CHIEF OBAFEMI AWOLOWO

The last two years of Awolowo as Premier of Western Region was concentrated on efforts to write his name in the book of Legends.

He incorporated: Western Hotels which invested in:
1) _Premier Hotel,
2) _Lafia hotels in Ibadan
3) _Lagos Airport Hotel respectively.

He set up:
Western Nigeria Development Corporation to finance mega corporations. This was established in 1958.
It encouraged plantation development with six agricultural plantations covering 20,517 acres in collaboration with Cooperative societies, eleven additional plantations covering 8,468 acres with crops ranging from Cocoa , Rubber, Oil Palm, Citrus, Cashew and Coffee had been put in place all over the region.

WNDC, a clearing house for multitude of companies, established for the rapid industrial development and revolution of the region.
Among them were:
1. _WAPCO at Ewekoro for cement, with enough capacity to serve the whole country.
2. _Nigerite Ltd, producing asbestos and roofing sheets,
3. _National Bank,
4. _Wema Bank,
5. _Nigerian General Insurance,
6. _Great Nigeria Insurance,
7. _Gravil Enthoven and coy,
8. _Vegetables Oil Ltd,
9. _Cocoa Processing Industry Ogba Ikeja,
10. _Odua Textile Mills Ltd,
11. _Wrought Iron Ltd,
12. _Union beverages Ltd, 13. Sungass company,
14. _Wemabod estates, owner of Western House tallest building, then on Broad Street, and other estates,
15. _Western livestocks,
16. _Fisheries services Ltd,
17. _Caxton Press,
18. _Epe Plywood,
19. _Asakar Paints,
20. _Nigeria Crafts and Bags Ltd,
21. _Nipol Plastics in Ibadan,
22. _Phoenix Motors.

Also, he opened up biggest industrial layouts in:
i. Ibadan, Oluyole and
ii. Lagos Oba Akran axis and
iii. Ilupeju in Mushin axis with over 120 factories for mass production of different needs & gave birth to:
23. _Nigeria Textile Mills,
24. _West Africa Breweries,
25. _Dunlop Tyres,
26. _Crittal Hope Aluminum,
27. _Tower Aluminium,
28. _Solel Boneh,
29. _Nidogas,
30. _Nigeria Wire and Cables in Ilupeju.

Odua Investments was the largest conglomerates in Nigeria as at 2004 with assets worth over N10 trillion.

Chief Jeremiah Obafemi Awolowo paid the Western Nigeria Civil servants, the highest salaries far above Federal government.
So much jobs were created by vast industrialisation drives.
All these were achieved without Oil revenue between1951-1959. He also touched the road construction with bitumen & laid road network covering over 2,000 kilometers throughout the region.

Other achievements of his regime are:
1. _Cocoa House, the tallest building in West Africa for decades,
2. _Liberty Stadium, the most modern in the entire African,
3. _Western Nigeria Television & Broadcasting Service (WNTV/WNBS), the first Radio & Television Stations in Africa,
4. _Many General Hospitals and Dispensaries in rural area.
5. _Free Education at primary school level.
6. _His effort in Cooperative society development gave birth to establishment of Cooperative Bank in 1953 and Cooperative College.

The eight years most of this present Governors spend, was the same with Pa Awolowo, covering what comprises 8 states nowadays, yet he achieved so much. Most of our present day Governors could not mention one world class company, corporate institution or industry set up to create jobs for teaming youths being turned out year in, year out, by our ivory towers.

Today leaders should at least emulate our late sage foot steps instead of all the temporary empowerment programs (Motor cycle, Keke Napep, Pepper grinding machine, Cassava grinding machine, Deep freezer, Fridge, Clipper etc) being used to cajole the electorates at the turn of election every four years.
A time will come in this nation that people aspiring for position must show a well laid out plan before the electorate.
The cash and carry politics will fail as it's the practise in developed nation.
Let us always look forward to lasting legacies.

OBAFEMI AWOLOWO was obviously ahead of his peers and till today no living or deceased Nigerian has surpassed his achievements.
You wonder why the southwest Nigeria did well.

In the 1990s, Nigeria Textile Mills, Oba Akran Ikeja alone employed over 4,000 workers before the military mismanagement of economy killed the company with unfriendly company policies

Can we ever find a leader like this man in Nigeria again?

Goodmarlian:
did they complain face ur southwest oga.

Alaba is a market in the southwest and Non Igbos are complaining.

Rwanda has made giant strides to recover from their wars.

But they still have a long way to go to achieve real freedoms

May his soul rest in peace

As seen from the images above, according to the constitution in a very popular market in Lagos Nigeria, dominated by traders from the south eastern part of Nigeria, only people from Anambra, Enugu and Imo states can contest for the association chairman.

While this may make sense at first glance because the market is dominated by traders from the south east, it is reprehensible that this will even happen at all anywhere in Nigeria.

This should be soundly condemned. Anybody who is a Nigerian should be able to thrive, run for elections and be elected anywhere.

We have to have this conversation soon.

Many have recommended that the state of origin should be dropped, where we are all Nigerians and not Igbos, Yorubas or Hausas.

Alternatively, if we want to retain our cultural heritage, we should stop pretending that we are Nigerians first and embrace our heritage.

Since Vice President Yemi Osinbajo formerly declared his candidacy for the presidency, the theme of treachery has been circulating in the political space notably propounded by the camp of Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu. Osinbajo’s entry has been depicted as an act of disloyalty towards a political benefactor, a rebellion by a heedless son against a benevolent father and a grand betrayal.

On the morning of April 15, Good Friday, residents of Abuja woke up to the sight of posters across the city featuring a photograph of the Vice President with the caption “The Judas who betrayed his master…Repent because Jesus is coming.” The message was in spectacularly bad taste but it could not be clearer. The Tinubu camp thought nothing of insulting the sensibilities of Christians on Good Friday and Muslims – for Jesus is a revered figure in Islam – by equating Tinubu with Jesus. Given all this talk of betrayal, the question of who actually betrayed whom merits closer examination.

