Few months to the 2019 general polls, the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, through its Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC), Lagos State, Sam Olumekun, said 1.38 million Permanent Voters Card, PVCs are yet to be collected.
Olumekun made the disclosure in an interview recently in Lagos.
“We still have about 1.38 million PVCs uncollected as we speak. Only about 15 per cent of the 2017 new registrants whose cards have been produced have come to pick their cards. It is very poor.
“We have also added close to 750, 000 new registrants, whose cards are still going to be produced and distributed.
“Of course, the ones (PVCs) newly printed for those who registered in 2017, people are coming to collect them than those which had been there since 2011 elections,” he said.
The commissioner urged eligible voters whose cards had been produced to visit INEC offices in the 20 local government areas across the state to pick them up.
According to him, this will enable them to exercise their civic responsibility in the 2019 elections.
“We are still looking at the possibility of going to meet the people; taking the cards to them, but we are still looking at that. It is going to be a policy issue,” Olumekun said.
The REC urged the people to be involved in determining those that would represent them in government.
“We are imploring all stakeholders in this business to educate and sensitise the people, because it is important to get our democracy working.
“Sensitisation, mobilisation and education is not the business of INEC alone; it is the business of every interest group, for people to come out and perform their civic responsibility,” Olumekun said.
France star Antoine Griezmann insists he deserves to be on the podium for this year’s Ballon d’Or after winning the World Cup and major silverware with Atletico Madrid, AFP reports.
Griezmann came third in 2016 in the voting behind Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi for the most prestigious individual award in football, despite not winning anything.
That year was agonising for the forward as he lost the Euro 2016 final with France and the Champions League final with Atletico.
But this season fortune has smiled on Griezmann, who starred in France’s triumphant World Cup winning campaign in Russia after an impressive year at Atletico, who won the Europa League and UEFA Super Cup.
“Comparing 2016 and this year, for me I have to be in the top three,” the 27-year-old told French sports daily L’Equipe.
“In 2016, I lost two finals and was in the top three. This time I have won three finals.”
Asked if not winning it would be unfair, Griezmann replied, “Not unfair, but I would wonder what more I could do. I have won three trophies, stood out at decisive moments, but it is not me who votes.”
Ronaldo and Messi have dominated the Ballon d’Or over the last decade and the Portuguese superstar will be a contender again this year after winning the Champions League with Real Madrid.
But Griezmann, who rejected a move to join Messi at Barcelona in the close season, admits ending their stranglehold over the award would be special.
“I think about it, especially the closer I get to it. The Ballon d’Or is a prestigious award, and it is the highest you can go as a player. There are trophies in your league, in the World Cup, the Euro, but it’s not the same,” he said.
However, there are signs that Griezmann’s glorious 2018 on the field might not be enough.
Though Griezmann may have won the FIFA World Cup with France, the UEFA Europa League Cup and the UEFA Super Cup with Atletico Madrid, but that doesnt automatically gives him the coveted award as the best footballer of the world. It would be recalled that in 2010, Wesley Sneidjer of Inter Milan Football Club then won the Italian Serie A League, UEFA Champions League, Italian Cup, the UEFA Super Cup and was runner-up with the Netherland team at the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa, yet he failed to win the award.
Perhaps, this may be Griezmann, only time will tell.
Following the public outrage that greeted the raid of Chief Edwin Clark’s Asokoro, Abuja residence two days ago, the Inspector General of Police, Ibrahim Kpotum Idris, has ordered the dismissal of the three cops that carried out the raid at the rersidence of the elderstateman.
Jimoh Moshood, the Police spokesperson in a statement explained that the Inspector-General of Police, has approved the dismissal of Insprs. Godwin Musa, Sada Abubakar and Yabo Paul from the service “for the unauthorised, illegal and unprofessional misconduct in the search of the residence of Chief Edwin Clark in Asokoro, Abuja.”
He added that ASP David Dominic who led the operation had been queried and was being investigated for discreditable conduct, negligence of duty and act unbecoming of a police officer.
Moshood hinted that the ASP too may be dismissed.
But Chief Clark’s lawyer, Dr. Kayode Ajulo is insisting on a thorough investigation of the incident, stressing that the policemen could not have carried out the search of his client’s house without authorisation.
He warned that the policemen should not be made the scapegoat in the saga, noting that only a thorough probe would satisfy his client.
The initial fears that the Nigerian Customs Service, NCS may not surpass the revenue target of N1.3 tr. for the 2018 fiscal year appears to be declining. The federal government has set the target for the Col. Hameed Ali-(rtd) led service in this year’s budget.
For the year ending 2017, the service surpassed its revenue target of N1.2 billion by over N10 billion.
In 2016, the Customs revenue target was N937 billion but the service only net N898 billion; while in 2015, the Service’s target was N954 billion but it only generated N903 billion.
