₦airaland Forum

By Abbas Jimoh


The Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE) has said that Nigeria deserved more ministers as the current 36 and those expected to be added by President Muhammadu Buhari in his expected cabinet reshuffle and expansion may not be enough.

President of the society Engr. Otis Anyaeji, said this on Tuesday in Abuja at the ‘Abuja2017’

National engineering conference and annual general meeting (AGM) of the association themed: “Diversification of Nigerian Economy: Engineering Perspective”.

The President at the event which also witnessed the conferment of honorary fellowship on four distinguished Nigerians cited a case of the United Kingdom having 24 ministries and over 100 ministers.

Those conferred with the honorary fellowship are Mr Ernest Azudialu-Obiejes, Mr Alfred Irobor Okoigun, Elder Nathaniel C. U. Okoro and Mr James Abiodun Olotu.

“We are happy that the President (Buhari) has realized that the provision in the constitution about the appointment of ministers is just a minimum and all states of the federation must be represented. But 36 ministers or a few more, and a handful of ministers of states are too few to cope with the diversities of the policy elements that are made to be deployed at the ministerial level.

“We also have to look at the question of configuration of the ministries, which unfortunately in Nigeria is subjected to frequent changes as government comes and goes. But in the UK, the ministries are matter of establishment under the law,” Anyaeji said.

He also urged the President to unbundle some ministries and bring on board more professionals at the ministerial level, for effectiveness and efficiency in government.

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By Mohammad Yaba, Kaduna



All Progressive Chieftain in Kaduna Dr Hakeem Baba Ahmed has reasons President Muhammadu Buhari should reshuffle his cabinet.

Speaking on the programme Babban Gammo on Alheri Radio in Kaduna, he said the earlier a cabinet reshuffle, the better for the APC and Buhari administration.

He said some ministers couldn’t last six months due to incompetence.

“But they are still there two years after. So I think the President need to reshuffle his cabinet to allow competent hand in so that they can help him execute his good policies,” he said.

“We still have campaign promises that are yet to be fulfilled. The president still have a year to fulfil those promises made to the electorates and I think in a year he can fulfil most of the promises made to Nigerians,” he noted.

Baba Ahmed said Nigerians still have confidence in president Buhari's administration therefore the president need to work with competent people as ministers to keep the peoples confident repose on him.

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By Tony Ogaga


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Hewn by the rough sands of the Kalahari desert, Lorraine Lionheart has grown into a beautiful woman who knows what she wants in life and she is going for it.
Young, ambitious and breath-taking, Lorraine was in Nigeria during Felabration 2017 where she performed. In this chat with Entertainer, the UK based Motswani opens up on her career, growing up, her sound and her love for Nigeria, among others.


What was it like growing up in the Kalahari desert?

I come from a tribe called the Kgalagadi who are Hottentots and I feel it has been such a privilege to have first hand experience of our culture, having spent most of my childhood in the Kalahari. It has shaped the most valuable part of who I am becoming and I am forever grateful for that. Life where I grew up is completely different from where I now reside in the UK, but I have learnt to appreciate the best and the worst of both worlds.


Tell us about your family and your struggles as a young girl growing up?

I come from very humble beginnings. I am the first of three children and having lost my mother who was a single mother, at the age of 15, I had to grow up pretty fast in order to support my siblings. Up until they were all grown up, my focus was just merely surviving under very poor circumstances.

Fortunately, I am now in a position where I am no longer just surviving, but living life to the fullest and chasing my dreams. I used to feel that my career started very late because of family obligations but I now realise the life experience I have gained from family responsibilities is priceless and it prepared me for a big shot at the tough entertainment industry.


From which of your parents did you get your music talent?

Definitely my dad; I have not always had the best relationship with him, but we always loved each other and are so alike in many ways. Dad introduced me to many types of music, which influenced my art a great deal today.


At what age did you discover you were cut out to be a musician?

I discovered I could compose songs from as young as five, but at that age and for quite a few years I thought it was what all kids did. I dreamt of being an entertainer, but it wasn’t clear what discipline. I always felt I was going to be an actor and film producer.

But as I grew older, I continued to have more and more songs just coming to me in all kinds of ways and I could not stop it. Like for example, just last night I dreamt of a brand new song and I woke up this morning and started writing right away. The more that happened the more I was convinced it was my destiny and I had to embrace it instead of questioning it.


What were your initial challenges when you started, and did you experience any form of sexual harassment from music producers?

I have had numerous experiences of sexual harassment in the industry. Sadly, that is just what many women go through. For the most part, society blames the victims and protects the perpetrators. My music has a sexual undertone and so does my artist persona. I see music as a medium for personal expression and I express everything I am through my art.

I consider myself quite feminine and a sensual woman and that manifests in my works too. However, it is often easily misinterpreted as an invitation to get personal. I have now worked on drawing a solid line between harmless banter and what I deem inappropriate. Fortunately, I am strong enough a person to just tell people straight to back off, if I feel their behaviour is unacceptable and I am not afraid to lose any opportunity if attaining it means I have to give up my integrity.


How many albums have you released till date?

I am an African artist with an exciting future. I have released an 8 tracker EP entitled About A Girl almost two years ago, which helped a great deal in introducing my music to the world and helping me shape my own authentic sound. I have also released numerous singles and my debut 14-track album drops December 2.


You were in Nigeria recently for Felabration. What does Fela mean to you?

Fela is one of my absolute heroes. I respect people who dare to be themselves. He is a legend because he refused to follow anyone’s standards but his own. I love that being on an international platform did not at any stage tempt him to abandon his true identity and he has inspired me to want to learn about African history, embrace my culture and also to be free to be myself, unapologetically.

Performing at Felabration was wow! I will forever remember the day I entered the Shrine for the first time. It’s like the Mecca of African music. I felt like I had just entered some sort of a sacred place. It was an absolute dream come true being part of Felabration.

The audience were quite welcoming , which I really appreciated because I know they are not familiar with my music. The media was also quite generous with their attention. Overall, no matter how many big shows I end up performing at, Felabration will remain for me one of the most important.


You also shot a video and recorded a new song, Keke Napep in Nigeria. What inspired that move?

There was no way I was going to be in Nigeria and not be inspired by the environment, the way of life and the people, to write new music. I just saw the Keke Napep and immediately knew I had to ride it at some point before I leave the country. I imagined owning one and I think when I get married I would love that to be the bride and groom ride. I just need to find a Nigerian groom now perhaps (laughter).

The Keke Napep is just so cool. The video is now on Youtube and Facebook and I have had amazing feedback from it. Also, I am a beard fanatic, so I was so excited to have a Nigerian boy with enough beards in my music video. I did two songs while in Lagos and filmed music videos for both. The other one drops soon.


Any plans for a collaboration with Nigerian artistes?

My God, Nigeria is full of talents, and I want to collaborate with just about everybody. I am hoping that will start happening very fast because I am so keen. I love the Nigerian sound and I feel it just works really well when fused with my own sound, as demonstrated with the Keke Napep song.


When you leave Nigeria, what message are you taking back with you to the UK?

I felt safe the entire time in Lagos and found the people to be so warm and friendly. I would recommend anyone to visit and experience Nigeria.


Is you husband supportive of your career and what does your seven year-old son mean to you?

I am not married and currently not even dating anyone. I have to admit it’s starting to get a little boring though, so hopefully God will bless me with that supportive husband someday soon. I am too lazy to date and sometimes too busy too, so I am hoping my God- given husband will somehow just come and knock at my door, and save me the trouble of having to go on random dates with random people, while trying to find him.

My son is the reason why I strive for greatness, not to make a lot of money for him, but just to inspire him to also go for his dreams no matter what. He also keeps me grounded. I love being his mother.


Can you describe your ideal man and what it will take to conquer your heart?

He must just have a pulse. Jokes aside, I am more in to the character of a man than his looks or possessions. This is very important for me, because good looks are not really forever and one can lose all possession in a blink of an eye. So I need to know that if he lost it all, I would still be left with a great man.

A God -fearing man with a good heart, good sense of humour and intellect does it for me. Someone open minded, compassionate, conscious, spiritually developed and culturally proud. Gosh, I ask for a lot, right? No wonder I am single.


Could you marry a Nigerian?

Yes, without a doubt I can see myself marrying a Nigerian man, one who is truly proud to be Nigerian and to be African. I hear they are quite amazing lovers too. What girl doesn’t want that?


What part of your anatomy do you consider your selling point?

They reckon a woman’s best curve is her smile, but nah, my hips definitely give my smile a run for its money. I flaunt them at every opportunity, shamelessly and unapologetically.

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The Nigerian government has allocated N1.03 billion to the State House Medical Centre for its recurrent and capital expenditure in the 2018 budget estimates, representing a huge slash compared to the facility’s budgets in the last three years.

According to the breakdown of the budget, the proposed total recurrent expenditure for the clinic is N331 million and the total cash to be expended for capital projects is N698 million.

In the breakdown of the recurrent/overhead expenditure for 2018, N208 million was pegged for the purchase of drugs and supplies, N14 million for ‘uniforms and other clothings’ and N11 million will be spent for local travel and transport including training. This excludes other expenses.

In the capital expenditure profile, N408 million was budgeted for the purchase of health and medical equipment for the facility, N146 million for the completion of the dental wing extension and N120 million for construction of two blocks of 24 units three bedroom flats, all which are ongoing projects.

The clinic in 2015, 2016 and 2017 budgets was allocated N3.94 billion, N3.87 billion and N3.2 billion respectively.

It is not yet clear how much was eventually released in these years.

The clinic, which is meant to cater for the health of the president, vice president, their families and other employees in the presidency, was recently in the news over allegations of mismanagement and lack of essential drugs and facilities.

Aisha Buhari, the wife of the president, also accused the hospital management of not taking care of the facility in spite all the allocations to the hospital.

