₦airaland Forum

THE All Progressives Congress in Ekiti State has berated Governor Ayodele Fayose for imposing a ban on workers and government’s agencies from transacting business with Ecobank and Zenith Bank over private affairs that have no bearing with state matters.



The APC described Fayose’s action as a threat to the state’s economy and disservice to the state’s indigenes who stand the risk of losing their jobs in the banks.

Fayose had last week instructed all government’s Ministries, Departments and Agencies, including workers, to move their accounts from Zenith Bank in response to the freezing of his accounts with the bank by the EFCC over alleged arms purchase cash traced to his accounts.

He gave them few days within which to comply with his order as communicated by the state Accountant-General to all the MDAs, including workers.

Reacting, the APC spokesman, Taiwo Olatunbosun, said in a statement that Fayose’s action is a wrong signal to the investing community and threat to the state’s economy as well as a recipe for job losses among workers in the bank, majority of whom are Ekiti State indigenes.

Criticising the governor for the latest move after taking similar action that forced Ecobank out of business in the state with Ekiti State indigenes in the bank losing their jobs, Olatunbosun berated Fayose for tying his personal fate to the fate of 2.5 million people of the state and her economy.

His words: “Governor Fayose has personalised Ekiti State to the extent that whoever offends him offends the state and her people, which is dangerous to the economic survival of both the state and her people.

“Last time, he ordered all government’s agencies and workers to move their accounts from Ecobank simply because the bank refused to surrender the cash for its Community Social Responsibility projects to the governor when the bank insisted that it would carry out the projects like is the practice in other states of the federation.

“For this reason, the governor took offence, destroyed the culvert at the entrance of the bank and ordered government offices and workers to move their accounts from the bank, thereby forcing the bank’s closure in the state with Ekiti indigenes working in the bank losing their jobs.

“This time, because Zenith Bank washed its hands off election sponsorship fraud through which Fayose assumed power, he is fighting back by severing relationship with the bank by ordering all government offices and workers to move their accounts from the bank.

“As expected, Zenith Bank will close shop with attendant job losses among Ekiti indigenes working there, including sending wrong signals to the investing community that Ekiti is under a siege of a reckless and maximum governor that promotes  anti-investment policies.

“During his first term between 2003 and 2006, all international development agencies operating in Ekiti State, including the World Bank and British DFID, relocated from Ekiti when the agencies could no longer cope with the opaque manner Fayose was conducting government’s business in relation to the agencies’ partnership with his administration.”

Olatunbosun regretted that while Fayose got himself involved in “lawless and reckless conduct with maximum personal benefits”, the rest of Ekiti State people were the ones that would suffer from the governor’s indiscretion.

He said: “While Fayose enjoys the brute force through which he recklessly conducts government’s business to have his way that will cost the state and her people fortunes, including job losses, the governor does not care a hoot for the hopeless condition he is creating for the people after collecting his monthly N250m security vote and and alleged kick backs from contractors handling some of his cloudy projects.

“Since he assumed office on October 16, 2014, many businesses have closed shops or relocated from Ekiti State because of his anti-business policies, including obnoxious tax regime that forces medium and small-scale businesses to pay heavy taxes that do not reflect in the state’s financial profile while investors have stopped doing business in the state because of his anti-investment policies and lawless acts.

“This governor is a threat to Ekiti collective survival and nightmare for the struggling Ekiti people, particularly workers,  who toil daily to make ends meet but for whom the governor is creating conditions that will compound their woes.”

THE naira on Monday fell severely against the dollar in both the parallel and black markets.



At the interbank market, the local currency lost 53 kobo to close at N308.32, from N307.79 it closed on Friday.

Trading at the Bureau De Change showed that the naira lost five points to exchange at N445 against the dollar, while it traded for N565 and N480 against the Pound Sterling and the Euro respectively.

The naira also closed at N445, N559 and N484 to the dollar, Pound Sterling and the Euro at the parallel market.

Traders at the market linked acute forex shortage of the greenback to the poor performance of the naira at the market.

The President of the Association of Bureau De Change Operators of Nigeria, Alhaji Aminu Gwadabe, said the BDCs were set to key into Travelex platform for forex sales.

Gwadabe said biometric registration of BDCs and subsequent funding was ongoing.

He said this move would lead the naira to the path of recovery.

THE Naira on Thursday crashed further against the major currencies in all the segments of the market, the News Agency of Nigeria reports.



At the interbank market, the naira fell by 2.99 points to close at N313.07 from N310.08 recorded on Wednesday.