To begin with, the idea that Professor Yemi Osinbajo was marinating in the wilderness of obscurity before Tinubu swooped in to kindly fish him out is patently preposterous. Osinbajo was already an accomplished law professor at the University of Lagos, had established a successful legal practice and served as an adviser to the then Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Prince Bola Ajibola, all before the being appointed Attorney General of Lagos State by the then Governor Tinubu 1999.

As Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Osinbajo undertook comprehensive reforms of the justice sector that transformed the Lagos court system. When the Tinubu administration created Local Council Development Areas in 2003 – an act which led the Olusegun Obasanjo-led Federal Government to freeze allocations to the state, Osinbajo led a legal challenge to affirm that Lagos had acted well within its rights under the law. His challenge of the Federal Government earned Lagos a victory at the Supreme Court and pushed the boundaries of true federalism even further. Tinubu is on the public record praising Osinbajo’s legal expertise and leadership of the Lagosian cause during that testing period.

On to the next pillar of falsehood. Tinubu’s much storied and intentionally exaggerated role in the emergence of Osinbajo as the APC’s vice presidential candidate in 2015 has been comprehensively debunked. While he did play a role, so did other figures in the APC and the ultimate decision to pick Osinbajo as his running mate was made by the then presidential candidate, Muhammadu Buhari.

Over the years. Tinubu and his minions have floated a narrative in which the Asiwaju sent Osinbajo to the Villa in his stead in the same way that Sir Ahmadu Bello reportedly sent Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa whom he described as “my lieutenant” to run the Federal Government in Lagos in 1959. There are those who saw Osinbajo merely as Tinubu’s lieutenant, a proxy ensconced in the Presidency to represent his master’s interests. There was a popular rumour during the 2015 presidential campaign that Prof. Osinbajo would resign for Tinubu to become VP. None of these was even remotely true.

What has inspired these projectiles of venomous malice that the Tinubu camp has been hurling at Osinbajo is a fairly simple grievance. As Vice President, Osinbajo had taken the Oath of Allegiance and pledged loyalty to Nigeria. In the discharge of his duties, he has remained steadfastly loyal to his principal, President Muhammadu Buhari. In expecting and demanding that Osinbajo should serve as his proxy in the Villa, Tinubu was expecting and demanding that the Vice President betray the President and violate his oath to his country. While remaining entirely respectfully of his erstwhile boss, Osinbajo made it clear that this was out of the question.

Osinbajo’s track record in public life is that of a public servant that discharges his duties diligently and with utmost loyalty to his principals. This was the case when he served as Attorney General in the Tinubu administration in Lagos and has been the case throughout his time serving as President Buhari’s deputy. In seeking control of Osinbajo, Tinubu was effectively asking him to be disloyal to President Buhari – something the Vice President would never do. Thus, in actual fact, Osinbajo has not earned the enmity of Tinubu and his minions by engaging in betrayal but by refusing to engage in betrayal. This is what set the stage for the real act of treachery.

In late 2019, after the All Progressives Congress had clinched a national victory and a second term in office, Tinubu conspired with Abba Kyari, the late Chief of Staff to the President and a cabal of political actors to cripple the Vice President’s office and emasculate him politically. This conspiracy resulted in the removal of the National Social Investment Programme from the Vice President’s supervision and the dissolution of the Economic Management Team which he chaired. Several of his aides were also summarily fired from the villa or redeployed.

The calculated deconstruction of Osinbajo’s office was aimed at destroying him politically and hounding him out of office. But what was the reason for this assault?

Events before and during the 2019 elections had revealed something unexpected. The Vice President had emerged as the APC’s frontline political asset after Buhari. He was genuinely popular, truly charismatic and his outings were drawing huge crowds. His identification as the proponent of the Social Investment Programmes which benefitted everyone from unemployed youths to market women had made him immensely popular. Osinbajo’s rising political profile alarmed Tinubu and other political players. In a short space of time, Osinbajo had moved from being an irritant to being a threat; a political star that needed to be permanently dimmed and Tinubu decided that his erstwhile comrade had to be brutally cut down – a project for which he found willing collaborators.

In orchestrating his spiteful persecution of Osinbajo, it did not matter to Tinubu that millions of people who had benefitted and stood to benefit from the administration’s successful social investment programme would suffer or that the programme itself would be terminally damaged. It did not matter that destroying the Economic Management Team – the entity responsible for economic policy coordination led by the Vice President – would sabotage the Buhari administration which he claimed to support.

This point about the EMT is crucial because another spurious narrative that has been making the rounds is one that portrays Osinbajo as being in charge of the economy. In fact, since the dissolution of the EMT in 2019, Osinbajo has not been responsible for economic policy coordination. As chair of the EMT, Osinbajo oversaw the country’s recovery from recession in 2017.

It is now disingenuous for Tinubu having helped devise the dissolution of the EMT precisely because he didn’t want the Vice President to be in charge of the economy to turn round now to blame Nigeria’s economic woes on Osinbajo. But it is typical of the man – to orchestrate a disaster and then attempt to profit politically from his mischief; to be an arsonist and then pose as a fireman purporting to rescue us from his own act of arson.

Driven by raw, self-aggrandizing spite, Tinubu carried out his subversion of Osinbajo’s office not caring that its practical effect was to ground the administration and do grave damage to the Nigerian people. Those who detect an overweening sense of self-arrogated privilege in Tinubu’s pursuit of the presidency will recognize this streak of prideful and arrogant entitlement that led him to sabotage the Buhari administration.

Despite the assault on his office and his subjection to political character assassination, Osinbajo has conducted himself with the utmost maturity and civility. He has acted as an Omoluabi. In the North, we would say that he has displayed amana and mutunci – good faith, honour, trust and decency.

Talent-spotting or Puppet Mastery?
From the foregoing, it is clear that Tinubu is a man for whom loyalty counts for very little and treachery of the sort that he inflicted on the Vice President comes naturally to him. The Asiwaju’s minions often describe him as having a rare eye for talent and a habit of promoting his proteges into positions of authority. He is, they say, a man that makes others and they reel out examples such as Babatunde Raji Fashola, his erstwhile Chief of Staff who succeeded him as Governor of Lagos, Kayode Fayemi, Governor of Ekiti and Osinbajo himself among others.
The truth is far uglier. Tinubu’s unbridled thirst for power and control has led him to fall out with nearly all his so-called “proteges.” This is true of Fashola, Fayemi, Osinbajo and most recently Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, the Minister of Interior, who also served in the Tinubu administration in the 2000s. What should be obvious is that Tinubu isn’t trying to install proteges; he is trying to install puppets that he can control and he inevitably falls out with those that resist his puppetry. This pattern was apparent in 2011 when he almost prevented Fashola from securing a second term as Governor of Lagos until it became apparent that denying the popular performer would be a staggering act of political folly.

