of the non-cash assets as the PCARA never informed me or the Commission of any difficulty it faced as a result of the information we provided.

(b) The allegation bothers on increment in the number of forfeiture of real estate after the return made to the President. The increase in the number of forfeiture of non-cash assets was as a result of fresh and more forfeiture orders obtained by the Commission from the courts.

(c) That the Commission has the requisite capacity to manage the recovered assets. The Commission has a very standard directorate of Asset Forfeiture saddled with the responsibility of managing recovered and forfeited assets.

ALLEGATION B: MISMANAGEMENT OF RECOVERED ASSETS AND DIVERSION FOR PERSONAL ENRICHMENT

The allegations in Paragraph B of the petition are contained in paragraphs B6), B(7), B(8), B(9.)B(10) and B(11).

ALLEGATION IN PARAGRAPH B6):

The allegations in B6) are that I protested against the efforts of the National Assembly (NASS) to address the transparency in the management of recovered assets through the enactment of The Proceeds of Crime Bill 2019. It was also alleged that due to the protest of the Commission and the false information I purportedly supplied, Mr President declined assent to the Proceeds of Crime Bill, 2019.

MY RESPONSE TO ALLEGATION IN PARAGRAPH B (6):

I deny all the allegations contained in paragraph B (6) of the petition as same are untrue and only calculated to embarrass me and rubbish the display of my patriotism and unflinching loyalty to the President and the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

That contrary to the allegations in paragraph B6) I know as a fact and verily believe that Mr President forwarded the draft Proceeds of Crime Bill to the Commission, as well as other Anti Corruption Agencies, such as the Nigerian Police Force, ICPC, NDLEA, NAPTIP and the Nigerian Customs Service. Attached and marked as Annexure 18 is the letter from the Chief of Staff to the President forwarding the Proceeds of Crime Bill, 2019 to the Commission for review, comments and remarks.

Upon receipt of the Presidential instruction. I promptly constituted a team of experts in this field with requisite experience to review the draft Bill as directed by Mr. President.

After a thorough review of the Bill, the Commission came up with a common position and forwarded same to Mr President. Attached and Marked Annexure 19 is a copy of the letter through which the Commission forwarded its position to Mr President.

Apart from the Commission, other Anti Corruption Agencies also forwarded their positions to Mr President disagreeing with the substantial section of the Bill.

Mr President declined assent to the Proceeds of Crime Bill, 2019 in the overriding interest of the nation and the need to sustain the tempo of the achievements this administration is recording in the fight against corruption. The recommendations of the Commission to Mr President on the Bill was not tainted with any falsehood, rather it was honest, professional, courageous and a patriotic position. Other than the corporate position of the Commission which was transmitted to Mr President. I did not sponsor any campaign against the POCA Bill, 2019

ALLEGATIONS IN PARAGRAPHS B(7), B(8) & B(9)

The allegations in paragraphs B7, BS & B9 are that:

– I neglected and refused blatantly to comply with Regulations on the Management of Recovered Assets, 2019,

– I do not want a proper and transparent procedure for the management of assets as directed by Mr President through the Office of the HAGF. I and top officials of the Commission are using the forfeited assets to corruptly enrich ourselves.

MY RESPONSE TO ALLEGATIONS IN PARAGRAPH B(7), B(8) & B(9)

I deny all the allegations in paragraphs B(7), B8) & B(9) of the petition in their entirety as they are totally untrue and calculated to malign me and the Commission.
Contrary to paragraphs B(7), B(8) & B(9) of the petition, I know as a fact and verily believe that:
All steps taken by me in respect of recovered and forfeited assets were in accordance with powers conferred on me by the Act of the National Assembly which established the Commission.
I have never disobeyed any directives and regulations of Mr President whether in relation to the management of the recovered and forfeited assets or any sundry issues.

iii. In the discharge of my official functions, I am bound to comply with the provisions of various enabling laws enacted by the NASS which confer certain special powers on the Commission in respect of recovered and forfeited assets which are in conflict with the Regulations of the HAGF.