At the Bureau De Change segment of the market, the naira traded at N424, N549 and N468 to the dollar, Pound Sterling and the Euro respectively.


Trading at the Parallel market showed that the naira lost 8 points to close at N436, from N428 posted on Wednesday, while it traded at N555 and N472 against the Pound Sterling and the Euro respectively.


Traders at the market said the scarcity of the greenback was still haunting the market.


Meanwhile, Alhaji Aminu Gwadabe, the President Association of Bureau De Change Operators of Nigeria, said that he foresees the naira on the path of recovery by Monday.


“The naira will begin to recover by Monday when Travelex begins to sell forex to BDCs,” Gwadabe said.


Gwadabe said with the coming onboard of Travelex, a licensed forex dealer, efficiency, transparency and equitable distribution of forex would be restored in the market.


NAN reports that since the implementation of the flexible exchange rate by the Central Bank of Nigeria, the gap between the official interbank rate and the parallel market continued to soar.


The naira, which had opened at N285 at the launch of the policy, had depreciated by 10 per cent, while it continued to crash further at the parallel market.


(NAN.)

JAMIL Mabai, Katsina State blogger who was arrested allegedly on the orders of Katsina State Governor, Aminu Masari, has been remanded in prison custody.



Mubai was remamded in prison for inciting public disturbance and causing disaffection to government by a Katsina Magistrate Court.


Social Times had reported on Wednesday that the blogger was arrested for criticising the decision of the governor to purchase 3000 coffins and distributing them to mosques in the State.


The blogger had frowned at the rationale behind such venture when salaries of civil servants in the state are yet to be paid.


The prosecuting police officer Isa Liti told the court that Mabai actions are contrary to section 416 of the penal code.


He applied for time to enable him prepare his prosecution properly.


Defending his client, lawyer to the accused, Sada Abdullahi, argued that his client was not properly arraigned and as such, sought for the relief of his client.


In his rulling, the presiding Judge Abdul El-Ladan adjourned the matter to Monday 26th September for continuation.

THE Abuja Division of the Court of Appeal on Thursday held that Governor Seriake Dickson of Bayelsa State was validly elected as governor.


The court in a unanimous decision of a five-man panel presided over by Jimmi Olukayode Bada, resolved all the five issues raised by Sylva and the All Progressives Congress in favour of Dickson and the Peoples Democratic Party.


Justice Bada, who delivered the lead judgement, held that Sylva and his party failed to prove the allegations of corruption, non compliance, gross violation of the electoral act and other malpractices in the conduct of the election.


He said the foundation of the ground upon which the appellants based his case that the December 6, 2015 election was unilaterally cancelled by the State Resident Electoral Commissioner was eroded, having participated actively in the rescheduled election of January 9, 2016, adding that it was established beyond doubt that the decision is shift December 6,2015 election to January 9,2016 was taken by the Independent National Electoral Commission and stakeholders.


He said the burden of proof rests on the appellant who will lose if no adequate evidence is not placed before the court to prove his allegations on the conduct of the election that brought Dickson to power.


Bada held: “The contention of the appellant has no merit.


“They were expected to leave evidence to prove their claim that the election was marred by irregularities, electoral malpractices, allocation of votes and gross violation of electoral act.


“These allegations were not proved by the appellants.


I am in total agreement with the judgement of the lower Tribunal because its decision was based on the evidence place before it.”


Having resolved all the five issues raised by the appellants in favour of the respondents, Justice Bada dismissed the petition in its entirety for lacking in merit.


It would be recalled that Sylva and APC had challenged the election of Governor Dickson at the State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal on the ground that the governor was not lawfully returned through majority votes by the Independent National Electoral Commission.


But in a unanimous decision, the three-man tribunal, led by Justice Kazeem Aloba, the Tribunal held that the APC failed to prove its case.


In a marathon judgment delivered, the tribunal held that the election held in Southern Ijaw Local Government Area on January 9, 2016 was lawful and valid in law.


The tribunal further had held that from the evidence adduced before it, the election of December 6, 2015 was inconclusive and was rightfully rescheduled by INEC through the REC.


It also held that contrary to the position of the petitioner, election took place in Southern Ijaw Local Government Area of the state.


Fielding questions from newsmen shortly after the judgement was delivered, counsel to Sylva, Daniel Nwoko, said the judgement of the Court of Appeal will be tested at the Supreme Court because there are aspects of the judgement that needed clarification.


The Counsel to Dickson, Emeka Etiaba (SAN), lauded the judgement and praised the Justices for the industry put into it.

