₦airaland Forum

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The Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo, will on Friday depart Abuja for Nairobi, the Kenyan capital, to speak at the 2023 Mo Ibrahim Governance Weekend themed “Global Africa.”

Osinbajo’s visit to Nairobi is the second in seven months since he attended the inauguration of the Kenyan President, William Ruto, last September.

The Forum, tagged The Ibrahim Governance Weekend, will bring together leading voices from across Africa and beyond to discuss germane issues around the progress of the African Continent.

“Specifically, Prof. Osinbajo will attend the IGW Africa Leadership opening ceremony later today and speak at the first session tomorrow,” a statement signed by the Senior Special Assistant to the Vice President on Media and Publicity, Laolu Akande, read.



In the statement titled ‘Osinbajo to speak in Nairobi at 2023 Mo Ibrahim Governance Forum, themed Global Africa,’ Akande said the VP will join other leaders to discuss “Africa’s Weight in the World, Highlighting the Continent’s Assets and Potentials.”

Osinbajo presides over FEC meeting
The guest speakers include Kenyan President, William Ruto; former President of the African Development Bank, Donald Kaberuka; Director-General of the World Trade Organisation, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala; among others.

At the IGW, Osinbajo is also expected to hold bilateral meetings with President Ruto and the British Minister of State for Development and Africa, Andrew Mitchell.

At the opening ceremony, the 2021 Ibrahim Laureate President, Mahamadou Issoufou would be celebrated in person at an event to be attended by leaders from Africa and across the world.

The organiser of the annual forum, The Mo Ibrahim Foundation, was established in 2006 with a critical focus on the importance of good governance and leadership for Africa.

“The Vice President is expected back in Abuja soon,” Akande noted.

The pan-Yoruba socio-cultural group, Afenifere, has insisted that it would continue to support what it called “the victory of Peter Obi” of the Labour Party in the February 25 presidential election and all his endeavours in its realisation.

Afenifere reiterated that the emergence of a president from the South East would guarantee equity, fairness and peaceful co-existence among Nigerians.

At the April edition of its general meeting held in Ijebu-Igbo, Ogun State, the group called on the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal to ensure speedy resolution of all the petitions before it.

Obi and the Labour Party are in court to challenge the outcome of the presidential election, which Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) won.

But, in a communique signed after the meeting by the leader, Chief Ayo Adebanjo, and the group Secretary General Sola Ebiseni (retd), Afenifere strongly called on the judiciary to ensure all petitions in respect of the presidential election are “timeously and justly resolved before the end of the tenure of the Buhari administration.”

Afenifere described this as the only way through which the confidence Nigerians have in its intervention may be earned.

The group recalled that similar precedents in this regard have been laid, even by less endowed countries in Africa.

In the communique, Afenifere also asked the Federal Government not to be wasteful by committing about N100 billion to the coming population census.

Afenifere maintained that there is no compelling reason why the census must be held by “the expiring” President Muhammadu Buhari administration.

The group, therefore, called for “all steps and preparations in that regard [to] be stopped forthwith.”

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The presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, says he has been able to run for the office of the President of Nigeria since 1993 without any controversy because he is free from drugs and identity scandals, unlike the President -Elect, Bola Tinubu.

Reacting to Tinubu’s response in which he described Atiku as a serial election loser, the former Vice President said that Tinubu is a giant in forfeiture, drug-related offences and failure to disclose dual nationality to INEC.

This were contained in Atiku’s response to Tinubu’s and All Progressives Congress (APC) reply to his petition challenging the process and the outcome of the February 25 presidential election.

Besides, Atiku said that his identity, comprising age, State of Origin and educational qualifications have never been in dispute like those of Tinubu.

In his response to Tinubu’s reply to his petition, Atiku insisted that Tinubu is constitutionally disabled from contesting for the office of President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

Atiku alleged that Tinubu is unfit to lead Nigeria having been indicted for drug related offences in the United States of America (USA) and made to forfeit a sum of $460,000 as a compromise agreement.

In the response filed by his lead counsel, Chief Chris Uche (SAN), the PDP presidential candidate justified why the declaration of Tinubu as President-elect cannot stand, adding that against the law, Tinubu holds dual citizenship of Nigeria and Guinea, having voluntarily acquired the citizenship of the Republic of Guinea.

He also accused Tinubu of not disclosing facts of his constitutional qualifications in his Form EC9 submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), contrary to the provisions of the law.

Justifying his request for the annulment of the declaration of Tinubu as President-elect, Atiku said that Tinubu and APC never won majority of the lawful votes cast in the February 25 presidential election.

Amongst others, the PDP presidential candidate maintained that Tinubu failed part of the constitutional requirements having failed to secure 25% of the votes cast in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja, as constitutionally required.

He insisted that the return of Tinubu as the winner of the 2023 presidential election is undue, unlawful and invalid because Tinubu did not meet the constitutional requirements as to qualification.

Rather than addressing the issues raised against him and the disputed election, Atiku said that Tinubu deliberately chose not to answer points of substance in the petition and opted for contradictory and vague facts.

In reaction to another issue raised against Atiku’s petition, the former Vice President claimed that his petition did not in any way constitute a gross abuse of any court process, adding that the originating summons of February 28, 2023, filed at the Supreme Court by Adamawa, Akwa-Ibom, Bayelsa, Delta , Edo, and Sokoto states have since been discontinued.

He adds that parties in the suit of the six PDP controlled states are not the same in his own petition and therefore prayed the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal to discountenance the objections and the averments raised against the petition by Tinubu and grant him all the reliefs sought in the petition.

The Lagos State Police Command, on arraigned a businessman Eddy Ebube better known as Bebex.

The popular spare parts dealer in Ladipo market in Mushin was arraigned at the Samuel Ilori Court House in Ogba.

Bebex was arrested and detained following the “sexual assault and harassment” of a nursing mother in the Papa Ajao area.

He was taken to court alongside an accomplice; both were granted bail and the case adjourned to May 15, 2023.

A Twitter user Aare-Ayodeji (@omolisabi1) made several posts on the harassment after the victim made a video of her ordeal.

The lady said on the day of the incident, she left her baby with someone and stepped out to get food to break the Muslim fast.

She recalled how Bebex, alongside others, rudely called her. When she refused to give her attention, she was harassed and threatened.

After the matter was reported at the Olosan Police Station, the defendant and officers bullied the victims, forcing her to make a video where she recanted.

But Aare-Ayodeji and other citizens’ insistence that the authorities probe the matter drew the attention of the Commissioner of Police, Idowu Owohunwa.

At a meeting with the lady’s family members, activists and others on Tuesday, the CP vowed to get justice for the nursing mother.

Owohunwa ordered the removal of DPO Olosan, Bebex’s arraignment and asked the police Gender Department to take over the case.

The CP also directed the probe of officers who collected money before arresting the culprits as well as those who forced the lady to make a denial video.

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The WHO said Wednesday that Covid-19 deaths had dropped by 95 percent since the start of the year — but warned the virus was still on the move.

The World Health Organisation said Covid-19 was here to stay and countries would have to learn how to manage its ongoing non-emergency effects, including post-Covid-19 condition, or Long Covid.

“We’re very encouraged by the sustained decline in reported deaths from Covid-19, which have dropped 95 percent since the beginning of this year,” WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a press conference.

“However, some countries are seeing increases, and over the past four weeks, 14,000 people lost their lives to this disease.

“And, as the emergence of the new XBB.1.16 variant illustrates, the virus is still changing, and is still capable of causing new waves of disease and death.”

Maria Van Kerkhove, the WHO’s technical lead on Covid-19, said XBB sub-lineages were now dominant worldwide.

They have an increase in growth advantage and are also showing immune escape, meaning people can be reinfected despite having been vaccinated or previously infected.

She called for increased surveillance through testing “so that we can monitor the virus itself and understand what each of these mutations means”.

That knowledge could feed into vaccine composition and inform decisions on handling the virus, she said.

Tedros reiterated that the WHO remained hopeful of declaring an end to Covid-19 as a public health emergency of international concern, with the committee that advises him on the status due to convene next month for its regular quarterly meeting.

“But this virus is here to stay, and all countries will need to learn to manage it alongside other infectious diseases,” he added.

Tedros meanwhile said that an estimated one in 10 infections resulted in Long Covid, suggesting that hundreds of millions of people would need longer-term care.

The WHO chief also noted how the Covid-19 pandemic disrupted vaccination programmes, with an estimated 67 million children missing out on at least one essential jab between 2019 and 2021.

Following a decade of stalled progress, vaccination rates are back to where they were in 2008, he said, leading to rising outbreaks of measles, diphtheria, polio and yellow fever.

All countries must address “the barriers to immunisation, whether it’s access, availability, cost or disinformation”, he said.

A popular pro-Biafra agitator and separatist, Simon Ekpa, said the Southeast might be shut down for two weeks if governors from the region refuse to secure the release of Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB.

According to Ekpa, the warning comes on the heels of President Muhammadu Buhari’s refusal to obey court orders requesting the release of Kanu.

Ekpa, a Finnish lawyer, disclosed this on Tuesday in a statement on his Twitter handle.

He said that Kanu’s whereabouts have remained unclear, raising serious concern.

“Biafran territory may go on two weeks lockdown if the Nigerian Government’s eastern region governors refuse to release Mazi Nnamdi Kanu or give an update on his whereabouts.

“This has become imperative as nobody knows the whereabouts of MNK after he was discharged. After two weeks of lockdown and nothing, we will activate the next strategy that has never been observed”, he wrote.

In June 2021, Kanu was re-arrested by Interpol and handed over to Nigeria; since then, he has been detained despite calls for his release.

A week ago, a lawyer to Kanu, Aloy Ejimakor, said the separatist’s health condition is deteriorating.

Days after the 2023 general elections, insecurity in Rivers State appears to be on the rise.

