It was reported that Chief Bode George has been arrested by the EFCC.
He was arrested this morning in his Asokoro home in Abuja.

Erstwhile National Vice Chairman (South) of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and former chairman of the Board of the Nigeria Ports Authority (NPA), Chief Olabode George, was picked up from his Asokoro, Abuja, home, in the early hours of today, by operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

When our reporter contacted the spokesman of the EFCC, Mr. Femi Babafemi, he confirmed the arrest. According to Babafemi, “Bode George was arrested this morning, following his return from an overseas trip in connection with the investigation by the anti-graft body of his tenure as chairman of the NPA board.

George had boasted last weekend upon his return from overseas trip that nobody could arrest him and that he was not wanted by any anti-corruption agency.

http://thepmnews.com/2008/08/07/bode-george-arrested-picked-up-this-morning-in-abuja-by-efcc

Another tales by moonlight. They should perhaps start concentrating on the far much important 7 point agenda

jay bee:

Another tales by moonlight. They should perhaps start concentrating on the far much important 7 point agenda

Certain records that need to be set straight should as a matter of importance be set straight.
Moreover there is division of labour; this falls to madam Waziri. Don't see anything wrong in it.

offcourse ain't nothing wrong with them arresting the dude we all know has mass skeleton in his cupboard but the annoying fact is, the chance of justice is close to zero so why waste valuable time?

what happens after the so-called arrest that is the main gist i need to hear

Bode George . . .where lies ur strength now ?

eni a wi fun oba je o gbo, eni a fo fun oba je e o gba

let the movie begin . . .

Wetin the guy do sef

political posturing

Dr , you are happy. you are a member of AC. you people should be happy. I do not know how PDP could be so stupid. I have never seen a party that is this stupid. they are divided themself . You if PDP run for election today. They would not win any state in the south. PDP is killing themself. Who win president Yar Adua dependant on to help me win. who? One he has an all time low rating of any president nigeria ever had.

i do not know the time of adviser he has, I think all is adviser and the new PDP executive are working for IBB. they must be IBB boys. if nothing happen within now and 2011 , president yar adua is on his way out. All they are doing is making IBB look good. I have ask myself this question is kinigbe behind this. I know someone is behind this . Kinigbe or IBB or AC,

PDP have lost it. They are finished in the south. Jonathan can not help them win. Even in bayelase Dokubo would beat him. So what are the people in think thinking. AC or IBB or Kinigbe may be the one behind this.

@ Nigeria1,

What is all that about? Bode Goerge who is known to have illegally enriched himself from his days at the Ports is now been arrested and you came up with that PDP epistle.

Is it Because OBJ and his dog Ribadu do not have the conscience to try him.

Now all OBj's boys are falling like a pack of cards. Fani-Kayode the garrulous idiot, Aborisade, Liyel Imoke, Bode George, RIBADU. I am so delighted. I am waiting for Iyabo and Gbenga.

Now who is next?

Please pack them all, thieving and looting idiots!

Bode is just a loud mouth errand boy like Fani.

I want to see EFCC arrest the Kingpins: OBJ + Annenih.

landis:

Bode is just a loud mouth errand boy like Fani.

I want to see EFCC arrest the Kingpins: OBJ + Annenih.

i am sure OBJ and Anenih would be shitting in thier pants right now, and probably plotting thier escape!

Bode George,i thought you are above the law? OBJ + Anenih,you are on the line.

Nigeria1,
you, your points and your tribalistic remarks are just like a square peg in a round hole.
it is not time to talk politics because when that time comes, we will be able to reffer you to the political madness of obj that made pdp looked like winners.

we are talking bode george, one of the untouchables being touched by nobody but a woman. if ribadu could not arrest kayode, borrishade, imoke, gerang, iyabo etc and he was double promoted then this woman - waziri deserves to be promoted to the rank of a president.

the arrests of obj's saints exposes the hidden agenda of the man(ribadu) whose ambition was nothing to be the inspector general of nigeria.

to you waziri, my cap is off for you and your name has been linked to your types like okonjo iweala and Madan dora. please remember, the arrest for the two remaining full time criminals will make you the millenium hero.  please madam, before approaching obj and annenih, try and discuss with our own andy uba.

in all, the cries of the poor suffering and dying nigerians is working over there in high heavens.

Former Deputy National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (South), Chief Olabode George, was brought to the High Court in Ikeja, this morning, by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) over the alleged N84 billion fraud perpetrated while he was the chairman of the Nigeria Ports Authority (NPA) Board.