Mrs. Buhari called for a probe of the hospital management saying the facility lacked basic amenities.

She said though there ”was no single syringe in the hospital,” there were various construction projects going on.

“What is the purpose of the building if there are no equipment there to work?” she had queried.

Many Nigerians have also criticised the use of the funds deployed to the clinic over the years which they say were not reflected in the quality of facilities it has.

PREMIUM TIMES had reported last year that the amount budgeted for the hospital in the proposed budget was more than what was budgeted for all the 16 federal teaching hospitals in the country.

The management of the clinic however said that between 2015 to 2017, the facility only received N1.2 billion as funds for expenditure.

The Chief Medical Director, Hussain Munir, in defense of the poor state of the facility said the president was ”aware of the poor funding of the hospital”, citing a letter written to Mr. Buhari on August 22, 2016.

According to him, the hospital was poorly funded and this affected the provision of basic necessities.

He said of the N290.4 million approved for the purchase of drugs and consumables for the hospital in 2017, only N29 million was spent.

The management of the hospital called for commercialisation of its operations since it could not provide the necessary services for which it was established.

By Hameed Oyegbade, Osogbo


Policemen from the Zone 11 covering Osun, Oyo and Ondo state have discovered a ritual den at Akanmola village, via Olupona in Iwo, Osun State and rescued some victims including aone-year-old child and his parent.

The Assistant Inspector General (AIG) of Police in charge of the Zone, Mr Agboola Oshodi-Glover led his men to the forest and ensured that the shrine was dismantled after rescuing the victims.

The Oluwo of Iwo, Oba Abdul-Rasheed Akanbi who visited the scene to demonstrate his approval of the operation gave the AIG a pat on the back and pledged his support for the efforts of the police to rid the community of unscrupulous people.

According to the residents of some communities in the area, the shrine which was built on a large expanse of land had been used as hideout by criminals including kidnappers over the years.

Oba Akanbi expressed worry over the activities of the ritualists in his domain and tasked the police and other security agencies in the state to intensify efforts in apprehending them.

AIG Oshodi-Glover said necessary surveillance have been put in place to detect and apprehend criminals and prosecute them.

He urged people to feel free to share information with police detectives and assured that such information would be treated in confidence.

The AIG also warned people to be wary of seeking help from fake herbalists and fraudsters. He said those that were rescued from the ritual den in Iwo fell into trap because they sought help from the ritualists.

Four persons were rescued during the operation. Two persons were arrested at the shrine but the owner of the shrine who was identified as Ekundayo escaped and police assured that he would apprehended.

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Danisa Masuku


A Bulawayo woman revealed that men like her so much and want to bed her but seven that tasted her cookie are six feet under.

Rejoice Mukorima (40) made these startling revelations at a Johane Masowe weChishanu Church in Bulawayo where she sought deliverance.

“I slept with seven men and all of them died within two months of having sex with me. None of them ever complained about intercourse, in fact, they enjoyed and just when we decide to have a serious relationship the man mysteriously dies,” she told the congregation led by Prophet Emmanuel Gwandida.

B-Metro tracked down Mukorima to her vending stall in the city centre for an interview. A mother of three, her husband passed away in 2009 and all these men she has been with followed. She suspects that her husband laced her with lunyoka/runyoka.

“There is a trend, after the first sexual encounter the man starts complaining of stomach cramps and vomiting then the worst happens,” she said.

Scared that she could be branded a witch and that more could die if she indulges, Mokorima travelled across the country looking for assistance from sangomas and prophets.

“The spell went with bad luck because all my plans to make money have been futile that’s why I came here for cleansing, I hope this time it will work,” she said.

Her fear is that at a relatively sexually active age of 40, she could never have sex with anyone for the rest of her life.

Prophet Emmanuel Gwandida declined to comment although the woman’s confession was recorded in church.

A special meeting of select stakeholders of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), held in Abuja, on Wednesday night, to deliberate on how to avoid a rancorous national convention in December ended in a stalemate.

The deadlock was as a result of alleged attempts by some stakeholders to give the national chairmanship position to the South-South through flimsy excuses.

The move, it was gathered, was resisted by members from the South-West, who rejected it and made it clear that it was one assault too many and an insult on the people of the zone.

The meeting was attended by some former governors, serving governors, members of the Board of Trustees (BoT) and elders of the party.

According to reliable sources, trouble began when some stakeholders, in a bid to build a case for their attempt to anoint a South-South candidate, who is a former member of the party’s National Working Committee (NWC), drew attention to some cases filed against the party by some members in the South-West zone, adding that it showed that the zone was not settled.

In what came as a shock, the members who raised the issue went further to suggest that it would be better to let the South-South produce the national chairman of the party.

Tempers allegedly rose when it became apparent from their arguments that it was a premeditated move which was carefully planned long before the meeting.

It was gathered that attendees from the South-West unanimously stood their ground that it was the turn of the zone to produce the chairman as the only zone that had never produced an occupant of the post in the power rotation policy of the party in its 19 years of its existence.

It was further gathered that those who attended the meeting from the South-West pointed out that the move to deny the zone the chairmanship post was another instance of consistent marginalisation the zone had suffered from 2011 till date.

They were said to have argued that the electorate in the zone were disaffected with PDP as a result of such ill-treatment and disregard for their feelings and that their hearts and votes could only be won back with assurances of a sense of belonging, such as giving the zone the place it deserved in the party’s scheme of things.

It was also learned that they argued that litigations in the party were not limited to the South-West, as the party had cases involving aggrieved members in various parts of the country.

They said filing case in court was a legitimate and acceptable way of tabling grievances for resolution and settlement under the rule of law in a democracy.
The meeting was said to have later adjourned for more and wider consultations.

This is the first time in the history of PDP that the chairmanship election would attract inter-zonal competition.

Wednesday’s meeting came after weeks of apprehension and anxiety over the likelihood of a rancorous convention in December, because of the looming showdown between the South-South and the South-West zones over the position.

Many party stakeholders believed that the South-West zone should naturally have been allowed to produce the next party chairman without having to struggle with other zones for it, based on precedents in the party.

South-West leaders of the party had said in a statement some weeks ago that the chairmanship was actually micro-zoned to the zone at a meeting of southern leaders in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, sometime last year without any disagreement.

There had been speculations that the party’s established policy on election of national, zonal and state officers, which involved zoning and micro-zoning to balance interests, might be compromised when the current chairman, Senator Ahmed Makarfi, who is midwifing the December election, declared that micro-zoning of positions was no longer binding.

He was, however, reported recently to have shifted a little ground, saying that the issue was beyond his national caretaker committee but within the powers of the National Executive Committee (NEC) to revisit.

Sources within the party, however, alleged that the move by the South-South zone to take the chairmanship position was part of a grand plan involving a prominent presidential aspirant from the North, who had been assured of support to prosecute his election bid.

The alleged plan was also said to involve a prominent state executive in the South-West who was allegedly being positioned for the vice presidential slot expected to be offered to placate the South-West to the bargain.

A young man who dresses up like a woman to work has been apprehended after the gender impostor was discovered when some part of his clothing fell off at work.


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Young man who dresses up as a woman to secure a job arrested in Niger state


Some photos of a man dressed as a woman to work has emerged on social media and circulating online.

According to multiple reports, the man changed his identity and started work with an organisation in Niger as a woman. Many unsuspecting co-workers related to him as a female and for a while his lie stuck with no one noticing.

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Unfortunately, he had been going on his regular business until one day his clothing fell, revealing the padded underwear he had worn for months to cover his chest and aid his pretence as a woman.

He was discovered immediately and arrested for falsifying his identity and deceiving people.

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Kunle Falayi


A 13- year - old girl has narrated how she was allegedly raped multiple times by her mistress ’ husband, Mr . Ulonna Amaobi , at Iyana Iba , Lagos .

Mary, an indigene of Jos in Plateau State, was taken to Nnewi , Anambra State , by her elder sister to find her a better life as their pastor father was financially challenged.

In Nnewi , Mary and her sister got separated when they had to work in different homes – her sister as a salesgirl and Mary as a housemaid for Amaobi ’ s mother - in- law .

But without her sister’ s knowledge , Mary was sent to live with the Amaobis in Lagos .
Mary’ s sister, who had insisted on keeping a close watch on her , immediately relocated to Lagos in order to be close to her younger sister.

Mary got to the Amaobis ’ home in April. According to her , the man started raping her right from that month.

“ The first time he raped me and I bled , I reported to madam when she got back home . She did not do anything about it .

But she beat me all the time when she accused me of stealing money, ” the girl said .

Mary said she was also routinely starved.
The couple had promised to enrol Mary in school also but made no attempt to look for a school for her during the four months she was there.

According to the girl , whenever Amaobi wanted to come into her room to rape her , he held a knife to her neck to prevent her from screaming.

“ There was a time madam was in the sitting room . He came to where I was and carried me to his room . I tried to struggle but he held me down and said he would stab me if I made any noise.

When he finished , he told me to get out of the room and to keep quiet because I was crying. I still went to report to his wife and she did not do anything about it , ” the girl said .

The man allegedly continued the sexual attack multiple times despite the girl notifying his wife .

But on Sunday, October 22 , 2017 , he raped her again as usual and the girl ran out of the house to report what he had done again to his wife .

Saturday PUNCH learnt that Amaobi ’ s wife took the girl to a hospital to conduct a pregnancy test on her .

It is not clear what the result showed but when they got home , Mrs. Amaobi allegedly handed the girl an alcoholic herbal drink, which she refused to drink.

“ Madam held a pair of scissors and said she would stab me if I did not drink it . I then drank the liquid . She did not tell me what it was for, ” Mary said .

Shortly after , Mrs . Amaobi told Mary to pack her belongings and she proceeded to hand her over to her sister.