Within one week, several persons have been reported missing in the State.

DAILY POST reports that the worst hit locations are Igwuruta, Eneka, Nkpor in Rumuolumeni and Mile 3, Diobu axis of Port Harcourt.


About 7 days ago, one Chukwuebuka Julius was reported missing in Obio-Akpor Local Government Area of the state. His whereabouts remain unknown.

Similarly, one 25-year-old Chukwuebuka, who is into interior decoration and furniture, was reported to have left his home at Rumuolumeni community in Obio-Akpor area last Tuesday to Wimpy in Port Harcourt for a job.

The elder brother to the missing young man, Ejike Julius in an interview with DAILY POST disclosed that his brother’s colleague told him that Chukwuebuka received a phone call to come for a job estimation in Choba but never returned.


“My mum and my sisters were calling me saying that they’ve not seen Ebuka since Tuesday and his line was not connecting.

“On Friday, I had to invite the apprentice that worked with him to my mum’s place to question him about my brother’s whereabouts.

“He said he was at home when Ebuka called him to meet him where they are working at Wimpy.


“He said Ebuka told him he was going to Choba to take measurements, but he was uncertain if he used public transportation or used a bolt.

“We have reported his disappearance to the police.

“It’s been about seven days now since he went missing,” he said.

On his part, Prestige Ikechi, who is the boss to the missing Chukwuebuka Julius, also spoke on his inability to reach out to his apprentice.

“I travelled and came back on the same Tuesday. I communicated with him earlier on Monday.

“I got back Wednesday morning; I saw his mother at my gate, she was crying that she cannot find Ebuka.


“So, I told her that maybe he went for a job and was unable to come back.

“That Wednesday, we were calling his phone but he wasn’t picking, until in the evening, the phone stopped ringing.

“On Wednesday, we reported to the local police around here,” he disclosed.

Meanwhile, the spokesman of the Rivers State Police command, Grace Iringe-Koko when contacted, assured that once the incidents were properly reported to the police, adequate action would be taken.

DAILY POST reports that no ransom demand has been placed on any of the missing persons as of the time of filing this report.

A crash involving three vehicles consisting of a Mazda commercial bus, a tricycle, and a white Camry car, has claimed the life of a man around Mosalasi Roundabout, inward the Iyana-Ipaja area of Lagos State.

PUNCH Metro gathered that the driver of the Camry car with number plate, KJA 351 HG, while driving at top speed, rammed into the tricycle, causing the tricycle operator to lose control and in the process, obstructed an incoming Mazda commercial bus loaded with passengers.

It was learnt that no fewer than three persons sustained varying degrees of injury in the crash as people alongside relatives of the injured victims, in an attempt to rescue the injured victims, rushed them to nearby hospitals for treatments.

The Director, Public Affairs and Enlightenment Department, LASTMA, Taofiq Adebayo, in a statement on Monday, said one of the injured victims died before getting to the hospital, adding that General Manager, LASTMA, Bolaji Oreagba, said the accident would have been averted if the driver was not driving at top speed.



The statement said, “Operatives of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority today rescued three severely injured accident victims comprising two males and one female at Mosalasi Roundabout, inward the Iyana-Ipaja area of Lagos.

“LASTMA Akanji Wasiu (Bravo 16), who led the rescue operations confirmed that the accident involved three vehicles, a Mazda commercial bus, FKJ 88 XH, a tricycle with number plate KJA 369 QM, and a white Camry car, KJA 351 HG, on the main carriageway at the Iyana-Ipaja area of Lagos.


“Preliminary investigation revealed that the driver of a white Camry car lost control due to excessive speeding and hit a commercial tricycle from the rear while the tricycle went off balance and obstructed another incoming fully loaded Mazda commercial bus going to Iyana-Ipaja.”

Explaining that the three rescued victims were immediately rushed to different hospitals by their relatives but, unfortunately, one of the rescued victims, a male, reportedly died on the way to the hospital.

Adebayo also noted that the vehicles involved in the accident were immediately removed from the road to avoid impeding the free flow of traffic and were handed over to policemen from the Gowon Estate Divisional Police Headquarters for further investigations.

"One of the passengers inside the commercial tricycle involved in the accident was caught with more than 100 pieces of used small children ‘diapers pampers’ with a huge sum of money of different denominations and was immediately handed over to policemen at the scene of the accident,” he added.

Adebayo said Oreagba maintained that the government had been embarking on regular public education on the dangers inherent in excessive speeding by private, commercial and truck drivers in the state.

He said, “Oreagba, however, warned every motoring public to always ensure that their vehicles are in good condition, particularly the break before driving them on Lagos roads.”

Peter Obi of the Labour Party said no serious leader would go on a rest (vacation) in Nigeria.

Obi, the presidential candidate of LP during the February 25 election, disclosed this on Monday when he paid the Muslim community in Akwa Central Mosque an Eid-el-fitr visit.

He urged that Nigerians should not be divided based on religion or politics.

He said: “People who want to rest can go and relax. I am not resting because I have to visit schools and hospitals and interact with people.

“No serious leader will go and rest in Nigeria. We will continue to visit as many people as possible and support them as best we can”.

Recall that the President-elect Bola Ahmed Tinubu returned to Nigeria on Monday after his over one Month vacation in Europe.

Meanwhile, Tinubu, in his speech after his return, said he was ready to kick the ground running.

The Code of Conduct Bureau has explained that the Act that established it does not permit it to make public the assets declared by public officials. It however noted that officials could on their own make their forms public.

The explanation came as the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.); his deputy, Prof Yemi Osinbajo; and other public officials prepare to declare their assets preparatory to leaving office in compliance with the requirements of the law.

A senior official of the CCB, Veronica Kato, said in an interview with Saturday PUNCH that the bureau could only make such documents available by a court order in a case where a public official was under investigation or trial for alleged corruption relating to the acquired assets.

Kato said, “It is not possible to make the assets declared to the CCB by these public officials public. There is a law guiding the CCB and that law does not allow us to do so. This is due to the conditions upon which the assets declaration is constituted according to the guidelines.



“The assets declaration form is to be given to the public officials on terms and conditions as prescribed by the National Assembly, and those terms and conditions, up till now, do not permit us to make it available to the public. Besides, it is a private document and it’s confidential.”

Kato noted that while journalists might want to have access to such information, it was beyond the CCB to make such information public due to the breach of the owner’s confidential details.

She added, “It’s a different case where there’s a petition or something of that sort demanding that a particular official’s declared assets should be made available for investigation purposes. If a public official decides on their own volition to make it public, such a person will do that. We have been established for over 25 years and we don’t make declared assets’ details public because we don’t have the power to do that.”

“For example, when the incumbent President and his deputy came into office, they decided to declare their assets publicly. That was their decision. They are also the only ones that can decide to make the assets public as they are leaving.

“Our duty is to ensure that public officials declare their assets to the CCB; we take custody of the asset declaration forms and we verify those assets, and when we see red flags, we investigate and prosecute them if we find contravention against the code of conduct rule. Those are our primary functions.”

When asked how the citizens could assist the CCB when they do not know the assets listed in the forms, Kato said if any citizen felt a public official had acquired more than they had before getting into office “and the citizen can provide evidence to proof that such assets were acquired with illicit funds and through the abuse of their office, the citizen can write a petition to the CCB and we will investigate and compare what they declared with what they now have.”

Kato added, “If we can establish beyond reasonable doubt that these things were acquired illicitly, then we go to court.”

Prior to the 2015 general election, Buhari promised he would publicly declare his assets and liabilities if voted into power.

In a document titled, ‘I pledge to Nigeria’, Buhari highlighted what he would do in his first 100 days if he assumed power on May 29, 2015. He said he would encourage political appointees in his administration to also declare their assets publicly.

He had said, “I pledge to publicly declare my assets and liabilities and encourage all my appointees to publicly declare their assets and liabilities as a pre-condition for appointment. All political appointees will only earn the salaries and allowances determined by the RMFAC.”

After much criticism of his refusal to keep to his promise after he was sworn in, in September 2015, the Presidency eventually published Buhari and Osinbajo’s assets.

Details of Buhari’s declared assets were made public in a statement by his spokesman, Garba Shehu, showing that the assets were valued at less than N30m at the time of his inauguration on May 29.

Shehu added that the President’s money was held in a single local bank account. Buhari was said to have homes in Daura in addition to an orchard with a number of economic trees and a ranch with 270 heads of cattle, 25 sheep and five horses, as well as shares in Berger Paints, Union Bank and Skye Bank (now Polaris Bank).

Osinbajo, on his part, declared N94m and $900,000 held in his bank accounts. He also declared a four-bedroom residence in Lagos, a three-bedroom flat in Ikoyi and another two-bedroom apartment at the Redemption Camp along the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.

The Vice-President also listed a mortgaged property with two bedrooms in Bedford, England.

Shehu added, “Apart from his law firm, known as SimmonsCooper Partners, the Vice-President also declared shareholding in six private companies based in Lagos, including Octogenerium Limited, Windsor Grant Limited, Tarapolsa, Vistorion Limited, Aviva Limited and MTN Nigeria.

In May 2019, before his inauguration for a second term, Buhari submitted a second set of assets declaration forms to the CCB. It was stated that the declaration showed no significant changes in assets as declared by him in 2015.

“There are no new houses, no new bank accounts at home and abroad, and there are no new shares acquired,” he said.

Buhari insincere – Ozekhome

Human rights activist, Chief Mike Ozekhome (SAN), said the President’s failure to declare his assets publicly, ab initio, had a negative impact on his anti-corruption agenda.

In an interview with Saturday PUNCH recently, Ozekhome recalled that Buhari had led an anti-corruption campaign in 2015 before he came into power, where he promised Nigerians that he would publicly declare his assets when sworn in, but that he did not do so immediately as promised.