In 2014, Customs’ target was N1.2 trillion but it collected N977.09 billion.
Therefore, If feeler coming from the NCS that its revenue is heading north ward is anything to go by, the shock experienced due to the half year revenue profile seems to be pointing to a bright end of the year results, experts say.
According to a press statement made available to the magazine, signed by its spokesman, Joseph Attah, a deputy Controller of Customs, the service has shattered the revenue ceiling for the first time in eight months.
The revenue result for the month of August indicates that over N140 billion was generated by the service within the period under review.
This, however, contrast with the average monthly revenue realized for the first half year 2018. Statistics made available to The Source by NCS indicate that the NCS only generated barely N550 billion between January and June this year.
But the August revenue upsurge seems to excite Ali, who while commenting on the issue alluded the revenue success to the renewed effort to re-position the service for sterling performance.
Ali; satisfied with revenue result
“The implementation of three pronged Presidential mandate of ‘Restructure, Reform and Raise revenue’ in NCS has continued to strengthen the Service as a crucial contributor to National economy and Security,” the customs boss stated.
Adding that ,“The Service has effectively seized 156,090 bags of smuggled rice, 15,632 sets of military wears, 489,000 ammunitions and other items.”
“This is in addition to the highest monthly revenue collection of over N140 billion in August 2018.This positive harvest in the areas of anti-smuggling and revenue generation is a clear testimony of what can be achieved under a selflessly focused leadership,” Ali stated in the statement.
Ali also urged well-meaning Nigerians to support the Service by providing credible information needed to rein in smuggling and generate the needed revenue for national development.
By Oji Odu
MTN has negatively lived up to its slogan, “Everywhere You Go” in all the countries it operates, especially Nigeria where it is now synonymous with notoriety in gross disobedience of the country’s laws. For breaching telecommunications regulations, MTN Nigeria has incurred in recent times cumulative fines from the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) totaling N330 billion, out of which it has paid N110 billion to the Federal Government.
In October 2015, the NCC, again, imposed a fine of N1.04 trillion on MTN for irregular registration of subscribers. But after prolonged negotiation with both the telecommunications regulatory agency and the Federal Government, the Commission reduced the fine to N330 billion.
The fine was however resolved between the NCC and the telecommunications operator with an agreement for settlement over a three-year period. According to the Executive Vice Chairman of the Commission, the payment of the fine was spread over a period of three years because the intention was not to strangle MTN.
Again, the Federal Government has slammed South African telecommunications giant, MTN, Nigeria’s largest mobile telecommunications operator with a $2 billion tax demand. The new tax demand which comes amid controversies generated as a result of governments directive to the company to hand over $8.1 billion it was accused of illegally repatriating abroad with the collusion of four banks-Standard Chartered, Stanbic IBTC, Citibank and Diamond banks.
The banks were asked to refund the total of N5.87 billion with Standard Chartered Bank to refund the largest sum of N2.5 billion. Stanbic IBTC is to refund N1.9 billion, while Citibank and Diamond Bank are to refund N1.3 billion and N250 million respectively.
What is the problem with MTN? Why has it now been associated with disregard to Nigerian laws? With the searchlight increasingly beamed on it, how long can it survive?
Describing the recent demand as “regrettable and disconcerting,” MTN said it will “continue to engage with the relevant authorities on all these matters, and we remain resolute that MTN Nigeria has not committed any offences and will vigorously defend its position.
““MTN Nigeria, as a law-abiding citizen of Nigeria, is committed to good governance and to abiding by the extant laws of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
“The re-emergence of these issues is regrettable as it damages investor confidence and, by extension, inhibits the growth and development of the Nigerian economy.
“We will engage with the relevant authorities and vigorously defend our position on this matter and provide further information when available.”
In his reaction, Central Bank of Nigeria Spokesperson, Isaac Okafor said the four sanctioned banks were accused of committing what he described as “flagrant violation of extant laws and regulations of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, including the Foreign Exchange (Monitoring and Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 1995 and the Foreign Exchange Manual, 2006.”
He said following investigations in March, 2018, the CBN resolved to sanction the commercial banks because it confirmed allegations of their remittance of foreign exchange with irregular Certificates of Capital Importation (CCIs) issued on behalf of some offshore investors of MTN Nigeria.
Details of the investigation showed that about $35.5billion was repatriated by Standard Chartered Bank based on illegally issued CCIs, while about $2.6billion, $1.8 billion and $348.9million fraudulently issued by Stanbic IBTC, Citibank and Diamond Bank respectively between 2007 and 2015.
The apex bank also stated that the sanction was on account of illegal conversion of MTN shareholders’ loan to preference shares (interest free loan) of $399.6million, about $8.13 billion was illegally repatriated by MTN. The company’s shareholders invested about $402.6million between 2001 and 2006 through the inflow of foreign currency cash transfers and equipment importation evidenced by the CCIs issued by Standard Chartered, Citi Bank and Diamond Bank.