THE Senate president, Bukola Saraki, has given the Federal Government guidelines to follow in putting an end to the current economic recession.


Mr. Saraki gave the guidelines in Abuja on Tuesday in his welcome to mark the resumption of the Senate from a seven week recess.


He said during the recess he interacted with various groups in Kwara who pleaded that everything should be done to put an end to the suffering of Nigerians.


Mr. Saraki, therefore, advised the Federal Government to among other things put in place a pro-business leadership-level engagement platform with the private sector to boost market confidence in the economy.


He also advised the government to raise money from sale of assets to shore up foreign reserves, calm investors and discourage currency speculation.


“The Federal Government should engage in meaningful dialogue with aggrieved militants in the Niger Delta and avoid an escalation of the conflict in the region.


“The National Assembly is very ready to play any role in the process.


“The Federal Government must consider tweaking the pension funds policy within international best practice safeguards to accommodate investment in infrastructure and mortgages.


“The government and the Central Bank of Nigeria must agree on a policy of monetary easing to stimulate the economy and harmonise monetary and fiscal policy until economic recovery is attained.


“The Federal Government must retool its export promotion policy scheme with export incentives such as the resumption of the Export Expansion Grant (EEG) and introduce export financing initiatives.”


Mr. Saraki also advised the executive to consider releasing funds immediately to ensure the implementation of the budget for the near short term to inject money into the economy.


The upper legislative chamber also called for support for the agro-allied businesses to boost value addition and job creation.


He said it was pertinent that immediate, medium and long-term strategies were devised to ease the suffering of Nigerians especially those in the Internally Displaced Persons camps.


He also called on the lawmakers to play their own parts in the area of legislation to ensure that relevant laws were passed.


“We must ensure the passage of the Petroleum Industry Bill as soon as possible to stimulate new investment and boost oil revenue.


“As we all know, this bill is long in waiting and is very crucial for vital investment in the oil and gas sector.


“We will immediately begin the process of accelerating bills aimed at reforming the sub-sector for growth and accessibility. We must also explore the possibility of backing certain key government policies with legislation.’’


He said that Nigerians were not interested in knowing who caused the problems or which party was in government but only wanted solutions to the problems.


Mr. Saraki called for an urgent debate on the issue of recession devoid of blames or partisanship and with a view to proffering more lasting solution to the problem.


“It is clear to me that when people are desperately hungry, what they need is leadership with a clear vision; leadership whose daily actions reflect the urgency of the people’s condition.


“Therefore, our response to the current challenge must be dictated by the urgency of the hardship that the people suffer on a daily basis.


“I say this to urge us that we must have an urgent debate on the way forward, but in having this debate, we must resist the temptation of drowning the debate with apportioning blames that will neither bring solutions nor reduce the cost of food in the market.


“Rather, this debate must be solution-driven. It must be people-oriented and less political,” Mr. Saraki said.


Mr. Saraki said the debate should focus more on how to end the hunger in the land, save businesses from collapse and strengthen the naira over the dollar.


He, however, acknowledged that the solution would not come overnight and therefore called on the people to be patient, and said that the situation seemed dire, but Nigeria would pull out of it.


“I bring a message of hope not despair because once again, Nigeria shall overcome. Let no one writes us off. We have done it before, we will do it again.


“The world has come to know Nigeria as a people who have formed a habit of proving naysayers wrong and turning adversity into triumph.


“Many times, experts have quipped that Nigeria is finished but we come back stronger. This occasion will not be any different, but it will not happen by a slogan! No, it will take positive leadership and unity.”


The president of the Senate urged members to be committed to the debate, adding that this was the best time to show leadership and unity.


He assured that the Senate would show regular and effective oversight when working with the executive arm to steer the nation out of recession.


Mr. Saraki assured that the National Assembly would not hesitate in passing any legislation geared to stimulating the economy.


“Distinguished colleagues, let me also state clearly that we shall not hide under the cloak of partisan solidarity to abdicate our constitutional responsibility under the principles of checks and balances.


“We shall make critical interventions whenever they become necessary and undertake emergency actions whenever they are required within the confines of the constitution.


“The task at hand requires us to take tough decisions and do all that is necessary to dig our economy out of this recession.


“This imperative must take precedence over partisan loyalty. This is what the people expect of us and it is the only way we can continue to justify our presence here.


“This chamber is ready to receive and consider expeditiously additional proposals from the executive to create a new Nigerian economy and get us out of this recession as quickly as possible.”


He said that the problem should not be politicised so that solutions could be easily reached.