He stated, “Nigerians should have known from that first singular act that Buhari’s government will not be truthful and sincere to Nigerians. This was a man who said if he was declared the president of Nigeria, he would declare his assets openly and publicly. But when he got into office, he declared his assets, but refused to make them public until Nigerians pressurised him, went on television and wrote that he should make them public so as to show good example, leadership by example not by precept.”

He said the public declaration of his assets would symbolise transparency on the President’s part, serving as a yardstick to weigh the quantum by which the assets had appreciated or depreciated in the past eight years.

Another human rights lawyer, Mr Jiti Ogunye, noted that despite the fact that it was not a statutory requirement for the CCB to publish such information, if the Freedom of Information Act was active, it would have empowered Nigerians to have access to such forms and scrutinise the assets.

He noted that such information was important for the mass media and whistleblowers to keep an eye on the acquisitions of the public officials.

He added, “My view remains that if assets are declared and the forms are kept in a file, far away from public scrutiny, how will members of the public be able to volunteer information that someone in a public office has had more assets than we know? How will whistleblowers be able to function?

“Law enforcement agencies demand information from the citizens. They say they act on the information acquired and cooperation of the citizens, even the military in the war against insurgents solicits information from the people.”

TMG seeks transparency
The Chairman, Transition Monitoring Group, Auwal Rafsanjani, harped on the importance of making assets declaration forms public if the administration was keen on its anti-corruption campaign.

Rafsanjani said, “Any government that says it wants to fight corruption must look for a way to ensure a standard approach to assets declaration. Assets declaration is very important to minimise the level of corruption in the society because if public officials don’t declare their assets, there is a likelihood that they can accumulate as much as they can while in office at the expense of the public. So, it is important that public officials, including the President, Vice-President, Senate President and others must declare their assets and it should be done publicly.

“It is worrisome that this government promised to fight corruption, but it has not been effective in the fight against corruption and asset declaration was not prioritised.”

In his contribution, the Chairman, Centre for Anti-Corruption and Open Leadership, Debo Adeniran, said the existing law did not compel them to make the declaration public but that if such forms were made public, it would help in the fight against corruption.

He added, “The Code of Conduct Bureau Act makes it mandatory for people to declare their assets before they assume office and when they are leaving. The law doesn’t make it compulsory that they should make it public, but ideally it should be made public for people to be able to check their assets, confirm under or over-declaration and if they do not agree with the declaration, they can go to the Code of Conduct Tribunal.

“What we are advocating is that all assets declarations must be made public and should be verified by the Code of Conduct Bureau. The law permits the Code of Conduct Bureau to ascertain their claims, but are they really doing it?

“It is not good for our anti-corruption drive that the CCB always makes excuses that they do not have enough hands or adequate funding to do the verification of the declared assets. That is antithetical to the spirit of assets declaration, because if people claim ownership of some assets and there is no way to verify those declarations, it is as good as useless and it means they can also do anticipatory declaration, knowing that when they get into office, they will acquire more properties. It is unfortunate.”

Also, the Deputy Director of the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project, Kolawole Oluwadare, in an interview with one of our correspondents stressed that public declaration of assets should be made compulsory for every public office holder.

He said SERAP would expect the CCB to make Buhari, Osinbajo and other public office holders to publicly declare their assets at the end of their tenure to give room for transparency and accountability as such documents would be made available for public scrutiny.

The Federal Government has commenced the payment of withheld salaries of teachers who benefited from the elongation of service tenure extended by the regime of the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), to teachers under the employment of the Federal Government, The PUNCH has reliably gathered.

The PUNCH had earlier in 2020 reported how Buhari during World Teachers’ Day announced some incentives for teachers, including a new salary scale and raising their retirement age from 60 to 65 years.

However, some of the teachers who benefited had their salaries withheld from 2021 to March 2023.

Top officials of the Federal Ministry of Education, Finance, Budget and National Planning on Sunday confirmed that the payment of the withheld salaries has commenced.

“I can confirm to you that they have started receiving their salaries. They also received the arrears of the peculiar allowances. All arrears of salaries will be paid in full”.

Confirming the development, one of the benefiting teachers in Ilorin the Kwara State capital said, “It is true.

“We have started receiving. Though we only got the one for April 2023, we have been reassured that the arrears will be cleared.”

Governor Samuel Ortom of Benue State on Friday said he would go back to the farm after losing his senatorial bid.

Ortom, who disclosed this on Arise TV, insisted that ‘market was not good’ during his outing to claim a seat at the Red Chambers of the National Assembly.

Recall that the Benue governor’s senatorial aspiration was dashed after his defeat on Feb. 25 when he lost to his former aide, Titus Zam.

When asked ‘how was the market’ after he lost the senatorial election, Ortom responded, “The market [senatorial bid] for me is not good.

“This time around, the market isn’t good, but I will be here [as Benue governor] till May 29, when I will hand over by the grace of God.

“I will find something else to do. I may go back to my farm as far as I’m concerned.”

President Muhammadu Buhari says he cannot wait to head to his hometown in Daura, Katsina state, after he hands over on May 29.

Buhari spoke on Friday at his ninth and final Sallah celebration at the presidential villa, Abuja.
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The president described himself as being lucky to have led Nigeria in various capacities.

He also thanked the residents of Abuja for “tolerating him” in the last seven and a half years.

“I can’t wait to go home. I deliberately arranged to be as far away as possible from you people,” he said.

“I have got what I have asked and will quietly retire to my home town in Daura.”
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On Wednesday, the Nigerian president returned to Abuja after an eight-day official visit to Saudi Arabia.

The president performed Umrah (lesser hajj), a religious pilgrimage for Muslims, while in the country.

Former governor of Ondo state, Dr Olusegun Mimiko, has implored Nigerians to practise the lessons from the month-long fasting of Ramadan and show compassion to the less-privileged.

His message came as Muslims across the world celebrate this year’s eid-el-fitr.

Mimiko, in a statement by his Special Assistant on Media and Digital Communications, John Paul Akinduro, said the joyous occasion of eid provides another opportunity to rejuvenate bonds of kinship and peace, demonstrate tolerance and sympathy towards each other.

While wishing Muslims a happy eid-el-fitr, the former governor also prayed for God’s endless blessings for Nigeria and her citizens.

“As we exchange gifts and feast on special meals with our loved ones, let us remember that
eid-el-fitr is also a time for forgiveness, kindness, and compassion; a time to make peace with all neighbours, relatives and friends, and resolve differences. By so doing, we will be building a stronger, virile and enduring nation,” he said.

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If you’ve been living under a rock and just emerged to the raucous debates between supporters of leading politicians, you’d be forgiven for thinking the presidential election was just last weekend.

Nearly two months after the February 25 poll, the ripple effects continue to rip through the country. Claims of stolen mandates have remained a strong mantra among political parties that lost the election while spokespersons and stakeholders are still pitched in a battle of allegations and jibes as ferocious as before the polls.

Bola Ahmed Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) was declared the winner of the presidential poll, but other political parties have disputed the victory and filed petitions. Although Peter Obi of the Labour Party (LP) finished third in the race, he has largely remained at the heart of the conversation, outshining Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) who was second in the election.

Obi’s young, social media-savvy supporters, dubbed ‘Obidients’, have remained vocal and relentless. Despite the criticism of the movement for being mob-like in its approach, it has waxed stronger. The movement’s significant opponents have been none other than the APC faithful and Tinubu loyalists, otherwise known as ‘Batists’.

Both groups have continued to wrestle with each other in a contest of narratives.

Obi had recently enjoined his supporters to bear the attacks they received as a “sacrifice for a new Nigeria”. He urged them not to yield to an alleged plot to demarket the Obidient movement. The Batists, on the other hand, appear determined to match the Obidients’ social media agility. This has led to fiercer political spats and a battle to dominate social media trends.

Here is a timeline of key events that have seen both sides square up against each other in the struggle for the soul of a “new Nigeria

ALLEGED CJN-TINUBU MEETING IN LONDON

Barely a month after the presidential election, both groups of supporters kicked off a campaign of allegations and the pendulum of blames swung back and forth.

On March 23, a report began circulating online that Olukayode Ariwoola, chief justice of Nigeria (CJN), had disguised himself in a wheelchair and travelled to London where he was to meet with Tinubu.

The report surfaced shortly after the president-elect had travelled to France.

On social media, allegations of foul play were tabled against the CJN ahead of the presidential election tribunal hearing.

The APC presidential campaign council was the first to refute the report of the purported meeting.

“We refute emphatically that there has been no clandestine meeting between the president-elect and the respected chief justice of our country, anywhere. It’s pure fabricated news, groundless in fact and authenticity,” the campaign council said.
The following day, a video of Ariwoola attending Jumat service in Abuja was released. The short footage showed the CJN using a walking stick as he ambled to the praying ground.

Later that same day, the supreme court denied claims of the secret meeting, adding that the CJN travelled out of Nigeria for medical care and was accompanied by Gambo Saleh, NJC’s secretary.

Many within the APC accused the opposition of coming up with the allegations to disrupt the electoral process.

In response, Jibrin Okutepa, a member of Obi’s legal team, said his client was not behind the news of the alleged meeting between Tinubu and CJN.

He added that “those who are attributing the news which was intended to denigrate the CJN to Mr Obi camp are evil and enemies of Nigeria.”

‘YES, DADDY’

A few days after the CJN controversy, Obi’s camp found itself on the defensive.

On April 2, an audio clip began circulating on social media. In the recording, a voice similar to that of Obi was heard asking Bishop David Oyedepo to speak to the Christians in the south-west and Kwara to vote for him in the presidential poll, describing the election as a “religious war”.

APC supporters latched on to the leaked tape and claimed it was authentic — but Obidients described it as fake.

However, the conversation took a curious turn when Kenneth Okonkwo, a spokesperson of the LP campaign, insinuated that the clip was authentic.

