₦airaland Forum

Righthussle:
Rivers will join the chorus tomorrow.

oyin44:
Emefiele is the greatest fool l have ever seen in my life

inoki247:
Lol we all know say na Noise we go still experience low turn out on election day....

Mock accreditation conducted by the Independent National Electoral Commission is currently ongoing in the Federal Capital Territory.

The INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu said the commission had taken delivery of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System machines for the election which had been tested to ensure its functionality, hence the need to conduct a mock accreditation of voters as done in Ekiti and Osun states governorship elections.

The INEC chairman also noted that 12 polling units had been designated in each state of the federation and four in the Federal Capital Territory on the equality of the country’s 109 senatorial districts for the exercise.

Our correspondent who visited one of the four designated polling units, Bwari Sarki in Bwari Ward in Bwari Area Council on Saturday, observed that was a low turnout of registered voters as of the time of filing this report.

The Assistant Presiding Officer, George Abedo, who spoke to our correspondent said voters are not aware of the mock exercise.

Abedo said, “There is really a low turnout of voters. Maybe voters are not aware of this exercise. So far, 28 voters have been verified.”

Our correspondent watched as the BVAS captured the fingerprints and faces of registered voters without any issue.

In another polling unit, Phase I/Site I, in Usuma Ward in Bwari, there was still low voter turnout.

Speaking to our correspondent, the INEC official who spoke in anonymity said, “You saw us telling some people to go back home. This is because we were instructed to attend to those whose names start with A-D.

“To be honest, the turnout is low.”

Speaking on the functionality of the BVAS, she said, “The BVAS is working very well. Those who came here just as you saw earlier were allowed to vote.

“The BVAS verified their Permanent Voter Cards and got their image and the pictures came out clearly.”

Details later…

The mock accreditation exercise by the Independent National Electoral Commission has been marred by low turnout in major cities across Anambra State.

Our correspondent who visited some of the designated polling units in Onitsha, Obosi, Nnewi and Awka, on Saturday, observed low turnout of registered voters as of the time of filing this report.

Although, at some of the centres visited in Onitsha, Obosi and Awka, the INEC officials present said the Biomodal Voter Accreditation System used for the mock accreditation of voters were working seamlessly and perfectly.

The INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, had said the commission took the delivery of the BVAS machines for the election which had been tested to ensure its functionality, hence the need to conduct a mock accreditation of voters as done in Ekiti and Osun states governorship elections.

But residents of Onitsha, who came out for the exercise on Saturday, expressed displeasure on the lack of awareness on the exercise, insisting that the commission did not do enough to sensitise them.

But while speaking to our correspondent at one of the designated centres in Onitsha South Local Government Area of Anambra, the INEC Assistant Electoral Officer, Reginald Onyeukwu, said the assurance that the ongoing mock accreditation was going on smoothly and satisfactory.

Onyeukwu said, “What we are doing is to test run our equipment which we are going to use for elections. There are two ways to accredit a voter, it is either finger print or facial.

“When you check at the people we are attending to, if their fingers failed, we used their face and the system will say accreditation pass.

“We are trying to test our system so that it would not fail us during election day. We want to prove to the people that we are capable of conducting credible, free and fair elections across the country.”

Speaking on the low turnout for the exercise, Onyeukwu insisted that the people were well informed through their local government chairmen, wondering why they did not turn up.

“We informed the local government chairmen, the local government Chairmen informed the town messengers to notify the people about the mock accreditation exercise.

“Our system is very fast, when we are done with them, they go, as I am talking to you now, we have accredited about 35 people here, the exercise is moving very fast. It does not waste time,” he added.

Speaking on the accreditation process, a resident, Josephine Uko, who commended the process, attributed the low turn out to the ongoing cash scarcity which has forced the people to keep vigil at the various bank automated teller machines centres.

Uko said, “The reason for the low turnout is because people are at the various bank ATM centres queuing and searching for cash. Many people are not aware that there is a mock accreditation exercise going on today.”

“The exercise is wrong timing, right now, what is paramount on the minds of the people is where they will get cash that has been made scarce in the past few weeks and this exercise is just not on our agenda right now.”