Those with longer memories will recall that Tinubu’s first Deputy Governor, Kofoworola Bucknor-Akerele, was hounded out of office after suffering indignities such as being locked out of cabinet meetings all for the sin of not being sufficiently subservient. They will also recall that her successor as Deputy Governor, Femi Pedro, suffered similar ignominy at the hands of Tinubu because he had the effrontery to run for Governor. When Pedro tendered his resignation, Tinubu rejected his resignation letter and then orchestrated his impeachment by the House of Assembly. The trademark remorseless spite and mean-spiritedness are part of the Tinubu brand.

With an eye on manipulating the electorate in the Southwest, Tinubu’s camp has invoked the infamous First Republic political feud between Obafemi Awolowo and Samuel Ladoke Akintola. In this analogy, Tinubu is supposed to be the second coming of Awolowo while Osinbajo is cast as Akintola, who was accused of conspiring with Northerners led by Ahmadu Bello to betray Awo. But this analogy is faulty.

Ever since he sponsored cringeworthy billboards during the early 2000s in Lagos comparing his round-rimmed glasses to those worn by Awo, Tinubu has sought to appropriate the mantle of Yoruba leadership. But Tinubu and his minions are perverting history. For it is Tinubu who conspired with a Northerner to betray Osinbajo, his kinsman, in an attempt to destroy him politically. And it is, in fact, Osinbajo who hails from Ikenne, the hometown of Awo, and is related to the sage by marriage, that has the greater claim to affinity with the legendary Southwest leader.

The social investment programmes which Osinbajo helmed before Tinubu sabotaged them were the closest in scale and substance to the programmes that Awolowo used to transform the Southwest. In many respects, the NSIP was the fulfillment of Awolowo’s progressive welfarist vision for Nigeria applied on a national scale and it is Tinubu who worked to subvert the modern manifestation of this vision. It is clear which figure can lay claim to filial and ideological affinity with Awo and it is not Tinubu.

Everyone familiar with Tinubu’s modus operandi agrees that it would not have made any difference if someone other than Osinbajo was Vice President. The Asiwaju’s exacting demands for absolute fealty and subservience – even where that means crossing ethical lines and committing illegal acts – mean that a falling out with his so-called proteges is always inevitable. It is one of the reasons why Fashola’s successor, Ambode, lasted only one term. It is impossible for any self-respecting, dignified and self-possessed politician to bear the yoke of Tinubu’s endless demands for fawning obeisance. And in all these instances, Tinubu has perfected the art of being the victimizer who poses as the victimized. In this case, he is the betrayer masquerading as the betrayed.

Tinubu is therefore a throwback to the sort of primitive godfatherism that is interested only in capturing the state either directly or through proxies for the purpose of rent-seeking, theft and predatory extraction. His near absolute control of Lagos – a feature that has made that city one of the most unlivable places in the world – is prime evidence of what a Tinubu presidency holds for Nigeria and it is catastrophically ugly. Nigeria deserves better.

https://equitynewstrack.com/how-tinubu-betrayed-osinbajo-by-hisham-haroun/

Business mogul, Mr. Yemi Idowu, has refuted an online report claiming that he has been declared wanted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
The report alleged that 250,000 hectares of land in Lekki, Lagos belonging to one Mr, Patrick Ononenyi Okonkwo was converted by Mr Idowu and Chief Waheed Eletu Odibo.
But in a swift reaction, Mr. Idowu said: “I found out that some people were trying to tarnish my image online.”
“I have never been invited to court by the EFCC or any other law enforcement agent and I was never arrested by them. I am perfectly safe and sound. It is fake news whose purveyors I am determined to take legal action against. I thank my family members and friends for their concern over this malicious fake news. Kindly ignore the fake news. Thank you all for your concerns.”

All efforts to contact Mr Patrick Ononenyi Okonkwo have proved futile. The Lagos based business man and his associates on social media had flooded the internet last weekend claiming that Chief Waheed Eletu Odibo a Lagos White cap chief and prince of the Eletu Odibo royal Family tried to defraud him of 250,000 hectares of land in lekki. His associates also claimed on his behalf that Mr Yemi Idowu a respected property developer had colluded with Prince Eletu Odibo of depriving him of his birthright.

These allegations were quickly debunked at the weekend by Prince Eletu Odibo and Mr Yemi Idowu in separate press releases.
Many social media outlets were quick to pick up the stories before it was discovered to be fake news.
Ramon Ibrahim, an estate agent confirmed that Patrick Ononenyi Okonkwo had a dispute with Eletu Odibo royal family over 3 plots of land he bought 15 years ago and the matter has been in the civil court for years. ,"It seems Mr Patrick has now resorted to other methods to blackmail the Eletu Odibo royal family to resolve the dispute"
All efforts to contact Mr Patrick Ononenyi Okonkwo over the weekend proved futile thereby creating the impression that he has gone underground to avoid further press scrutiny.
http://www.nigerianmag.com/2020/09/patrick-ononenyi-okonkwo-goes.html

By Niyi Busari

The immediate past minister of Youth and Sports Development, Barrister Solomon Dalung has revealed that the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) tactically delayed the U23 Eagles’ flight from Atlanta to Rio because the federation wanted to extort $470,000 from the Sports Ministry as well as the federal government, BSNSports.com.ng can report.

Solomon Dalung while speaking with BSN Sports in an exclusive interview in Abuja said that the NFF had told the ministry that they had to travel to America for camping for preparation ahead of the 2016 Olympics held in Brazil and that they had a sponsor who would take care of all the expenses.

In his words: “In 2016, the camping arrangement was made in such a way that the ministry was responsible for provision of training grounds and camping. All federations that qualified to participate in the 2016 Olympics agreed to use the provided training and camping facilities but the NFF said that they wanted to travel to Atlanta in US.