He added that “political criminals are trying to spin the conversation as if the LP candidate was making a religious comment”.

Okonkwo claimed that “Obi was simply urging the Bishop to help him push this message of equal stake of all Nigerians” to Christians because “politicians of the other party are carrying on this campaign as if it is a religious war”.

But in a statement released later that day, Diran Onifade, head of the LP campaign, and Yunusa Tanko, the council’s chief spokesperson, dismissed the audio as a deep fake and accused the APC of trying to demarket Obi.

In his response, Oyedepo said he has never and will not campaign for any political candidate.

However, the cleric neither confirmed nor denied that the conversation took place.

A few days later, Obi later disowned the tape as fake, adding that it was a move by APC “to divert our attention from our blatantly stolen mandate”.

LAI MOHAMMED: OBI, DATTI INVITING INSURRECTION

Amid the “Yes, Daddy” brouhaha and its fallout, the Batists took another swing at Obi and his supporters.

A few weeks prior, Datti Baba-Ahmed, vice-presidential candidate of LP, had said the country has no president-elect.

The LP vice-presidential candidate said Tinubu would lead an unconstitutional government if sworn into office because the APC candidate “has not met requirements of the law”.

His comments elicited widespread criticism from political stakeholders and led to a ripple of reactions.

Reacting to the outburst, Festus Keyamo, minister of state for labour, accused LP of “setting up a scene for rebellion” against the judiciary.

The minister added that Datti was attempting to “blackmail” the judiciary with his interpretation of section 134 (2) 1999 constitution (as amended).

On his part, Femi Fani-Kayode, new media director of the APC presidential campaign council, accused Datti of trying to “pull down democracy” because his party lost the election.

APC also petitioned the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) to sanction Channels Television for airing the interview, adding that it was not only “divisive, subversive, but also inciting and inflammatory”. The TV station would later be fined N5 million by NBC for the interview.

All these played out amid an announcement by the Department of State Services (DSS) that “some key players” were plotting to install an interim government and stop Tinubu from being inaugurated as president.

The security service said the plot includes embarking on violent protests nationwide to engineer the declaration of a state of emergency and securing frivolous court injunctions to stall the inauguration.

The situation made for a fertile ground for the federal government to point fingers — and soon it did.

On April 4, Lai Mohammed, minister for information, accused Peter Obi, LP presidential candidate, of inciting people to violence over the outcome of the presidential election.

Lai wielded the stick of “treason” to describe the conduct of the LP presidential and vice-presidential candidates. He painted them as “desperate” politicians seeking to incite insurrection.

“This is treason. You cannot be inviting insurrection, and this is what they are doing,” the minister said.

“Obi’s statement is that of a desperate person, he is not the democrat that he claimed to be.

“A democrat should not believe in democracy only when he wins the election.”

However, Edwin Clark, an Ijaw national leader and convener of the Pan-Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF), said Mohammed should be prosecuted for spreading fake news against Obi.

Clark who endorsed Obi before the presidential election added that it is “unpatriotic and wicked” for anyone to accuse the former Anambra governor of inciting insurrection.

CHIMAMANDA AND SOYINKA ON OPPOSITE SIDES

The post-election acrimony spilt from the muddy waters of politics into the often tranquil ivory tower of literature. Wole Soyinka and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, two of Nigeria’s literary greats, found themselves on both sides of the divide.

Reacting to the aforementioned interview by Datti, Soyinka said it contained “fascistic language” and also described the remark as a “kind of do-or-die attitude and provocation” that goes contrary to democratic disposition.

Soyinka’s admonition struck the nerves of the Obidients, and social media soon became awash with heated criticism and slurs directed at the Nobel laureate.

In a riposte, Soyinka said Obidients have worn their refusal to accept constructive criticism as a badge of honour.

He maintained that the LP was sowing seeds of fascism and generating a climate of fear.

The Nobel laureate also challenged Datti-Ahmed to a TV debate.

In response, LP accused Soyinka of “criminalising dissent and in fact weighing in on the side of fraud and injustice”.

The party added that Datti-Ahmed would not be debating the Nobel laureate but his “preferred candidate”.



On the flip side of the conversation, Adichie addressed a letter to Joe Biden, the US president, saying the process of the Nigeria presidential election was deliberately manipulated.

She said the election was full of discrepancies and irregularities, which were all shunned by INEC.

Adichie asked Biden to uphold his stance on the need for a true democracy, adding that congratulating Tinubu tarnishes America’s self-proclaimed commitment to democratic processes.

The article by the ‘Americanah’ author was broadly shared on social media by Obi’s supporters.

As expected, the letter met resentment in Tinubu’s camp and before long, missives were flying across social media platforms.

Kenyamo described the article as “worthless”, saying that it “reflects a pathetic colonial mentality”.

Bayo Onanuga accused Adichie of tribalism, adding that the allegations in the piece are a figment of her imagination.



OBI’S DETENTION AT HEATHROW AIRPORT

The circle of controversy soon returned to the UK. But this time Obi and his supporters were the victims.

On April 12, LP announced that Obi was harassed and detained by London immigration officials over alleged impersonation.

The statement claimed that the presidential candidate was detained at Heathrow Airport after being accosted by an immigration officer.

The party said Obi was questioned for a long time and that it took the intervention of Nigerians for him to be promptly released.

A day later, Adamu Garba, a member of APC, posted a doctored image on Twitter and claimed that the Nigerian government was involved in the release of Obi.

The image was posted with the caption: “Here is how the government of APC helped to recover Peter Obi from his detention cell in the UK over allegations of travelling to the UK with fake documents. All thanks to Abike Dabiri. His campaign is fake, his manifesto fake, his motives fake, even his travel documents are fake. WHY?”

However, UK immigration has remained silent about the incident, and Obi, although yet to make an official statement addressing the matter, recently said he will never “knowingly” break the law.

TINUBU ON TIME 100 MOST INFLUENTIAL PEOPLE FOR 2023

On April 13, Tinubu was named in Time Magazine’s list of 100 most influential people for 2023.

Time Magazine’s annual list accords recognition to people “for changing the world, regardless of the consequences of their actions”.

Tinubu is one of the Nigerians on the list alongside Dimie Ogoina, a professor of medicine and infectious diseases at the Niger Delta University, Bayelsa.

The inclusion of Tinubu was heavily criticised on social media – especially by Obidients.

Astha Rajvanshi, the reporter who wrote Tinubu’s citation in the publication, came under fire from critics of Tinubu. The journalist was forced to lock all her social media accounts after a barrage of criticism.

TINUBU’S ‘GUINEAN PASSPORT’

Last weekend, a fresh report surfaced on social media that Tinubu allegedly obtained citizenship of Guinea, a West African country.

The claim added that the dual-citizenship disqualifies the president-elect from being sworn into office on May 29.

The report cited Section 137 (1)(a) of the 1999 constitution which states that: “A person shall not be qualified for election to the office of President if — subject to the provisions of section 28 of this Constitution, he has voluntarily acquired the citizenship of a country other than Nigeria or, except in such cases as may be prescribed by the National Assembly, he has made a declaration of allegiance to such other country.”

Speaking on the allegation, Babatunde Fashola, minister of works and housing, said he was not aware whether Tinubu has dual citizenship.

“I know he carries a Nigerian passport. I don’t know about dual citizenship. I know he resided abroad when he went into exile,” he said.

“I don’t know if they gave him American citizenship. What does that have to do with the results of the election? The last time I checked, I think the Nigerian constitution allows you to have dual citizenship. Doesn’t it?”

Subsequently, the minister came under fire on Twitter, with critics comparing his stint as Lagos governor to Obi’s tenure as Anambra governor.

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The Department of State Services (DSS) says it has arrested two gunmen in Kano state.

Peter Afunanya, the DSS spokesperson, said in a statement that the gunmen were arrested on Thursday.

Afunanya said the operatives seized two AK-47 assault rifles; two empty AK-47 magazines; a red boxer motorcycle; and a sack of yams in which the guns were concealed.

He said the suspects were in transit to deliver the arms for a planned attack in one of the states in northern Nigeria

He said the development underscores the need for citizens to be extra vigilant and report any unusual or suspicious movements, persons, or acts to security agencies nearest to them.

“Operators and patrons of fun, hospitality, and tourism centres are enjoined to be cautious during the festive periods,” Afunanya said.

“They should scale up measures to ensure the safety of their facilities.

“However, the service wishes the Muslim faithful, peaceful and joyous Eid-el-Fitr celebrations.

“It pledges to work with sister agencies and other stakeholders to emplace adequate security during and after the events.”

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Peter Obi, presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), has asked his supporters to remain calm and show restraint in the face of provocation.

In a statement on Wednesday, Obi said recent events in Nigeria, including political developments in Adamawa state, underline the importance of adhering to the rule of law.

He said as a patriotic Nigerian, he remains committed to serving the people and achieving a greater Nigeria.

He called on Nigerians to pray for a better and greater country.

“Nigeria is a truly blessed and potentially great nation. With the Almighty God on our side, Nigeria’s greatness will soon manifest fully, thus ensuring that she is well-respected globally,” Obi said.

“In view of this, l ask all well-meaning Nigerians to commit their heart to prayers for a better and greater Nigeria.

“It bears reiterating as I did yesterday at the National Executive Council Meeting of the Labour Party held in Asaba, that the millions of Nigerians who voted for Datti and I did not just cast their votes, but they invested their hope in us for a new Nigeria,

“So we must stay the course. H.E. President Muhammadu Buhari asked Nigerian youths to have faith in Nigeria and prepare for leadership roles when he signed the ‘Not Too Young to Run Act’ into law.

“I agree with him that we have enough vibrant and intelligent Nigerian youths ready to propel Nigeria to greatness, and it is my desire and commitment to empower Nigerian youths to leadership.