Section 17 of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act, 2006 conferred on the Commission the responsibility of tracing and forfeiting abandoned properties and properties reasonably suspected to have been acquired with proceeds of unlawful activities,
Through the special provisions of Section 17 of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offence Act, 2006 the Commission under my watch has forfeited numerous properties to the FGN.
Rather than strengthening the institutional capacity of the Commission and the provisions of section 17 of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act, 2006: the Commission and its enabling statutes have been subjected to numerous attacks and blackmails majorly aimed at whittling down the powers of the Commission.

vii. One of such attacks is the provisions of section 162 (3) of the Proceeds of Crime Bill, 2019 which seeks to delete sections 6(d),13(2)(c), 20, 21, 22, 24, 25(a), (c) & (d), 26(1)(b), 29, 33, and 34 of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (Establishment) Act, 2004 which empowered the Commission to investigate, prosecute and confiscate assets.

Considering the negative impact section 162 (3) of Proceeds of Crime Bill, 2019 will have on the tracing and recovery of proceeds of crimes in Nigeria, Mr President in his wisdom declined assent to the Bill.

The Asset Tracing, Recovery and Management Regulations, 2019 made by the HAGF without the intervention of the NASS seeks to divest the Commission of its statutory power to trace, recover and institute non-conviction based forfeiture proceedings in Court. This conflicts with the statutory mandates and powers conferred on the Commission by the NASS.

I am always transparent in the exercise of my official duties and there is no official decision that I have taken as Ag. Chairman of the Commission which was not a product of transparent process and in compliance with statutory provisions.

The Commission did not oppose the enactment of Proceeds of Crime Bill, 2019 but was opposed to some negative and far-reaching provisions of the Bill which will impede and reverse the anti-corruption agenda of the FGN.

ALLEGATIONS IN PARAGRAPH (B)10

In paragraph B (10), it was alleged that most of the forfeited assets are sold without anyone knowing, or having proper record recourse to the Federal Ministry of Works and Housing that has the mandate to undertake valuation of such properties. It was also alleged that some of the assets have been taken over by officials of the Commission while some are sold at giveaway prices to my friends and cronies,

It was further alleged that I maintained different accounts including using proxies who return the benefit of the sold assets to me and that the proceeds of the purported sales were used to acquire properties in the name of my proxies.

MY RESPONSE TO ALLEGATIONS IN PARAGRAPH B(10)

Sir, I deny each and every allegations contained in paragraph B(10) of the petition as they are totally false, untrue and merely targeted at destroying my hard-earned reputation as an incorruptible Officer
That contrary to the allegations contained in paragraph B(10) of the petition, I know as a fact and verily believe that:

Since my assumption of office as the Ag. Chairman of the Commission, not a single recovered or forfeited property has been sold and the proceeds fraudulently converted.

All the finally forfeited properties are intact except those described below:

244 Forfeited Trucks: The Federal High Court directed the trucks to be sold by the Deputy Chief Registrar of the court in conjunction with the Department Petroleum Resources (DPR) and the Commission. Notwithstanding the Order of Court, I ensured that a Presidential approval was sought and obtained before the process of sale commenced in December, 2019. The sale by public auction was concluded and the proceeds paid to the Recovery Account domiciled with the Central Bank of Nigeria. Attached and marked Annexure 20 is the Presidential approval and evidence of remittance of the proceeds of sale to the Recovery Account.
Allocation of vehicles to some Government Agencies through special auction, with Presidential approval. The beneficiary Agencies are:

Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Disaster Management of which the valued price is to be debited from their allocation.
State House.
National Commission for Refugees and Displaced Persons.
Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS).
National Directorate of Employment (NDE): motorcycles.

Real properties finally forfeited to the FGN and allocated to some Agencies for official use in line with the Presidential approval are:

Voice of Nigeria (VON).
National Directorate of Employment (NDE).
Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Disaster Management.
North-East Development Commission.
Pension Transitional Arrangement Directorate (PTAD).

