WHY OBLA IS IN TROUBLE WITH THE PRESIDENCY


Activities and conduct of the Chairman of the Special Investigation Panel for the Recovey of Public Property, Chief Okoi Obono-Obla has been under critical review for sometime in the Presidency and his outright dismissal and prosecution is imminent, a top government official has disclosed.


Specifically the Office of the Attorney-General of the Federation and Justice Minister had earlier recommended to the Presidency, among others "that a thorough investigation be conducted into the allegations of forgery levelled against Mr. Obono-Obla," while also proposing suspending him from office."


The Presidency has also received more recently an indicting report on the Panel Chairman bordering on acts of forgery and misconduct.


According to the Office of the Attorney-General, Obla has been accused on various issues "ranging from abuse of office, intimidation and unauthorized malicious investigations, financial impropriety, administrative misconduct, and allegations of forgery/falsification or records, to mention but a few."


In fact late last year, the matter of the madate of the Panel became an issue of judicial interpretation at the Appeal Court in the case of TIJJANI MUSA TUMSAH V. FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA.


In that case, the Appeal Court held that the Panel headed by Obla lacks prosecutorial powers and cannot seize properties belonging to anyone or obtain forfeiture orders against any public official.


The Court also held that the duty of the Panel upon conclusion of an investigation is to submit its report to the head of government and that the Panel, as against the conduct of the Chairman, cannot act outside its enabling Statute, the Recovery of Public Property Special Provisions Act of 1984.


Actually once when confronted with some of his alleged misconduct and other allegations, Obono-Obla pleaded profusely and was  made to sign a written undertaking to mend his ways. However, no sooner he signed that he abandoned the undertaking and continued singularly violating the law and regulations in place in the conduct of the work of the Panel.


According to an authoritative source, "following a series of violations for which he was queried, Mr. Obla submitted a written undertaking to the effect that the panel under his leadership would only act on a written mandate received from the Presidency, and will seek authorization from the Presidency to undertake fresh mandates in accordance with extant laws of the Federation."


The main grouse against the Panel Chairman was that while the Panel was supposed to investigate only cases referred to it by the government, according to the law establishing the panel, the Chairman has single-handedly taken on cases outside of its mandate and in gross violation of Rule of Law, including violations of people's fundamenetal human rights.


Said the source, "inspite of the specificity of the mandate of the Panel, the FG has been inundated with complaints against Mr. Obla. These include complaints of violation of the specific mandate of the Panel, human rights abuses and conduct unbecoming of an official of Government, which conduct and actions had a number of times subjected the Panel and the Government to ridicule.”


Matters however came to a head when the other four members of the 5-man Panel wrote a petition against Obla, asking for urgent action to curtail the "several identified unlawful conducts of the Chairman of the Panel.


According to the Panel members, while two cases involving NEXIM Bank and CBN, Finance Ministry, Nigeran Ports Authority were referred to the Panel, the Chairman single-handedly took on over 50 cases outside the mandate of the panel.


They also stated that "contrary to the fact that the Panel is an investigative panel by its enabling law, which lacks prosecutorial powers, Mr. Obla has unlawfully engaged lawyers to file charges against suspects without recourse to the Attorney-General's office."


"The man has been busy extorting money running into millions from suspects and engaged in excessive behaviour towards individuals, government agencies, private companies and even foreign missions in Nigeria," another government source noted.


For instance after an illegal secondment of over 100 policemen to himself, Chief Obla attempted to arrest the Executive Secretary of TETFUND "with a truck of mobile policemen which led to the petition written to the Attorney-General's office over the incessant illegal harassment."


Among several petitions against Obla which has caused considerable concern in the government is the one by the Human Rights Writers Association bordering on allegations of forgery of WAEC result used for admission into the Law Faculty of the University of Jos.


The Office of the Attorney-General in its recommendation to the Presidency also mentioned Obla's "unauthorized investigations of several judges initiated by Mr. Obla through the issuance of notices to them to declare their assets, an obligation which these Honorable Jugdes had hitherto complied with through the authorized agency-the Code of Conduct Bureau."


It was also stated that Obla had used the Panel to arrogate the powers and functions of the EFCC and the ICPC.


“In the circumstances, the Government is left with no choice than to review his appointment and possibly prosecute him for allegations of forgery and possibly also for criminal extortion, “ a source noted.

Everyone is in trouble with the presidency ,we can’t even say our minds anymore.

Buhari has a way of giving his boys too much freedom that makes them misbehave

Sadly, we wont hear anything about the case again

His office does not give room to collect bribes and kickbacks, he wanted to make it one..

Buhari got this right....

the man nor do psss magu abeg.


southerners working for buhari 're just useless.


I can't employ buhari as a Secretary. buhari could become a president only in a useless african country. Nigeria Gambia senegal Cameroon etc.


in eygpt uganda. South Africa. Libya. Tunisia and the rest part of the world. buhari won't be qualified to sit behind any desk in an office. for what na










okon obla should go and suffer. he's an idiot

helinues:
Sadly, we wont hear anything about the case again

I agree with you. But if he was in opposition, lair Mohammed and buhari media cows would have been regurgitating all over the polity.

Who exactly is the presidency?

Esseite:
His office does not give room to collect bribes and kickbacks, he wanted to make it one..

Buhari got this right....

Buhari never gets anything right. There's always something looming in the background whenever he acts this way trust me.

It's either the loudmouth obla took on a case on one of his cronies without authorization and refused to drop the case after the cabal has warmed him to hands off.

Another APC politician could have been using obla to settle scores with his political opponents in same APC.

Obno himself felt the slow president would applaud him for fighting corruption but the dullard only selects his fights.

Obla made it easier to nail him because of his own personal skeletons.

Is because of the cabal nothing more. Once you are not in their good books they would level allegation against you.

mideactive:
Who exactly is the presidency?

This is exactly how obla felt, but he should have known that he's not babachir.

So it is not even about his disputed WAEC certificate.

Obla must have stepped on some powerful toes.

He went over board

many read but few understand, the repeated warning of staying within his mandate means don't touch some properties belonging to some people belonging to certain political party,but the good man,a true n patriotic Nigerian averred and would want to comb many areas as not expressly assigned,dare ask him,you will hear his own side of the story, well,whatever would hit him,na longer throats carry am go,they dropped CJN Onnoghen,Dropped Ita Enang(s.a.senate) now dropping this pastor lawyer bro.Greedy SS and SE Una go hearam from this evil Boko haram govt,
let me tell fi,your understanding of how things should be is NOT same with how the Aso Rock Cabals wants it to go,hence,you can be sacrificed anytime if you ain't towing their agenda path.
a word is enough for the wise