“Yet, we must do our utmost to be calm even under provocation; we must also not allow those bent on using any pretext to plunge our country into chaos and leave our youths without a future to succeed.”

He asked his supporters to show restraint as they did during the elections and keep hope alive for a better Nigeria.

“We were provoked during the elections, but we showed restraint, patriotism and wisdom because we were voting for a greater Nigeria and not for the destruction of Nigeria,” he said.

“I plead to every Nigerian to keep the faith and hope in Nigeria alive. We are on this journey together, and better and happier years await all of us. God bless the good people of Nigeria and the Federal Republic of Nigeria”

The federal executive council (FEC) has approved the sum of N1.535 trillion for the construction and rehabilitation of eleven roads across the country.

The construction would be enabled under the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) tax credit scheme.

Speaking on Wednesday after the council meeting, Babatunde Fashola, the minister of works and housing, said over N1.5 trillion would be spent on some major roads in Nigeria, totalling over 700 kilometres linking 11 states.

The states include Edo, Delta, Kano, Kaduna, Borno and Adamawa among others.

“The council gave approval for the construction and rehabilitation of 11 roads totalling 737.242 kilometres in the sum of N1, 535, 154, 247, 234.48 under phase II of the NNPC tax credit scheme,” Fashola said.

“Recall that in January this year, the council approved a memo for the NNPC to invest N1.9 trillion on our roads. That amount was then about 44 roads that had been awarded and the balance of those roads that had to go through procurement between then and now are the 11 that have now been approved by the council.”

In a report by TheCable, Fashola said in November 2022 that NNPC Limited has released N196 billion for roads under the tax credit scheme out of the N662 billion approved by the FEC.

He added that the ministry needed N1.2 trillion for the execution of highway projects, but only N198.9 billion has been allocated under the budget envelope in 2023 for the roads.

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Agora Policy, an Abuja-based think tank, has recommended ways the government can tackle the country’s unemployment problem.

In its policy memo titled ‘Nigeria Needs Comprehensive and Coordinated Interventions to Tame Unemployment’, Agora Policy said jobs are one of the foundations for a stable society and key to improvements in quality of life.

Recently, KPMG, the global audit and tax advisory firm, said Nigeria’s unemployment rate is expected to rise to 40.6 percent in 2023.

Agora Policy said unemployment is gravely implicated in Nigeria’s other pressing challenges, especially low productivity, poverty and insecurity.

“Although the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) claims to be working on an improved methodology for measuring unemployment, all we can say at this point is that unemployment is likely still high and at an undesirable level,” the policy memo reads.

”The situation has been particularly worse for young people who, as at 2020, faced an unemployment rate of over 40%.

“There is little doubt that this rising unemployment is linked to increasing restfulness and disenchantment among the youth.”

The think tank founded by Waziri Adio, former executive secretary of the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI), said to keep unemployment from rising, enough net new jobs need to be created to at least employ the majority of new entrants to the labour market.

Agora Policy said the current approaches by the government in tackling unemployment, while sometimes having merit, have failed to resolve the problem.

This, the organisation explained, is because the majority of the approaches cannot reach the scale of what is required.

To deal with the unemployment challenge, Agora Policy recommended that the government engineer growth in labour-intensive portions of value chains for export to large markets.

The organisation advised the government to resolve the dysfunction of multiple rates in the foreign exchange market, and re-focusing the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on its mandate of keeping inflation at optimal levels.

Agora Policy said the government should target infrastructure spending in particular areas that increase the competitiveness of Nigeria’s exports.

To improve the decency and capacity of agriculture jobs to provide a minimum income and quality of life, the think-tank advocated for the development and implementation of a productivity growth strategy for agriculture that will target improvement in yields for subsistence farming.

“The size of the Nigerian population and the scale of the unemployment challenge implies that piecemeal and uncoordinated approaches are unlikely to make a significant impact,” Agora Policy said.

“If Nigeria desires to get unemployment down to 5% by 2033, it needs to create 3.6 million jobs a year. To achieve this, it needs a scalable strategy.

“Given that jobs are simply part of the process of generating economic activity, then Nigeria needs to engineer growth in labour-intensive sectors in general, and labour-intensive parts of value chains in particular.”

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The Chinese Government has denied funding militants to access Nigerian mining sites, adding that it will never be involved in any form of terrorism financing.

China had reacted to a report by a British news platform, The Times, about financing terrorists to access Nigeria’s mineral resources through a statement denying its involvement.

The report dated April 15, 2023, and titled, ‘Chinese ‘bribed Nigerian militants for access to vast mineral reserves’ claimed that “Beijing could be indirectly funding terror” in Nigeria.

However, the Chinese Embassy said the report is “based on unverified, unclear and unproven information, to which we have to express our strong dissatisfaction and objection.”



“The Chinese government, as well as the Chinese Embassy in Nigeria, have always encouraged and urged the Chinese companies and nationals in Nigeria to abide by the laws and regulations of Nigeria, and to implement the local rules and guidance on labour, environment, health and safety, etc, and would continue their efforts in this regard,” the statement added.

“The Chinese government was and would never be involved in any form of funding terrorism.

“The allegations contained in the report were totally irresponsible and unethical, and the intention of the report is seriously questioned.

“For the past decades, the bilateral cooperation between China and Nigeria has brought tangible benefits to our bilateral ties and  the well-being of the two peoples. We will continue to work with the Nigerian government to promote development and address security issues.

“We welcome international partners to join our efforts in good faith, but would reject any intention or action that would smear our cooperation.”

There was an uneasy calm at Zone Eight, Otokiti Housing Estate and Shettima, all in Lokoja, the Kogi State capital, as residents on Tuesday staged a peaceful protest against the hike in electricity bills and inadequate supply of power.


The protesters in their hundreds bearing placards with various inscriptions, chanted “No Light, No Work.”
They thronged the office of the Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) at Makaji Shopping Complex, Otokiti, to register their dismay over the two anomalies in the services of the company.

One of the protesters, Abdulaziz Shuaibu, who resides in Otokiti Estate, described the monthly electricity bills from the company as outrageous, especially when compared to the meagre power supplied to consumers.
He urged AEDC to supply electricity meters to the people in the area to avoid unnecessary hikes or unreasonable estimated billing, adding that many people could not afford the high bill.



Another protester, Mrs Magdalene Obaje, complained that her children were affected by heat rashes due to inadequate power supply and also avowed that the charges by AEDC did not equate to the electricity supplied to the area.
She called on government to come to the aid of the people, stressing that life had become difficult, especially for small-scale businesses some of which she noted had collapsed due to the lack of power supply.


Responding, Kogi State AEDC Regional Manager, Commercial, Mr Segun Ebuka, appealed to the protesters to remain calm, assuring them that the company would put measures in place towards proffering lasting solutions to the two problems.
He promised to make special requests to authorities towards satisfying the customers at all costs.

DAILY POST learnt the development had prompted a peace meeting between representatives of the affected communities and AEDC Staff to find a lasting solution to the issues raised.

The Federal High Court in Abuja on Tuesday refused to grant the request of the All Progressives Congress to remove Sokoto State Governor, Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, from the governorship seat following his defection from the party to the Peoples Democratic Party.

Justice Inyang Edem Ekwo held that a similar request on the subject matter had been voided by the Court of Appeal in several judgments.

The Justice stated that since the Supreme Court has not set aside the judgement of the appellate court holding that governors cannot forfeit their seats on grounds of defection, the judgement of the appellate court remains binding on the lower courts.

Listed as 1st to 3rd defendants in the suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/449/2022 are Independent National Electoral Commission, Peoples Democratic Party, and Alhaji Aminu Waziri Tambuwal respectively.

The Judge held that counsels ought to have advised their clients appropriately adding that it would amount to an exercise in futility for the High Court to decide on the matter.

Thus, he dismissed the suit for lack of merit.

APC had asked the court to declare the governorship seat of Sokoto State vacant on the account of defection by Tambuwal to another party.

The party claimed that Tambuwal who won the Sokoto governorship election in 2019 under the APC must vacate his seat if he decided to go to another party.

Former Kogi State Deputy Governor, Yomi Awoniyi has faulted the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, primary election that produced Dino Melaye as governorship candidate.

Awoniyi warned that Melaye’s emergence as PDP governorship candidate was dangerous.

Stressing that the primary election lacked credibility, Awoniyi claimed that Melaye’s votes were a product of a tainted delegates’ list.

A statement by Awoniyi said: “Without an iota of doubt, I make bold to say that Senator Melaye’s victory is a pyrrhic one.

“This victory portends great danger to the unity of our party and the prospect of winning the November 11 governorship election.

“The primary that threw up Senator Melaye was flawed; 158 delegates, who emerged from the state ad hoc congress of March 29, 2023, were replaced by the woeful Senator Abdul Ningi Congress Committee, working in concert with Melaye’s enablers within the party hierarchy at the highest level.”

Awoniyi argued that it was unfair to give an aspirant 158 votes in a contest for 739 votes with eight other aspirants.

Amidst conflicting judgements from courts, the leadership of the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, on Monday, led a delegation of workers’ unions to reinstate the embattled national chairman of the Labour Party, Julius Abure.

In doing so, NLC President, Joe Ajaero confirmed that the bright fortune of the party was attracting impostors who are bent on crippling the party by all means, a move he said will be resisted by the working class.

Ajaero also threatened that Nigerian workers might be compelled to occupy the residential homes of suspected impostors, some of whom orchestrated the suspension of Abure as national chairman of the party.

DAILY POST recalls that a Federal High Court, sitting in Abuja, had ordered Abure to stop parading himself as the national chairman of the party a week after a ward in the Edo State chapter of the party suspended him over alleged anti-party activities.

Shortly after the court order, the party’s national vice chairman, Lamido Bashir Apapa, who had been accused of being sponsored by the opposition parties, took over the party in an acting capacity.