However, the case was not heard as the judges, including the Chief Judge of Lagos State, Justice Ade Alabi, are on vacation. As at press time, learnt that the case had not been formally assigned to any judge by the Chief Judge.

We gathered that the matter would eventually be heard by Justice Olubunmi Oyewole. Meanwhile, chieftains of PDP and supporters of Bode George started arriving in the court premises at about 9.00 a.m. Among the PDP chieftains present in court were Femi Lanlehin, Wahab Owokoniran, Honourable Tunde Salau, Aina Tugbobo and Muyiwa Collins

Bode George, it would be recalled, dragged TheNEWS magazine to court for its publication in April 2005, alleging fraud and irregularities in the award of contracts under his watch as chairman of the NPA board.

During one of the proceedings of the N500 million libel suit filed against Independent Communications Network Limited (ICNL), publishers of TheNEWS/P.M.News, at an Ikeja High Court, an operative of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) testified against him (George) making startling revelations on how, as chairman of the Nigeria Ports Authority (NPA), George awarded 24,252 contracts in breach of Federal Government rules.

The investigating officer, Mr. Bamanga Bello, revealed these facts in a written statement on oath, which he adopted in the court during the hearing of the suit on 6 December, 2007.

George claimed that TheNEWS damaged his reputation in one of its cover stories detailing fraud in the NPA, amounting to N85bn.

He joined as co-defendants in the suit, the Editor-In-Chief of the TheNEWS, Mr. Bayo Onanuga, and Mr. Ademola Adegbamigbe.

But while testifying in the suit, Bello, who was in court to represent the chairman of EFCC, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, told the judge that George acted illegally in approving the said contracts.

The Federal Government had set up a committee to verify NPA’s contracts between 2001 and 2003 when George was the chairman of the NPA Board. Bello represented Ribadu in the committee.

Led in evidence by defence counsel, Mr. Femi Falana, Bello told Presiding Justice Akeem Oshodi that the 24,252 contracts awarded during George’s tenure as NPA Chairman were worth N100bn.

He averred that only the Ministerial Tenders Board or the Federal Executive Council had powers to approve the contracts which George unilaterally awarded.

Bello added that contracts awarded during George’s tenure were inflated. Such act, Bello said, ran contrary to sections 516 and 390 of the Criminal Code and Section 22(3) of the ICPC Act of 2000.

George, he also disclosed, went away with four vehicles belonging to the NPA when he left office. He said this prompted the EFCC to write him (George) and that it was after he received the letter that he returned the vehicles.

The EFCC investigating officer told the court that the contracts awarded by George were not budgeted for contrary to Section 22(4) of the ICPC Act. The special committee set up by former President Obasanjo was chaired by Ribadu who handed a report to the former leader in February, 2006. While handing over the report, Ribadu noted with disdain discoveries by the committee, including financial recklessness, violation of existing regulations in the award of contracts and excessive contracts spinning, all during the tenure of George as chairman of the NPA Board.

The committee made strong recommendations to the government to recover the misappropriated funds, make structural and administrative changes in the NPA to forestall a future colossal mismanagement and fraud.

Obasanjo, while receiving the report, commended members of the committee and promised to look into its recommendations with a view to making it a guide in taking future decisions. He promised to also look into the cases of NPA creditors. The committee’s report was tendered in court by Bello and the judge admitted it as evidence.

However, on Wednesday 30 January, when the matter again came up for hearing, thugs and supporters of the former Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) National Chairman (South) went wild in the High Court premises and attacked the Managing Director/Editor-In-Chief of TheNEWS, Mr. Bayo Onanuga, who was about leaving the court premises in his car.

His attempt to draw the attention of security personnel to the action of the thugs led to his being slapped by one of the thugs, while others poured sand on him. It is believed that the thugs acted this way because the libel case appeared to be slipping out of George’s hands.

It would be recalled that George, at a press conference, denied that he acted like an executive chairman of the NPA, claiming that he never awarded contracts. He even claimed he blew the whistle on the monstrous fraud at the authority! But the minutes of a meeting chaired by George, which the EFCC presented in court indicated he presided over the award of contracts.

Madam Waziri never start work for my eyes until EFCC arrest, investigate and arraign OBJ for his looting of public treasury for eight years. I knew Bode George would be arrested, prosecuted in the law court and convicted for his crime one day even though he was thinking he could not be arrested.

long expected his arrest.that man had made so much noise in the past few days.he was actually constituting a niusance in the polity.so justice olubunmi oyewole for him? lets hope for the smoothest trial possible

in the 1st instance did these people not know that the courts are on vac

2ndly . . .is it so hard to see that idiots like Nigeria1 should not be allowed to post here, if he does continue, he ought to be ignored . . .madman he is !

