Tribune
Written by Idowu Samuel, Okey Muogbo and Taiwo Adisa, Abuja
Monday, 16 August 2010

FORMER Vice-President Atiku Abubakar has put behind him the politics of exclusion by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as he formally announce his intention to contest the presidential election in 2011 on the platform of the party.

Atiku dismissed reports about question over his membership of the party, declaring rather that he was used to moving against the tide.

While declaring for presidential contest in 2011, Atiku described himself as “a man to beat in the election,” recalling the sacrifices he had made in politics, as well as the experiences he had gained in serving Nigeria.

While addressing his supporters at a ceremony held at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel, Atiku said he had all it took to win the election, adding that he had paid his dues in national politics since 1993.

Atiku berated the present-day leadership in the country, contending that the manner governance was being handled in the country of late had gradually been affirming Nigeria as a failed state, going by the world ranking.

The former vice-president, at the declaration, announced the five cardinal agenda which, he said, he would pursue with if voted in as president.

The agenda, according to him, included employment generation and wealth creation; power generation and infrastructure development; security, good governance and war against corruption; education, health and social services and the Niger Delta.

Atiku said he joined the mainstream politics of Nigeria on personal invitation by the late General Shehu Yar’Adua, adding that “my involvement in politics has, all along, been based on the need to give back to society, a society that has been good to me. “

He lamented that despite the modest achievements of the past, the country was still drifting like a rudderless ship, adding that it was difficult for anybody to say what vision was guiding the actions of those in charge of affairs of the country.

He also promised to invest in the Nigerian youth, whom he said he would properly mobilised for the task of rebuilding infrastructure in Nigeria.

Here comes another charlattan trying to become president. Hear him:

The agenda, according to him, included employment generation and wealth creation; power generation and infrastructure development; security, good governance and [size=15pt]war against corruption[/size]; education, health and social services and the Niger Delta.

Atiku is a master of the game, and has wiggled out of almost all cases raised against him. However, only the dumb would not realize that when someone seems to be caught in the middle of two international fraud cases and a well celebrated internal one where he was an active participant it must be his modis operandi. There are probably hundred more corrupt cases yet to be unveiled.

This cannot be a guy to represent Nigeria to the world next!

The latest one is the following:

Atiku, Wife Laundered $40M -US Senate

AGENCY REPORTER

A report by the United States Senate has accused former Nigerian vice-president, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, of illegally bringing over $40m 'in suspect funds' into the US.

According to the Associated Press, the report released on Thursday detailed how Atiku allegedly laundered the money through his fourth wife, Ms. Jennifer Douglas, a US citizen.

Prepared by the US Senate Subcommittee on Investigations, the report said foreign leaders and their families were still able to channel hundreds of millions of dollars in potentially corrupt money into the US despite post-September 11, 2001 laws cracking down on money laundering.

According to the report, which had four money laundering case studies, the "fourth wife of the former vice-president of Nigeria, Atiku Abubakar, reputedly helped her husband bring more than $40 million in suspect funds into the United States. [size=15pt]Some $25m of that was wire-transferred by offshore corporations into more than 30 US bank accounts opened by Douglas[/size].

"Two offshore corporations transferred about $14m over five years to the American University in Washington, DC to pay for consulting services in setting up a university in Nigeria founded by Abubakar."

Prosecutors had last year said that former US Congressman William Jefferson, who received a 13-year sentence for accepting bribes, demanded $100,000 from a Virginia businesswoman to pay a bribe to Abubakar.

But the former vice-president has since denied the allegation.

The other three case studies involved the son of the president of Equatorial Guinea, Mr. Teodoro Mbasogo, who was alleged to have used US lawyers, bankers, real estate agents and escrow agents to move $110m into the US. An Angolan arms dealer, now in a French jail, maintained 30 US bank accounts for him, handling about $60m in transactions between 1997 and 2007.

Also, the report said Omar Bongo, the president of Gabon for 41 years until his death last year, wire-transferred more than $18m into bank accounts held in the name of a US lobbyist's company in an attempt to buy US-built military equipment.

A bank in New York was said to have closed an account of Bongo's daughter, a student, after discovering she had $1m in $100 shrink-wrapped bills in her safe deposit box, which she said her father had brought into the US using his diplomatic status.