But in another twist, a High Court in Benin gave a counterorder, restraining anybody from removing the embattled party chairman from his office.

Ajaero, who was accompanied by the NLC General Secretary, Emmanuel Ugboaja, TUC leaders and other labour leaders as well as hundreds of workers, to the secretariat, said as trustees of the party, nobody is mandated to occupy any position in the party without their consent.

Ajaero said: “Today, we have come to say enough is enough. Never again will those imposters enter here, under any guise, under any order. Even if we lose our leadership, we have to meet as trustees of this Labour Party to decide the next line of action.

“For anybody to illegally declare himself either as chairman, secretary or whatever, we urge all workers anywhere in the country, where you see such people, arrest them and bring them to us. The hour has come.”

He also added: “As the fastest-growing party, you can see that envy, jealousy is creeping in. The people that are pioneering this, to sabotage us, let’s announce here that we know your fathers. If you continue this way, we will go after your fathers.”

The Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD) has asked the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to “sanction all erring officials who carried out the illegal” declaration of Aisha Binani as the winner of the Adamawa governorship poll.

Yunusa Ari, the resident electoral commissioner (REC) of INEC in Adamawa, declared Binani as the winner around 9am on Sunday, sparking controversy.

The collation of results in the state had been suspended on Saturday night after results from 10 LGAs were announced.

Based on the announced figures, Binani was trailing Ahmadu Fintiri, the incumbent governor and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate.

The collation of the remaining 10 LGAs’ results was expected to commence by 11am on Sunday.

Mele Lamido, the returning officer for the Adamawa governorship election, was not present when Ari announced Binani as the winner of the election.

According to sections 64 and 65 of the Electoral Act, only Lamido is empowered to declare the winner of the election.

The electoral commission had promptly reacted by suspending the collation of results and declaring the announcement of the REC as null and void.

Commenting on the situation, the CDD said: “The laws and procedures guiding Nigeria’s elections are such that only the returning officer can make such a declaration, which makes this recent announcement null and void.

“We call on @inecnigeria to immediately exercise its powers by continuing the collation process that was scheduled to resume today, sanction all erring officials who carried out this illegal announcement and ensure that results are publicly available to all citizens.

“It is important that laid down processes are adhered to avoid a breakdown of law and order in a heightened political environment. CDD will release a statement on the conduct of the elections later today.”

Fintiri, the Adamawa governor, has described the development as the handiwork of the “enemies” of democracy.

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The Alayede of Ayede Ogbese in the Akure North Local Government Area of Ondo State, Oba Ajibola Oluyede, Iseoluwa II, speaks to OLADIMEJI RAMON about his journey from legal practice to the throne and the changes in his kingdom over the years

What kind of childhood did you live through? Were you groomed to become a king?

Well, in our culture, there is no guarantee that any particular child is going to become a king. They believe very strongly that God, Himself, chooses the king. So, there was no special treatment for any particular child. But usually, in the royal family, there is a lot of rules and regulations, regarding integrity, honesty, hard work, respect for elders. The royal family is supposed to epitomise the ethos of omoluabi. So, every child is, actually, in that sense, groomed to be a leader. But there is no special arrangment like in England where you already know a child who is going to be king or queen and you begin to take a special interest in that particular child. We don’t have that in Yoruba culture.

What kind of family were you born into?

My parents were academics. My father was a professor of law and my mother retired as principal of one of the top model secondary schools in Lagos. She had earlier taught me at the University of Ife Staff School before she obtained her BA in Education from the University of Ife. They both travelled abroad to study. And that was when they left me to grow up withmy grandfather, who was then king. So, I lived with my grandparents in my first six years (of life). And I keep referring to that period in my life as a grooming period. Really, I think it’s more of a period that gave me some level of commitment to my community. It made me love my community and made me want to participate in the development of that community, in whichever way I could, not necessarily as the king.

[i]Were you the only child your parents left with your grandfather or were your siblings also left with him?[/i]

At that time, there were only two of us (children)– my younger brother, who is about a year and a half younger than me, and myself. I was left with my paternal grandparents while he was left with my maternal grandparents in Ikole Ekiti. I was in Akure and Ayede Ogbese with my paternal grandparents. But because he was in Ikole Ekiti and I was in Ayede Ogbese, my parents thought I needed someone to keep me company, so, one of my first cousins was also drafted in to be my playmate. His name is Ajibade Oluyede.

What year did you enter the University of Ife?

That was 1977.

Growing up with your grandfather, did he predict or suggest that you would one day also ascend the throne?

If he did, not to me. But I knew that I was kind of like his favourite grandchild; I got special treatment from him all the time. And I always returned to him as often as I could. My parents would take me back to him on his request. I would spend days, sometimes, just to keep that bond that was between us.

How long after he passed on did you ascend the throne?

It’s like a lifetime. I think he passed on in 1977 or 1978; I can’t quite remember. I think I was in secondary school at the time, Government College Ibadan, when he passed on.

You had a vibrant, successful practice as a lawyer; you lived in the city. Was it an easy decision for you leave your legal practice and the city to relocate to Ayede Ogbese to become a monarch?

As I was practising my law, I also had an interest in agriculture and I believe that came from my time with my grandfather. So, I love nature and going back to be close to nature, in that sense. For a long time, of course, I kind of abandoned my community while I was studying and in the early days of my practice. I really was not interested in going back; I was busy trying to build something outside there. But when my father became a king — my father was a king before me; he was a professor of Law…

Interesting, I didn’t know your father was a king too; I thought you are the second person in your family to ascend the throne after your grandfather.

No, there were about four other kings before me after my grandfather. When he passed on, his first son succeeded him. My dad is his third son.

It then means there is only one ruling house in Ayede Ogbese?

Yes, there is only one ruling house and that is the law, a government-gazetted White Paper on our stool.

So, going back to your home town was not difficult?


Yes, because of my interest in nature, which is the foundation of my interest in agriculture. When my father was a king, I started visiting more often and then I started buying land because even though there are some family land, my father advised me that if I wanted to develop anything in town, I should just buy land. So, I started buying land. And I wasn’t even thinking of becoming a king then; I was just thinking of investing in and developing the community. I was already building a residence before I became a king. I finished the house before my coronation. So, that has made me very comfortable even here. With my family, we are just as comfortable as we can be anywhere else in the world.

What has become of your legal practice now that you’ve become a monarch?

People say I no longer practise as a lawyer but that’s because they have a very narrow view of legal practice. If you have listened to anything I’ve said in the past, you would have noticed that I am always trying to broaden the scope of law practice, to kind of get lawyers in Nigeria to understand that law practice is not just about going to court. Remember my view about the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigerian and all that nonsense. This was partly also because I believe Nigerian lawyers and the Nigerian populace do not understand that a lawyer’s role is 99 per cent more relevant outside the courtroom, than in the courtroom. Going to court is just about one per cent of the activities of a lawyer and you go to court only when things have broken down. I am a disciple of the theory that lawyers are mechanics and they keep society going, so it doesn’t break down. Now, litigation is when society breaks down, so you have to be repairing it. My belief it that it’s better for a lawyer to prevent a breakdown. The work of a lawyer, therefore, should be more focused on preventing a breakdown than trying to repair a breakdown. But unfortunately, in our own environment here, people don’t really understand that a lawyer should be involved in everything — negotiating a contract, drawing up that contract, setting up the structure for the economy to function and so on.

Now, what I am doing in my home town will astound people. My law practice is also in my home town; I am employing lawyers in my home town. I am now building a new branch of my practice in my home town. We need lawyers to advise farmers on the various schemes that the government has put in place. They (the farmers) don’t know what to do; they don’t know how to access Anchor Borrower’s loan; they don’t know how to access agricultural loans; so, they need a lawyer to help them with this and to help them negotiate with the financial institutions, so they are not cheated. And lawyers get paid for all these jobs. So, a lawyer’s job is not just about going to court. So, when people say I am no longer practising, I look at them and laugh. Of course, I am still practising; I am still negotiating contracts; I am still advising clients. The only thing I don’t do now is that I don’t appear in court.

So, does this mean that you really don’t miss the courtroom and the wearing of gown and wig?

No, I don’t miss it at all because if you look at my practice, you will see that I am a strategist when it comes to litigation. I use the court more for leverage than for solution because I believe very strongly that our judicial system is very imperfect. I believe that the personnel that man the judicial system are not competent enough for their role. They are not trained well enough; the people that are usually chosen to go to the bench as judges are not the best in the profession, as we have it in other countries, where it is the crème de la crème among the lawyers that are appointed to be judges. In Nigeria, it is the ones that have failed in practice, who don’t know what to do and are just looking for a way out, that end up on the bench as judges. Of course, there are some good people there, but 80 per cent of the judges are not meant to be on the bench. They are not competent enough, in my view. So, the way I see litigation, therefore, is more for leverage than for solution, because there is no solution when a judge does not understand the structure of society. So, you see many of my cases don’t go to the Supreme Court.

You mentioned that you have a legal practice in Ayede Ogbese now and you have lawyers advising farmers. Are these farmers able to pay for the services of lawyers?

They don’t have to pay. In America, the reason people have access to good lawyers is because most of the time, they don’t have to pay because the lawyers have developed what they call entrepreneurship; they are entrepreneur lawyers. They get contingency fee; that is, they get paid when they are successful. If I am advising a farmer on how to raise N250m and I tell him, ‘Yes, I will advise you and help you to get this money and you will pay me three or five per cent or even 10 per cent as my fee’; he will be more willing because he knows he is not going to pay until he sees the money. So, I even make more money as a lawyer than if I were to bill him N1m he cannot afford to pay me. So, that is the way to go for relevance.


Can you give us a glimpse into what your coronation rites were like?