The CBN said the CCIs were issued with the investments by the three banks showed that about $59.4 million was invested as shareholders’ loan and $343.15million as equity.
Also, following a request by MTN through Standard Chartered for approval to convert the shareholder’s loan to preference shares, CBN said an approval-in-principle subject to the fulfillment of certain conditions was granted on November 13, 2007, including the implementation of the November 8, 2007 Board resolution which was submitted to the CBN’s Director, Trade and Exchange Department.
Others included provision of undertaking that no remittance for either interest or principal repayment would be made to the shareholders from the date of the loan to the date they were converted to preference shares.
MTN refused to meet the said conditions, and without a final approval by the CBN, the company proceeded to convert the shareholders’ loan to preference shares with Standard Charted Bank by issuing new CCIs in respect of the illegal conversion.
Although not a few Nigerians are happy with the sanctions, the question many ask is whether MTN, a foreign company whose country is noted for heartless dealing with Nigerians is alone in this business of high powered fraud that has greatly contributed in the slow death of the nation’s economy. This is because “ it is the rat in the house that tells the one outside that there is fish in the house.”
In 2017, the Senate blamed the Central Bank of Nigeria for allowing MTN to abuse of its policy regulating capital repatriation. The Senate blamed the bank for not bringing up the observed deficiencies of the Foreign Exchange Miscellaneous Monitoring Act, FEMMA.
Adopting the recommendations by its Committee on Banking, Insurance and Other Financial Institutions, the Senate blamed CBN for granting some extensions and exemptions which became prone to sharp practices by commercial banks.
In a chat with the Magazine, Kenneth Obadare, a finance expert, he said: “ I don’t blame MTN for any wrong doing. In a country as Nigeria where tax evasion is still the order of the day both by the small and great, any dubious foreign businessman or company finds a safe haven to carry out his or its dubious activities to the detriment of the country.
“ Unless this is checked, the vicious circle will continue. Imagine the arrogance MTN exhibits in challenging federal government on this fraud issue. This is because supporters in government places. Can this happen in their South Africa?
More facts have emerged how 11 locally built boats loaded with about 80,000 Jerry Cans of 25 litres of smuggled petrol was intercepted by a joint operations of the Federal Operations Unit, FOU, Zone A, Ogun Command and Western Marine Command, WMC, of the Nigeria Customs Service, NCS, on the eve of Friday August 31, 2018.
The Magazine learnt that when information filtered out through a paid informant to Mohammed Aliyu, Comptroller, FOU, Zone A, about plans by some unscrupulous Nigerians to smuggle Premium Motor Spirit, popular Petrol, to Republic of benin, a neigghbouring country in the West African sub-region. The product, according to the informant were to be smuggled through Ijofin Creek in Ipokia local government area of Ogun state. The Comptroller, a close told the Magazine did not hesitate in reaching out to Riks Lura, a Chief Superintendent of Customs and the officer in-charge of the Command’s Operations and Lagos Roving team, Jack Okpabi, another Chief Superintendent of Customs in-charge of the Command’s Rapid Response Sqaud, Officer in-charge of the Crack Squad and other patrol team leaders to put the officers on the alert for the Ijofin operation.
Aware that his image would be marred in this first major anti-smuggling operation in the Command if it flops, Aliyu was said to have reached out to his counterparts at Ogun Command and Western Marine Command to mobilise their officers for the operation as the Command could not execute it alone. He was also said to have also informed the Brigade Commander and the Commissioner of police and Head of the Civil Defense in Ogun state, on the to join the operation in order to strengthen the security and ensure that the operation was a success.
Mohammed Aliyu : Comptroller FOU, Zone A
Many believe that the FOU, Zone A, Customs boss may have sought the support of his counterparts in the other Ogun and WMC including the sister agencies to adequately confront the smugglers, believed to have made adequate security arrangement before staking their resources into the illegal petrol smuggling business . The operation was said to have been kept a closely guarded secret.
The Magazine learnt that the responsibility of Coordinating the operation in the ijofin Creek was handed over to Jack a Chief Superintendent of Customs and the officer in-charge of the Command Rapid Response Squad. Lura, a Chief Superintendent of Customs and the officer in-charge of the Command Operations and Lagos Roving team was said to have also made his officers available for the operation at the instance of the Comptroller.
As a prelude to the Ijofin creek operation to confront the PMS smugglers, it was gathered that Jack had sent a Surveillance team to the area to prepare the ground and give him on the spot assessment of the smugglers activities at the Creek to avoid failure. The whistle blowers were also said to be on ground to monitor the situation and give feedback to Jack and his team .Insiders told the Magazine that when the coast was clear to strike, the leader of the Surveillance team gave signal to Jack, the Coordinator of the operation to move in.