Mary’ s sister cried profusely , blaming herself for everything that had happened to her sister as she narrated the story.

“ I brought her from Jos because I thought I could look after her . I blame myself for all that has happened to her , ” she said .

When the case was reported to the Esther Child Rights Foundation , officials at the NGO notified the police and Mr. Amaobi was arrested.

In a taped statement , Mrs . Amaobi admitted that she indeed took the girl for a test and administered what she called “ hot drink ” on the girl .

But she refused to disclose what the concoction was used for when asked .

She said , “I love the girl like my own child . I love the girl very much . Even when she was stealing money in the house , I took her to our church for deliverance .

“ It is true that she reported to me that my husband raped her . But she only reported once and that was this last time . I was shocked . I wanted to faint . I held my chest and was crying. ”

Director of the ECRF, Mrs . Esther Ogwu, said she petitioned the Lagos Office of Public Defender to ensure justice was done.

Amaobi was finally charged with child sexual abuse and child endangerment at the Ikeja Magistrate ’ s Court , Lagos on Tuesday, November 7 .

He was subsequently remanded at the Kirikiri Prison , Lagos pending when he met his bail conditions .

The case has been adjourned till January 25 for mention.

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A Mapo Customary Court in Ibadan on Friday dissolved seven - year marriage between Omolara and her husband , Abiodun Ojeyemi, for adulterous lifestyle .

Omolara had petitioned the court to dissolve the union over alleged threat to her life .

The President of the court , Chief Ademola Odunade, held that the society was fast undergoing an unprecedented decay in morality, especially how adultery was ruining marriages.

“ It is so tragic that a man can deliberately impregnate a housewife with children.

“ It has never happened in the history of this court that a concubine will accompany his mistress to the court with the intention of daring us , saying nothing will happen.

“ In the interest of peaceful living , the union between Omolara and Abiodun has ceased to be , henceforth .

“ Abiodun shall take custody of the two children produced by the union , ” he said.

Narrating his ordeal, Abiodun , a staff of Nigeria Breweries , said that Omolara, his wife , was an unrepentant adulterous woman in spite of his his genuine love for her .

“ My lord , ever since I got married to Omolara seven years ago, little did I know that she had been occupied with all sorts of escapades in the name of going to church vigil .

“ What I know is that she usually tells me that she was going for church vigil and I never had any reason to suspect her because I trusted her .

“ However , around June this year , Omolara started starving me of usual sexual intercourse between husband and wife.

“ Before I eventually knew the truth , Omolara had told me that her concubine was her uncle and I was relating with him well as an in- law .

“ One day, I got home and discovered that she had packed all the property away , including mine.

“ In fact , I have never failed to perform my responsibility as a husband to her and as a father to our children .

“ It was wrong for Omolara to hide under any stupid disguise to be neck deep in adultery .

“ Omolara’ s concubine is a priest at a Celestial Church , Emmanuel Parish , Elewiodo -Ojo , Ibadan , ” Abiodun , the respondent in the case , said.

Testifying in the matter, Omolara’ s father confessed that Abiodun was a complete gentle son in- law whom he liked so much.

He said that he usually rendered Abiodun and Omolara monetary assistance anytime they were in need.

“ I know that Abiodun has a great future ahead of him and I used to tell Omolara, my daughter, to keep calm.

“ If there was any problem , Abiodun never hesitated to inform me.

“ I never gave any wife to that naughty concubine and I know that he only wants to cause disaster to the happy relationship between my daughter and Abiodun , ” Omolara’ s father said.

Omolara’ s mother also added that her daughter and her concubine had been expelled from the church after hearing that she got pregnant for a concubine.

Corroborating Omolara father ’ s testimony , all others who gave evidence, confirmed that Omolara was deeply into extra - marital affairs even with some other men.

Abiodun ’ s younger brother told the court that he had at various times caught her in different hotels with different men on adulterous mission.

However , Omolara, who was the petitioner , had earlier informed the court that she was no longer interested in continuing in the marriage over alleged threat to her life with scissors attack and irresponsibility by Abiodun.

She argued that Abiodun impregnated her shortly before she moved away from his home .

“ My lord , I can no more endure hunger and lack of care in Abiodun’ s home.

“ My parents have been responsible for our daily needs, including feeding , clothing and our children ’ s education .

“ Worst still , Abiodun used to unleash mayhem on me.

“ My lord , enough is enough , please, separate us , ” Omolara said.

Omolara’ s concubine had dared the court as well as Abiodun to do anything detrimental to Omolara , his lover.

In the dock , David Adebayo, a resident of Alakuko Street of Alagbado Area of Lagos State , confessed that Omolara was his concubine and had been sleeping with her for the past 12 years.

“ My lord , any time Omolara left her husband in Ibadan , she used to come to meet me in Lagos where we usually have fun .

“ Sometimes , she came after her closing hour in her office and returned to Ibadan the following morning .

“ Omolara only told me that she and her husband were no more in good terms even though she had already had two children.

“ I swear by the Holy Bible, I didn’ t intend to destroy her relationship with her husband ; she is just my girlfriend.

“ The pregnancy in her womb belongs to me ; I was the one that disvirgined her during my NYSC days .

“ I followed her into the court to ensure that her union with Abiodun is dissolved today not that I am daring the court’ s power, ” Adebayo said .

Adebayo, however, apologised to the court for causing so much disharmony to Abiodun and for having unlawful sexual intercourse with a housewife .
(NAN )

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Leke Baiyewu , Abuja


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The Senior Special Assistant to the President of the Senate on Youth and Student Matters , Mr. Ikenga Ugochinyere , has resigned his appointment .

In a letter of resignation addressed to President of the Senate , Senator Bukola Saraki, and dated October 3 , 2017 , Ugochinyere , who is President of the National Youth Council of Nigeria , said he had formed a political party and had been appointed as its national chairman.

A copy of the letter was sighted by our correspondent on Thursday.

The letter read, “Sequel to the recent issuance of certificate of registration by Independent National Electoral Commission to my newly formed political party and my emergence as the national chairman, I wish to tender my resignation as your Senior Special Assistant on Youth and Student Matters.

“ This is because of the legal and Political Implications of my new status as a result of which I cannot be able to discharge my functions to you.

“ Your Excellency, it has been a pleasure working with a detribalised and youth- friendly leader like you for over two years now.

“ One of the most cherished moments of my public service life is working with the Office of the Senate President and you in particular.

“ Your commitment to the economic transformation of our country and creation of job for millions of young Nigerians, using legislative process, is outstanding. You have kept all your pledges to the Nigerian people and helped rekindle the hope that a New Nigeria is possible.

“ Your Excellency, thank you for the opportunity to work with you, as I wish you the strength to answer higher national calling in the future. ”

Michael Abimboye


Three Kano State students, Lukman Abu Lukman (23), Khalifa SA (24) and Anwar AH (17) have been arrested and detained for alleged conspiracy and killing of a Nigerian national resident in Egypt who specialises in the training of internet fraudsters popularly referred to as yahoo boys.

The three students are among the hundreds of Kano indigenes sponsored by the former administration of Dr Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, now a serving senator to various higher institutions abroad including Egypt for further studies.

Sometimes this year, the authority of AL Mansoura University, Egypt where the students are studying conducted various assessments on the standing of the students in the institution.

At the end of the exercise, the institution’s Authorities it was learnt wrote to the government of Dr Abdullahi Ganduje, who succeeded Kwankwaso in office, intimating it that thirty-seven of the students could not continue their academic pursuit on a ground of poor performances as well as their passion for social activities.

On receipt of the letter from the institution in Egypt by the State Government, Governor Umar Abdullahi Ganduje reportedly directed that further verification about the issue be carried out to know the correct situation. This necessitated some officers of the government travelling to Egypt to meet with the students, their agents and the institution’s authorities.

After confirming the reality on the ground, the government instructed that the students be allowed to return home with the hope to finding another place for them in Nigeria.

This decision it was learnt was promptly communicated to the parents of the affected students, but when they were contacted by government officials to receive the return tickets for their children, the issue became politicised.

It was learnt that the former governor of the state, Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso out of anxiety travelled to Egypt, met with the concerned students and assured them of making ways for them if he returned to power.

While the students were waiting for what they hope will be a reprieve, two of the 37 affected students met with a Nigerian fraudster named Onyeme Loveday AKA 2shay in Egypt. According to report, one of the students asked Onyeme to train him on Advanced Fee Fraud and Onyeme accepted his request on the condition that after the training, he should be offered a Hausa lady as compensation.

However, after the training, the student from the university failed to fulfil the condition as agreed and this resulted in a serious heated argument between Onyeme and the student who was later joined by two of his other colleagues.

During the cause of the argument, Onyeme allegedly brought out a knife to stab one of the students, but the trio students overpowered him and in the process murdered him as alleged. They were subsequently arrested and detained for conspiracy and culpable homicide and are presently cooling off at a detention facility in Egypt awaiting trial.

CYRIACUS IZUEKWE

https://pmexpressng.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/Chikkaamso-20170516_002527.jpg

A couple, Obinna Arthur and his wife, Chinyere who reportedly raped, recorded and posted their neighbour’s wife nude video on social media has been ordered to be tried for conspiracy and rape at the Lagos High Court.

This was the outcome of the advice by Directorate of Public Prosecution, DPP, who has now taken over the matter for prosecution.

In letter dated 3 November, 2017 to the Deputy Commissioner of Police at SCIID Panti, Yaba, signed by the Assistant Director of DPP, Mr. M.T. Adeoye, the directorate stated so.

The advice stated that going by the facts available in the duplicate case file, that it was obvious there were sufficient facts to establish prima facie case of sexual assault and sending of obscene pictures on social media by the suspects.

It further stated that the case file revealed that Obinna called the husband of the victim, one Kenneth Nwakaji to come and collect his N1.2m share of the profit they made on a business transaction they had together. But Kenneth was unable to go and had to send his wife who was the victim to go to the hotel and collect the money on his behalf.

