₦airaland Forum

seunowa:
Did he lie? No,he didn't. He is saying what we have been hammering on for decades.

Ance4Liverpool:
Who opened the gate for this rubber stamp Vice president

ABUJA: Vice President Kashim Shettima has told politicians in the country that they are all one in the task of nation-building irrespective of their political inclinations.

His admonition comes amid the ongoing alignment and realignment of the political class ahead of the 2027 general election.

Most recently, some opposition politicians who had earlier entered into a coalition had adopted the African Democratic Congress ADC as their platform for 2027.

Speaking on Thursday in Abuja at the unveiling of the book, “OPL245: The Inside Story of the $1.3b Nigerian Oil Bloc”, written by a former Attorney General of the Federation AGF and Minister of Justice in the President Goodluck Jonathan administration, Mr Mohammed Bello Adoke SAN, the vice president said what binds the political class together is stronger than what divides them.

Hunted globally

At the event, former President Goodluck Jonathan recalled that at the end of his tenure in 2015, several of his officials were targeted by the Muhammadu Buhari administration.

Jonathan who was represented by a former Senate President and Secretary to the Government of the Federation SGF in his administration, Senator Anyim Pius Anyim said Adoke was hunted at home and abroad.

He said; “The author of this memoir, Mr. Bello Adoke, was the Attorney-General of the Federation at that time. He was hunted across the globe but today, he is alive, he is healthy, and he is here to tell his story.

“Power belongs to God. The best anyone who is blessed with the opportunity of holding public office should do is to commit to the assignment and use the opportunity to uphold truth, justice, and fairness.

“To some, the occasion may be a book presentation. To others, it is a celebration of victory over persecution”.

In his acknowledgment of protocol, Shettima recognized most of the dignitaries, many of who are of different political persuasions.

He said; “The game changer, is he still around? No, the game changer has left. But the enfant terrible of the Nigerian Governor’s Club, hate him, love him, but you can’t ignore him. Nasir Ahmed El-Rufai, former Governor of Kaduna State, and the fire-spitting leader of the Kwankwassiyya Movement, Dr Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso. So many dignitaries, which reflects the eclectic crowd of friends that Mohammed Bello Adoke maintains. We have PDP. We have new PDP. We have the coalition heavily represented by my elder brother, Malam Nasir Ahmed El-Rufai. We have the NNPP/APP/APC, but this is a reflection, this is a kaleidoscope of colours.

“What binds us together surpasses whatever that divides us. Former IGP MD Abubakar is a PDP man, okay, let me say sympathetic to PDP. We are all one. I have the best of relationship with him, in spite of our minor political differences.
And of course, Senator Daggash, are you in ADC or APC or PDP? Only God knows where you belong to”, he said lightheartedly.


Enemy No. 1

Urging Adoke to forgive his traducers, the vice president recalled how he was demonized and labelled Public Enemy Number One in the last four years of the Jonathan administration, saying he has however reconciled with the former president.

In what also portrayed Jonathan as a man who respected the rule of law, the vice president spoke of how the former president had tried to remove him as Governor of Borno State but bowed to the superior legal advice of Adoke as his AGF.

Quoting the late American cleric and rights activist, Martin Luther King Jr., Shettima said; “the ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands at moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands in times of challenges and controversies. In the last four years of the Jonathan administration, I was the most demonized person. I was the public enemy number one.

“And there are two gentlemen seated here. Certain decisions are taken in a very rare cycle. The President, the Vice President, the Senate President and the Speaker of the House of Representatives. At one of such conclaves, former President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, with whom we have sheathe the sword and have now recalibrated our relationship, was mooting the idea of removing ‘this Borno governor, this Borno governor’ and Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, the then Speaker of the House of Representatives, had the courage to tell the president that, ‘Your Excellency, you don’t have the powers to remove an elected councillor’.

“The president was still not convinced. He mooted the idea at the Federal Executive Council. I admire Mr Mohamed Bello Adoke fundamentally for his courage and for his convictions and for his capacity to stand for what he believes in. He told the then president that, ‘Mr President, you do not have the powers to remove a sitting governor, not even a councilor. They sought for the opinion of another SAN in the cabinet, Kabiru Turaki, who said, ‘I am concurring with the opinion of my senior colleague’. That was how the matter was laid to rest, but that was how my relationship with Mr Bello Adoke and Aminu Waziri Tambuwal became eternally sealed”.