Given the mandate given to him to ensure that all loopholes were blocked by biyu, the FOU, Zone A, Comptroller, who was said to be carrying out his first major anti-smuggling operation in his new Command, a source disclosed that the raid on the Creek was well Coordinated.
This is because officials of the WMC had moved into the Ogun waterways with their functional Crafts to patrol the area to forestall the smugglers from sailing into Republic of Benin with the smuggled item.
The source confirmed that when it became clear that the Enforcement team of the WMC at the instance of Adamu Mohammed, the Command Deputy Comptroller in -charge of Enforcement had taken over the waterways, Jack and his team moved into the Creek to take possession of the 11 locally built boats and its contents with little or no resistance. The Ogun Command Crack squad were not left out as they also mobilised to the site. The Army, police and Civil Defense officials were also ground to give additional security back up to the Customs team . Officials of federal Road Safety Commission, FRSC, were also on ground to clear the road for easy vehicular movements.
The magazine gathered that the dispossession of the smugglers of the 80,000 Jerry Cans of 25 litres each of petrol from the water ways smugglers forced Aliyu, the FOU, Zone A, Comptroller to make adequate arrangement to secure the Creek and the 11 boats carrying the smuggled products. He was said to have engaged the services of the Army at an agreed fee to work with the Customs officers stationed at the Creek, pending the evacuation of the products for public auction.
Given the tight security at the Ijofin Creek provided by Customs personnel,soldiers, Civil Defense and the police, Aliyu, who was accompanied by Lura, the officer in-charge of the Command Operations and Lagos Roving team and other senior officers had mobilised three teams armed to the teeth for the visit on Monday, September 3, 2018. The Customs Comptroller had gone to the Creek to see things himself instead of relying on the information given to him by Jack, the Coordinator of the operation to send his report to hameed Ali, a retired Colonel and Comptroller General NCS.
When the Magazine visited the Command premises on Tuesday,September , 4, 2018, the seizure of the multi-million product by a Customs joint operations, Coordinated Jack dominated the talk of officers. Jack, an officer confirmed may have warmed himself to the heart of the Kebbi state born Comptroller of FOU, Zone , as he was said to have been having regular consultation with him. The Magazine sited him coming out from the Comptroller’s office beaming with smiles. ”I have no office. My office is on the road”, he reportedly said.
G Eye witness account confirmed, that the official take- over of the Creek by Customs personnel with the support of the other security agencies personnel may have given the Customs formations involved in the operation to evacuate their share of the products to their respective Commands. The FOU, Zone A, was said to have got the lion share as the initiator of the operation.
The Command’s Operations and Lagos roving team at the instance of the Comptroller, was said to have evacuated 11 trucks load of the seized smuggled product to the mechanical Workshop turned warehouse on Monday, September 3, 2018. An additional four trucks load of the Jerry Cans of ”25” of the product was said to have been evacuated to the Command by the team on Tuesday, September 4, 2018. The Command was said to have spent about N1i5 million to evacuate the products from the site, according to a source.
The evacuation of the Jerry Cans of the ”25” product to the Command may have given opportunity for officials of the Lagos state police Command, Civil Defense , the Army Operation MESA and Federal Road Safety Commission, FRSC, personnel to gather at the Command on Monday, September 3, 2018, to have their own share of the seized smuggled products. The Magazine sited the officials of these other security agencies as they stationed their pick up vans awaiting for the Customs officials going into the Command Mechanical workshop to collect their allocation from them
Decency was said to have been thrown to the winds as the security personnel struggle to get the free Jerry Cans of petrol from the Command Provost Marshalls. But the actual sales of the seized products to the public was said to have started on Tuesday, April 4, 2018. It was a bazaar of a sort as the uniformed men struggle with Civilians to buy the products.
The Magazine attempt to take the picture of the three trucks that brought some of the products and the long queue of buyers were frustrated by soldiers and Customs Provost Marshalls who were at the scene. Efforts to make the security operatives realise that the Magazine has the mandate of the Public Relations officer and the approval of Rashid Adahunsi, the Command no nonsense Deputy Comptroller, Valuation, who Coordinated the sales to do so was frustrated.
They had had snatched the Magazine Professional Camera and quickly rushed to the CPM office to keep it with their Head, an Assistant Superintendent. the situation was so embarrassing that by-standers rained abuses on them for abuse of tax payers uniform. The Magazine did not hesitate in going after them to avoid damaging the lens of the expensive Professional Camera. Visitors at the Command security gate looked in awe over the harsh words coming out from the Provost Marshals mouth.
In anger the Magazine was forced to report to the Deputy Comptroller who took it up with the Head of the Provost Marshall with a matching order to release the Camera to the Magazine without further delay. He was said to have grudgingly released it by calling Journalist names.
Maritime analysts would want Aliyu , the Comptroller of the Command, who may have watched the scene with the close circuit television in his, CCTV, in his office to call his Provost Marshalls, to avoid causing further embarrassment to the Command.