P.M.EXPRESS reports that when the wife went to the hotel in Egbeda area of Lagos, Obinna offered her a bottle of Guinness malt drink which she drank and immediately became unconscious. It was scooped that Obinna removed all her clothes in the hotel room and sexually assaulted her.

He recorded the video of the whole assault on his phone as a bargaining power to her husband to forget his own share of the profit.

When the victim – a mother of three kids regained her consciousness, she discovered that she was totally naked and was then shown the video of the assault.

She could not raise alarm because she was scared of losing her marriage.

However, on 27 March 2017 she discovered that her nude pictures had gone viral in the neighbourhood and it was traced to Obinna’s wife, Chinyere.

The DPP informed the police that the duplicated file brought to their office was retained to enable the office to obtain the necessary information papers to file the matter at the High Court.

P.M.EXPRESS had earlier reported the incident after the police at Area M Command, Idimu arrested the couple at Santos Estate in Akowonjo, Lagos.

When the matter came up at the Magistrates court, it could not hold as the matter was now billed for Lagos High Court.

P.M.EXPRESS gathered that the couple who had four kids had remained in prison custody because their relations refused to bail them.

Taiwo Adisa - Abuja


A major feud appears imminent between the Department of State Service (DSS) and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) over a move by the commission to interrogate some officials of the DSS.

Though details of the investigation purportedly being carried out by the EFCC were not made available to Sunday Tribune at the weekend, it was gathered that the commission had sent a request to effect the release of the affected DSS officials.

Investigations revealed that the authorities of the DSS had, however, refused to release the requested officials, thus creating a fresh round of animosity between the two government agencies.

A source knowledgeable on the matter said that the invitation was an attempt to rubbish the Service since the DSS was not answerable to the EFCC.

The source said: “What are they (EFCC) trying to do, audit our operations or what? Did the service report any financial infraction to them and call for their intervention? It is just a case of overzealousness and lack of professionalism and we won’t allow that, because what you allow is what will continue.

“If they [EFCC] need any clarification on anything, they should come to our office.

They know where we are. We can’t be humiliated by anybody. Never! If this is a fallout from the security report officially requested by the National Assembly, then we wish them luck. We stand by our findings. If someone is not fit and proper to hold an office, we can’t season any filth. It’s as simple as that. We never went outside of our mandate.”

The DSS has been at loggerheads with the EFCC since the Service wrote two memos to the Senate, stopping the clearance of the acting chairman of the EFCC, Mr Ibrahim Magu.

The Service, in a March 14, 2017 security report sent to the Senate, concluded that “in the light of the foregoing, Magu has failed the integrity test and will eventually constitute a liability to the anti-corruption drive of the present administration.”

Though sources said Magu had answered queries raised by President Muhammadu Buhari, on the said report, the responses were not made available to the Senate, which refused to clear Magu.

When contacted, EFCC spokesman, Wilson Uwujaren, told Sunday Tribune that he needed to check with the authoritues to confirm the said invitation sent to the DSS officials.

From Ndubuisi Orji, Abuja


About 160 members of the House of Representatives have rejected its leadership’s offer to provide them with official cars.

Daily Sun gathered that the members want cash instead.

The Green Chamber is spending about N6.1 billion on procurement of 360 units Peugeot 508 for members, at a unit price of N17 million.

The cars have been coming in trickles, since December 2015, when the plans to procure them was agreed.

As at August 2017, about 200 units had been procured and distributed to members.
But, a source told Daily Sun yesterday, that members who were yet to get their vehicles are now mounting pressure on the House leadership to give them the monetary value of the cars.

The demand for monetisation of the cars, it was gathered, is against the backdrop of the cash crunch affecting the federal legislature.

Besides, the source said “some of the legislators believe there is no need for the cars as they have spent more than half of their tenure.”

A member, who declined to be named, confirmed the development, and noted that “majority of those yet to get their official cars prefer to be given cash, in lieu of the cars.”

He, however, said the legislators are demanding monetisation of the cars, because “they do’t like Peugeot 508, and not for any other reason.”

The lawmaker, who confirmed that he has gotten his own vehicles, said members had, from the outset, expressed reservations about the car.

He noted that many had expressed preference for Toyota Camry or Prado jeep, and argued that giving cash, in lieu of the cars, would enable them buy cars of their choice.

“Some of them wanted Camry. Some wanted Prado. If they cannot buy them what they want, what is wrong in giving them money to buy. The most important thing is for them to buy.

“ State assembly members are using Prado. Councillors are using Camry. What is the big deal about Peugeot 508? What is Peugeot 508?

“It is an embarrasment for anyone to want to make an issue out of this. Don’t you see the convoy of ministers when they come to the National Assembly?

“If you go to the (Presidential) Villa, they ride Mercedez Benz. There are three tiers of government. They should not be treating us as if we are not part of this government,” the lawmaker stated.

When Daily Sun sought the reaction of the Chairman of the House Services Committee, Nasiru Baballe Ila, whose committee is charge of procuring the cars, he replied in a text message thus; “get in touch with (Abdulrasaq) Namdas, he is the spokesman of the House.”

However, efforts to speak with the Chairman of the Committee on Media, Abdulrasaq Namdas was unsuccessful as his mobile telephone was switched off, as at yesterday night.

Also, Speaker Yakubu Dogara’s Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Mr Hassan Turaki, did not respond to any enquiry on the issue.

lalasticlala

By Paul Ogbuokiri



Relations of dead bank account owners not linked to Bank Verification Number (BVN) have expressed concerns over the Federal Government’s order forfeit of the monies in such accounts.

Their lamentation came on the heels of the expiration, on Friday, of the 14-day interim forfeiture order which had been upheld by an Abuja High Court presided by Justice Dimgba Igwe recently.

The concerned relations of reopen dead account holders told Sunday Telegraph that they were already in a dilemma not knowing how they can get on with life without being able to access the monies their dead bread winners left in various bank accounts for them. One of their frustrations according to some next-of-kins who spoke to our correspondent is the stringent requirements demanded by various banks before any next-of-kin can access the funds of their late bread winner.

Our correspondent reliably learnt that many dependants of departed account holders have been put through excruciating experiences in their bids to obtain letters of administration to enable them access their bread winners’ account.

The painful process has also forced the affected relations to either abandon the pursuit of the letter of administration or slow it down. Sunday Telegraph investigation revealed that the situation has left huge amount of monies in such accounts running into N100 billion across the 19 commercial banks in Nigeria, in 2013. The cash now trapped in dead peoples’ accounts is said to be also on the increase.

However, lawyer and author of banking Law and Mortgages in Nigeria, Pat Anyadubalu, has described the forfeiture order as a very sad development pointing out that the affected next-of-kins would forfeit all the money in the affected accounts to the Federal Government if that court order is not vacated as soon as possible.

It would be recalled that the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation, Mr. Abubakar Malami, had sought an interim order directing all the commercial banks to disclose/declare all individual and corporate accounts in their custody not covered by the BVN. The court, on October 18, granted the order, giving 14 days after which the fund in the accounts becomes legally forfeited to the Federal Government of Nigeria.

But some next-of-kins of dead bank account owners not linked to BVN, who spoke to Sunday Telegraph from different parts of the country, told our correspondent, that for more than two years, they have been trying to meet stipulated bank requirements, to enable them access the funds their dead breadwinners left in their accounts.

But due to several hurdles their efforts had not been successful. Some of them, however, said that issues of claims and counter claims in their families also made it difficult for the affected relations to secure relevant Letters of Administration required by the banks.

But in the case of Bola Adegoroye, a widow whose husband died in year 2012 without living a Will: “That is not the problem. The problem is that in some of his documents, he filled my name as the next-of-kin and in some others, our first son. So after over two years of stress, the bank has not paid us.

And to make matter worse, my husband’s company paid his benefits into that account. I have been borrowing money to keep the children in school in the hope that whenever, we are able to sort out issues with the bank, I will settle my creditors.

Now they are talking of forfeiture. The money in that account is my late husband’s savings. If the money is seized by government over this BVN issue as they are threatening, I will have no alternative than to withdraw the children from school. But there will be other problems of repaying the monies I have so far borrowed to take care of my five children,” she lamented.

Relating his own predicament, a widower who is also a trader in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, Nze Ibe Onuchia, who operated a joint account with his late wife said: “I was asked to get Death Certificate, publish her obituary in a national daily. After I had done that, I was asked to get Letter of Administration from the court. I have been on the matter for over two years. At a time, I had to suspend action on it because it was costing me money and the time to concentrate on providing for our children.

“Since my wife’s death, I have not been able to collect any money from that account where all out money was before her death.

It is just by the grace of God that we have been surviving since then. Now we heard this news that government wants to seize it because of BVN. Who will do the BVN? Me or my late wife?” He queried.

“What government should do in line with its anti-corruption war, is to focus on the accounts of politicians and public servants who have not done BVN or even Yahoo Yahoo boys, not putting eyes in poor people’s monies in the bank. So is it now an offence to keep your hard earned money in the bank? I regret putting the money there.

“This BVN they are talking about now, why didn’t they talk about it when we were putting our money there? Why are they trying to steal our money in the name of BVN? This is worse than what the Gowon administration did to Biafran people who had their monies in the banks after the civil war. They seized their money and gave them 20 pounds,” he added.

The story of Abuja based Isa Rahman, whose sister and a single parent died in 2013, leaving behind two children and over N1, 000,000 in her bank account, is not different. “My late sister had N1, 000,000 in her account when she died in 2013. We were asked by the bank to produce Letter of Administration, which we have managed to get, but the bank said the name of her estranged husband was in our late sister’s initial documents with the bank.

“The man has agreed to do what is required of him so that the bank can release the money to us to take care of their children.