The Senate, thereafter, adjourned plenary to Wednesday as part of its tradition to mourn a lawmaker in the House of Representatives, Adewale Oluwatayo.


Mr. Oluwatayo died on July 21, a day after the National Assembly proceeded on recess.


(NAN)

The Supreme Court on Tuesday affirmed the election of Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi State.

The seven-man panel headed by Justice Sylvester Ngwata affirmed the election after listening to the closing statements of all the counsel.


The court in a unanimous judgement dismissed the appeal filed by Hon. James Faleke, the running mate to late Abubakar Audu, the initial candidate of the All Progressives Congress, and a former Governor of the State, Captain Idris Wada, who was also the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party for the election.



The court also said it will provide reasons for its decision on September 30.

THE Anambra state governor, Willie Obiano, on Monday, September 19, said if the  All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) is given a chance, a bag of rice will cost only N9000.



Governor Willie Obiano of Anambra state has said that the cost of living for Nigerians would be drastically reduced if APGA is given a chance, come 2019.

Obiano hinted that APGA has prepared its house, and would field a presidential candidate in the 2019 general election.

The governor, who is also the Chairman, Board of Trustees of the party, said if voted into power, an APGA national government would drastically reduce the cost of a living in Nigeria.

The Punch Newspapers reports that, Obiano stated this in Awka, the Anambra state capital, during the inauguration of ‘Governor Willie Obiano Support Group’, Awka South Chapter.

Represented by his special adviser on Political Matters, Mr. Chinedu Obidigwe, Obiano said APGA would want to prove to Nigerians that the party had the solution to the country’s woes.

He said: “Anambra is a case study for good governance. If APGA will be given the opportunity to rule Nigeria a bag of rice will reduce N9,000.

“What Anambra has done in agriculture, which resulted in the state having its own brand of rice (Anambra rice) would be replicated at a bigger scale should APGA win the presidential election.

“The state has used scarce resources to resuscitate the state’s economy, leading to infrastructural development and timely

THE Nigerian Army has dismissed the recent reports of 8 people being killed in a church in Chibok, Borno state by Boko Haram terrorists.



Director of Army Public Relations (DAPR), Col. Sani Usman clarified the allegations.

He said: “The Theatre Command, Operation Lafiya Dole wishes to clarify that alleged suspected Boko Haram terrorists attack at Chibok is not correct.”

“What happened was that, two persons were murdered at Kwamjilari village, (which is over 30 kilometres from Chibok, and very close to Sambisa forest), by suspected remnants of Boko Haram terrorists looking for food.”

The Army Spokesman reiterated that the victims weren’t killed outside or near a church as being reported.

He stated that “the people from the said village are all in Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) camp in Chibok”.

Usman said that those who went back to the village without authorisation were moved back to Chibok two weeks ago, adding that “those killed went back on their own contrary to security advise”.

He assured that a patrol team that was sent from Chibok went to the village this morning.

He also noted that adequate measures would be taken to ensure no one go back to the village for now.

THE Rivers State Chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has slammed the disastrous track record of Governor Nyesom Wike, describing his administration as a curse to the State.


 








“It is an indisputable fact that Rivers State is under a curse with Wike as our Governor. He stands out as the only Governor in this present dispensation who has borrowed over N150 billion in just over a year, after squandering over N70B internally generated revenue and over N200B revenue from the Federation Account without any tangible project to his name,” Rivers APC lamented in a statement issued on Monday in the State capital, Port Harcourt.


 


The statement signed by the State APC Chairman, Dr. Davies Ibiamu Ikanya, regretted that instead of applying the enormous resources at his disposal to positively touch the lives of Rivers citizens, Wike is busy white-washing and commissioning projects initiated and duly completed by the immediate past administration of Rt. Hon. Chibuike Amaechi.
 
“Wike, whose middle name is Squandermania, has busied himself wasting Rivers State lean finance by hosting all manner of clubs and associations in Port Harcourt. He has refused to pay our civil servants and pensioners their salaries/dues or to embark on any meaningful project since he was forced upon Rivers State. To further compound the problems of Rivers people, Wike has turned the State to Rivers of Blood where security agents, men of God, politicians and mother of triplets are butchered or killed in cold blood by arming criminals in the state with fake amnesty by not retrieving the arms which they use to kill and maim innocent people,” the statement said.
 
Rivers APC commended Governor Adams Oshiomhole of Edo State for advising Wike to try to be man enough by paying Rivers civil servants their salaries and to stop squandering the state’s resources on things that do not concern or contribute to the growth of Rivers State. It urged Wike to learn from the Edo State Government, which though not economically viable like Rivers State, does not only pay her workers but went ahead to increase the  minimum wage from N18,000 to N25,000 per month.
 