By Uche Mbah
The Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, may finally settle for the duo of David Mark and Osita Chidoka in the forthcoming presidential elections, if feelers reaching this Magazine will be believed. Earlier this week, Mark has picked up his expression of interest and nomination form-a final indication that he will finally contest the election under the umbrella of the PDP.
David Mark entrance to the game has substantially changed the political equation. Mark belongs to the group of elite retired military officers whose role in the development of the country’s political structure has been very central. Though he retired as a Brigadier general, he was one of those who, as a member of the ruling council of the military junta, have serious say. Hence he belongs to the small elite group that are allegedly ruling the country by proxy. He has been in the Red chambers for the last nineteen years, eight of which he served as the Senate President. In fact, he was the immediate past president of the senate, before Bukola Saraki, the current senate President, took over power. During his time as the Senate president, the Senate was more stabilized that any other time. Before then, there has been a high turnover of Senate Presidency, particularly under the regime of Olusegun Obasanjo.
This Magazine had reported sometime again that the Serial Senator may have been the anointed of the so called four Musketeers. The King makers-Olusegun Obasanjo, Theophilus Danjuma, Ibrahim Babangida and Abdulsalami Abubakar-has always had a hand in the dictation of who will be president of the country. Another influential member was late Shehu Musa YarAdua. In fact, the duo of Babangida and Danjuma were said to have approached Obasanjo after his prison terms to ask him to become president, but he was not disposed towards the idea. This was when there was need to placate the Southwest because of June twelve annulment. When Obasanjo finally made up his mind, he was said to have driven to the Ikoyi home of Danjuma early one morning to intimate him of his final decision. Danjuma contacted Babangida, or IBB as he is fondly called, to inform him. The following day, IBB allegedly arrived with Campaign seed money. The rest, they say is History.
Obasanjo’s bid for the for third term, which was said to have been scuttled with the help of his Vice then Vice president, Atiku Abubakar, paved way for another president to step in. Indications were that the king makers sat and decided to compensate their former colleague, Shehu, by picking his younger brother, Umaru, who was then the governor of Katsina state. Again, Umaru was reluctant, and had to be persuaded to run. At his death, they allowed Goodluck Jonathan to complete his tenure, and do his first term. Indications were that Danjuma was the last man standing in the support of Jonathan, until they again shopped for a replacement in Buhari, in the spirit of his being one of them, forget they have their own differences. But they all share the same background.
It is clear that the group have turned their back on the incumbent, Muhammadu Buhari. And they are not relenting in using their international connections to pressurize him to leave. Danjuma, in the wake of the Middle belt killings, advised the natives to protect themselves, the military is taking sides against them. It was gathered that this so much piqued the president that he went to visit Danjuma to demand a retraction, and Danjuma allegedly rebuffed him. Soon after, Danjuma was sighted in the United states telling US legislators that there is an ethnic cleansing going on in Nigeria allegedly with tacit approval of the presidency. Since then, he has been on international campaign following the same thought. As at press time, Danjuma is addressing the British House of Commons on the same issue.
When this Magazine reported on the possible endorsement of David Mark, it took only two days before, coincidentally, for the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, invited Mark for interrogation on allegations of financial impropriety during his tenure as senate president. It appeared suspicious that, according to Mark, the Commission only remembered him when rumors of his interest in the presidency were on. “If it is the will of God no one can stop it”, he said. Since then he went underground.
His underground activities since he left the senate presidency has been quite and firm. During the time that Saraki staged a coup against Tinubu to clinch the senate Presidency, it was said the Mark was the unseen hands in the affairs. He was alleged to have been requested to accept the senate presidency but he refused, settling on his erstwhile Deputy, Ike Ekweremadu, retaining his position. Most of the meetings, it was alleged, were taken at his instance.
There may be indications that the Senate President may be a placeholder for Mark. There may be withdrawals from the race. It is expected that in the long run, Jona Jang and Saraki may trade in their ambition. This will make the North central to speak in one voice. Already, Ekweremadu have purchased his nomination form back to the Senate. It is believed that a Mark president with the duo of Saraki and Ekweremadu will make a smooth running. That may have given Mark the confidence to give a time line of two years to reverse the downward trend of the economy.
Meanwhile, Olusegun Obasanjo, who, according to former President Jonathan, you “ignore to your peril’, has made his reconciliation with the PDP, a party he tore their membership card by proxy to indicate that he was done with them. Feelers indicate that part of the reconciliation is that they will seek his endorsement for any candidate they may favor. “Indications are that he accepts any candidate from the North, but preferably North central, a people that has been under siege by herdsmen”, said a source knowledgeable in those things last week. “But Baba would refer an Igbo Vice President-and specifically, Osita Chidoka, former Minister of Aviation”. Chidoka has been recently appointed as an aid to the PDP chairman, Uche Secondus, an indication he may soon return fully to the party.