“As at the time they wanted to leave for the camping, the money has not been released by the federal government. When i told them that the funds has not been released, they said they have a sponsor who will be responsible for the camping expenses,” he continued.

Dalung said that he stopped the ministry from paying the One hundred and seventy thousand dollars ($170,000) when he discovered that the federation wanted to extort the ministry hiding the pretence of being stranded.

“When they arrived Atlanta and they were about to depart for Rio. The ministry made an arrangement for tickets of all players and officials and contacted the NFF to provide the list of those who were in camp. They said they have an agent called Passion Jairo (whose contact was sent to me) that i should speak with him on the travelling arrangements. When i contacted him, he told me that it would cost $170,000 to convey the players and team officials from Atalanta to Rio in Brazil. Though, the amount was above the initial budget but i directed that the money be paid to him. However, at that moment, there have been media campaign that they were stranded in Atlanta.” Dalung added.

The former stated that an investigative Nigerian journalist based in the US revealed to him that the U23 Eagles were not stranded in Atlanta.

“Meanwhile, a investigative Nigerian journalist based in America, Mr Marthin Okonye, heard the news about their being stranded in America and went to their camp to investigate. When he got there, he discovered that the team were not stranded. Mr Okonye revealed to me that the NFF initial plan was to play friendly matches to raise funds. The FIFA Agent, according to the journalist, failed to get any warm up game for the Nigerian team and when that failed they wanted to hide under the disguise of being stranded to get money by all means from the Nigeria government. He also told me that they had an initial arrangements with Delta Airlines who offered to lift them for free.

With two days to the Nigeria versus Japan match, the news was everywhere that the U23 Eagles were stranded in America, then, a patriotic Nigerian businessman, Mr Yemi Idowu who is based in the USA arranged a jet to convey the Nigerian athletes and officials but the offer was turned down saying that the jet was small.

“It was at this point that a patriotic Nigerian business man, Mr Yemi Idowu called me that he can afford to get an aircraft to take the team to Rio. The gentleman said he will use his credit card to secure a 30-seater jet which supposed to cost Three hundred thousand dollars ($300,000) even when i told him that there was no money on ground.

Dalung explained further on how they rejected the 30-seater aircraft that was meant for the players and officials who were 25 but the number was increased to 35 because extra 10 people who are family and friends of the federation traveled with the team from Nigeria to Atlanta.

“After he had agreed to provide the jet, i told the NFF that an aircraft was available, they rejected the aircraft saying it was small and that it can not contained all the athletes. I was surprised because i knew that the number of the athletes and officials were 25 and the jet could contain 30 passengers. The NFF argued that said they were 35, I then advised that they should go with the 30 passengers while the remaining 5 people travel with commercial tickets, yet they refused to board the jet two days to their first match.

Meanwhile, when i insisted that the ministry will not pay the $170,000 if they can not board the jet provided by the Nigerian businessman, they then call the vice president, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo that the Nigerian national team was stranded.

“During this time, they have contacted the Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo that they were stranded and that the ministry had failed to provide them with neither aircraft nor flight ticket. And because of the embarrassment and emergency involved, the Vice president asked them the cost of the service of moving them from Atlanta to Brazil and they told him that it will cost $300,000.

“The VP then summoned the ministry of finance to make available $300,000. Afterwards, he realized that it was better to send an aircraft to convey the team to the venue of the competition. It was then that he (Osinbajo) decided to call me to find out what was happening and why the ministry failed to provide neither the flight tickets nor aircraft for the team.

“After i explained all that happened to the Vice president, i then told him that they were not stranded and sent the details of Mr Yemi Idowu’s jet to him, after he confirmed, the VP decided to stop the decision of sending aircraft or the $300,000 to the agent.

“After so much embarrassment to Nigeria, on the day of their first match against Japan in Rio, that the Delta Airline went to Atlanta to convey them to Brazil. The Nigerian U23 national team arrived the venue of the game eight hours to the match.

“I was even more surprised when their traveling agent called me and said i should send the $170,000 to him, thinking i don’t know that Delta Airline conveyed the team for free.” He concluded.

https://bsnsports.com.ng/why-nff-delayed-u23-eagles-flight-to-2016-rio-olympics-8-hours-before-nigeria-vs-japan-match-dalung/

I knew this would happen once it was removed from Osonbajos office.

Instead of them to focus on governance, they are doing politics.

rusher14:


And in 2012?

I thought you said We performed better in 2012 than recent history, Solomon Dalung is a joke, he doesnt even deserve to be minister in the first place, talk less of youth and sports.

He has not contributed to sports in any way, instead, he has diminished sports in Nigeria. The post is very clear. please read.

cc; lalasticlala

rusher14:
Untrue.

Under his stewardship Nigeria had a better showing at the Olympics than recorded in recent history.

Qualified for the senior world cup, won the U-17 world cup in 2015.

At which Olympics? the one we only won 1 bronze?

WHAT MANNER OF MINISTER?
Since his appointment, Solomon Dalung has been the rare public figure that just cannot get anything right. Nigeria has had its fair share of loathsome ministers but the public derision for Dalung is on another level entirely. His sins are a vile mix of incompetence with tactlessness, a disturbing lack of empathy plus an abysmal failure to comprehend the very basic idea of what public service is about.

His insistence on dressing up to official functions in brown Khakis and a beret- red or black depending on his mood, in the manner of some wannabe revolutionary has not exactly helped his public perception.
But even the strongest critics of Dalung’s fashion sense - or lack of it - would have let him be if he went about his duties with a sense of competence, or even urgency. For the man from Langtang, it has been one incredible public gaffe after the other, the frequency of which has been quite surprising. It seems that there is barely time to recover from the last Dalung embarrassment before another occurs.

Litany of Mis-steps
One of Solomon Dalung’s early assignments as minister was his controversial attempt to ‘’settle’’ the leadership crisis in the National Football Federation (NFF), one in which both Christopher Giwa, of Giwa FC and Amaju Pinnick, both laid claim to the Presidency of the NFF. This was a strange, and needless move by Dalung as FIFA had officially recognised Amaju Pinnick’s leadership and Giwa’s appeal was subsequently thrown out by the Court of Arbitration for Sports. The crisis reached a boiling point when policemen were drafted to seal the NFF headquarters in order to protect law and order.