Our correspondent watched as the BVAS captured the fingerprints and faces of the few registered voters without any issue.

Bluntguy:
BVAS will even reject Tinubu and Osama bin laden of Borno with their hard faces.

The long-awaited INEC Mock Accreditation Exercise has officially kicked off in Anambra state.

INEC officials, including the state Resident Electoral Commissioner, Dr Queen Agwu, were seen early on Saturday morning setting about in readiness for the exercise.

Dr Agwu’s first point of call was the PU 001 ,at Demonstration Primary school ward, Agu Awka.

At the Ward, some voters were being accredited as the BVAS was working optimally.

The Resident Electoral Commissioner also visited Amawbia 1,NYSC Pavilion, where it was discovered that only a few Voters had turned up for the accreditation as at 10:30AM.

There, also, a dramatic scene was to play out as the BVAS could neither identify the face nor read the thumbs of one male voter.

As it turned out, the man had been normal at the time he registered for his PVC; but thereafter, he was involved in an accident which ended up disfiguring his face and thumbs.

In a swift reaction to the incident, Dr Agwu promised to report the case to the Commission’s headquarters.

Mummiesboy:
Tell that slowpoke that he is very stupid. Both of you are moroons

Franzinni:
Body done calm down ... All the glam has wiped off from crying like a fountain .. boss chick don resemble house geh

VeryWickedSimp:
He is inspecting his next rituals ingredient. Very Wicked Man.

Baddosqqi:
If Emefiele was a Yoruba man everything his supporters have said here would never be the same. They would crucify him online and would not link whatever he has done with Tinubu in anyway. It is quite disgracing to see the stand people are taking because he is from their tribe. Bullshit!!!!

Malory:
Shatap.

Opintiwa:
Bola Ahmed will be disgraced.

Already jungle don dey mature

Malory:
This drunk OP is only obsessed with anything IPOB.

Malory:
K

The documents provide, for the first time, the missing details of the terrorism financing allegation which the SSS levelled against Mr Emefiele.


The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele, has been funding “unknown gunmen” and members of the outlawed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), the State Security Service (SSS) has alleged in court documents newly obtained by PREMIUM TIMES.

The documents provide, for the first time, the missing details of the terrorism financing allegation which the SSS levelled against Mr Emefiele last December.

IPOB is a separatist organisation that calls for the secession of the five Igbo-dominated states in South-east Nigeria and parts of neighbouring states as an independent Biafra nation.

The group blamed for violent acts in the South-east region in recent years has been declared a terrorist organiation and proscribed by a court as far back as September 2017.

The Nigerian media, including PREMUM TIMES, reported in December SSS’ futile bid to obtain an order of the Federal High Court in Abuja for the arrest of Mr Emefiele over wide-ranging allegations, including financing of terrorism.

The Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, John Tsoho, after listening to SSS’ legal team, refused to grant the application for an order against Mr Emefile.

The judge rejected the application in a ruling delivered on 9 December, citing an irregularity in the procedure adopted by the SSS in its application.

The Nigerian media, including PREMIUM TIMES, only became aware of the ruling 11 days after it was delivered by the court.

But the reports did not provide details about the agency’s weighty allegations against Mr Emefiele.

Eight weeks after the court gave the decision, PREMIUM TIMES has now obtained the SSS’ court filings providing astonishing dimensions of the agency’s allegations against the CBN governor.

In a slew of weighty allegations, the SSS accused him of sabotaging the President Muhammadu Buhari administration, financing terrorism, aiding and abetting terrorism, and committing other economic crimes with effect of undermining Nigeria’s national security.

More specifically, the agency also accused Mr Emefiele of mismanaging the Nigeria Social Investment Programme (NISRAL) and Anchor Borrowers Scheme.

Call for detention

Ateam of four lawyers from the SSS’ legal department filed its case against Mr Emefiele on 7 December.

But contrary to earlier reports suggesting that the application was for an order for the arrest of Mr Emefiele, it actually sought permission to detain Mr Emefile for 60 days to conclude an ongoing investigation of his alleged atrocities.