However, he said that would be when he returns home. He is currently in Germany.

“We are confused now. Does the court order imply that government will take the money my late sister saved for her children? This is demonic,” he asked.

When Sunday Telegraph approached some banks officials for comment, the bankers said it’s a regulatory requirement that next-of-kin must produce Letter of administration.

“It is not the banks’ fault that the next-of-kin should go through this stress. The next-of-kin that customers fill in the form when opening an account does not guarantee the person access to the customer’s account. It is only an indication that the person whose name appears as next-of-kin can come openly to begin the process of having access to the customer’s account. And that process is to produce a will and letter of administration as demanded by law,” one banker said.

But speaking during a recent Channels Television popular programme, Sunday Politics, the Senior Special Assistant to President Muhammadu Buhari on Prosecution, Okoi Obono-Obla, insisted that the President Buhari-led administration would be justified should the funds in the accounts be taken over by the Federal Government. According to Obono-Obla, who also the Chairman, Special Presidential Investigation Panel for the Recovery of Public Property, the number of accounts yet to be linked remains alarming.
“From Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN’s) statistics, 46 million accounts are yet to be linked with BVN numbers after three years,” he said, stressing however, that he doesn’t know how much money the accounts hold.

He said those who have not linked their accounts to BVN had violated a CBN policy and should have themselves to blame.

“Anyone who has not complied with that directive, it means that his account is fraudulent and so whatever is there should go to the government,” he added.

According to the Nigerian Interbank Settlement System (NIBSS), 52 million bank accounts had been linked to their BVNs as of February this year. The total number of bank accounts in the country was estimated at 70 million in 2016.

When contacted, the Central Bank of Nigeria chose not to comment on the issue. But a director of the bank said he would not blame the banks if they chose to challenge the court order.

Meanwhile, human rights lawyer, Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa described as illegal, the order granting the forfeiture of funds in accounts without BVNs to the Federal Government.

Citing Section 36(1) of the 1999 Constitution and Article 7 of the African Charter, Adegboruwa said it was not proper to determine the rights of parties in their absence. He said the BVN was a policy decision and not “backed by law.” The lawyer also faulted the “bindingness” of the order on millions of bank customers who he said were not directly parties to the suit.

He lamented that the quest to get revenue for the government should not be to the detriment of the constitutional and fundamental rights of the citizens.

“I am very well concerned about how we deploy interim orders for permanent purposes, such as to forfeit valuable assets without any or fair hearing from the person(s) concerned,” the statement read.

“I think it is improper to obtain interim orders to freeze the bank accounts of estates that are in dispute between the beneficiaries, of estates of deceased persons that are still being contested, of profits of companies that are still subject to litigation or other disputes, just to mention a few examples of the arbitrariness of these orders.

“There is nothing in Section 3 of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act 2011 that makes BVN a condition precedent for operating a bank account in Nigeria; nothing at all. What the law requires is verifiable identity of the customer, such as name, address, photographs, identity cards, etc.

“BVN is a policy decision of the Central Bank of Nigeria and a court of law should not base its orders on executive policies that are not backed by law.

“I get truly worried with the way we adopt ex parte applications to determine very serious and weighty issues of law.

“The other point is the bindingness of an ex parte order upon the whole world and upon millions of bank customers in Nigeria, who are not directly parties to the suit.

“How proper is it for a court to seek to determine the rights of parties in their absence, in view of the clear provisions of Section 36(1) of the 1999 Constitution and Article 7 of the African Charter?
“Why this desperation, if one may ask? I support that money suspected to be proceeds of crime should be traced, isolated and forfeited if the owner cannot successfully account for it.

“But to proceed to seek to forfeit all monies in all banks meant for all customers in Nigeria on the grounds of absence of BVN is manifestly illegal.

“I therefore humbly urge the Honourable Attorney-General of the Federation to review this case with a view to tempering the tenor of these rather outlandish orders.

“The quest to scoop revenue for government should not be to the detriment of the constitutional and fundamental rights of the citizens. Which is why I have been praying that these orders are not real, but rather one of the usual social media gimmicks,” he said.

Two hundred and fifty victims of snake bite have died in the last three weeks in Plateau and Gombe States , following an acute scarcity of snake anti -venom drugs in the country.

The figure represents the number of confirmed deaths from three snake treatment centres – General Hospital , Kaltungo, Ali Mega Pharmacy, Gombe and Comprehensive Medical Centre, Zamko , Plateau State.

A correspondent , who visited the three medical outfits, met other victims in critical situations , with some of them left on bare floors as the doctors said they were helpless without the anti - venom.

The snake anti - venom drugs – Echitab Plus ICP polyvalent and Echitab G monovalent – had not been supplied to the country since August , throwing the treatment centres into crisis after the last vials were used up in the first week of October .

Echitab Plus ICP , produced at Instituto Clodomiro Picado , University of Costa Rica , treats bites from all venomous snakes in Nigeria , while Echitab G , produced by Micropharm Ltd , United Kingdom , is solely for carpet viper bites .

Medics , who spoke at the three treatment centres, said that the cases of snake bites were usually very common during the harvest season .

“ We receive an average of 50 victims every day. Some arrive here in very critical conditions and we just have to watch them die because we are helpless , ” Abubakar Abdullahi Aliyu , Managing Director , Aliyu Mega Pharmacy, said in Gombe .

He said that more than 70 victims had died in the last three weeks following the lack of anti - venom to treat them, adding that some came from Adamawa , Taraba, Bauchi , Borno and Plateau States.

“ An average of six deaths are recorded daily . If you go to the snake treatment centre at the Kaltungo General Hospital, you will pity the victims ; the lucky ones among them get supportive treatment , while many are left to fate since the drugs are not available .

“ Between August and October , we received 750 victims . We were given 700 vials of the anti - venom on August 31, but we exhausted them before October . Many people are just dying . It is a major crisis, ” he stated .

Aliyu said that the only available drug – Indian anti -venom – was not as effective in the treatment of the bites from carpet vipers, the commonest poisonous snakes in the country.

“ We have tried the Indian anti -venom , but it does not elicit much response.

Sometimes, we give six vials and more to a patient, but the effect will be minimal . If we had Echitab drugs, one dose is enough to cure a patient, ” he said.

The pharmacist urged the Federal Government to promptly step in to assist Echitab Study Group, the outfit coordinating the supply and distribution of the Echitab drugs , so as to make them available .

The Snake Treatment Centre at the Kaltungo General Hospital , Gombe State, equally presented a sorry sight with helpless patients gasping for breath while the medics watched helplessly.

Dr . Abubakar Ballah, the Snakebite Treatment Officer , said that the situation was “ sad and scary ” .

“ We have a serious crisis here . In the last one week , 139 patients were admitted with 77 absconding when we appeared helpless , owing to the non -availability of the anti - snake venom drug .

“ Some were unconscious when they were brought here . Sometimes , it is corpses that are brought to us.

“ In the last few days, we have recorded 21 deaths . The figure is more because many of those that absconded were in bad shape ; many others did not even bother to come here because of the fore - knowledge of lack of anti - venom in the centre.

“ The last drug was used on October 13. We try to give vitamin K to the victims to enhance blood clotting in the absence of anti - venom because bites from the viper snakes cause bleeding which is difficult to control without anti - venom.

“ It is a critical period , but we are helpless . This is why we call on the government to work with the Echitab Study Group to provide a lasting solution to this menace.

“ Already , some criminals are faking the drug and selling it at N 43,000 per vial , contrary to the original anti - snake venom sold by the Echitab Study Group at the cost of between N13,500 to N 30,000.

“ What we must avoid is a situation where desperate people produce fake drugs . We must work toward an effective handling and supply of the drug to guarantee quality and ensure that only genuine drugs are supplied to the treatment centres . ’’

He urged the government to treat the issue as a national emergency .

“ The need for the snake anti -venom should be seen as a security issue with its necessity equated with having an army , customs service, police force and other security agencies .

“ The government should work with the Echitab Study Group to have a reliable supply channel ; government should subsidise the cost to avoid a major crisis like the one in our hands now because we find it difficult and embarrassing to explain the situation to our patients . ”

An equally bad situation was found at the Comprehensive Medical Centre, Zamko, with Dr . Titus Dajel, the Medical Superintendent , stating that more than 200 patients were admitted in October alone.

“ There are many victims , but we cannot help because there is no anti - snake venom available now . We have had more than 200 cases in the last one month, with many of them losing their lives . ’’

He equally explained that the centre had tried the Indian anti - venom on patients but did not get the desired results because the specifications are different.

“ The most effective drug is the Echitab anti - venom which is produced using the venom of snakes from Nigeria , ’’ he said.

Dajel regretted that traditional healers had taken advantage of the situation to extort monies from victims after promising to heal them.

“ What the herbalists are doing is trial and error . Most victims bleed in the brain because the venom is vicious; traditional healers cannot tackle that because they concentrate on healing the wound, ” he explained .

Dajel urged the Federal Government to treat snake bite as a national emergency and take urgent steps to make the anti - snake venom available .

“ Continuous importation of the anti - venom is dangerous, especially in view of the rising cost of the dollar . We must look into the possibility of domesticating the production of the drug to avoid constant crisis, ” he said .

He explained that the cases of snake bites had become more common in the area because of the ongoing harvest by farmers.

“ It is the peak period of snake bites ; farmers go to the bush to harvest crops and get attacked by snakes who are out of their holes because of the hot temperature.

“ Some snakes go under heaps of rice gathered together preparatory for thrashing , in search of shelter from the scorching sun. Such snakes pounce on farmers when they open the heaps to start thrashing .

“ Some snakes also move in groups in search of rats at yam farms where they clash with farmers harvesting the produce , ” he said.