The vice president also urged Nigerians leaders to always document their experiences for posterity rather than trying to cover up happenings during their time in government.

“Nigeria has endured the silence of too many who left public service with their stories still in the bonds of memories. Our public service is a territory governed by silence. There is silence to protect relationships, there is silence to protect secrets too delicate to disclose, there is silence for memories we would rather forget. As a generation of leaders, we must summon the courage to document our journeys”, he said.

The author in the book said Buhari was driven by vengeance for the late General Sani Abacha family. “He believed that I was unfair to the Abachas in the OPL 245 deal”, said Adoke.

Explaining that he did not set out to denigrate anyone but to set the records straight, the former AGF said he was not unmindful of the fact that events will eventually outlive people, hence documenting them was a more reliable way of preserving such information.

He said he was never a party to the OPL 245 deal but only carried out a presidential directive in 2011 to settle issues relating to the deal.

According to him, the amount of public funds expended on his needless and malicious prosecution was staggering, saying the Nigerian tax payer must never be made to bear such burdens.

He said while the Italian prosecutor was punished and imprisoned for 8 months, his Nigerian counterparts at the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission EFCC who lied on oath were never punished, and advised that prosecutors must never be persecutors.

Adoke said he has however forgiven all those responsible for his travails including the former EFCC boss, Ibrahim Mustapha Magu who he said had apologized to him.

Book presenter, Oyo State governor, Seyi Makinde who said the author has succeeded in bringing together politicians of different inclinations from the APC, PDP, Coalition and NNPP, added “it was a good forum to build elite consensus for the future of Nigeria”.

He said history must not only be recorded, it must also be contested, clarified and understood, praising Adoke for recounting his own side of events.

According to him the OPL 245 had over 9 billion barrels of crude oil which was enough to shift the country’s GDP, hence the interest generated in the case by various persons. “Up till now, the issue surrounding OPL 245 is still not sorted”, he said.

Former Senate President, Bukola Saraki said the take away from the book is the fundamentality of the rule of law, adding that the book showed the failure to adhere to the rule of law.

“As a society, we need to begin to review these kind of things. You bargained for it but your children did not bargain for it and the scars live with them forever,” he said.

On his part, El-Rufai said books like this are necessary not only to set the records straight and put things in perspective but also to encourage a culture of memoir writing in public service. “We don’t try it enough in this country”, he said.

The former Kaduna governor therefore appealed to this in the helm of affairs today to be conscious of the future, noting that like himself and Adoke, their time will also come.

“I appeal to those in power today to remember that their turn will come. Our turn always comes”, he stated.

El-Rufai said Adoke was one of those who stood behind President Goodluck Jonathan and persuaded him to concede to President Buhari after the 2015 general election, wondering how it was that he had to face such from the last administration. He said he would read the book to gain more insights.

“We should actually thank him as the APC government of 2015, not persecute him. I had several discussions with President Buhari, as you know, I was very close to him, and I didn’t see that he had any extra interest in the matter apart from the rule of law,” he said.

The OPL 245 case, also known as the Malabu oil deal scandal, revolves around the acquisition of Oil Prospecting License OPL 245, an oil bloc in Nigeria, by Shell and Eni in 2011 for $1.3 billion.

The core of the controversy lies in allegations that a significant portion of this money, specifically $1.1 billion, was channeled through intermediaries as bribes to Nigerian officials and politicians.

Adoke who was ropes into the saga by the Muhammadu Buhari administration was eventually discharged and acquitted at home and abroad.

Statement By Nigeria On United States Visa Restrictions.

columbus007:
Make the Chelsea fans first cool down, na all these their initial gra gra dey tire me

Tinubu Government To Nigerians: 'We Have Said Our Reforms Won't Be Easy But Haters Are Planning To Overthrow Us'

As Nigerians groan under excruciating economic hardship worsened by President Bola Tinubu’s reform policies, his Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, has turned to a 2022 warning by former Emir of Kano, Muhammadu Sanusi II, as a justification for the administration’s painful decisions.