The application was filed as an ex parte motion, meaning it was not served on Mr Emefile.

It was supported by an affidavit deposed to by an SSS official, Umar Salihu, who summarised the details of the investigations into the weighty crimes Mr Emefiele allegedly committed.

The deponent said “there is reasonable suspicion that the respondent (Mr Emefiele) was involved in terrorism financing, aiding and abetting acts of terrorism, economic crimes of national security dimension and for undermining the security of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”

He said the agency needed to apply to the court “for an order enabling the applicant to detain the respondent for sixty days, pending the conclusion of ongoing investigation …”

On the need for the court to issue the order, he said Mr Emefiele “is a man of means and can easily evade arrest and interfere with ongoing investigation if he is released on bail.”

Citing “credible intelligence”, the deponent mentioned some specific allegations over which the agency was investigating Mr Emefiele.

The allegations enumerated in the application lack specifics or any hint at what the CBN governor’s motivation to sponsor IPOB and other terrorists’ activities could be.

IPOB, terrorism funding

In about the most horrific of the allegations, the SSS accused Mr Emefiele of funding terrorism, unknown gunmen terrorising the South-east region, the IPOB and its armed wing, the Eastern Security Network (ESN).

The SSS alleged that Mr Emefiele funded them with both the resources he raised for his failed presidential bid last year and funds diverted from government coffers.

Mr Emefiele, as sitting CBN governor, controversially bidded for the presidential ticket of the All Progressives Congress (APC) last year. Images of his branded vehicles and other campaign materials surfaced online in the lead-up to the party’s primary election.

He also approached the Federal High Court in Abuja to obtain an order affirming his right to jostle for the APC’s ticket. But the court on 9 May refused to grant Mr Emefiele’s prayer.

The Nigeria’s spy agency said in its filing in December that Mr Emefiele “procures a number of vehicles and disbursed funds for his botched presidential ambition.”

It added that “the said funds and vehicles are being channelled into funding of Unknown Gunmen, Eastern Security Network (ESN) and elements of IPOB, a proscribed organisation.”

In addition, the agency said Mr Emefiele, “on several occasions in actions prejudicial to the security of the Nigerian state,” engaged in “criminal conspiracy to divert government resources into suspicious acts of terrorism financing”.

It said the actions of the CBN governor were “meant to subvert and sabotage” the President Muhammadu Buhari administration.

But as weighty as the allegations, coming from the government’s flagship intelligence agency are, Mr Buhari has continued to hold one-on-one meetings with Mr Emefiele since December. This raises questions about whether the president has any regard for the “credible intelligence” the SSS claimed it gathered about the nation’s top banker.

The SSS, which is at the forefront of government’s efforts to quell separatist activities around the country, was holding the leader of IPOB, Nnamdi Kanu, in custody when it linked Mr Emefiele to the funding of the proscribed group in December.

Neither the Presidency, the SSS nor Mr Emefiele has commented on the allegations.

Money laundering, fraud, mismanagement of interventionist funds

The SSS also accused Mr Emefiele of “fraud, money laundering, round tripping and conferment of financial benefit to self and others.”

Mr Emefiele is also involved in mismanaging of various interventionist funds of the government under his control, according to the SSS.

Funds belonging to the Social Investment Programme (NISRAL) and the Anchor Borrowers Scheme were among those the SSS accused Mr Emefiele of mismanaging. The two agencies are interventionist schemes to boost food production and encourage farmers.

The SSS also accused Mr Emefiele of mismanaging “other key economic sectors of the economy”.

‘Emefiele’s syndicate’

In another breathtaking allegation, the SSS claimed it was on the trail of members of a criminal syndicate of which Mr Emefiele is allegedly a part.

It said “investigation is still ongoing on a wider scale as other members of the syndicate chain need to be identified and arrested to enable successful prosecution.”

The agency accused Mr Emefiele of aiding and abetting terrorism, and alleged further that he used proxies from his alleged syndicate “to carry out his illegal economic crimes of national security dimension with potent threat to the country’s security.”