Dajel said that the centre had advised farmers to wear protective items like boots and gloves , and urged government agencies charged with public enlightenment to educate farmers on ways to protect themselves against snake attacks.

Mr Tim Golu , member of the House of Representatives representing Pankshin / Kanam /Kanke in Plateau , who also decried the non- availability of the snake anti - venom , said that the situation had been “ catastrophic’’ to his constituents.

“ We have lost so many people in the past few weeks. As we speak , we have several cases in my own village in Kanke. The comprehensive health centre in Zamko is usually their only hope, but there are no drugs there. It is a huge disaster.

“ The shortage of the drug has led to a sharp rise in the prices of other options . It has also led to the production of fake and adulterated vaccines, which have caused deaths and deformities, ’’ he said .

He appealed to the federal , states and local governments to intervene by committing funds for the purchase of the anti -venom , and regretted the colossal damage in the past few weeks.

Golu said that he had initiated a bill for the establishment of a National Centre for Research and Production of Snake Vaccines which would soon go through public hearing .

Reacting to the non - availability of the snake anti - venom drug , Dr . Nandul Durfa , Managing Director , Echitab Study Group , Representative of the two companies that produce the anti - snake- venom drug in Nigeria , blamed the situation on the “ late placement of order for its production ” .

“ It is very sad that there is a sudden shortage that culminated in many deaths.

The drought is due to technical hitches in the production chain which is being looked into , to prevent a recurrence .

“ We have adopted measures to ensure continuous supply of the product and want to ensure that only quality anti -venom drugs are brought to the country. We want to guarantee continued supply so as to avoid the supply of fake anti - venom drugs from multiple supply channels . ’’

He said that the federal and state governments, religious bodies , NGOs and individuals had often procured the anti -venom for free distribution to victims and were eagerly waiting for supply “ in view of the deadly consequences of the shortage ”.

According to him , the Echitab Study Group used to distribute the drug free to patients at the treatment centres , particularly at periods when government stopped financing the supply.

“ On few occasions, however , we were forced to charge a little token to cover the cost of transporting the drug to the direct users , ’’ he said .

Durfa confirmed that the Echitab Study Group was already working with the Ministry of Health to explore areas of collaboration toward manufacturing the drug locally , via a Public - Private -Partnership (PPP) arrangement.

He declared that snake bite was a menace that must be taken seriously because it was “ worse than Ebola , Monkey Pox and even HIV/ AIDS ” .

“ It affects rural dwellers who are major contributors to our GDP through farming, cattle rearing and mining. This is why we believe that even the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development should take interest in the management of snake bites. , ” he said.

lalasticlala

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has resumed the probe into the $43.4million cash recovered at Osborne Towers in Ikoyi, Lagos which led to Monday’s sacking of National Intelligence Agency (NIA) Director-General Ayo Oke by President Muhammadu Buhari.

The Presidency said it is in order for anti-graft agencies to probe the former NIA boss and the sacked Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) Babachir Lawal.

There were indications last night that the EFCC had received the report of the Presidential Investigative Committee headed by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo.

More suspects from the NIA and outside it are to be invited for interrogation by the anti-graft agency, it was learnt.

The EFCC deferred action on the interrogation of some suspects because it wanted the Osinbajo panel to conclude its assignment.

A top source in the anti-graft agency, who spoke in confidence last night, said: “On Tuesday, we resumed the ongoing probe of the $43.4million, 27,000 pounds and N23.2million recovered on April 12, 2017 from the seventh floor of a four-bedroom apartment at Osborne Towers located on 16, Osborne Road, Ikoyi, Lagos.

“We have shortlisted more suspects for interrogation and we are likely to pick them up any moment from now. Some of the suspects are NIA men including those in the Finance Unit.

“Don’t forget that the then Acting President approved the redeployment of NIA’s Director of Finance and some officials in the Finance Unit as part of the ongoing review of the finances of the agency.”

The detectives are being led by the Acting Chairman of EFCC, Mr. Ibrahim Magu, who has reconvened the team handling the investigation.

“Some of the detectives might still visit Lagos for more forensic evidence on some of the suspects,” it was learnt.

A judge of the Federal High Court in Lagos, Justice Muslim Hassan, had on June 6, 2017 granted a final forfeiture order of the funds since no one appeared before the court to claim them.

Posted by: Taiwo Jimoh



Residents of Imota Ikorodu, Lagos State are still gasping in shock, following the gruesome murder of some young men in the area by cultists At least a boy was alleged to have been beheaded and three others killed in their apartment, in the presence of their stunned parents, in what law enforcement officers claimed was a reprisal.

The clash was between members of Eiye and Aiye. The killings started on Friday and between Saturday and yesterday, policemen and members of the Oodua People’s Congress (OPC), had arrested 31 suspected cult members. Yesterday, residents of Imota told our correspondent that cultists have taken over their community. One of the residents said: “There’s no day we don’t witness cult related killings in the community.”

A team of Anti-Cultism Unit, Oodua Peoples Congress (OPC) and OPMESSA were deployed to the community to restore peace. In the process, 31 suspected cult members were arrested between Saturday and Sunday.

The Coordinator of OPC in the community, Mr. John Ojuelegba, said the rate of killings by the various groups was getting out of control. His words: “I was in my house, when the DPO called me about the cultists’ unrest.

I mobilised my boys and we went to town. We started picking them. On Saturday alone, we arrested 19 and on Sunday, 12. They have all been transferred to Anti-Cultist Unit of the State Command.

What surprised me was that the Aiye group was going into Eiye group members’ houses to wake them in their parents’ houses. They killed them right in their parents’ presence. Three Eiye members were killed at different locations.

These boys have turned the community into slaughter slab.” Mrs. Iyabo Adekunle, stepmother of the first victim that was killed, identified as Tunji, said she was shocked to hear that the boy was a cultist.

She was in her shop on that fateful Friday, when she heard gunshots. She said: “I locked my shop and ran home. About five minutes later, someone came to call me that my son had been shot dead.

My husband and some other members of the family followed us to the scene. When we got there, Tunji’s corpse was inside the gutter. His body was covered in blood.

When he was brought out, we noticed that he was shot in four different places.

“We informed the policemen at Imota Police Station. We buried him that same night. I don’t know what could have led to anyone killing him. It was because my husband didn’t want him relating with bad boys, that he moved him from Mushin area to Imota.

We didn’t know he was still relating with bad boys.” Mr. Bambo Shokoya, a resident, disclosed that in September, two persons were killed in the community. He said that the reasons why the boys keep killing one another, is still difficult to know.

He said: “The present killing started on Friday around 11pm, at Atere area. Some Aiye members laid ambush for Tunji, who belonged to Eiye group. He was shot four times and his body dumped inside a gutter. Before they left, they were singing and dancing over the successful killing of Tunji.”

Shokoya further said that the most annoying aspect of the issue was that most of the cultists had been discovered to be school dropouts, bricklayers, vulcanizers and meat sellers. He urged government to look into the issue of cultism, before cultists wipe out members of an entire community. Our correspondent further gathered that it was after the rival group killed Tunji, that his angry members decided to carry out a reprisal.

The Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), ASP Olarinde Famous- Cole, said it was a clash between two rival cult groups, which started since the beginning of this year. He disclosed that the clash culminated in the beheading of a cultist.

He said in a quick response of the command, the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) in charge of Imota Police Station arrested 14 of the suspects. Famous- Cole further said that an additional suspect had been arrested and moved with others to Anti-Cultist Unit of the command for further investigation.

The ECOWAS community court of justice has granted an out of court settlement application for a case involving the federal government and nine victims of the Nigerian civil war.

In 2012, hundreds of mine victims of the war had dragged the federal government before the ECOWAS court, asking for an order for the removal of remnants of war instruments stockpiled in 11 states of the south-east, south-south and part of the north-central.

The instruments are said to include life bombs, abandoned unexploded ordnances (AXO), unexploded ordnances (UXO) and the explosive remnant of war (ERW).

The victims also asked the court to compel the federal government to rehabilitate the areas and compensate them for the damages.

On October 24, counsel to both parties filed an application for out-of-court settlement, on the ground that they have reached agreeable terms.

At its sitting on Monday, the court granted the application, ordering the parties to abide by the terms of the settlement.

Part of the terms of the settlement obtained by TheCable stipulates that the federal government “undertakes to pay, without delay, compensation in the summer of N50 billion in full and final sum to the victims, their families and communities as contained in Schedule 4(1) to this terms of settlement.

“That FG undetakes to the pay of undertakes to lay a total sum of N38 billion as contained in schedule 4(2) to this terms of settlement for the purposes of carrying out total demining and destruction, rebuilding of public buildings, mine centre activities, construction of class rooms, provision of prosthetics and all other activities enumerated thereunder.”

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Detectives have traced about £6m pension funds to a United Kingdom bank account being managed by the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation(OHCSF), The Nation learnt yesterday.

The cash is being suspected to have been tampered with by some government officials.

Two former Heads of the Civil Service of the Federation(Engr. E. Okeke and Prof. O. A. Afolabi) reportedly did their best to protect the funds from being tampered with.

Also yesterday, it was learnt that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission(EFCC) had seized more houses believed to be owned by the embattled ex- chairman of the Presidential Task Force on Pension Reforms Task Team, Mr. Abdulrasheed Abdullahi Maina. He is one of the signatories to the UK bank account.

Besides, a former EFCC operative has been quoted as saying that he was prepared to speak up on how a minister contacted him to protect Maina.

But the operative said he would do so on oath if President Muhammadu Buhari raises a Judicial Commission of Enquiry into the mismanagement of pension funds.

At least N2b is said to have been misappropriated. There are other funds, which are believed to have been stolen.
A former chairman of EFCC allegedly collected funds for a foreign trip from Maina. But a fact-sheet has debunked the claim.