Interestingly, Obasanjo was said to have been more interested in Donald Duke, former governor of cross River state, but both major parties insisted on Northern Presidential candidates.
The entrance of Duke has already forced Duke to reconsider his ambition in PDP, as he mules decamping to a new party. It is not yet clear which of the parties he may berth.
The pressures on Buhari not to contest allegedly were part of the reason why there has been an influx of European leaders in recent times. This Magazine was informed that pressures on Buhari not to contest subtle threats of economic sanction made him to intensify his romance with China. Parts of the visits were efforts to dissuade him from both contesting and romance with China. As a defiant move, he immediately jetted to china after the visit of Angela Merkel of Germany. American President, Donald Trump, has warned that Nigeria is risking trade enslavements with China.
It is likely that in the coming days, Nigeria will witness what was experienced under Jonathan, when the whole world was against him, using the Chibok girls as fodder canon. Already, a British Member of Parliament has started a one man protest in front of the Nigerian High Commission in London. But it appears Buhari is poised to continue in his agenda. Nigerians are watching.
There are fears among officers and men of the Federal Operations Unit, Zone A of the Nigerian Customs Service, NCS about the capacity of Comptroller Mohammed Aliyu to sustain the tempo left by his predecessor at the unit.
The apprehension came amidst suggestions that the controller failed to leave a robust anti-smuggling record in Seme Command where he served before his present deployment.
Comptroller Aliyu swapped position with Comptroller Muhammed Uba Garba after a major shake-up, last month by the Hameed Ali-led NCS, that affected over 70 controllers across various Customs formations in the country.
But his arrival at FOU has raised many posers as to whether he’s a round peg in a round hole.
There are reports that the unit has made some seizures, including some exotic cars, consumable and other items since the arrival of Comptroller Aliyu to the unit.
“He’s very desperate to overturn the record of the former controller” said one officer in the unit, who seemed not enthusiastic about the new sheriff in FOU, Zone A.
That seemed not to impress those that have doubts over the ability of the controller to prove critics wrong.
Comptroller Aliyu, some say came to his new posting with a lot of baggage, from his failure to rein in smuggling while he presided over Seme command, to allegations that rice and cars smuggling festered so much along Seme and adjoining borders connecting Nigeria with Republic of Benin.
Even though the federal government has banned the importation of vehicle and rice through the land borders, the prohibited items still made their ways unhindered through the Seme border into the country while Comptroller Aliyu presided.
‘Ordinarily, this should not have happened, considering the level of support the border commands have received so far from the Comptroller General, who is poised to stamp out smuggling,” John Odu, a security expert told the magazine.
The belief is that most of the items seized by the FOU Zone A during the period made their way into the country through Seme border.
For instance, between June 13 through to July 24, 2018 the unit anti-smuggling team, intercepted various contraband goods with a Duty Paid Value of (N1,120,714, 338.12) one billion, one hundred and twenty million, seven hundred and fourteen thousand, three hundred and thirty eight Naira, twelve kobo.
The items included 21 exotic vehicles; 9,504 bags of foreign parboiled rice; 333 cartons of frozen poultry and 287 bales of second hand clothing.
The seized vehicles include, one Mercedes Benz G-500 (2016); one Toyota Hilux (2017); a Toyota Land Cruiser Prado (2016), a 2014 Toyota Hilux Bulletproof; a 2018 Toyota Corolla; two Toyota Camry (2016); a 2016 Honda Civic; a 2016 Honda Accord; and one Dodge Charger (2016), among others.
The 21 exotic vehicles had a Duty Paid Value of N484,458,778,.92.
Most of these items were believed to have been smuggled in through Seme.
Security experts versed in customs operations insist that the items should not have escaped the prying eyes of customs checkpoints along the border. There are many checkpoints along the Lagos/ Badagry expressway, mostly manned by men and officers from Seme command very hour of the day.
In spite of this, smugglers had a free reign for several months that Comptroller Aliyu was boss in Seme command, close watchers of NCS told the magazine.
Earlier in February, the unit had intercepted various contrabands with a duty paid value (DPV) of N1.1Billion for the month.
The seized items include 18 vehicles, 4,201 bags of foreign parboiled rice, 2,619 cartons of frozen poultry products, 1,105 jerry-cans of vegetable oil, 2,637 pieces of used tyres, 1,333 bales of used clothing, 2,001 kg of Pangolin, 343kg of Elephant Tusks among others.
Field officers at the unit had confided in the magazine that the laxity on the part of authorities in Seme command was mostly responsible for the seizures made under Comptroller Muhammed Uba Garba, because as they implied, the abnormality that reigned supreme in the last 12 months, in terms of smuggling could have been averted if comptroller Aliyu was serious with his job.