Why court rejected SSS’ application

In rejecting SSS’ application on 9 December 2022, however, the judge, Mr Tsoho, pointed out a flaw in the procedure adopted by the agency to ask for an order for Mr Emefiele’s detention for 60 days.

He said the request by the secret police ought to have been preceded by the arrest of the suspect which did not require a court order.

“This is not the situation here, as Godwin Emefiele, the CBN governor was shown on television, even last night, having an audience with the President of Nigeria,” the judge said. “It therefore seems that the applicant intends to use the court as a cover for an irregular procedure which is unacceptable.”

The judge said “an application of this kind (by the SSS) should have evidence of the approval of the respondent (Emefiele’s) boss (President Buhari), that such measures are authorised to be taken,” owing to the “sensitive position” he “occupies…as one of the key drivers of the nation’s economy.”

“I decline to grant this application ex parte,” the judge declared.

Femi Falana, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, said the SSS’ allegations against Mr Emefiele robs Nigeria of investors’ confidence in the economy.

“Nobody will want to do business with your country when the head of the Central Bank is a terrorism suspect,” the senior lawyer said in a telephone interview with PREMIUM TIMES,

Similarly, Mr Emefiele’s predecessor, Lamido Sanusi, a former Emir of Kano, was accused of terrorism financing by the Goodluck Jonathan-led regime in 2014, and was removed from office, Mr Falana recalled.

Also commending the judge for dismissing what he termed, “the unworthy application by the SSS to arrest the CBN governor,” Olisa Agbakoba, a former President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), challenged the secret police to sue Mr Emefiele if “there is evidence.”

CBN governor and his troubles

Mr Emefiele’s foray into politics last year, bidding for the APC’s presidential ticket while still in office as the CBN governor, drew wide condemnation among Nigerians.

A PREMIUM TIMES editorial, one of the credible forces that first exposed Mr Emefiele’s covert presidential bid, called on him to either publicly deny it or resign immediately from office to pursue his political dream.

The CBN still faces criticisms for plunging Nigerians into hardships associated with scarcity of the newly introduced naira notes. Nigerians, groaning over the scarcity of new naira notes, urged the CBN governor to rescind the policy.

The redesigned 200, 500 and 1000 notes are hard to come by at Automated Teller Machines – the only place where money can be withdrawn.

But Mr Emefiele only extended the deadline by 10 days from 31 January to 10 February, which many have said is insufficient to address the acute shortage of the new notes.

The presidential candidate of the APC, Bola Tinubu, in a veiled reference to the monetary policy, condemned the scarcity of the new bank notes, adding that it was a ploy to scuttle his chances of winning the election.

Appearing before the House of Representatives, Mr Emefiele explained that old naira notes would be accepted by banks even after the 10 February deadline.

A law professor, Joshua Alobo, had sued the CBN seeking an extension of the deadline.

The apex bank had on 26 October, 2022, announced the introduction of redesigned 200, 500 and 1,000 naira notes into the financial system.

But access to the new notes remains a herculean task as people throng ATMs in a bid to withdraw money.

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, SAN, has expressed concern over difficulty experienced by Nigerians in getting the new naira notes.

The VP on Friday in Abuja met with some players in the FinTech space to explore possible ways of mitigating the hardship.

Osinbajo urged the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and banks to deploy more FinTechs and money agents to the hinterlands to address the worrying situation. The Vice President stated that Nigerians need cash to pay for transport, food, and other needs.

“In Abuja how do you take ‘drop or along’ or use a Keke NAPEP without cash, or buy foodstuff on the road or in canteens, or even buy recharge cards?

“Parents with kids in public schools give money daily to their children for lunch, most commerce is informal, so you need cash for most things”, he said.

Osinbajo said it was disturbing that after depositing old notes, there are no new notes: “People everywhere in the urban areas and rural areas simply have no money.”

The nation’s second-in-command observed some FinTechs have mobile money licenses and should be engaged immediately.

He said many of them have micro-finance bank licenses and already have a network of mobile money agents or human banks or human ATMs, as they are sometimes.