Dalung was once quoted as saying that the Sports Ministry is more lucrative than Petroleum and it may well be so, however his ministry was unable to account for N2.9 billion released by the Federal Government for participation of Nigeria’s contingent at the 2015 All Africa Games in Congo and preparations for the 2016 Rio Summer Olympics. This was partly responsible for Team Nigeria’s poor showing at the 2016 Rio Summer Olympics as the Federal Government was unwilling to release fresh funds pending the balancing of accounts. The Minister on assumption of office promised to eradicate corruption from the ministry.
The road to the Rio Olympics was indeed rough and it is a wonder the country was eventually able to get on the medal table with one medal. At the opening ceremony, team Nigeria greeted the world in their plain tracksuits after it so happened that the designer outfits budgeted for the occasion failed to arrive Rio on time.
Before this, the Samson Siasia led Under-23 football team that was camped in Atlanta prior to the Olympics found themselves stranded as they could not get a suitable plane to lift them from Atlanta to Rio. At a Q&A session, Dalung who alongside the National Olympic Committee was under fire for the logistics mess retorted sharply at journalists, “Who took them there? What are they there for? Because they are under 23 and they went to the US. Now they are having problems, does that become our business?” The team eventually arrived Rio with the help of philanthropist Yemi Idowu, a few hours before their opening match against Japan. They were also responsible for Nigeria’s sole medal, a bronze, at Rio.
During the November international break, while serious nations busied themselves with Russia 2018 World Cup qualifiers, Minister Dalung had some advice for the President. He dished without an ounce of irony, or shame, “The cup that we (Nigeria) can win is the African Cup of Nations. There is nothing again that will take us to another man’s balcony in the name of the World Cup. We already have the Commonwealth Games and the Olympics. For these, we can attend such meets.”
He later claimed to be quoted out of context (his go-to excuse following every gaffe) but this announcement prompted Vanguard newspapers to pronounce him as the ‘’anti-sports minister’’ in a stinging editorial that also called for the President to reject his advice.
While commending the Paralympic team for their impressive performance at the Rio Summer Olympics, Dalung in an interview with Lagos based Brila FM, played down the importance of adequate preparations for big picture events like the Olympics, hinting of a shocking cluelessness as to how systems work. Hear him, “the disabled athletes have shown that all you need is a winning mentality and not too much preparation, they trained under the same condition with their able bodied counterparts but they are winning medals now.” This from a Federal Minister of Sports.


Bungling Dalung
Other examples of Minister Dalung’s acts of incompetence and inability to measure up to the demands of his office include:
- The NFF’S (which he supervises) bungled and shoddy participation in the burial activities of football hero, Stephen Keshi,
- The embarrassing incident of athletes being directed by Ministry of Sports officials to make their own way to Rio, prompting the kick-off of GoFundMe campaigns in some quarters.
- The saga of the Super Falcons in December that Dalung got his biggest push back. The female national football team, the Super Falcons won a record tenth African Women Cup of Nations but despite their efforts at bringing honour to the country yet again, the girls were thoroughly humiliated while the world looked on. Learning from experience, the Falcons refused to leave their hotel rooms in Abuja and were forced to embark on protests at the National Assembly building before their allowances and bonuses were eventually paid. It was indeed a show of shame as the country watched in dismay, the shoddy Nigerian reward for excellence in service. Dalung was caught in the thick of it and was forced to defend his role and his government.
To the world’s amazement, Solomon Dalung revealed that the NFF was not particularly prepared for another Falcons win, hence the delays in processing their payments. Dalung’s cringe worthy and embarrassing defence was summed up in a quote that laid bare the inner workings of his ministry and its fatal romance with mediocrity. The Sports Minister told reporters, “Don’t forget that nobody even knew the team (Super Falcons) will emerge victorious. If we were confident they will emerge victorious, all the Federation would have done is to plan for process of participation and entitlement.’’
It was the quote heard around the world and Nigerians, weary of Dalung’s streak of reckless comments and unguarded actions were quick to call for his resignation.

Youth Service or Servants?
The National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), another agency under Dalung’s supervision, has been in the news mostly for negative reasons. In 2016, three Batch B (Stream 1) corps members participating in the orientation course lost their lives in various circumstances at NYSC camps in Bayelsa, Kano and Zamfara states.
The NYSC was quick to absolve itself of any negligence in the corpers’ deaths but the tragedies placed a beam on NYSC practices and the culture of care for the young lives placed under government care via the compulsory scheme. Distraught parents and relatives of the deceased demanded that responsible officials be brought however nothing has happened yet.
According to news reports picked by various national dailies, the Presidency is considering a cabinet reshuffle with another four year tenure secured at the 2019 polls. Going by Buhari’s unhurried style, many aren’t hopeful that he pulls off a reshuffle soon enough despite the fact that a good number of his ministers have not pulled their weights in the dispatch of their duties and meeting targets for their respective portfolios.
Nigerians do not expect the Sports Minister to survive a reshuffle going by public outcry and his dismal performance in office. Some other ministers are underperforming as well, but while they have mostly stayed out of the public glare, Dalung’s follies, gaffes and mis-steps are well chronicled and are well amplified in the public space.


http://www.nigerianeye.com/2019/05/solomon-lalong-worst-minister-in.html

The Federal Government has come under heavy criticism over the appointment of a sacked director as permanent secretary



Mr Louis Edozien was removed as Executive Director, Technical Services at the Niger Delta Power Holding Company (NDPHC) in 2014 for presenting neither discharge nor exemption certificate from National Youth Service Corps (NYSC).



The anomalies in Edozien’s credentials were exposed in a report by Mrs. Maryam Danna Mohammed, who was NDPHC’s General Manager (Audit and Compliance).









Others sacked from NDPHC for not presenting their NYSC certificates or evidence of exemption based on that report submitted in 2013, were Mr Anthony U. Muoneke (Executive Director, Finance and Administration); and Miss Ije Onejeme, (General Manager, Contract Management).