Onanuga, in a post shared Tuesday, lashed out at critics of the Tinubu-led government, describing them as “haters of Nigeria’s progress” who are allegedly scheming to destabilise the country’s “most focused, most transformative administration in history.”

Referencing a statement made by Sanusi at the Kaduna Economic and Investment Summit, the presidential aide claimed that the former Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) governor had already prepared Nigerians for the current suffering under Tinubu’s watch.

Onanuga wrote: "Emir Sanusi warned Nigerians what to expect from President Tinubu’s reforms. ‘It’s not going to be easy,’ he said. ‘If anybody tells you it would be easy, don’t vote for him.’ Just two years after Tinubu began implementing the reforms, the haters of Nigeria’s progress are banding together to overthrow an administration that has been the most focused, most transformative in our history.”

The former Emir had made the comments in 2022 at a public event where he cautioned Nigerians against supporting politicians who promise ease and prosperity without first acknowledging the economic mess the country had sunk into.

Sanusi had declared: "Please let me request from our politicians. You must prepare the minds of Nigerians for difficult decisions.

Anybody who tells you that it is going to be easy, please don’t vote for him. It is either he is lying to you or he doesn’t know what job he is going to do.”

He had further warned that no administration would be able to navigate Nigeria’s dire economic condition without taking drastic and painful decisions, including overhauling the oil subsidy regime and electricity tariffs.

“You cannot, with this level of debt service, with this level of collapse in revenue, with this level of poverty, take corrective decisions. Tariffs on the electricity sector will have to be corrected. Tariffs in the oil sector have to be corrected.

“But before we correct that, we have to deal with the opportunities for rent-seeking. You have to close off the inflated numbers, the false numbers,” he stated.

Sanusi, a consistent critic of Nigeria’s corrupt subsidy regime, also advocated a probe into petroleum subsidy payments by previous administrations.

He called for transparency and accountability in the system: “They must give names of the ships that came, and we must verify if those ships were in Nigeria on that date. You must bring evidence. That is what the law says. There must be proof before you pay the subsidy,” Sanusi said.

"The only thing the President has done is to cover up crimes."

- Seun Kuti pic.twitter.com/tViPTFsp7e

— @𝗼𝗻𝗲𝗷𝗼𝗯𝗹𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗯𝗼𝘆 (@OneJoblessBoy) July 6, 2025

The former Labour Party’s presidential candidate, Peter Obi, has disclosed that the coalition under the African Democratic Congress, ADC, will sacrifice and work together towards the 2027 elections.

Obi assured that the coalition would ensure that Nigerians get good leaders in 2027.

He made the remark in a post on X while reacting to the coalition’s adoption of ADC as its official political party.

Obi explained that no single group can change Nigeria, hence the need for unity among the coalition and adoption of ADC.

He wrote: “Yesterday, the coalition members formally adopted the African Democratic Congress (ADC) for the 2027 Nigeria General Elections with Distinguished Senator David Mark serving as the National Chairman and H.E. Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola serving as the National Secretary.

“Our commitment is to sacrifice and work together towards the 2027 General Elections, ensuring that Nigeria gets a competent, capable, and compassionate leadership that will prioritise the nation’s future by putting the welfare of Nigerians first.

“This decision was not made lightly. It comes from deep reflection on where we are as a country and what must be done to move forward.

“No one group can change Nigeria alone. To dismantle the structures that keep our people in poverty and insecurity, we must build bridges, not walls even when those bridges are uneasy. A New Nigeria is Possible. -PO”

The Lagos State Government has temporarily suspended enforcement of the Bus Rapid Transit lane along the Eko Bridge and Odo Iya-Alaro corridor to ease growing traffic congestion.

This gridlock is a result of the ongoing structural rehabilitation on the Ogudu-Ifako Bridge expansion joint.

Special Adviser to the Lagos Governor on Transportation, Sola Giwa announced the suspension on Wednesday, describing it as a strategic move to tackle gridlock in affected parts of the city.

“This remedial measure, conceived as a palliative response to mitigate commuter hardship, aligns with the Lagos State Government’s forward-thinking and adaptive transportation strategy under the THEMES Plus Agenda of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, particularly within the framework of sustainable traffic management and infrastructure modernisation,” Giwa said.