“They can supervise by themselves. They can do currency swaps and open bank accounts.”

Also on Friday, President Muhammadu Buhari met with some All Progressives Congress (APC) governors at the Presidential Villa over the nara scarcity.

ShaqFu:
Why haven't the Nigerian government taken serious action against the Simon Groundnut of an individual?

This low budget ass wipe sit abroad and use people who don't even have brains in their skull to perpetuate crimes in Nigeria, what nonsense. Haba! Imagine his audacity.

Nigeria’s attempt to replace its high denomination currency notes less than a month before a crucial general election has descended into chaos, with long lines of people forming outside cash machines and fights breaking out inside banks as customers demanded access to their own money.

Lengthy queues were visible at ATMs across Lagos, Nigeria’s economic capital, as the failure of the authorities to print enough of the new notes left lenders struggling to meet demand.

One FirstBank branch in the Ikoyi district was closed when the Financial Times visited, with many customers locked out. A security guard said he was ordered to lock the doors after brawls broke out inside. The cash machine at the branch began to dispense cash a few hours later but with a 10,000 naira limit per customer.

Another nearby Lotus Bank was so full that a tent was erected to protect queueing customers from the scorching sun.

Japhet Joshua Babatunde, one of those outside the FirstBank branch, said he had been unable to withdraw his salary despite being paid a week ago. “I’m angry — it’s my own money I came to collect, not a loan,” he added. Another customer, Uhegbu Maria Odichinma, said she had visited the same branch five days in a row to try to get hold of the new notes.

Videos circulating on social media showed customers stripping to their underwear at local branches as frustration mounted over the currency scarcity.

Nigeria’s central bank said in October that the N200, N500 and N1,000 notes would be replaced with new designs it said would be more secure. The old notes were due to be taken out of circulation on January 31, but the unavailability of replacements led to the deadline to switch being extended until next Friday, leaving Nigerians struggling to access money in an economy still largely reliant on cash for most transactions.

“We urge [people] to exercise patience as the Nigerian central bank is working assiduously to address the challenge of queues at ATMs,” the central bank said in a statement, acknowledging the chaotic rollout.

Muhammadu Buhari, the outgoing president, on Friday asked Nigerians to “give him seven days to resolve the cash crunch”. But he also blamed banks for being “inefficient” and “only concerned about themselves”.

“Even if a year is added, the problems . . . won’t go away,” he said, adding that he had been reassured by the central bank that it was capable of supplying enough notes. The bank has already collected almost N2tn in old currency.

The head of one of Nigeria’s biggest lenders told the FT that many banks were not supplied with enough of the new notes to meet demand. The new currency is meant to be harder to counterfeit.

A payments industry executive also said that while the central bank was encouraging Nigerians to use other channels, such as cards and electronic payments, many banks did not have the infrastructure to scale up. “Electronic transactions are failing because of the volume increases that no one did anything to prepare for,” the executive said.

The currency crisis comes ahead of the presidential and parliamentary elections to be held on February 25. Bola Tinubu, candidate for the ruling All Progressives Congress, said at a recent campaign event that unnamed opponents were trying to use the controversy over the new naira to sabotage his campaign.

Analysts said the currency redesign had disrupted some politicians’ plans to induce voters with cash bribes they had stowed away ahead of the elections. The bank chief said: “There were multiple objectives that were sold to the president. At the core of it, it was the idea that this could help secure the election from vote-buying. They convinced the president that a lot of people had piled up money to buy votes during the election and that the best way to deal with that was to do the change.”

In a country with a large black market supplying fuel, US dollars and other items, a shadow economy has emerged for the new notes. Banking agents, who typically supply cash in remote areas, have jacked up their commissions. A withdrawal of N5,000 used to attract a charge of N100, now agents are asking for N500.

PrinceOfLagos:
Mumu man

Come to Nigeria and spew this thrash

kereman1:
These northerners just dey psych Tinubu, lose 10, gain 1, is the script they are playing.

Half dead imbecilic Chimpanzees urchins feel free to wail.