The party advised Edo people not to worry themselves about Wike’s reported recruitment of thugs to rig the September 28 governorship election in favour of his Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).


“We encourage Edo State voters not to be afraid of Wike’s militants as the security organs are capable of checkmating them. The voters should turn out en masse and vote Godwin Obaseki, the APC candidate, to sustain and improve on the revolution started by the Comrade Governor for a better and greater Edo State,” the statement said.

A Chief Magistrate Court sitting in Ado-Ekiti has sentenced a herdsman, Ali Haruna, to two years imprisonment for grazing his cows in a farmland in Ado-Ekiti.








The Magistrate, Idowu Ayenimo, in his judgement, said the accused was arraigned in his court on Jan 22, 2016 on a two-count charge of willful and unlawful damage of farm crops at Ago Aduloju in Ado-Ekiti.


The 18-year-old Mr. Haruna was confirmed by the four prosecuting witnesses to have been caught in the midnight grazing his cow in the farm belonging to Abdulahi Yaho and Bello Mohammed.


The cash crops said to have destroyed by the cows in the farm included cassava, maize, okro and pepper, all valued at N3 million.


The defendant told the court that the owner of the cows lived in Ilorin, Kwara State.


The magistrate said the court did not believe Mr. Haruna’s defence as it was not credible.


He held that the Police prosecutor, Olasunkanmi Bankole, had proved his case beyond reasonable doubt.


He thereby convicted the defendant as charged without option of fine.



The magistrate ordered that the sentence should run concurrently, explaining that the term was minimal because the offence was committed before the Grazing Law was promulgated in the state.


The Ekiti State government recently outlawed the grazing of livestock in open areas without permission.


Defaulters face sentences and fines.
The defence counsel, Chris Omokhafe, had prayed the court to be liberal in the dispensation of justice, saying that he was a first offender.


(NAN)

OUST former chairman of House Appropriation Committee, Abdulmumin Jibrin, on Monday described accusations that he owned and operated a bank account in the United Kingdom while serving as a federal lawmaker as the “latest assault” on his person.



In a response on his Twitter page Monday morning, Mr. Jibrin said the allegations had no merit.

“The document is fake. I do not own such account or balance; neither do I have anything whatsoever to do with the said address at Essex,” he said.

A group, Anti-Corruption Unit, had distributed what it said was the printout of Mr. Jibrin’s account balance in the UK, showing that the lawmaker had about £1.5 million stashed in an ING Group branch in the Channel Islands.

“Jibrin’s ownership of foreign account contravenes the provisions of the 1999 Constitution which bar public officer from owning and operating foreign account,” the ACU said in an accompanying statement signed by its director, Ifeanyi Okonkwo.

“Jibrin opened the account with his address at 453 Crankbrook Road, Ilford Essex IG2 6EW,” Mr. Okonkwo said.

A reverse search done on the address showed that it was used by a company in which a person with the name, Abdulmumin Jibrin, born in September 1976, was a director until 2012.
Mr. Jibrin, the lawmaker, was born on September 9, 1976.

Mr. Jibrin also alleged a link between the allegations and Speaker Yakubu Dogara, with whom he had been locked in a fierce political and media battle for months.

“This blackmail is part of a wider propaganda arranged by the desperate Speaker Dogara through his Deputy Chief of Staff Hon. CID Maduabum,” Mr. Jibrin said.

Mr. Dogara’s media adviser, Turaki Hassan, declined comments on Monday.

Mr. Jibrin was compelled to address the scandal after coming under fire on social media Sunday night, sparring with Kayode Ogundamisi at midnight Monday.

Mr. Ogundamisi, a social critic, demanded explanations from Mr. Jibrin about the newly-emerged document linking him with a foreign account.

After initial back and forth, which included screenshots of websites that matched Mr. Jibrin’s address in the UK to the address on the bank account, Mr. Jibrin later said to Mr. Ogundamisi: “Oga, now that you have found that I own the property and the account, what’s next?”

But a few hours later, Mr. Jibrin drew criticisms from Nigerians who said he was being deliberately elusive.

Mr. Jibrin said he would pursue legal actions over the development.

“I will be reporting these hatchet men to the police and EFCC this morning and my lawyers are taking the necessary legal actions. Enough is enough!” he said.

The allegations came as the lawmakers are returning to Abuja after a two-month-long recess.

Political analysts predict a major brawl could break out if the House moves a motion to suspend Mr. Jibrin.