The 330-page report concluded that powerful foreign officials and their families, known internationally as 'politically exposed persons' or PEPs had used lawyers, real estate and escrow agents, lobbyists, bankers and university officials to circumvent anti-corruption laws.

According to the AP, the head of a Senate Homeland Security panel, Senator Carl Levin, said that while financial institutions had become better at detecting possibly tainted money, glaring loopholes remained in the anti-money laundering law established in the 2001 Patriot Act.

He said this had allowed lawyers, real estate agents, lobbyists and others to act as conduits for foreigners seeking to move their wealth into the US.

"Laundered money is used to train and provide support for terrorists and terrorism. If we want to credibly lead efforts to stop illegal money abroad, we've got to stop it here at home as well," Levin said.

It noted that the US Treasury Department exempted some industries, such as hedge funds and the real estate industry, from Patriot Act anti-money laundering requirements. It also said that many of the professionals examined were under no legal obligation to take anti-money laundering precautions when dealing with a foreign official.

In hindsight, "We believe we should have done better," the global anti-money laundering and economic sanctions executive at Bank of America, Mr. William Fox, told the hearing. He said that in the past few years, "We have dramatically increased staff and spent tens of millions of dollars on sophisticated systems which help us to detect and report suspicious activity to appropriate authorities."

The report advised the US Treasury Department to adopt recent World Bank proposals to strengthen bank controls related to foreign officials and repeal anti-money laundering exemptions. Congress should require that the owners of shell corporations be named, according to the report, and should make acts of foreign corruption a legal basis for denying US entry to the person involved in the corruption and his family.

A Levin aide said one possibility was attaching anti-money laundering provisions to pending legislation to increase oversight of financial institutions.

The former vice-president, at the declaration, announced the five cardinal agenda which, he said, he would pursue with if voted in as president.

The agenda, according to him, included employment generation and wealth creation; power generation and infrastructure development; security, good governance and war against corruption; education, health and social services and the Niger Delta.

Atiku is a mad man .

Yet another summary highlighting the Siemens Bribery case:

Home  News  US: Atiku Abubakar in $40m money-laundering accusation
US: Atiku Abubakar in $40m money-laundering accusation
Friday, 05 February 2010 01:27 Anonymous    .User Rating: / 1
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A United States Senate report has accused former Vice President Atiku Abubakar of laundering over $40 million in suspicious funds into the United States between 2000 and 2008.
Also accused with him is his fourth wife, Jennifer Douglas. Douglas is sometimes known as Lady Jamilah Jennifer, or Douglas E, or Jennifer Iwenjora, the name by which she was known in the 1980s when she was a reporter with the Nigeria Television Authority (NTA) in Lagos, reports Saharareporters.

According to the 330-page report, which was written by the Senate Homeland Security Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, most of the funds were through wire transfers sent by offshore corporations to U.S. bank accounts.

Of the $40 million identified in the US investigation, $25 million was reportedly wire-transferred by offshore corporations into more than 30 U.S. bank accounts opened by Douglas, primarily by Guernsey Trust Company Nigeria Ltd., LetsGo Ltd. Inc., and Sima Holding Ltd.
Atiku

[size=15pt]“In a 2008 civil complaint, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission alleged that Ms. Douglas received over $2 million in bribe payments in 2001 and 2002, from Siemens AG, a major German corporation,” the report says. “While Ms. Douglas denies wrongdoing, Siemens has already pled (pleaded) guilty to U.S. criminal charges and settled civil charges related to bribery and told the Subcommittee that it sent the payments to one of her U.S. accounts.” [/size]

The report also recalls the 2006/2007 corruption brouhaha in Nigeria between Abubakar and then President Olusegun Obasanjo over the Petroleum Technology Development Fund. At that time, both a government panel and an Economic and Financial Crimes Commission panel found Atiku guilty of diverting funds meant for the Fund’s operations nationwide to various banks to promote his private interests. Obasanjo dismissed his own extensive gains from the account as pointed out by Abubakar as mere “gifts” over which he had no control.