The state law relating to our stool requires that interested male members of the Oluyede family should submit their applications to their family. The family has a kind of corporate meeting to which you submit your application. At that meeting, you can be disqualified by the family. But in my case, all of us who applied were allowed by the family to proceed to the next stage. That next stage involves the kingmakers, who come together to consider the applications. Their job is to go and do whatever spiritual thing they do, that reveals to them whom God has chosen. In the old traditional system, they consulted Ifa, which then tells them. But these days, because our family is Christian, we have jettisoned all the fetish, old system; now we encourage the kingmakers to consult with religious leaders, Christian leaders. That is what we encourage them to do, to seek spiritual advice and through that get to know the mind of God. When they come back and say this is the person they believe God has chosen, then that person is presented to the populace to see if the populace will revolt because you may find a candidate that Ifa, in those days, or God, now, has chosen and the people may say they don’t want. So, the people can be in conflict with God but often God will win.

In my case, there was no impediment at all. Once the kingmakers decided it was me, it then went to the local government, the state government and they did their findings and decided whether one has a criminal record and so on. If there is no objection, they then approve and confirm and the government, at the coronation, presents you with your letter of appointment and staff of office.

So, in your coronation, there was no process that involved some traditional spiritual rites?

As I told you, my father was a very strong Christian, even though Aglican. So, by the time he became a king — he was king for five years before he passed — he changed a lot of things. In fact, he appointed two of the three high chiefs and he appointed very young people who are Christians. So, things had already changed before my turn. So, there were no fetish processes. In any case, if there were, they would dare not bring them to me because they already know my stance. They knew that I was a pastor and there was no way I was going to paricipate in anything that is contrary to my belief in Jesus Christ.

If Ayede Ogbese kingmakers now consult Christian leaders, rather than Ifa, to choose the king, does that mean that the Ayede Ogbese stool is no longer a traditional stool?

It is still a traditional stool. I had a little bit of this debate when I was talking to the Ooni at some point and he said to me: ‘What is the relevance of Christianity to the Yoruba institution?’ At that time when I was about to be installed, I consulted with him; I have known him for years. At one point, jokingly though, he said he knew I was going to have a Christian coronation; he doesn’t understand what Christianity has to do with the Yoruba traditional institution. I told him it’s because most of us don’t know the history of the Yoruba properly. If we know the history of the Yoruba and we all believe that Oduduwa is our progenitor; then we will understand that, in fact, our culture is Christianity because Oduduwa was a Coptic Christian and the reason he left Egypt was because the Moslems were coming to take over Egypt at a time. So, he escaped from Egypt. The genealogists who had followed parts of his journey to Ife, which is called the cradle of the Yoruba race, claimed in their own findings that wherever he stayed, they found the symbol of Christianity, like the cross, there. And Oduduwa stopped in many places; he stopped in Nupe; he stopped in Bwari and that is why the culture of the Bwari is very similar to that of the Yoruba. So, if you know all these, you will see that Christianity is not strange (to the Yoruba).

When he got to Ife, there were already people in Ife, who were worshipping other gods. I think everybody, all historians, agree on that. Those people were called Ugbo and that is the basis of the theory that the Olugbo of Ugbo in the Ilaje area should have been the Ooni of Ife because the Ooni of Ife was actually a chief priest; he was not an Oba; he was the chief priest of their religion, which Oduduwa met them with and he didn’t impose his Christianity on them.

If you look at the so-called Yoruba gods; they were all human beings — Sango, Ogun, Oya. They were all human beings, who just achieved something significant and then people decided to worship them. So, I don’t see any conflict between Christianity and the Yoruba traditional institution, at all. If anything, I think Christianity articulates our thoughts as Yoruba, more efficiently than any other religious structure.

How do you relate with traditional worshippers in your kingdom being a Christian Oba?

Very well. They come to me but everybody knows my stand; I made that clear from the beginning even before I became the king. In our kingdom, there is a river called Ogbe. In fact, the headquarters of our kingdom, Ayede Ogbese, was named after that river. Ayede Ogbese means people have come to Ogbese river. People believe that river has spiritual powers. People come from all over the country to bathe and so on, for healing and so on and it has its priests and priestesses that attend to people. People asked me: This river that we have been worshipping for centuries, are you going to stop the worship? And I said I am not setting out to stop the worship of the river, per se. Of course, I would do my best to persuade those who are worshipping a river, to stop worshipping a river because the river should be serving them and not them serving the river, because they turned God’s creation upside-down when they worship what God has given them to have dominion over. But it is not by force; I can’t force anyone to stop that; I can only remonstrate with them; talk to them and pray for them and hope that God opens their eyes. But I am not going to participate in it.

The Independent National Electoral Commission is set to prosecute over 200 persons arrested for various electoral offences during the just concluded general elections.

Already, the Nigeria Police Force has transferred over 50 case files of electoral offences to the electoral umpire.

Giving updates on the number of case files INEC offices across the country had received from the police and how many electoral offenders had been handed over to it, the Chief Press Secretary to the INEC Chairman, Rotimi Oyekanmi, told Saturday PUNCH in an exclusive interview on Friday, “The commission has received over 50 case files from the police authorities. There are over 200 accused persons set for prosecution.

“The commission has directed its Litigation and Prosecution Department to study the files and advise it on the prosecution. The department has since commenced action and as soon as it finishes, it will revert to the commission accordingly.”

On March 13, 2023, the Inspector-General of Police, Usman Baba, directed commissioners of police in charge of state commands to ensure investigation in all cases of violation of the Electoral Act during the February 25, 2023 presidential and National Assembly polls.

The IG directed them to swiftly conclude investigation and forward the case files to INEC for prosecution.

On March 14, the Chairman of INEC, Prof Mahmood Yakubu, said the commission was setting up a legal team to deal with cases of electoral offenders during the February 25 presidential and National Assembly polls.

On March 28, Baba directed that all electoral offences case files should be submitted to the Commissioner of Police in charge of the legal unit.

This, according to him, is to enable central collation and coordinated processing to the legal unit of INEC preparatory to the commencement of the prosecution process.

He gave an assurance that the NPF would collaborate with the INEC leadership in ensuring that all electoral offenders were expeditiously and transparently prosecuted not only in the interest of criminal justice, but in furtherance of the police’s vision of sanitising its electoral space.

Baba spoke at a meeting with strategic police managers of the NPF comprising deputy inspectors-general of police and members of the force management team, assistant inspectors-general of police, commissioners of police and other tactical commanders in Abuja.

ICPC, EFCC probe 78
In a related development, the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission has revealed that it is still investigating 13 suspects arrested for alleged voters’ inducement during the presidential and National Assembly, and the governorship and State Assembly elections.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission had in March revealed that it was investigating 65 suspects arrested during the polls, but has yet to give details of the arrests made during the presidential election.

The spokesperson for the ICPC, Azuka Ogugua, disclosed that the commission was still investigating the suspects during an interview with one of our correspondents on Friday.

She noted that of the 13 suspects, nine were apprehended during the presidential and National Assembly elections, while four were arrested during the governorship and state Houses of Assembly polls nationwide.

Ogugua said, “Investigations are ongoing concerning the arrested suspects. During the presidential elections, four vote buyers were arrested in Osun State with documents containing a list of names, phone numbers and account details of persons suspected to be voters. One vote buyer was arrested in Ondo State with recharge cards worth N500 each, another vote buyer was arrested in Borno State with four PVCs, N49,000 and 20 pieces of wrappers.

“One vote buyer was arrested in Akwa Ibom State with names and account numbers of vote sellers. Two vote buyers were also arrested in Sokoto State with signed tickets to enable them access wrappers and bags of rice after voting.

“Also, one vote buyer was arrested in Bauchi State with N2m recovered from him. He was arrested by troops of 33 Artillery Brigade and handed over to the ICPC.

“During the governorship and state Assembly elections, three vote buyers were arrested in Sokoto State with two PVCs, ATM cards, Infinix phone and CFA228,000 recovered from them. One vote buyer was also arrested in Katsina State with an unspecified amount of money.”

Saturday PUNCH could not get the latest update concerning the arrests made by the EFCC during the elections as the Head, Media and Publicity, Wilson Uwujaren, did not respond to inquiries by one of our correspondents.

However, he had in a statement in March revealed that the agency arrested 65 suspects during the governorship poll. However, the commission did not reveal the total number of arrests made during the presidential election in February.


The statement read in part, “Twenty of the suspects were arrested by operatives from the Ilorin Zonal Command, 13 suspects were arrested by the Kaduna Zonal Command and the Port Harcourt Zone arrested 12 suspects for various offences bordering on inducing voters with money. It added that the Uyo Zonal Command arrested four in Calabar. The remaining suspects were arrested in Gombe, Sokoto, Kebbi and Niger states.”

He, however, noted that investigations were still ongoing, adding that those arrested in Kaduna State consisted of 10 males and three females, adding that investigations had so far revealed that the major modus operandi of the suspects was to give cash, transfer money, coupons and send recharge cards to eligible voters to induce them.

Uwujaren explained that the Uyo Zonal Command arrested one Esther Edem, the woman leader of a political party for Ward 11, and two others, Edet Etim and Asanwana Eyo, for alleged vote-buying in Calabar, adding that Edem was caught with account numbers and thousands of naira in an uncompleted building.

The EFCC spokesman said the 20 suspects arrested from different parts of Kwara were caught with incriminating items like cash, notebooks containing names of voters, PoS machines, mobile phones and voter cards, among others.

“Upon interrogation, some of the suspects identified themselves as party agents, while some admitted distributing money to induce voters,” Uwujaren said.

He noted that the Gombe Zonal Command arrested 10 persons and recovered 43 pieces of wrappers and N1,923,900.

The acting Commander, Ilorin Zonal Office, Mr Michael Nzekwe, while parading the suspects, said, “We recovered huge sums of cash and Point of Sale machines. We are still investigating the matter. After the investigation, we will strictly follow the provisions of the law.”