Properties under interim forfeiture order rented by some Government Agencies:

(a) Nigerian Army

(b) Federal Ministry of Finance

(d) Nigerians in Diaspora Commission

(e) Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria

Others Agencies of Government that have approached the Commission to rent property under interim forfeiture order include:

National Human Rights Commission.
National Council for Arts and culture.

The Commission also temporarily handed over property in Lagos to the Lagos State Government for use as isolation centre for COVID 19 patients.

The Commission presently has Presidential approval to dispose over 450 forfeited vehicles located in Lagos and Abuja. The vehicles have been valued by the National Automotive Council valuers and the Federal Ministry of Works and Housing but no sale/disposal has been conducted yet.

ALLEGATION C:

ISSUE ONE

ALLEGED FAILURE TO TIMEOUSLY INVESTIGATE PROCESS AND INDUSTRIAL DEVELOPMENTS LIMITED (P&ID)

I totally deny the allegation of not timeously investigating P&ID as directed by Mr President. Rather, I know as a fact and verily believe that the germane facts surrounding the award of US$9.6 billion to Process and Industrial Developments Limited (P&ID Ltd), a British Virgin Island (BVI) registered company, and the involvement of the Commission may be summarized as follows:

(1) P & ID (Nigeria) Limited, a “subsidiary of P&ID Ltd of BVI signed an MOU with the Federal Ministry of Petroleum Resources on 22nd July, 2009. The MOU was for the conversion of wet gas to lean gas by the company for generation of electricity.

On the 11th of January, 2010 P&ID Ltd of BVI (instead of its Nigerian “subsidiary”) signed a Gas Supply and Processing Agreement (GSPA) with the Ministry of Petroleum Resources as a follow up to the MOU.

In the year 2012, P & ID alleged breach of the terms of the GSPA and filed an arbitration suit against the FGN in London In the year 2014, the Arbitral Panel made a finding of liability against Nigeria. On the 31st of January, 2017 the Arbitral Panel awarded the sum of US$9.6 billion against Nigeria. On the 28th of June, 2018 the Office of the HAGF and Minister of Justice wrote to the EFCC forwarding Mr President’s directives that the P&ID case should be investigated.

The petition from the HAGF to the Commission is attached and marked as Annexure 20.

The Commission promptly commenced investigation and filed charges in September, 2019. Within fifteen months of receipt of the letter of the HAGF, the Commission concluded investigations, filed criminal charges and P&ID Ltd BVI and its Nigerian subsidiary (P&ID Nigeria Limited) were convicted for money laundering and fraud. The charges against P&ID and the judgment of the Federal High Court convicting P&ID are attached and marked Annexure 21(a) and (b).

Criminal charges were also filed against Grace Taiga and James Nolan in relation to the P&ID matter in October, 2019 still within fifteen (15) months from the date of the HAGF’s letter. The criminal charges filed against Grace Taiga, James Nolan and associated companies of P&ID are attached and marked as Annexure 22. In relation to the award proper, a team of FGN agencies comprising officers of the Commission, Ministry of Justice, the Nigerian Police Force (NPF), the Ministry of Information and the Central Bank went to London to strengthen the UK legal team engaged by Nigeria on the case particularly as it relates to the application for stay of execution of the judgment. The stay of execution was granted.

The FGN’s team also liaised with the law firms retained by the Ministry of Justice. Further, and at the behest of the CBN and Ministry of Justice, the FGN retained an alternate law firm to handle the matter which is ongoing. Another FGN delegation comprising of the Commission, the CBN and the NPF met with the INTERPOL in Lyon and agreed on requisite documents to be furnished to the INTERPOL and the sharing protocols in respect of the documents. On 5th May 2020, the Commission finished the compilation of all the requisite documents and sent it to INTERPOL.

The acknowledged copy of the letter by the INTERPOL is attached and marked as

Annexure 23.

The directive of Mr President to the HAGF is dated 26th June 2018 and the letter from the HAGF to the Commission is dated 28th June 2018. Within fifteen (15) months from the date of the letter of the HAGF, the Commission had concluded investigations, filed charges and secured a conviction against P&ID Limited BVI and P&ID Nigeria Limited. By any standard in the world, this is exemplary and commendable.