The purported N5,476,000 estacodes remitted to the former EFCC chairman was actually paid into an account in a first generation bank, according to sources close to the investigation of the multi billion naira pension scandal.

The EFCC has continued its manhunt for Maina. It has located more of his assets.
A source said: “Our detectives have linked a large farm in Keffi to Maina and we are going to invoke Interim Assets forfeiture Clause in the EFCC (Establishment) Act.

“We have also sealed off two of the suspect’s houses at No. A5 B. Close and No. 9A in Kado Estate in Abuja. We have located some houses in Maiduguri too.
“So far, we have taken possession of the houses in Abuja and Kaduna.”

There was a twist yesterday following the release of a fact-sheet, which states that no former EFCC chairman collected N5,476,000 for overseas trips from Maina.

The document said: “It is hereby stated categorically that the former EFCC chairman never received any payment whatsoever in respect of any trip in OHCSF/Police Pensions and neither embark on such trips.

“That Estacode payments to the tune of N5,476,000 purportedly made for the Executive Chairman was discovered to have been paid into the First Bank acct. No. 4033010067733 belonging to one Christian Madubuike who is an account clerk with Police Pension office (PPO).

“The money was subsequently withdrawn from his account and handed over to Mr. John Yusuf (AD Accounts PPO). However John Yusuf admitted receiving the monies but claimed that he remitted same to Abdulrasheed Maina.”

Meanwhile, the EFCC traced about £6m pension funds to the UK and uncovered 66 pension accounts in the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation(OHCSF).

There was suspicion that the £6m might have been tampered with by some government officials, who are now pension suspects.

The top source added: “The EFCC has done enough in unraveling pension fraud syndicate in OHCSF, Presidential Pension Reform Task Committee, Police Pension funds and the Nigeria Union of Pensioners (NUP) check-off dues among others.

The source said: “It is certainly a huge racket by civil servants some of who are still in the system. For instance, our team uncovered £6m pension funds in an account in the UK. The money was for the payment of the pensions of some British colonial officers who served in Nigeria.

A report on the said account in the UK said: “In respect of the Federal Government 6million pounds sterling investment in the U.K with Crown agents, it is worth noting that the information was discovered as a result of a search executed in the residence of Dr. Shuaibu Sani Teidi during the course of our investigation.

“Dr. Shuaibu Sani Teidi failed to disclose the account during his handing over when he was leaving the Head of Service. Mr. Charles Bornant was invited and he confirmed that Dr. Shaibu did not disclose nor include the account in his handing over. Investigation into the account is still ongoing based on relevant information at our disposal.

“During the course of investigating fraud in the Pension office of the Head of Civil service of the Federation (OHCSF), a search warrant was executed in the residence of Dr. Shaibu Sani Teidi (former director Pension Accounts) where a laptop was recovered. From the analysis of the computer laptop, a document captioned “Report of the visit to Crown Agents Investment United kingdom” was discovered. The document reveals the nature of the investment made by the OHCSF with Crown Agents Investment, UK (copy attached).

“The Investment Account was brought to the attention of the OHCSF via a letter with reference No. CR:3000/EFCC/ABJ/EGFED/PEN/VOL.1/375 dated 18th February, 2011, while requesting for the following information:

1. List of Pensioners in Diaspora and their payment point(s)

2. Records of remittances of funds to all payments point

iii. Details investment of pension funds with Crown Agents Financial Services
“On receipt of our letter the OHCSF made further enquiries and responded to us via a letter dated 22nd February, 2011.

“The following facts emerge from our Investigation.

1. That the OHCSF maintained an overseas investment account with Crown Agent Investment Management United Kingdom titled “Nigeria Federal Civil Service Pension Fund”;

2. That the current Management agreement was drawn on the 23rd of May, 1990, attempt was made to review it between 20th to 22nd January 2009;

3. That the Crown agents have a representative in Nigeria;

4. That the market value of the Fund as at 31/03/2011 was GBP 6,275,176.80;

5. That Engr. E.O Okeke (Head of Service) and Dr. S.T Shuaibu (Director Pension Accounts) were the signatories to the account between 30th July, 2007 and 6th July, 2011.

6. That Prof. O.A Afolabi (Head of Service) and Abdulrasheed Maina (Head Pension Task Team) became signatories of the account on 6th July,2011 after our discovery;

7. That the current signatories to the account were only updated in July 2011, several years after Engr. E.O Okeke retired from Service and Dr. S.T Shuaibu redeployed from OHCSF. Dr. Shuaibu failed to properly hand over to his predecessor;

8. That the former Head of service Prof. O.A. Afolabi instructed that the total sum of GBP36,717.68 should be remitted to the Nigerian High Commission office in London for the payment of the outstanding and subsequent pension due to the expatriate (colonial service) pensioners.

”Our investigation revealed that the NUP are entitled to 1% only of the total monthly pension as Union Dues, which is being paid by the OHCSF on monthly basis. In view of the above, the OHCSF confirmed that the total amount entitled to NUP between 23rd of April, 2008 and 10th March, 2011 is N780,000,000.00. However, it was discovered that the Union connived with Dr. Sani Shaibu to inflate the figures by N1.5billion.

“Hence, they were paid the total sum of N2,290,593,322.35 (N2.3billion) from the OHCSF within the period. The President and Secretary of the NUP, Alh Ali Abatcha, and Eleder Actor Zal confessed that they returned the inflated amount to Dr. Shuaibu. The case has been charged to court.”

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By Joseph Onyekwere and Chijioke Nelson



A repeat of the credit and liquidity squeeze, which rocked the banking sector in the wake of the takeoff of Treasury Single Account (TSA) , may be in the offing if the Federal Government succeeds to acquire private accounts operated without Biometric Verification Number (BVN ) numbers .

The Federal High Court, Abuja , penultimate week granted the Federal Government ’ s prayers to have thousands of account in commercial bank , that are still without BVN forfeited if owners do not come forward to claim them in two weeks.

Trouble for this class of account holders started on October 17 this year , when Justice Nnamdi Dimgba ruled on an ex - parte motion filed by the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF ), Justice Abubakar Malami.

He slammed a restraining order on commercial banks to desist from operating such accounts, and further directed the 19 Deposit Money Banks (DMBs ) to disclose the owners and the financial content of each of the accounts. , in a move, which seeks to check corruption and enthrone transparency in the financial system .

According to industry source , no less than N 600 b, and an alleged undisclosed N 400 b by “ smarter banks , ” mostly belonging to politically exposed persons , may be sterilsied in the exercise , if followed duly and diligently by authorities.

This development , will definitely return banks to the path of renewed hunt for liquidity to cover up daily operational demands , thereby raising fixed
deposit and interbank lending rates , aggravated cost of funds for customers and resort to frequent visits to the discount window, especially as Nigerian banks have the penchant for trading with free and cheap monies .

At the onset of the TSA , it took the intervention of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to reduce the Cash Reserve Ratio from 31 per cent to 25 per cent , which allowed banks to retain a level of liquidity to cushion the effect of the withdrawals that exceeded N 1 . 2 trillion .

Meanwhile , banks at the weekend maintained sealed lips in the face of the fast approaching enforcement date of the forfeiture, and subsequent transfer of values to the CBN.

Also , both the apex bank and the financial safety net institution - Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) have chosen to keep mum over the issue.

A financial analyst , Femi Ademola, said although the move is right in terms of ensuring a clean financial system, it will definitely scramble the money market matrix, at least for a few days .

“The realities are that we have transactions that are forthright in the system, mostly in relation to politically exposed persons, who seek and get favours from the banking system , even asking for cover up .

“But I can also tell you that the operators are smarter than the regulators , so they may still find a way out of this despite the order, ” Ademola said , and expressed concerns that this might multiply the woes of accounts that are lined in the unending processes of obtaining Letters of Administration.

Ademola also allayed concerns that the Federal Government and CBN might be facing series of litigations over the matter , saying that the enforcement ab initio is a court order and wondered why a depositor , without a hidden agenda , would delay perfecting his/ her BVN .

For former Economic Adviser to President Olusegun Obasanjo, Dr . Magnus Kpakol , if there is significant value in any account outside the BVN scheme , it is the owner that made it suspicious and is the one to blame.

Kpakol , who maintained that the campaign has been ongoing over the years, also queried how someone without ulterior motives would leave an account with significant value unattended to , even under difficult times, till now .

“The move is in the right direction especially for the purposes of ongoing fight against corruption. The only thing I ask is time to accommodate those with genuine reason , ” he said .

An economist and faculty member at the Pan Atlantic University, Dr . Austin Nweze , expressed concerns with the fire brigade approach to serious issues, saying they are capable of misrepresenting the nation or affecting investments .

He bared his fangs over the issue, not just for the policy direction , but the implementation without prior warning and notices , which should have put everyone concerned and stakeholders at
alert .

“I know it is not all accounts in this category that the government is looking for. They know who they are actually looking for, but the innocent people will now suffer alongside .

“Some lawyers are already challenging this , perhaps because of the method and this may introduce a regime of elongated legal tussle soon , with its financial implications, ” he said .

Legal practitioners share Nweze ’ s views . Apart from describing the action as illegal , they are also those interested to seek legal redress to quash the order.

Lagos lawyer and human rights campaigner, Ebun - Olu Adegboruwa, regreted that the Federal Government is employing interim orders for permanent purposes.

He said : “I am well concerned about how we deploy interim orders for permanent purposes , such as to forfeit valuable assets , without any fair hearing from the person (s) concerned .

I think it is improper to obtain interim order to freeze bank accounts of estates that are in dispute between the beneficiaries of estates of deceased persons that are still being contested ; of profits of companies that are still subject to litigation or other disputes, just to mention a few examples of the arbitrariness of these orders . ”

According to him , there is nothing in Section 3 of the Money Laundering (Prohibition ) Act 2011 , that makes BVN a condition precedent for operating a bank account in Nigeria. What the law requires , he insisted , is verifiable identity of the customer such as name , address , photographs and identity cards .