The NDPHC, a Federal Government enterprise, was established in 2005 to serve as the legal vehicle to contract for, hold, manage and operate the assets of Nigerian Independent Power Project (NIPP).



But while Edozien found his way back as Permanent Secretary, Power, in November 2015, Mrs Mohammed was disengaged in 2016.



Beside his stint at NDPHC, Edozien did not work in the civil service all his life.



Sources told Daily Trust that Edozien was appointed permanent secretary in spite of the recommendations of the security agencies especially the DSS, adding that highly placed officials in the presidency facilitated the process.



On the NYSC certificate issue, one of the officials said it was not a criterion for appointment as a permanent secretary. “Unlike the last exercise which involved written examination conducted by the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, those done earlier were at the prerogative of Mr President,” one of the sources said.



However, a serving permanent secretary, who does not want to be quoted, wondered how a non-career civil servant, sacked from a government agency for failure to produce NYSC discharge certificate or certificate of exemption, could later be considered to occupy the highest position in civil service.



“Something is fundamentally wrong; the civil service rule is unambiguous; it says if you are a graduate and do not have NYSC certificate, you cannot work in government. Even the private sector is not expected to flout this rule,” he said.



Daily Trust reports that the one-year NYSC scheme is mandatory for graduates under 30, while those above receive exemption certificates. Those who served in the Armed Forces or the Nigeria Police Force for more than nine months are also exempted.

http://www.nigerianeye.com/2018/09/fg-under-fire-for-appointing-director.html

andrew444:


Bros abeg praise naija players,mahrez played well against Newcastle no doubt just because he scored a nice goal doesn't make him man of the match,we are all carried away by goals,the guy is not like Mikel this guy is more of Kante,for your information he already has 3 assist this season in the premier league so what are you saying such players help their team a lot,how many goals did kante score last season?he came 9th on the balon d or, ahead of many strikers,you really need to see the work of defensive midfielders and give them credit,I repeat my self this guy is different from Mikel he is more of a kante,this guy is the 11th most valuable u21 player in the world,you think it's a fluke,i rest my case .

Thank You Jare @andrew444, The vote is not a PDP VS APC award that is prone to rigging, he was awarded because he was the best Midfielder on the field and his team won. It is because of his hardwork in the Midfield that the goalscorers got the opportunity to score and the defenders were able to prevent further goals. Ndidi is making Nigeria proud silently, he is not appearing in the news for anything else other than his hard work. We should be proud of him.

GRANT PROPERTIES PROMOTER OLAJIDE AWOSEDO VS AMCON - THE TRUE STORY

The Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) and its receiver manager have been brought to the center of a media circus owing to the allegations of Olajide Awosedo, chairman of Grant Properties Limited, against the corporation. AMCON has now given a detailed response to the allegations.

WHO IS OLAJIDE AWOSEDO?

Mr. Olajide Awosedo is the promoter of Grant Properties which is currently under receivership due to debts owed AMCON. AMCON was established under the AMCON Act 2010 to acquire non-performing loans known as “Eligible Bank Assets” (EBA) from Nigerian banks. These assets are now held on behalf of 180 million Nigerians. It has been reported that over 80% of these debts are owed by a few elite Nigerians who deploy huge resources to avoid paying back the debts. One such debtor is Olajide Awosedo who was indebted to over nine banks to the tune of N22 billion. Awosedo’s other company – Havilah Villas Limited is also indebted to Heritage Bank and Access Bank. Its assets in Ogun state were seized by AMCON in June 2017 over a N4.68 billion debt. Awosedo also owes First Bank N2 billion plus interest arising from a development called Goshen Beach Estate. As a result First Bank, Sterling Bank, Wema Bank, Unity Bank, Access Bank, Skye Bank and the other banks are all trying to recover their loans.

WHEN AWOSEDO’S FINANCIAL PROBLEMS REACHED A HEAD

Awosedo’s financial problem crystallized when he left the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) for the Labour Party having failed to secure the Ogun State governorship Ticket. He proceeded to contest the governorship contest using borrowed funds and was unsuccessful. Olajide Awosedo made another unsuccessful attempt through the Accord party which further compounded his financial situation. As a result he was unable to repay his mounting debts. It has been alleged that Awosedo used part of the N8 billion he borrowed from the consortium of banks, meant for real estate development, to fund his governorship campaign in Ogun state.

Mr. Awosedo’s various debts arose from unpaid loans relating to the development of Goshen Beach Estate Lekki (First Bank), Victory Park Estate Lekki ( Sterling Bank, Wema Bank, Unity Bank and Skye Bank ) and Havilla Gardens Ogun State (Access Bank formerly Intercontinental Bank and Heritage Bank). It is claimed that he also owed FCMB, Diamond Bank, United Mortgage Bank and Providus Bank. These debts have been subject to court cases, court judgments and EBAs now acquired by AMCON.

THE BEGINNING OF AWOSEDO’S TROUBLE WITH BANKS AND AMCON

According to a source privy to this case, in 2002 the Lagos State government under the private developers’ scheme allocated 46 hectares of land to a company called Knight Rook Limited. But the company was unable to pay for the land; Lagos state demanded for a bank guarantee to cover the payment. Grant Properties the promoters approached a consortium of banks for the Bank Guarantee. Grant Properties was a shareholder of Knight Rook Limited before transferring its shares to the four banks led by Sterling Bank in 2006. At all times the property belonged to Knight Rook Limited and not Grant Properties.

The Victory Park Estate debt under reference arose due to this failed obligation to Lagos State Government. Grant Properties had approached the four banks in 2003 (Sterling Bank, WEMA Bank, Unity Bank and Skye Bank) for the Bank Guarantee to be issued in favor of Lagos State Government for a Site and Services estate Scheme. The lead bank was Sterling Bank (formerly NAL Bank). Mr. Awosedo was a staff of NAL Bank before resigning to enter private business.