I have also ensured that criminal charges were filed against Ms Grace Taiga. the then Director Legal Services of the Ministry of Petroleum Resources and Mr James Nolan, the in-country manager of P&ID Limited of BVI. Furthermore, a warrant of arrest has been obtained against Brendan Cahill, the key personality currently behind P&ID Limited of BVI. In addition, criminal charges for economic crimes have been finalized against eight other associate companies of P&ID Limited.

The staggering volume of work done by the EFCC in less than one year is unprecedented and has received the commendation of the off-shore lawyers. Indeed in the course of proceedings for the stay of execution, Justice Butcher acknowledged that Nigeria has established “seismic fraud” in the matter and that P&ID Limited of BVI has been shown to be a briefcase company. It is therefore surprising to contend that the Commission has been tardy in investigating the matter.

Sir, contrary to the allegation that the Commission failed to forward to the office of the HAGF and Minister of Justice, documents and charges against P&ID and related companies, for onward transmission to the Nigerian Police and INTERPOL, I know as a fact that:

The Office of the HAGF has always been part of the FGN team in this matter. coordinated from the CBN, and cannot contend that it was starved of documents or necessary information. The Ministry of Justice was part of the team, alongside the Commission, CBN, NPF and the Ministry of Petroleum Resources that held regular meetings during which all necessary documents were circulated to team members and discussed. In any case, it should be noted that the crux of the letter which the Commission allegedly refused to respond to were in relation to documents that were to be given to the Police to forward to INTERPOL. It is necessary to further clarify that from the date of the said letter of the HAGF sometime in December 2019, arrangements were being made for Nigerian representatives to meet with INTERPOL to establish document sharing protocol and delineating the exact documents required by INTERPOL.

With the concurrence of the HAGF, the said documents were forwarded to the INTERPOL, through Government’s delegation comprising of representatives of Nigerian Police Force, CBN and the Commission.

AfDB Presidency: Adesina May Be Re-elected By Acclamation, As Dean, African Diplomatic Corps, USA, Says He Is Sole Candidate |The Source

The Source

July 30, 2020

By Adesina Soyooye

In a statement from his office, in the United States of America, USA, Wednesday, on behalf of the African Diplomatic Corps, its Dean, His Excellency, Serge Mombouli, a Congolese, asked that the President of the African Development Bank, AfDB, Nigeria’s Dr Akinwumi Adesina, be reelected for a second term in office by acclamation, having been exonerated of all allegations against him.

Adesina was on his way to a smooth re-election when some Whistle-blowers wrote a petition against him to the Board of the Bank, alleging misconduct on his part. As is the rule, the bank’s Ethical Committee was mandated to investigate the allegations against him.

Adesina was given a clean bill. But out of the blues, the United States of America, insisted on an independent body to review the findings of the Ethical Committee. After some protests against it, the US had its way, and a three-man panel, led by the former President of the Republic of Ireland, Mrs Mary Robinson, was set up for the review.

Adesina had, from the beginning, vehemently denied all the allegations, vigorously defended his integrity, and insisted it was a deliberate ploy to tar his image and that of the AfDB.

On Tuesday, Adesina was, again, found innocent, and cleared of all allegations.

An elated President Muhammadu Buhari has since congratulated him, and so has the Board of Governors of the bank.

On Wednesday, it was the turn of the African Diplomatic Corp in the USA, which in a statement by its Dean, His Excellency, Ambassador Mombouli thanked the Review Panel for doing a good and transparent job. He urged for full support for Adesina, saying he is the sole candidate for the African Union, and asking that he be re-elected by acclamation.

Reads the statement:

“On behalf of the African Diplomatic Corps, His Excellency Serge Mombouli, warmly thanks the panel led by Mary Robinson for their excellent work; congratulates Dr. Akinwumi Adesina President of the African Development Bank Group, and commends him for his visionary leadership and the outstanding development results attained by the Bank under his tenure.