He explained that the temporary suspension is a transitional and conditional measure aimed at absorbing the anticipated vehicular overflow caused by the partial closure of the Ifako-bound carriageway of the Third Mainland corridor.

“We are fully cognizant of the immense strain currently imposed on key ingress routes into the Lagos Mainland. Consequently, this tactical suspension of BRT lane enforcement is a calculated response designed to deliver immediate relief, reduce commuting time, and preserve the fluidity of vehicular movement throughout the duration of the bridge repairs,” he added.

According to him, the directive takes immediate effect and allows general vehicular access to previously restricted BRT corridors on Eko Bridge and Odo Iya-Alaro, particularly during peak travel periods.

He said this move is expected to expand available road capacity and ease traffic along critical routes.

Giwa, however, stressed that commercial buses and articulated vehicles must remain in compliance with existing safety rules and loading guidelines to avoid worsening traffic conditions or compromising public safety.

He also disclosed that the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority has been mobilised to strengthen its presence along the affected corridors.

“Enhanced personnel deployment and traffic equipment are now in place to ensure orderly conduct, prevent exploitation of the temporary suspension, and respond promptly to any emergent traffic disturbances,” Giwa stated.

The intimidation of opposition by a jittery government continues as the booking of a venue for the unveiling of the adopted party, ADC, by the coalition has been unilaterally and suddenly cancelled by the Management of the hotel due to what insiders described as fear of reprisals from APC operatives...
But this will not dampen the daredevil determination of opposition forces who are poised to hotly challenge the ruling party...

"This is unacceptable. Your management has no right to unilaterally sabotage a contract validly and legally agreed to and fully paid for. You must meet the terms of the contract fully by allowing the event to hold with full compliments of all the services agreed to. This is not negotiable.

Salihu Lukman
For: People and Passion Consult Ltd

Ex-Vice President Atiku Abubakar, a former Senate President, David Mark, a former Jigawa State Governor, Sule Lamido, and several other prominent figures of the Peoples Democratic Party have commenced a high-level, closed-door critical meeting in Abuja.

The strategic gathering, held at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel, is part of ongoing consultations ahead of the formal unveiling of a coalition platform to challenge President Bola Tinubu in the 2027 general elections.

In addition to Atiku and Lamido, other PDP stalwarts present at the meeting include a former PDP National Chairman, Prince Uche Secondus, ex-Governors Aminu Tambuwal (Sokoto), Liyel Imoke (Cross River), Babangida Aliyu (Niger), and Sam Egwu (Ebonyi).

Sources at the venue confirmed that the meeting presided over by Mark is focused on determining whether the PDP leaders will fully integrate into the proposed 2027 coalition party or maintain their positions within the party while forming an electoral alliance.


Earlier reports by Sunday PUNCH revealed that the coalition has chosen the African Democratic Congress as its political platform and has selected Senator Mark to serve as interim chairman, with an official unveiling scheduled for Wednesday.

Other PDP figures in attendance include Senator Ben Obi, former PDP National Women Leader Josephine Anenih, former National Organising Secretary Senator Austin Akobundu, ex-National Publicity Secretary Kola Ologbondiyan, and former National Youth Leader Abdullahi Maibasira, among others.

The United States government has formalised efforts to revoke U.S. citizenship from certain naturalised citizens through a newly surfaced Justice Department memo that directs federal attorneys to prioritise denaturalisation for individuals who committed specific crimes or misrepresented information during their naturalisation process.

According to a report by The Guardian on Monday, the memo dated June 11, calls for civil proceedings against individuals who either “illegally procured” naturalisation or did so through “concealment of a material fact or by willful misrepresentation.”

Unlike criminal trials, those facing civil denaturalisation are not entitled to legal representation, and the government faces a lower burden of proof.

At the center of the move according to the report are the estimated 25 million US citizens who immigrated to the country after being born abroad, according to data from 2023, and it lists 10 different priority categories for denaturalisation.

According to the memo, those subjected to civil proceedings are not entitled to an attorney as they are in criminal cases.

And the government has a lighter burden of proof in civil cases than they do in criminal ones.

The memo claims such efforts will focus on those who are involved “in the commission of war crimes, extrajudicial killings, or other serious human rights abuses … [and] naturalized criminals, gang members, or, indeed, any individuals convicted of crimes who pose an ongoing threat to the US”.