Grant Properties failed to make payment on the due date and Lagos State claimed the due funds on the Bank Guarantee from the four Banks. Since the property was in the name of a company called Knight Rook Limited and the banks fully paid for the Land. (Awosedo did not contribute any money to the purchase of the property). The Banks demanded for their funds which were not forthcoming. Therefore in 2006 the bank foreclosed and all the shares of Knight Rook Limited were transferred to the four banks and the Banks appointed directors to Knight Rook Limited which meant that the banks fully owned Knight Rook. Grant Properties transferred all its shares to the banks and Mr. Awosedo and his wife resigned from Knight Rook Limited. Knight Rook secretariat and administrative matters were domiciled with Sterling Bank as the Lead Bank.

By an MOU, the Banks also appointed Grant Properties as developer to develop the phase 1 of 90 flats in Victory park estate. The Banks also funded and sponsored the phase 1 development. The Four Banks also paid the salaries of Awosedo’s staff during the period and customers paid deposits to the banks for the phase 2 development. The Banks did not charge any interest during this period because it was an investment. Upon completion of Phase 1 , the construction loan granted by the Banks remained unpaid and the project was declared a loss.

At this point, the debt figure was about over N10 billion. The consortium of banks explored every avenue to recover their money without success.

The Banks later discovered that Olajide Awosedo diverted 9 of the flats to his children and family which was an abuse and breach of trust. As a result all four banks were unwilling to provide further loans and the loan was classified as a bad debt. The banks further resolved to transfer the debt to AMCON. However, before the debt could be purchased by AMCON, the banks needed to refund all the creditors and depositors.

Grant properties proposed the sale of 10 hectares to raise funds to repay some of the debts. The four banks gave Grant Properties over 2 years to find a buyer but Grant properties informed the banks that they could not find a buyer due to the economic situation. So the Banks found a buyer and sold the 10 hectares and then refunded all the depositors with the proceeds. In the process the banks lost a lot of money. This meant that even if the land was sold at a higher price, Grant Properties would NOT have received the money because it would have been applied to repay the remaining debts which were written off by the banks before they transferred the EBA to AMCON. The 4 Banks also agreed to transfer the remaining 14 hectares to AMCON as consideration for the EBA purchased from the banks. Considering the fact that this was depositors’ money and pressed in a tight corner, the banks sold the bad debt to the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON). The corporation bought the liability for N5.1 billion which was not enough to cover the N10 billion debt sum which meant that the Banks lost another N5 billion on the debts.

Meanwhile Awosedo of Grant Properties continued to sell parcels of land in Victory Park Estate, Lekki, to unsuspecting buyers even after AMCON had acquired the asset. AMCON considered this action fraudulent and took legal action against him. Awosedo then petitioned AMCON claiming that the Banks sold the 10 hectares without his knowledge and that the 10 hectares sold by the Banks was part of the 14 hectares belonging to AMCON and that he was not involved or aware of the sale of the 10 hectares by the four banks. He also claimed that the property was sold below the true market value.

Further investigation by AMCON and the CBN found his petition to be false and untrue. AMCON found that the banks acted within the bounds of the law, and that sale of the assets to refund the depositors was legal. Contrary to the claim by Awosedo that the banks sold “his land” after AMCON had acquired his debt. The corporation confirmed that the sale of this asset (10 Hectares) happened before its acquisition of the liability. AMCON also found that he had been aware of the sale of 10 Hectares, that the proceeds were used to refund depositors and subscribers for buildings which Awosedo failed to deliver, that most of the refund cheques and deposits were handled by Grant properties and Awosedo. In refunding the subscribers, the lead bank (Sterling Bank) issued cheques, which were then handed over to Grant Properties Limited for distribution. Grant Properties Limited not only acknowledged the cheques but replied with corrections to be made in the name of some subscribers. Consequently, contrary to the petition, Mr Awosedo, through his companies was clearly involved in the sale of the 10 hectares and distribution of the proceeds of same.

AMCON discovered that Awosedo had fraudulently sold 2 Hectares of the 10 Hectares to unsuspecting buyers at N24,000/ sq meter. AMCON also discovered that the sales proceeds were diverted by Grant Properties and the proceeds were not used to pay down the bank debts or the AMCON EBA. The four banks had sold the 10 hectares - at N18,500/sq meter (about N1.85 billion) to Real Estate Development Company (RED) before AMCON took over the assets. RED sold 2.4 hectares of this land to UAC Property Development Company at the rate of N26,000/ sq meter. The price was higher because the value of the property had appreciated owing to the construction of a pivotal access road – Oba Akinloye Way. The entire 10 Hectares is now fully developed with over 300 families living in the estate.

Notwithstanding the above, AMCON negotiated between the two parties and sought an amicable resolution. Awosedo demanded for N750 million, the difference between N26,000/ sq meter price sold to UAC and the N18,000/ sq meter purchase price of RED (despite having sold two hectares at N24,000/ sq meter). Mr. Awosedo put his demands in writing offering to accept N600 million which was applied to reduce his liability to AMCON. The Banks counterclaimed through Sterling Bank that Awosedo withheld the proceeds of nine developed apartments valued at N270 million and the sales proceeds of two hectares. After protracted negotiations and mediation by AMCON, the banks agreed to forfeit the 9 apartments valued at N270 million and 10% of the EBA proceeds valued at N510 million. AMCON wrote to the banks confirming the final settlement and the four banks replied through sterling bank accepting the offer with the condition that AMCON will compel Awosedo and Grant properties to accept the same. AMCON replied and accepted the terms. AMCON is therefore now also bound by the terms of settlement reached by both parties.

However, Mr. Awosedo commenced legal action in 2012 – in the name of Knight Rook Limited (despite being fully aware that Knight Rook Limited was by this time wholly owned by AMCON and not having AMCON’s permission to do so) – purportedly to challenge the sale of land to UAC in SUIT NO: LD/576/12 – GRANT PROPERTIES LIMITED & ANOR V. UACN PROPERTY DEVELOPMENT COMPANY PLC & ANOR. Throughout this case, Mr. Awosedo never disclosed, until he was challenged, that he did not have AMCON’s authority to sue in the name of a company wholly owned by AMCON. The defendants contested his authority to sue, at which point his counsel – a senior advocate of Nigeria Bonajo Badejo SAN admitted the lack of authority to initiate the case in the name of Knight Rook Limited and Knight Rook Limited was struck out as a plaintiff in the suit (but inexplicably then joined as a defendant); more materially, Mr. Awosedo also never disclosed to the court that the issue had been resolved at his instance by AMCON. In June 2017 the high court nullified the transfer of 2.4 hectares to UAC but the court reaffirmed that the entire property still belonged to Knight Rook limited which was owned by AMCON. Awosedo then approached AMCON requesting to benefit from the judgment but AMCON as a responsible organization chose to honor the terms of the resolution earlier reached with all parties.