Sources in customs told the magazine that the initial plan by customs headquarters was to redeploy him back to Abuja, as punishment “for letting the CG down despite the trust place in him. After much pleading some close aides to the CG that such will send a wrong signal, it was decided that he be given a soft landing,” a top customs officer in Abuja told the magazine.
The same source further disclosed that Comptroller Aliyu deployment to FOU is temporary that his bosses “in Abuja are already shopping for replacement because the unit is a very strategic one, and key to the CG anti-smuggling campaign” he stated.
He said the deployment of Comptroller Garba to Seme command is deliberate on the part of the CG and his team to prove the allegation against Comptroller Aliyu, at the same time tighten belt around the Seme border corridor.
Comptroller Aliyu failed to respond to telephone calls made to him by the magazine to respond to the allegations. The Spokesman of the command, Jerry Attah, could not be reached at the time of filing this report.
It is not yet certain that the 2019 general elections will hold in spite of the approval of N143 billion budget for the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) by the National Assembly to conduct the election. The federal lawmakers insist that President Muhammadu Buhari must sign the 2018 electoral bill(amended) into law before the electoral umpire can use the money.
Members of the National Assembly are mounting pressure on the President to sign the bill to justify the N143billion which the joint committee of the Senate and the House of Representatives on electoral matters has just recommended as the budget for the 2019 polls.
The Magazine learnt that the Senators and House of Representatives members had discussed the matter across political parties, where they questioned Buhari’s seeming unwillingness to sign the bill. The lawmakers said that if the bill was not signed, there was no way INEC could spend the N143billion as the bulk of the budget was earmarked for the procurement of election equipment envisaged by the bill.
The Magazine’s findings indicated that much although the joint committee on electoral matters went ahead to approve the money for consideration by the joint committee on appropriations and ultimately, the floors of the two chambers, the lawmakers continued to express doubts over how INEC would spend it in the absence of the electoral bill.
Why are there fears on the amended electoral bill? Why is President Buhari still dragging feet in signing the bill despite his popularity claims? Why is the All Progressives Congress (APC) opposed to the bill which is meant to reorder the 2019 election timetable? Why is the National Assembly afraid that the INEC timetable may throw up a leadership that will not be in the best interest of Nigerians and Nigeria’s maturing democracy? Who will be the beneficiaries of this new electoral act?
With claims and counter claims by both the President/APC and the opposition of the president’s popularity among Nigerians, it may be right for this popularity to be tested in an unquestionable election whose ordering is devoid of controversy, even as President Buhari has, again, opted for free and fair 2019 general elections which he said threw him up as President of Nigeria.
In the heat of speculations that President Buhari has vetoed the bill , and is just marking time for the National Assembly to resume annual recess on September 25 before he communicates his decision to them, Senator Ita Enang, Special Assistant to the President on National Assembly Matters prefers not to speak on it, but said it is well with the bill.
He said, “I will not make any comments on the bill for now. All I can say is that it is well with the Electoral (Act Amendment) Bill.”
But Enang who had also frequently dismissed such veto speculation, claimed that his boss had been studying the bill and would sign it at the appropriate time.
Meanwhile, a top parliamentary source explained that the revised N143 billion budget of INEC, not the initial N189.2bn, is this big because of the items they will procure for the elections. According to him:“There are innovations in the electoral bill like the mandatory use of the card reader for all accreditation. In other words, there will no longer be manual accreditation whatsoever. So, INEC came with this huge budget to cover the cost of the so many equipment, card readers, computers and other gadgets the commission will procure to bring the accreditation in line with the provision of the bill.”
However, Senators and members of the House of Representatives have expressed concern why the passing of the budget is more important than the signing of the bill. “Which one should come first”, they ask. The lawmakers also fear that if the budget was eventually passed, but the bill was not signed, what would happen to the money?
“It is true that this concern has been raised. Nigerians too are not helping matters because nobody is asking the President why he is keeping the bill. Everybody is shouting, pass the budget, pass the budget. “If there is sincerity of purpose, the first thing is for Buhari to sign the bill in order to justify this INEC budget.
“You don’t build something on nothing. “We are worried because we hear from presidency sources that the President does not want to sign the bill. He is likely to return it to the National Assembly. “However, our committees had to continue working just to save the National Assembly the persistent blackmail that it was delaying the budget of the 2019 general elections,” a lawmaker stated.
In a chat with Godswill Apam, a political analyst, while supporting the signing of the bill before releasing the N143 billion to INEC to constitutionally guide its spending, believes the crisis is due to the fallout of the strange bed fellows making up the APC, leading to the gale of defections, many are not comfortable with the INEC leadership and the timetable for the 2019 elections which they claim favour President Buhari and the APC.
“ Had the people that make up the APC not fallen apart, I don’t think any of them would have seen any problem with the INEC timetable for the 2019 general election. I believe the quest for reorganising 2019 election sequence will be good for Nigeria’s nascent democracy. It is meant to throw up a strong opposition because the other National Assembly elections and others will be done before the Presidential election.