3rdly. . . .there is no way that anyone can tell me that there is any INVICIBLE right abt now, OBJ can be picked up anytime from now

4thly . . .LIKE I HAVE ALWAYS SAID, IBB IS STILL IN CONTROL !!!

CASE CLOSED !!!

objection my lord, obj will not and cannot be pickd up not till he;s removed as the BOT chairman.

dayokanu:

@ Nigeria1,

What is all that about? Bode Goerge who is known to have illegally enriched himself from his days at the Ports is now been arrested and you came up with that PDP epistle.

Is it Because OBJ and his dog Ribadu do not have the conscience to try him.

Now all OBj's boys are falling like a pack of cards. Fani-Kayode the garrulous idiot, Aborisade, Liyel Imoke, Bode George, RIBADU. I am so delighted. I am waiting for Iyabo and Gbenga.

The highlighted statement above shows that you are either new to the Nigerian political scene or you are simply biased.

For the records, Ribadu started the case himself.

Who is Bode George?

I would nominally be delighted with all these arrests but for the fact
it is so obvious that all these developments are as a result of IBB's
machinations.

Someone should do us a favour and bomb his Minna redoubt.

Its a shame he prefers little boys rather than Indian prostitutes like
his mate Abacha.

doyin13:

I would nominally be delighted with all these arrests but for the fact
it is so obvious that all these developments are as a result of IBB's
machinations.

Someone should do us a favour and bomb his Minna redoubt.

Its a shame he prefers little boys rather than Indian prostitutes like
his mate Abacha.

yeah rite . . .

IBB holds the aces, dont u guys just get it ?

Some one asked the question about what happened after the so called arrest as we have seen time without number and this is what usually happens:

-Media Speculation of Arrest
-Denial of anything like arrest by the person in question
-Over Publisized Arrest
-Media circus in one of the Abuja or Lagos courts
- Request for A Bail
- Request for A Bail turned down briefly
- Bail granted 24 hrs later with a corrupt former army officer now a traditional ruler as guarantor
- The Accused with his/her obese looking lawyer all smiles jumped into awaiting brand new SUV car- off home
-Welcome committee set by friends/wellwishers
- Welcome party/chieftaincy title granted
- All is forgotten
- Life goes on until another circus

Eziachi:

Some one asked the question about what happened after the so called arrest as we have seen time without number and this is what usually happens:

-Media Speculation of Arrest
-Denial of anything like arrest by the person in question
-Over Publisized Arrest
-Media circus in one of the Abuja or Lagos courts
- Request for A Bail
- Request for A Bail turned down briefly
- Bail granted 24 hrs later with a corrupt former army officer now a traditional ruler as guarantor
- The Accused with his/her obese looking lawyer all smiles jumped into awaiting brand new SUV car- off home
-Welcome committee set by friends/wellwishers
- Welcome party/chieftaincy title granted
- All is forgotten
- Life goes on until another circus

Spot on! u hit the nail right on the head. i beg i no get power to shout!

sadly, i doubt that obj, annenih or ibb for that matter will brought to book any time soon.

Seun:

Who is Bode George?

dyu live in nigeria

Now all OBj's boys are falling like a pack of cards. Fani-Kayode the garrulous idiot, Aborisade, Liyel Imoke, Bode George, RIBADU. I am so delighted. I am waiting for Iyabo and Gbenga.

Please leave Gbenga out of your gossip, he's been doing his own private thing since his life and I dont know how you guys suddenly turn around to dent his image. Bad belle.

DeepZone:

Please leave Gbenga out of your gossip, he's been doing his own private thing since his life and I don't know how you guys suddenly turn around to dent his image. Bad belle.

dr gbenga obasanjo is not just a criminal but an arch-criminal like the rest of them,so his name is already and image is already dented

well even though nothing much have been happening after the numerous arrest of the currupt leaders, i still salute the courage and the fearlessness of those working to bring such looters into book

the era of veracious arbitrariness ended with the OTa warlord

, if only you know what a demi god "OLABODE GORGDE" was
, even within his PDP

who no go fear bode?

he s one of those peolpe i fundly call "the real owners of niger"

others are mere tenants, or mere none--

he talks with odasity and damn the consequences

even the then "asiwaju" couldnt bring d law close to bode desite his claim to offer of evidences

long time coming, the motherfuker should have been arrested long time ago