“He notes that the election of the President of the African Development Bank is planned to take place on August 27. 2020 and calls for the re-election of Dr. Adesina be done in unison by acclamation. Dr. Adesina is the sole candidate and has received the full endorsement of the African Union.

“Ambassador Serge Mombouli, Dean of the African Diplomatic Corps, further extends his appreciation to the Board of Directors, the Ethics Committee of the Boards of Directors, and the Bureau of the Board of Governors of the African Development Bank for their courage and maturity in establishing an independent and transparent process, which confirms the excellent governance of the Bank.

“The African Diplomatic Corps accredited to the United States urges the United States of America, the largest non-regional shareholder, and all other shareholders, to continue to strongly support the President of the Bank and the African Development Bank Group, going forward, especially at this period of global Covid-19 pandemic.

“The African Development Bank will continue to play a crucial role in bringing African economies back on the trajectory of growth and sustainable development.”

Breaking: Ihedioha Arrives Imo |The Source

The Source

July 30, 2020

By Charles Igbo

Security personnel had a difficult time controlling the crowd which thronged the Sam Mbakwe Airport, Owerri, to welcome the immediate past Governor of Imo State, the Rt. Hon. Emeka Ihedioha, to the state.

Ihedioha came back unannounced, yet, his arrival brought activities at the airport to a halt, as throngs of people struggled to catch a glimpse of him, amidst cheers, and joy, and celebrations.

Wearing his trademark green cap, he waved back enthusiastically at the crowd, which grew by the minute. He was shielded, at a point, by security personnel, to avoid being mobbed by the excited crowd who hailed him every inch of the way.

It is Ihedioha’s first trip to the state since January, 2020, when the Supreme Court removed him from office after a seven-month stay as Governor.

He aborted an earlier planned visit because it got enmeshed in politics, and created so much tension in the state. A break down of the law was feared.

The magazine gathered that aside from coming home to participate in his party’s (PDP) state congress slated for Saturday, he would, also, attend the funeral of the state pioneer Chairman of the PDP, Chief Innocent Nwoga, slated for Friday.

Ihedioha is the leader of the PDP in the state.

Factional Afenifere Leader, Senator Ayo Fasanmi, Dies |The Source

The Source

July 30, 2020

By Ayodele Oni

Factional leader of Pan Yoruba socio-cultural Organization, Afenifere, Pa Ayo Fasanmi, is dead.

According to family sources, he gave up at his residence in Osogbo, the Osun State capital on Wednesday night, at the age of 94.

His death was confirmed by his first son, Hon. Justice Obafemi Fasanmi, on behalf of the family.

A statement by the Osun State Government described his death as a great loss to the country.

An indigene of Iye Ekiti in Ilejemeje local government of Ekiti state, Pa Ayo Fasanmi served as a member of the Board of Directors of the Old Western Nigeria Housing Corporation.

He was National President of the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria in 1977, and became a member of the House of the National Assembly in 1983.

At the inception of civilian rule in 1979, late Fasanmi contested in the Governorship primary election of the defunct Unity Party of Nigeria, (UPN) and lost to late Pa Michael Ajasin.

He also served in the National Constitutional Conference Commission in 1994, as a member.

Late Fasanmi, an ally of national leader of the All Progressive Congress, (APC) Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, had been in the forefront of “Tinubu for President in 2023.”

Breaking: General Sam Momah Is Dead; Buhari Mourns |The Source

The Source

July 30, 2020

By Charles Igbo

An accomplished Igbo son, who rose to the rank of a Major General in the Nigeria Army, Major General Sam Momah, rtd, is dead.

An academic, an author of 13 books, a former Minister for Science and Technology, General Momah died on Wednesday afternoon, reportedly, of complications connected to diabetes.

Among other positions held, Momah was an Adjutant General of

the Nigeria Army, Commander, Training and Doctrine Command, and Pioneer Director of Nigeria War College.

Momah read Engeneering, and was on the Governing Council of the Universities of Jos and Nnamdi Azikiwe.