The EFCC also said it had deployed 100 armed operatives to combat vote-buying in Kano, Katsina and Jigawa states during the supplementary elections.

The Kano Zonal Commander, EFCC, Mr Farouk Dogondaji, disclosed this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria in Kano on Friday.

“We have deployed 20 personnel to monitor the conduct of the state Assembly elections in Kafur, Kankara in Katsina State,” he said.

He explained that adequate personnel were also deployed to monitor the exercise in Tudun Wada/Doguwa and Takai federal constituency, as well as some state Assembly election in Kano State.

Dogondaji said other personnel were also deployed for the House of Assembly election in Katsina and Jigawa states to prevent vote-buying.

He stated, “We have also deployed officers in the Malam Aminu Kano International Airport in Kano and the metropolis to monitor the exercise.

“We will be visible in all the polling units in Kano, Katsina and Jigawa to carefully monitor the entire exercise during and after the elections.


“We will be physically present at collection centres to prevent tampering with results from the local government areas to the state.

“We are carefully monitoring the entire exercise along with state security agencies towards providing a peaceful atmosphere for eligible voters to elect their leaders.”

The Special Assistant on Public Communication to Atiku Abubakar, Phrank Shaibu has lambasted the All Progressives Congress (APC) and its presidential candidate, Bola Tinubu, for trying to present the $460,000 forfeiture case as one relating to tax evasion and not drug charges.

Shaibu said in a statement to Naija News that after the lies told by Tinubu and his surrogates, the truth had finally been unravelled through the processes filed by the APC at the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal.

He said, “Festus Keyamo had gone on national television to say that Tinubu’s forfeiture of $460,000 was based on tax obligations. At least they have now finally admitted that the forfeiture was in relation to a drug trafficking case even though Tinubu did not admit guilt.

“But what has been established is that Justice John Nordberg ordered on October 4, 1993 that the funds in the amount of $460,000 held in First Heritage Bank in the name of Bola Tinubu represent the proceeds of narcotics trafficking or were involved in financial transactions in violation of 18 U.S. 1956 and 1957.

“Tinubu should know that he cannot outrun his past. He was investigated in relation to heroin trafficking. He had millions of dollars in his account while on a salary of $2,500 monthly, and he forfeited part of it in order to escape jail. These are the facts. Elections are over, and he should stop lying to Nigerians.”

Shaibu said Keyamo’s lack of understanding of the legal proceedings was one of the reasons he failed as a prosecutor with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

“Festus Keyamo’s law degree really needs to be investigated. One wonders how he even became a senior advocate. He went on national television to say the $460,000 was a fine for not paying taxes.

“Now, Tinubu is telling the Election Petition Tribunal that the money in question was forfeited as part of a court decree in relation to his drug case. No wonder Keyamo lost so many high profile cases with the EFCC while he was a prosecutor,” Shaibu said.

Atiku’s aide, however, knocked Tinubu for claiming that he was not under investigation, but only the funds in his bank accounts were under probe.

He asked Tinubu to explain to Nigerians how he was able to deposit millions of dollars one year after opening bank accounts while earning a salary of $2,500 at Mobil.

He said: “Elections are over, but Tinubu is still trying to deceive Nigerians. Is he saying the millions of dollars found in his account just magically appeared there just as how his aide said on live television that the bullion van found on his premises ahead of the 2019 poll erroneously found their way there?

“Tinubu should stop taking Nigerians for a ride. Let him explain the business he did in order to have such a humongous sum of money in his account.”

Shaibu said a Tinubu presidency would represent a setback in the fight against narcotics, given his antecedents and his open admission that he lived with known drug kingpins.

He implored the US authorities to set aside diplomatic protocols and furnish the Nigerian judiciary with all information relating to the trial and verdict of the US investigation of Tinubu over drug dealings and his forfeiture of the sum of 460,000 US dollars during his conviction.

“The US should not associate with electoral thieves by merely stating whether he is still under probe or not. We need in-depth details of this corn-man,” Shaibu said

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The Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN[b], has slammed a minimum fine of N2 million as a penalty on banks that disobey its new guidelines on the management of dormant accounts, unclaimed balances and other financial assets in financial institutions in the country.[/b]

CBN defines a dormant account as a bank account that has remained inactive for a period of at least one year. An account is classified inactive if there has been no customer or depositor-initiated transaction for a period of six months after the last customer or depositor-initiated transaction.

In the guidelines announced in a circular signed by the Director, Financial Policy and Regulation Department, CBN, Mr Chibuzo Efobi, the apex bank added that a further daily penalty of N200,000 will be applied until full compliance.
The apex bank stated: “A contravention of any provision of the guidelines shall attract a penalty of not less than N2 million. Failure to comply with CBN’s directive in respect of any infraction shall attract a further penalty of N200,000 daily until the directive is complied with or as may be determined by CBN.”

According to CBN, the guidelines were rolled out in response to the request of banks and other stakeholders for the apex bank to further clarify the procedure for the management of dormant and inactive accounts by banks in Nigeria.

The guidelines: “The financial institution shall bear the costs of maintaining inactive and dormant accounts as well as contacting the customers; Render quarterly reports on dormant accounts in a prescribed format to Banking Supervision Department and Other Financial Institutions Supervision Department, CBN; Notify account owners in writing through the agreed medium such as email, text message, and letter immediately an account becomes inactive/dormant; Reactivate dormant accounts upon request by the account owner or his/her legitimate representatives; Continue to reflect dormant account balances as deposit liabilities and such balances, where applicable, shall continue to earn interest until they are transferred to CBN.”

In its electronic fact sheet for 2021, the Nigeria Interbank Settlement System, NIBSS, stated that the number of bank accounts stood at 191.4 million as of December 2021, while the number of active bank accounts was 133.5 million owned by 122.3 million active bank customers.

This indicates that 57.9 million inactive accounts were recorded during the period.

Against the backdrop of the imminent assumption of office, the World Bank Group, WBG, has given a long list of challenges that need to be addressed in the immediate term by the new leadership of the Federal Government.

The WBG President, David Malpass, in a press briefing at the ongoing Spring Meetings of the Bretton Woods institutions in Washington D.C., United States of America yesterday, also hinted that economic growth would be subdued during the year with a forecast growth rate of 2.8 per cent, a further drop from its earlier forecast of 2.9 per cent and also a significant drop from its estimates for 2022 at 3.3 per cent.

Malpass stated: “For Nigeria, the growth was 3.3 per cent in 2022 and 2.8 per cent for 2023 is within our forecast, and our high priority in the World Bank is shared prosperity in a sustainable way. And so, as we think about Nigeria, there are many changes that are needed in order to make that happen.

“Nigeria has a big chunk of its GDP coming from the oil sector and it means that a lot of people in Nigeria are facing poverty due to the global difficulties in the sector as well as Nigeria’s peculiar challenges, and that needs to be a direct focus.

“And they (Nigeria) also face[b] insecurity across the northern regions that are very challenging. And so, the World Bank is working hard within Nigeria but also working to try to have an economic system that can be more productive.[/b]

“Nigeria has trade protection that blocks market development; they have a dual exchange rate that is very expensive for the people of Nigeria; they have high inflation and not enough diversification of the economy to really make sufficient progress”.

Speaking to the broader perspective of African economies also affecting Nigeria, Malpass said, “I wanted to give you the context for Nigeria, Egypt, and for other countries where we wish that the true success of the World Bank would be if there can be countries where the people are doing well into the future. And that I think is going to make a substantial change in the world.

“My hope would be that we can break through on the debt overhang that’s weighing on countries and also break through the structural blockages in so many of the big developing countries where rather than converging and having their growth go up faster than the advanced economies which would be their goal there is a slow down over the decade.

“Showing up like China, developing countries can grow at a 10 percent rate and catch up with advanced economies in a period of years and decades. India is showing that now with 6 percent growth but with the aspiration of 8 per cent per year growth based on policies that will generate faster growth, more electricity, access to clean water, and more investment in agriculture, the things that are needed by the countries.”

Ahead of the inauguration of the 10th House of Representatives, a coalition has said rebellion would deny the administration of Bola Tinubu the opportunity to deliver its mandate to Nigerians.

The coalition vowed to respect the decision of the majority party in the House of Representatives.

The coalition, known as the “Joint Task – 10th Assembly,” with 283 members-elect from all the major political parties, is made up of returning and new members-elect from all political parties.

A statement by its chairman and co-chairman, Usman Bello Kumo and Kingsley Chinda said members of the coalition are in agreement with the decision of APC on zoning.

Their statement reads partly: “We are aware of the theatrics in the 8th National Assembly. But Nigerians want to see good governance and not grandstanding. Rebellion will deny the incoming Tinubu administration the opportunity to deliver on its mandate and the high expectations from Nigerians, especially under the current ethnic and religious tension in the country.”

President Muhammadu Buhari’s Special Assistant on Digital Communication, Bashir Ahmad has mocked the presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, over his detention in the United Kingdom.

Ahmad said Obi was treated like a common criminal in the UK.

Reports had emerged that UK Immigration had detained Obi for hours and interrogated him after his British Airways plane landed at Heathrow Airport on Friday morning over alleged impersonation.

The development has continued to generate reactions from concerned citizens.

Reacting, Ahmad said Obi’s arrest in the UK was unacceptable.

He charged the UK government to explain to Nigerians the circumstances surrounding Obi’s arrest.

Tweeting, the presidential aide wondered if it was the real Obi or a fake that was arrested and detained.

According to Ahmad: “A whole former presidential candidate treated like a common criminal, unacceptable. Haba.

“The UK should kindly tell us what they know about the numerous Peter Obis roaming around. His detention got me really disturbed.

“Was it the authentic Obi or the criminal Obi that contested and came 3rd in the February presidential election? I hope it wasn’t the criminal one oo!”