The justice department’s civil rights division has been placed at the forefront of Trump’s policy objectives, including ending diversity, equity, and inclusion programmes within the government as well as ending transgender treatments, among other initiatives.

That comes as the US’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency registered its 13th in-custody death for the fiscal year beginning in October 2024. There had been 12 such deaths during the entire fiscal year that finished at the end of September 2024.

On Friday Jim Ryan, president of the University of Virginia, resigned amid an investigation by the justice department’s civil rights division.

The investigation took aim at the university’s DEI programs and its continuing to consider race and ethnicity in various programmes and scholarships.

The justice department also took the unusual step in recent days of suing 15 US district attorneys in Maryland over an order blocking the immediate deportation of migrants challenging their removal.

The justice department’s civil rights division is reportedly in disarray as its traditional mission to combat racial discrimination after the civil rights movement is reshaped by priorities stemming from the president’s executive orders.

About 250 attorneys or 70% of the division’s lawyers were believed to have left the department in the time between January and the end of May, according to a recent National Public Radio report.

The memo’s focus on denaturalisation comes as at least one person has been denaturalised in recent weeks.

On 13 June, a judge ordered the revocation of the citizenship of Elliott Duke. Duke is a US military veteran originally from the UK who was convicted of distributing child sexual abuse material and had not disclosed the crime during the naturalisation process.

Immigration attorneys are concerned that denaturalisation cases via civil litigation strip some rights from the individual, including rights to an attorney as well as lowering the threshold of proof, and speeding up the denaturalisation process.

“It is kind of, in a way, trying to create a second class of US citizens,” said Sameera Hafiz, policy director of the Immigration Legal Resource Center, to NPR.

Acting National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, Ambassador Umar Damagum, has cautioned party members against actions that could harm the party’s unity, image, and credibility.

Speaking on Monday at the opening of the PDP’s 100th National Executive Committee meeting in Abuja, Damagum urged members to put the party’s interest above personal grievances.

The meeting, held at the PDP National Secretariat, was attended by governors, National Working Committee members, and other key stakeholders.

“If you truly love this party, now is the time to channel your energy into promoting its strengths and values rather than undermining it — unless you are among those contracted to destroy our party. Let me be clear: enough is enough,” Damagum said.

He stressed the need for discipline and loyalty, especially amid internal rifts and political pressure.

On recent internal disputes, Damagum said a difficult but necessary decision had been taken, though details would be shared at a later time.

“The issue that recently caused tension and division within our ranks has been thoroughly discussed, and a decision has been reached.

“It was a painful one. I will not delve into details now, but we will speak further when the time is right,” he added.

He dismissed rumours that the meeting was an extended caucus gathering, clarifying it was a constitutionally mandated NEC meeting focused on compliance.

“This is our NEC, and we are focusing on one key agenda item to maintain regulatory compliance and avoid complications,” he explained.

Damagum also warned of attempts by outsiders to stir trouble within the party.

“I urge party faithful to refrain from arbitrarily demarketing our party. Our strength lies in our ability to resolve issues internally,” he said.

He promised transparency and unity, adding that the NEC meeting’s outcome would be made public through a media briefing.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) on Monday says that no fewer than 871,000 people die worldwide annually from loneliness.

According to WHO commission, one in six people worldwide is affected by loneliness, which, along with social isolation, can lead to physical illness.

It said that loneliness increases the risk of strokes, heart attacks, diabetes, depression, anxiety and suicide.

The WHO said that lonely teenagers are 22 per cent more likely to achieve lower grades than their peers, while lonely adults face greater challenges in finding or keeping a job.

The impact is not only individual but also societal, with billions in costs to healthcare systems and losses in employment.

The commission’s co-chair, Vivek Murthy, defines loneliness as “a painful, subjective feeling that many of us experience when the relationships that we need do not match the relationships that we have.

“And social isolation, by contrast, is an objective state of having few relationships or interactions.”

One in three older people and one in four adolescents are estimated to be socially isolated, according to the report.

It Causes include illness, poor education, low income, a lack of opportunities for social interaction, living alone and the use of digital technologies.