Mourning Momah in a press release signed on his behalf by his Media Adviser, Femi Adesina, President Muhammadu Buhari said of Momah: “As a former Chief Administrator and Adjutant General of the Nigeria Army, the President notes that Major General Momah served the Army meritoriously, attracting many honours”

The retired General died at the age of 77 years.

Edo 2020: Esan Group Vows To Punish Ize- Iyamu For Oshiomhole’s Sins |The Source

The Source

July 30, 2020

By Akinwale Kasali

An Esan Group says it is already gearing up for the September 19, 2020, Governorship Election in Edo State, and is poised on paying back former Governor of the State, Adams Aliyu Oshiomhole in his own coin.

The Group, Esan Agenda, has advised the Oshiomhole-backed candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Osagie Ize-Iyamu, to suspend his aspiration of becoming Edo State governor, in order to save himself the humiliation Esan people have reserved for the sacked APC National Chairman, Adams Oshiomhole.

Convener of the Group, Akhere Obozele, while speaking to journalists in Benin said: “The odds against the APC candidate increased the moment the sacked APC National Chairman threw his weight behind him.”

According to him, “For Esan people, this election is first, about a Governor that has worked so hard, and in the people’s estimation, deserves a second term in office.

“Beyond Governor Godwin Obaseki’s second term ticket, which Obaseki will get without much ado, come September 19, 2020, this election is also about the redemption of Esan people from the series of humiliation meted on us by Oshiomhole.

“This is the Esan consensus. Nothing will change this. After relegating and humiliating Esan people for the eight years he was Governor, Oshiomhole set up a structure that he designed to relegate us to political irrelevance in the state, that would ensure no Esan man or woman never gets even a Deputy Governorship position in another 16 years by pairing Obaseki with Rt. Hon. Comrade Philip Shaibu.

“When he realised that Obaseki and Shaibu couldn’t be used to accomplish his hate-laced plan, Oshiomhole chose Gani Audu as running mate to the current APC governorship candidate.

In his warped mind, his calculation is that Ize-Iyamu will be governor for eight years after which his fellow Etsako man, Audu will take over as governor for yet another eight years of two terms. If that were to happen, Esan people would have been kept out of Government House for 36 years, between 1999-2036, (save for the one year and six months, Prof. Oserieme Osunbor was governor).

Obozele explained: “Between 1999 and 2007, we had Lucky Igbinedion, a Benin man, as governor, for eight years; between May 29, 2007-Nov. 2008, we had Prof. Osunbor, an Esan man, who was in office for one year and six months. From 2008-2016, we had Oshiomhole’s eight years, an Etsako man. So if Oshiomhole could stop Obaseki, a Benin man after four years, God forbid, 2006-2020, and then have Ize-Iyamu, a Benin man for eight years (2020-2028) and Gani Audu, an Etsako man, for eight years 2028-2036, the Esan people would have been relegated politically, beyond redemption for 36 years out of the 37 years and some months of our return to democracy (1999 to 2036).

“By 2036, Gani Audu would have completed Oshiomhole’s anti-Esan political calendar for Edo State and perhaps his first circle of inexplicable hatred for Esan people, yet he denies being a godfather.”

The Esan Agenda Convener added: “In fact, to think that Esan people gave him their daughter as first wife, even mystifies things for us, Esan people. We do not know where his hatred for us is coming from.

“Well, that matter is for another day. With Obaseki in the saddle, Esan people have seen redemption from Oshiomhole’s shenanigans, and we will do everything to snatch this opportunity which Obaseki’s second term has given us.

“So in summary, Obaseki’s second term is by way of expression, a liberation move for Esan people, because after him, we will produce the governor.

“Also, very important to us is Oshiomhole’s desecration of our long held traditions and customs. He dethroned and humiliated our Onojie of Uromi, and we will use this lifetime opportunity given to us at the polls to dethrone and humiliate him and his candidate on election day.

“Again, it was Obaseki who took that terrible insult, shame and humiliation away from our faces. The least we owe Obaseki in this election, is for all Esan sons and daughters to go to the polls and vote against APC candidate and his godfather. That way, we will be telling Obaseki, thank you sir, we appreciate your good heart.”