He argued that the BVN is a policy decision of the CBN, and so a court of law should not base its orders on executive policies that are not backed by law.

“The other point is the bindingness of an ex - parte order upon the whole world and upon all millions of bank customers in Nigeria , who are not directly parties to the suit . How proper is it , for a court to seek to determine the rights of parties in their absence , in view of the clear provisions of section 36(1 ) of the 1999 Constitution and Article 7 of the African Charter, ” he asked , adding that, while it is in order to trace, isolate and forfeit monies suspected to be proceeds of crime , seeking to forfeit all monies in all banks in Nigeria on the ground of absence of BVN is manifestly illegal . ”

Adegboruwa, therefore urged the Attorney - General of the Federation to review the case with a view to adjusting the tenor of “these rather outlandish orders . ”

Second vice president of the Nigeria Bar Association (NBA ), Monday Ubani , is of the view that it is becoming clearer by the day that the forfeiture request and the granting of the order by the court needs to be properly examined to locate the legal basis for it in the first place.

He asked : “The first question would be, under what law and rules of court was this order obtained ? Is there any existing law that gives the AGF or the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) such powers to forfeit monies belonging to those , who are unable to be linked to the BVN system ?

“If none , then the forfeiture proceedings will be faulted on appeal. To make matters worse , the 14 - day ultimatum from the date of judgment (not even from the date of publication) given to the affected victims is too short and punitive. ”

Ubani , who noted that it may be true that some of those who refused to be linked to the BVN may have done so due to the suspicious source of their money, added that there is the possibility that majority of those affected by the order may be victims of illiteracy , or those in the Diaspora .

His words : “There may be genuine reasons for the delay and I think a more humane approach should have been adopted by the government . No doubt that this process is a vote of no confidence on the entire banking system, including the Central Bank, but we must be careful not to throw the banking sector, and by extension the entire economy into chaos and anarchy . ”

According to him , the proper approach to adopt would have been to limit the amount for such measures to about N5m and above , and enough time given to those affected (not less than six months ) to enable those living abroad to come and regularise the process .

“Another way is to halt final forfeiture for now and allow those who have genuine reasons to come up within a period of five years, after which the final forfeiture order can be sought and pronounced , ” he suggested .

He advised those against whom final forfeiture order may be made against , due to their non - availability , to apply to set aside the order , as long as they have genuine reasons why they could not perfect the process on time .

Sylva Ogwemoh , a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), said it is within the discretionary powers of the judge before whom ex - parte proceedings are conducted to either grant , or refuse the application based on the facts presented in support of the application .

The position of the law, he said , is that such orders are not meant to last forever, but for a determined period of time and can be set aside by the judge, who made such order , or by another judge of the same court in appropriate circumstances.

“Under the Economic and Financial Crimes (Establishment etc) Act , there is the requirement of arrest , tracing and attachment/ seizure of property before an interim forfeiture order is made upon a motion ex - parte brought by the Commission.

“The application upon which the order of Justice Dimgba was made was not brought under the EFCC Act to my knowledge .

“As I have indicated above , any order made in the absence of a party can be set aside by the party against whom the order is made, if the party is able to show to the court that the order was wrongly made , ” he stated .

Ogwemoh pointed out that there may be genuine reasons why some persons may not have complied with the Federal Government policy on BVN .

“There may be instances of pending litigation in courts over accounts of deceased persons. Some other persons may not have complied because of some extraneous circumstances , some Nigerians have emigrated to foreign countries and are still not able to regularise their residency in the foreign country, and cannot take the risk of travelling out of such countries .

“Some persons are in remote areas and have the habit of savings, hoping to build castles in the air . There are several reasons why some people have not complied with the directive .

“In any event , if any person ’ s legitimate earnings are affected by this order, such a person can approach the court to explain his or herself and have the order of court set aside , ” he advised.

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Biyi Adegoroye and Ola James


Against the backdrop of the recent invitation of former President Goodluck Jonathan by a Federal High Court and sundry statements made against his person, a Niger Delta Commentator and Ijaw leader, Hon. Kennedy Orubebe, has said that Nigeria will burn if the former President is arrested.

Speaking to Sunday Telegraph in Warri, Delta State, Orubebe, a founding member of the Federated Niger Delta Izon Communities (FNDIC) and PANDEF, said any effort to probe the ex-President should commence with thorough investigation into all sleaze practices carried out under previous Presidents and Heads of state.

Orubebe said: “I vehemently say that for them to make any mistake of arresting Jonathan will not augur well for the present government. But we know that past Presidents and Heads of State in the country have committed a lot of atrocities against this country and nobody raised an eyebrow. I repeat if Buhari’s government makes any attempt to arrest President Jonathan, it will not be taken kindly particularly by the Ijaws. In fact, the country will burn.

“I know for sure that Buhari’s government will not arrest Jonathan. So, let’s leave it like that. But in case it happens, the entire Niger Delta will boil and Buhari will not be comfortable wherever he is. In fact, government should not think of that.

“Although Jonathan ignored his people when he was in power and developed the North, be that as it may, let this government remember that he (Jonathan) came from somewhere because he remains our son no matter what.

“If the government wants to make any arrest, they should start from the past Presidents and Heads of State that did something unconstitutional against this country. I remember that Chief Obasanjo’s name was mentioned in the Halliburton scandal; so, they should not think of arresting Dr. Jonathan because it will backfire seriously on them.”

He decried what he referred to as disparaging statements made against Jonathan by Buhari’s aides, stating that that was uncalled for. According to him, there is nothing unusual about opposition party speaking against politics of the incumbent, provided they are based on facts.

He advised Jonathan, however, to maintain a dignified silence and feel free to offer advice privately to President Buhari when need be, even as he (Jonathan) should speak out when his government or person is being vilified or Nigerians are fed with lies about him.

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Femi ASU with agency report

https://punchng.s3-eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/29123738/Cornelius-Adewale.jpg


A 34- year - old Nigerian , Mr. Cornelius Adewale , who went to the United States with just enough money for a semester of classes in organic agriculture , has won the Bullitt Foundation Environmental Prize for his leadership role in developing an app and web tool that can measure a farm ’ s carbon footprint and help farmers reduce the impact of that footprint.

Adewale , who graduated from Obafemi Awolowo University , is now studying at the Washington State University , Pullman , where he is planning a phone app to help farmers grow more crops .

In 2011 , Adewale moved to Pullman with $ 6 , 000 in his pocket ― money he ’ d earned from the vegetable harvest at his farm in southwest Nigeria . It was just enough to pay for the first semester of classes in organic agriculture at WSU , according to The Seattle Times .

Six years later , Adewale is a PhD candidate at WSU and a member of the board of directors of Washington ’ s Tilth Alliance.

On Monday , he will accept the Seattle Bullitt Foundation ’ s annual environmental prize ― a $ 100 , 000 award for graduate students pursuing leadership positions within the environmental field .

Adewale plans to use the money to build a phone app that will help Nigerian farmers grow more crops, using fewer resources , with a lighter touch on the planet.

The app will be a portal to research and information about organic farming specific to Nigeria ’ s climate . And farmers will be able to measure the quantity of organic matter in their soil just by taking a picture of it , using their phones .

“ Cornelius just had a magnetism and energy and charm that made him irresistible , ” said Denis Hayes , president and Chief Executive Officer of the Bullitt Foundation . “ He came with rave recommendations from his professors, who believe he can be a transformational force in agriculture . ”

For the past two years, Adewale has been working with a team of students at WSU to create a web- based tool that helps Washington farmers measure their carbon footprint, and gives them ideas for how they can reduce that footprint by adjusting the way they farm .

“ The thing that is really unique and wonderful about Cornelius is his humility ― he really relates to everyone as individuals, ” said Lynne Carpenter- Boggs , an associate professor in WSU ’ s department of crop and soil sciences . “ He’ s there to help, but in a way that’ s about empowering the individuals, not telling people what to do … he truly is a natural leader. ”

Adewale found WSU ’ s organic agriculture major ― the first such major ever offered at a US university ― in an online search . He used the $ 6 , 000 from his harvest to launch his master ’ s degree.

When he got to Pullman and saw WSU ’ s organic farm , he burst out laughing . It was only 2 1 / 2 acres ― about half the size of his own farm in Nigeria . (WSU ’ s organic farm is now 30 acres. )

Still , he believed he ’ d come to the right place. Before his money ran out, he secured a research position at WSU to help fund his master ’ s degree and, later , his PhD .

In the US , big farms use science , technology and research to maximise yield , while employing less than two percent of the country’ s population. But large- scale farming is also responsible for a significant amount of greenhouse gases , especially nitrous oxide, 300 times more potent than carbon dioxide , said Carpenter - Boggs , the WSU professor .

Adewale thinks Nigerian farmers need more information about ways to use organic methods to build up their soil, making their farms more fertile and productive , without using chemicals.

In Washington , part of his graduate studies included helping develop the free web tool called Ofoot that Adewale wants to use as the base for his mobile phone app in Nigeria .

In Africa , “ just about everybody has smartphones and small solar stations to recharge them ― it ’ s really an amazing degree of sophistication , ” said Hayes , of the Bullitt Foundation . Teaching farmers how to farm more efficiently could allow Nigeria to take a huge step forward in agricultural production without the need for expensive chemicals and herbicides , he said .

The Bullitt prize money comes with no strings attached .

“ It is a gesture of faith that this is a guy who ’ s deeply committed to getting something done in the world , ” Hayes said , “and we’ re trying to give him a financial boost to help him do it . ”

Adewale is eager to take on the challenge.
“ Every time I make these crazy decisions, I hear my grandmother ’ s voice in my head, ” Adewale said . “ She said , ‘ Dare to make a difference.'

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