Murthy noted that humans have communicated for millennia not only through words but also through facial expressions, body language, tone of voice and silence.

These forms of communication are lost when people rely solely on mobile phones and social media.

The WHO highlighted Sweden as a positive example, the country has implemented a national strategy against loneliness, as reported by Swedish Social Minister Jakob Forssmed.

Sweden recognises that loneliness is not just an individual problem but one that affects society as a whole.

Efforts are being made to foster social connections in places like shops, restaurants, neighbourhoods and clubs.

Soon, all children and teenagers in Sweden will receive prepaid cards that can only be used to book group leisure activities.

Sweden plans to ban mobile phones in public schools, Forssmed said.

Studies have shown that this increases social interaction and reduces cyberbullying.

Children and teenagers sleep better and find it easier to put their phones aside during their free time.

Forssmed added that children are often frustrated when their parents are constantly distracted by their phones.

While digital technologies have their benefits, such as enabling video calls that were previously impossible.

The commission emphasised the importance of creating spaces in life where people can interact face-to-face without technological distractions.

Murthy said “having places and spaces in our life where we can interact face to face with other people without the distraction of technology is very important.”

Congratulations in advance to the coalition & the ADA conglomerate of alliances on their sweeping victory at the polls in 2027. Also, a huge gratitude to our incompetent urban bandit opponents for all the blunders they persisted in exhibiting sequentially & without tact.

A suspected Improvised Explosive Device (IED) killed four persons and injured 21 others on Friday, along the Katarko-Goniri Road in the Gujba Local Government Area of Yobe State.

The victims, mostly from the Gotala Community, were on their way to the popular Buniyadi market when their vehicle stepped on the suspected IED.

During a visit to Damaturu Specialist Hospital, Channels TV observed that the corpses of the four persons killed in the explosion had been taken home for burial while the others are receiving medical treatment at the specialist hospital and Yobe State University Teaching Hospital Damaturu, respectively.

The Gotala community is located at the fringes of the Sambisa forest where the suspected Boko haram insurgents have been operating for the past one and a half decades.

Another source claimed that some vigilantes and military vehicles had also run over the buried IED on Friday along the same route with some either killed or injured.

As of the time of filling this report, the military has yet to issue any press statement.

The relations of the victims interviewed at the hospitals called on the Yobe State Government to as a matter of urgency reconstruct the dilapidated road to avert the activities of the insurgents as lives of the communities and the military formation at Goniri are at high risk.

A Nigerian-born entrepreneur in Houston, Edikan Adiakpan, once celebrated for running a high-end concierge service for celebrities, has been arrested over his alleged role in a multimillion-dollar fraud scheme in the United States.

Adiakpan, 33, is the co-founder of Akama Lifestyle, a luxury transportation and concierge company that caters to athletes, entertainers and wealthy clients with exotic cars, yachts and even private jets.

In a 2021 interview with ABC13 Houston, Edikan and his brother Edifon were profiled as Nigerian immigrants who had turned their passion for cars into a booming business.

Edikan Adiakpan is the founder of Akama Lifestyle, a company that provides exotic and luxury travel experience. Photo: X(@AkamaLifestyle)
At the time, Edikan described the company as a “virtuous lifestyle” brand, offering Rolls-Royces, Bentleys, Ferraris and personal lifestyle management for high-net-worth individuals.

Edikan said, “Akama means ‘big’ in African, and it also comes from an old Indian language meaning ‘virtuous’, so it kind of sums it up.

“We are a concierge service specialising in exotic car rentals, exotic car sales, and chauffeur and limo services.”

But now, federal authorities say he played a central role in a business email compromise and money laundering scheme that defrauded companies across eight US states, including a California research firm focused on treatments for US veterans.

Adiakpan was arrested and is expected to appear before a US magistrate judge in Houston.

A federal grand jury indicted him on June 11, 2025, on three counts: conspiracy to commit wire fraud, money laundering conspiracy and illegal money transmission.

Prosecutors allege that Edikan and others sent spoofed emails to victims, redirecting payments to bank accounts they controlled.

The funds were then laundered through various accounts and converted into cashier’s checks, which Edikan allegedly cashed while keeping a percentage as a fee.