Bauchi: My Regrets Over Dogara’s Defection – Bala |The Source

The Source

July 30, 2020

By Akinwale Kasali

The Governor of Bauchi State, Bala Mohammed, has dismissed former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara as a liar, and an unreliable character.

Dogara, decamped from the ruling APC to the PDP in late 2018, when he found out that the APC was going to deny him a return ticket to the House. The PDP quickly have him a ticket. He won. But early last week, Dogora shocked the PDP, when he decamped again to the APC, citing bad governance and corruption in the part of Governor Bala Mohammed.

He accused Mohammed of diverting a N4.6billion loan, inflating contracts sums, and mismanaging local government funds.

He said he can’t be in the PDP and attack Governor Mohammed, as this would be termed insurbodination, betrayal and attacking the Party he belongs to, prompting him to join the APC.

Piqued by the allegations, Mohammed in dismissing the allegations has called Mohammed a liar, and an unreliable character.

Addressing members of Dogara’s Constituency – Dass/Tafawa Balewa/Bogoro – who paid him a solidarity visit on Wednesday, the governor said of Dogara: “It is a very regrettable development. It is unfortunate because he is a young man that we so much love and appreciate, including me. Even now I don’t harbour any malice against him.

“But he came to show his true colours as a pretender, as a fabricator of lies against my person, who has helped him to reconnect and recapture his mandate as a member of the House of Reps. after being expelled by my adversary, the former Governor.”

The Governor also assured leaders of the PDP in Nigeria that Bauchi remains “intact” for the party.

Recall that Dogara’s original party was the PDP, from where he decamped to the APC. From APC, he went back to the PDP, and now he has gone back to the APC.

Opinion, in many political circles, is that Dogara decamped to the APC with an eye on 2023. He is speculated to be eyeing either the office of the President, or that of the Vice President on the bill of the APC.

Before Governor Mohammed’s reaction, the Chairman, PDP Board of Trustees, Senator Walid Jibrin, has pointedly accused Dogara of detecting to the PDP in order to get the APC ticket for the Presidency or Vice Presidency, knowing that he stood no such chance in the PDP.

Niger Delta: Panic As Militants Threaten To Resume Hostilities; Sylva Meets Osinbajo |The Source

The Source

July 30, 2020

By Uche Mbah

There is panic over the threat of Niger Delta Militants to resume hostilities. The fear of such resumption is the effect it will have on the oil industry, and subsequently, Nigeria’s fragile economy, especially, in the era of the COVID-19.

In recent years, beginning from the Umaru Yar’adua administration, hostilities in the region brought the country’s economy to its knees, and the Federal Government was forced to negotiate in a bid to pull the economy from a complete collapse.

To find a solution to the recent threat, Timipre Sylva, the Minister of State for Petroleum and Mr Kinsley Otuaro, Delta State Deputy Governor, on Wednesday, met with Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo, over the threat, according to Agency reports.

During the time of Yar’adua, the President negotiated the ceasefire, though the then Vice president Goodluck Jonathan, who was on hand to personally negotiate with the Militants in the creeks.

According to Sylva, they went to discuss with Vice President Osinbajo how to resolve the issues, adding that the agitations are routine matters which would be addressed to avoid escalation.

“It is normal for me to consult with the Vice President from time to time; we had some notice of agitation from the Niger Delta.

“The vice president, of course, preempted everything by inviting the Deputy Governor of Delta State so that we can understand exactly what the issues are.

“These are routine issues; these are host community issues and when they come up, we have to deal with them early before they fester and become bigger problems.

“That is why the vice president invited the deputy governor of Delta State to look at the issues so that we can discuss and resolve them quickly before they become bigger issues,” he said.

The Deputy Governor of Delta state described the meeting as part of the process of normal consultations with host communities in the oil-producing environment.

“There are issues and we have agreed that immediately after Sallah, we will have a platform to sorting out some of these issues,” he said.

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