“ We saw what happened after the 2015 general election following the conduct of the Presidential election before the others. There was a quick realignment to be in the same boat with the wining President. After the APC government had taken over government, there was a wave of decamping to the party, especially from the opposition People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in order to remain relevant, be in the good books of President Buhari and have their past sins forgiven,” he said.
But Johnson Adetunji believes that there is no reason for the expression of fears by the National Assembly on the INEC timetable that it may negatively cause a swing of votes. “ In as much as I believe that the National Assembly has the principal right to make laws, it should have confidence in the ability of those that make bye-laws that they are capable of making good laws.
“ There should be no cause for alarm because I believe they will sort things out before the elections. Their selfishness will not allow them see this nation thrown into anarchy,” he stated.
The campaign to return the former DSS boss, Lawan Daura, back to his post has taken a bizarre tirn since the return of Muhammadu Buhari from his London trip. As was reported by this Magazine, there has been serious lobbying from various quarters for Buhari to bring him back, but the condition under which he was sacked presented a serious bottleneck for the realization of that ambition. Mamman Daura, who is no longer having the high level of respect from Buhari since his ejection from the Villa, is using the Chief of staff to the Government, Abba Kyari, to push his agenda. This has effectively pushed Abba Kyari to allegedly taking some arbitrary actions, since it appears to be a proxy war between him and the the National security Adviser, Babagana Munguno, who the new boss of defers to. Daura has allegedly refused to be subordinate to Monguno, preferring to report to Daura directly.
Reports from sources indicate that Daura had run the Agency in less than a professional manner. The new Acting DG immediately swung into action in a bid to reorganize the Agency. He constituted a committee headed by a Director from Kastina state. After the committee meeting, he began to implement some of the decisions that were reached by the committee. It is discovered that 49 vacancies involving Directors across the states, top management positions at the headquarters, were starring him in the face. It became more worrisome when it was alleged that the former Director was not inclined to fill them because of alleged ethnic bias, resulting in stagnation of some officers due for promotions. The morale of those that were so shortchanged became low, and subsequently productivity lowered. Besides, there were allegations of politicizing the Agency. He started with the disengagement of those who have reached 35 years in service, then proceeded to promote and deploy others who are due but were stagnant. The director of finance, the deputy director administration and a director from Kano were retained at top management positions.
Based on the committee recommendations, which showed that there was no Director from the South West but three from South-south, he re-deployed director to the headquarters so that the South West would have representation. State directors in Borno, Cross River, Kaduna and Oyo were sent on terminal leave by Mr Seiyefa, preparartory for their retirement.
These changes did not seem to go down well with the Secretary to the government, Abba Kyari, who was said to have summoned the new DSS boss, instructing him to stay action on the reforms and promotions, and to reverse the ones already perfected. But it was said that Seiyefa has stuck to his guns, insisting that he only reports to Monguno, and that the Agency must be returned to the path of professionalism under him. Rumors indicate that Kyarri was piqued because the changes may jeopardize the 2019 elections, which the DSS is an arrowhead for the execution in favor of the ruling party.
The issue has generated so much rancor that some officers may have made up their mind to leave the agency if things degenerate further.
Meanwhile, it appears that the Presidency may have made up his mind on Daura’s recall. It is said that a serving Minister with force background is being tipped to replace Seiyefa who is billed to retire before the end of the year-that is, if he is not sacked before then. Meanwhile, a group comprising the South –south, South east, Middle belt and south west has condemned the antics of those pressurizing him to reverse his decisions, warning that this will be the last straw. In a statement signed by Yinka Odumakin, South-West; Senator Bassey Henshaw, South-South;Prof Chigozie Ogbu, South-East, and Dr Isuwa Dogo, Middle Belt, the forum decried the“clannishness, sectional proclivity and exclusive handling of the security architecture of the country by President Buhari in the last three years.”
The report reads in part,“The acting DG reportedly noticed that there were three other Directors from the South-South apart from himself and decided to relieve two of them so that a director could be brought in from the South-West that had nobody on the management and another person from the North-West. “A top Presidency official is said to have given instructions that the D-G should ask all the newly promoted to go back to their previous positions, a directive that ought to have come from the National Security Adviser, if there was the need for any. Now the plot is to remove Seiyefa himself. “We call on President Buhari to immediately call his official in question to order so that he can withdraw the obnoxious directive and allow the agency to run professionally. “We also warn of the consequences of further alienating sections of the country by the administration, particularly the Niger Delta where the acting D-G is from and the South-West whose only representation on the management of DSS has now been reversed. “It may be necessary not to overstretch it by removing the Acting DG and stopping the professional reorganization in the DSS because it is not in tandem with the ethnic domination script of Mr President. It may turn out the proverbial last straw.”