If convicted, he faces up to 20 years in federal prison on the wire fraud and money laundering charges and up to five years for illegal money transmission.

Each charge also carries a maximum $250,000 fine.

He has not yet been convicted, and under US law, all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in court.

Another Nigerian, Ayobami Omoniyi, 26, was earlier charged in the same case and is awaiting sentencing.

Before the indictment, Adiakpan had been profiled by multiple outlets as a rising star in Houston’s luxury service industry.

A videoframe from Edikan Adiakpan’s 2021 interview with ABC13 Houston, showing the Akama Lifestyle vehicle lot. Photo: ABC13 Houston
In a 2021 feature in L’Officiel Cyprus, he spoke of his passion for philanthropy and working with homeless outreach organisations.

“I believe that the more successful we are, the more we should focus on giving back.

“When we give back, we are creating a better world for others, for businesses, in a sense for everyone,” he was quoted as saying.

He told ABC13 Houston in 2021 how his parents decided to move to the US in hopes of providing the family a “better life”.

“Everybody wants to have a better life when they come out here to the States, so that’s one of the reasons why we came out here. Just to explore and live the American dream,” Edikan said.

The FBI and IRS Criminal Investigation division are leading the probe into the case.

The number of people without access to electricity in Nigeria is put at 86.8 million, the highest world-wide, says a World Bank 2025 report.

This is third consecutive year of this report showing Nigeria in the lowest position globally.

The report, released yesterday, which covers 2023 and titled: “Tracking Sustainable Development Goal, SDG7: The energy progress report 2025”, also showed that out of the top 20 countries with weakest access 18 were from Sub-Saharan Africa.

The World Bank report further noted that 61 percent of the Nigerian population had access to electricity and 26 percent had access to clean cooking energy in 2023.

The report stated: “In 2023, the 20 countries with the largest electricity access deficits accounted for 76 percent of the global total, up from 75 percent in 2022. Once again, 18 of these countries are in Sub-Saharan Africa.

“For the third consecutive edition of this report, Nigeria (86.8 million), the Democratic Republic of Congo (79.6 million), and Ethiopia (56.4 million) topped the list, together accounting for roughly a third of the entire global access deficit.

“The lowest national access rates were observed in South Sudan (5 percent) followed by Chad and Burundi (12 percent), all three of which have shown low annualized increases in access since 2010.”

According to the World Bank, in Sub-Saharan Africa, 35 million people gained access to electricity in 2023, but population growth over the same period was 30 million, making the net electricity access gap for the region fall by just 5 million (from 570 million in 2022 to 565 million in 2023).

The World Bank noted that the region now accounts for 85 percent of the global population without electricity.

“The greatest growth in access between 2020 and 2023 occurred in Central and Southern Asia, while the pace of progress in Sub-Saharan Africa calls for significant acceleration. Central and Southern Asia have both made significant strides toward universal access, reducing their access gap from 414 million in 2010 to just 27 million in 2023.

“In Sub-Saharan Africa, 35 million people gained access to electricity in 2023, but population growth over the same period was 30 million, so the net electricity access gap for the region fell by just 5 million (from 570 million in 2022 to 565 million in 2023).

“The region now accounts for 85 percent of the global population without electricity, up from 50 percent in 2010.”

On its outlook on SDG7 for 2030, World Bank said: “Since 2010, the world has reduced the number of people without access to electricity by 665 million, and 21 countries have reached at least near universal access.

“However, International Energy Agency, IEA, projects that 645 million will still lack access in 2030, even though a fifth of the countries that still lack universal access are on track to reach near universal access by 2030 under today’s policies.

The federal government has postponed recruitment process into the paramilitary agencies under the Ministry of Interior.

In a statement by the Civil Defence, Correctional, Fire and Immigration Services Board (CDCFIB), on Wednesday night, the federal government said the recruitment process earlier slated for 26th June, 2025, will now begin almost 20 days later.

“The Civil Defence, Correctional, Fire and Immigration Services Board (CDCFIB), wishes to notify the general public that its recruitment portal which was earlier slated to open on Thursday 26th June, 2025, will now open on Monday 14th July, 2025.

“Also, the Board’s portal address for prospective applicants desiring to apply into the Service of their choice, is now: recruitment.cdcfib.gov.ng.