The report goes on: “The U.S. banks maintaining those accounts were, at times, unaware of her PEP (Politically Exposed Person) status, and they allowed multiple, large offshore wire transfers into her accounts. As each bank began to question the offshore wire transfers, Ms. Douglas indicated that all of the funds came from her husband and professed little familiarity with the offshore corporations actually sending her money. When one bank closed her account due to the offshore wire transfers, her lawyer helped convince other banks to provide a new account.

At least he has declared some Agenda. What about the other candidates?

Kobojunkie:

At least he has declared some Agenda. What about the other candidates?

Agreed. Other candidates need to speak up. Like Atiku, Jonathan has said he will implement his and Yar'adua's 7-point agenda, but what is necessary is a vision and a plan to accomplish the agenda. Anybody can list these issues - even IBB 

koruji:

Agreed. Other candidates need to speak up. Like Atiku, Jonathan has said he will implement his and Yar'adua's 7-point agenda, but what is necessary is a vision and a plan to accomplish the agenda. Anybody can list these issues - even IBB 

Well, in Jonathan's case, he latter claimed he was only going to go with 3 of the 7-agendas, and we have gotten a clear statement on what 3 he means. Power is probably one, but I am not certain. I understand there is this distrust of Atiku, but now that he has declared the agenda he hopes to pursue if elected, we can question him on his past, present and future in these areas, I hope the media helps.

By the way, what party is he running with this time?

As bad as Atiku is, He still sounds more sensible than others

Whats IBB and GEJ's agenda?

In his declaration statement, he said he was the highest employer of labour in his state. Did any one care to ask him how he got the money for his biz? As VP to OBJ, he was literally left with economic policies and implementation. What did we see? Corruption by him in all areas - the Halliburton scandal/ the Siemen's bribery, sale of infrastructure at give away bids to his cronies e.t.c.

I think Nigerians are too helpless in the scheme of things, if not people like Atiku and IBB would not come out to insult Nigerians by their selfish ambitions,

Absolute Dead-ender, no one should be paying attention to this wretched thief

Looks like Nigerians have got some thing going on for any goat in cloths declaring some sort of agenda.

Late Yaradua Promised 7 point Agenda

Atiku declares 5 cardinal agenda

Goodluck to implement 3 powerful agenda

IBB to deliver 8 solid agenda.

bullchit!

dayokanu:

As bad as Atiku is, He still sounds more sensible than others

Whats IBB and GEJ's agenda?

How is he better than ibb and jonathan ? Abeg,they are all the same old shiot jo.

He sounds more sensible meaning he actually came up with something that one can actually question him on. IBB and Jonathan are still playing us like football. IBB is said to release his soon but current president earlier claimed he would continue his predecessors 7 point agenda but later went back on that and never really gave us a clear idea of what he hopes to accomplish in his short time in office, well except maybe for power sector. However, the plans that he promised well over 2 months ago, we are still waiting to see.

~Bluetooth:

How is he better than ibb and jonathan ? Abeg,they are all the same old shiot jo.

IBB has come out for like 5 months to say he wants to be president, Why does he want to be president? Has he told us anything he sees wrong in the current system that he wants to change?

GEJ, First said he would continue with Yar'Aduas 7 point agenda which was already an EPIC FAIL, He probably saw that and changed course.

If any of them happens to be president now, What would we task them on

the questions is how sir? how are you going to provide security? how many men do you think is needed sir? how much should they be paid yearly so that they may serve willingly and honestly? who is going to manufacture their police and patrolling gear? imported? or white contractors or your company? sir to reduce crimes, their must be employment, so what sector should we focus on? how many sectors should can you create besides banking, oil and gas, nollywood?

how do you propose we make education free sir so that it can be available to all? sir, what is free education? to me free education is when the learner learns free and the teacher teach free, is that achievable? i think yes, it is sir.

my fellow nigerians brothers and sisters, ask your politicians questions, if your candidate can't answer 170 million people's questions, how on earth can he serve 20 million?

according to the neccesities, needs and wants, you should calculate how much is it that will sustain you for the period of 4 years. which means that you have planned for four years. that is the cost of your vote. for you to do this, you must know everything about yourself and your surrounding.

according to my neccesities and needs, without wants, i need an estimate of about 6,100,000 naira. to eat once a day, a live like a human being. so my questions are how can i make that from atiku's answers to my questions in respect to the resources available and the other 169,999,999 other nigerians.

how much do you need to be a human being for the next four years?