THE JUDGMENT OF A FEDERAL HIGH COURT SACKING GRANT PROPERTIES

In 2015, a Federal High Court in Lagos had ruled that the asset in dispute was the property of Knight Rook, not Awosedo’s Grant Properties. So, having resigned from the Knight Rook and transferring his shares to the four banks, Awosedo had no legal right to the asset. During the court case against UAC, Grant properties suppressed this information from the Lagos State court to his advantage. This forms part of the grounds of appeal by UAC in the Court of Appeal.

AMCON, which played a mediatory role between the consortium of banks and Grant Properties, says Awosedo has no legal right to Knight Rook or to its assets according to the 2015 judgment.
Mr. Jide Olasetin, a legal representative of the corporation, disclosed that the banks made 100 percent payment for the assets. He said Grant Properties made no single contribution to the purchase and development of the assets. He said the banks had exercised legal authority on the assets.

As required by law, AMCON duly gave Knight Rook Limited and thus Mr. Olajide Awosedo and his companies notice of the acquisition of their debts.

Today the assets belong to 180 million Nigerians and it is held in trust by AMCON until all the debts are recovered. Thus no amount of blackmail or intimidation will change the position of the Federal Government or AMCON until all the debts are paid.

The position of AMCON is unassailable and this position has been further confirmed “On 3rd October 2017, in Suit No: FHC/L/CS/744/17 – AMCON V. KNIGHT ROOK LIMITED & ORS, Hon Justice Buba of the Federal High Court (FHC), Lagos entered judgment in favour of AMCON against Knight Rook Limited & 5 Ors in the sum of N12, 566,910,191.00 plus interest. Counsel to Knight Rook Limited who was in court submitted to judgment stating that having reviewed records there was no defence to the claim while the other defendants including Mr. Olajide Awosedo who were duly served with the originating processes and had appeared in court through counsel prior to that day and had also applied for and obtained copies of all processes filed through their counsel, were absent and had Judgment entered against them in default of defence, pursuant to the extant provisions of the AMCON Practice Direction 2013,” AMCON said.

“Buba J also made an order forfeiting all and any residuary rights, which Mr. Olajide Awosedo may have to Knight Rook Limited amongst other orders.

“AMCON immediately executed this judgment by attaching and taking possession of the chattels and landed properties (including Victory Park Estate) which the receiver/Manager, Mr. Lanre Olaoluwa, had earlier taken possession of Victory Park Estate and other assets of Mr. Olajide Awosedo and his companies. The receiver/manager, in compliance with the judgment of the Federal High Court in that regard, handed over all those assets to AMCON.”

As a result of this action Olajide Awosedo has embarked on a smear campaign against individuals in AMCON and the banks on the social and print media. This blackmail is a usual strategy employed by chronic debtors who are unwilling to pay their debts. But AMCON and its senior management are undeterred.

According to the corporation, Justice Buba of the Federal High Court, Lagos ruled in October that Awosedo had no residuary right to Knight Rook. AMCON says the judgment also gave it the necessary legal muscle to acquire the assets.

This judgment, from a constitutional court, validates the action of AMCON.

http://www.nigerianeye.com/2017/12/grant-properties-promoter-olajide.html

GRANT PROPERTIES PROMOTER OLAJIDE AWOSEDO VS AMCON - THE TRUE STORY

The Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) and its receiver manager have been brought to the center of a media circus owing to the allegations of Olajide Awosedo, chairman of Grant Properties Limited, against the corporation. AMCON has now given a detailed response to the allegations.

WHO IS OLAJIDE AWOSEDO?

Mr. Olajide Awosedo is the promoter of Grant Properties which is currently under receivership due to debts owed AMCON. AMCON was established under the AMCON Act 2010 to acquire non-performing loans known as “Eligible Bank Assets” (EBA) from Nigerian banks. These assets are now held on behalf of 180 million Nigerians. It has been reported that over 80% of these debts are owed by a few elite Nigerians who deploy huge resources to avoid paying back the debts. One such debtor is Olajide Awosedo who was indebted to over nine banks to the tune of N22 billion. Awosedo’s other company – Havilah Villas Limited is also indebted to Heritage Bank and Access Bank. Its assets in Ogun state were seized by AMCON in June 2017 over a N4.68 billion debt. Awosedo also owes First Bank N2 billion plus interest arising from a development called Goshen Beach Estate. As a result First Bank, Sterling Bank, Wema Bank, Unity Bank, Access Bank, Skye Bank and the other banks are all trying to recover their loans.

WHEN AWOSEDO’S FINANCIAL PROBLEMS REACHED A HEAD

Awosedo’s financial problem crystallized when he left the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) for the Labour Party having failed to secure the Ogun State governorship Ticket. He proceeded to contest the governorship contest using borrowed funds and was unsuccessful. Olajide Awosedo made another unsuccessful attempt through the Accord party which further compounded his financial situation. As a result he was unable to repay his mounting debts. It has been alleged that Awosedo used part of the N8 billion he borrowed from the consortium of banks, meant for real estate development, to fund his governorship campaign in Ogun state.

Mr. Awosedo’s various debts arose from unpaid loans relating to the development of Goshen Beach Estate Lekki (First Bank), Victory Park Estate Lekki ( Sterling Bank, Wema Bank, Unity Bank and Skye Bank ) and Havilla Gardens Ogun State (Access Bank formerly Intercontinental Bank and Heritage Bank). It is claimed that he also owed FCMB, Diamond Bank, United Mortgage Bank and Providus Bank. These debts have been subject to court cases, court judgments and EBAs now acquired by AMCON.

THE BEGINNING OF AWOSEDO’S TROUBLE WITH BANKS AND AMCON

According to a source privy to this case, in 2002 the Lagos State government under the private developers’ scheme allocated 46 hectares of land to a company called Knight Rook Limited. But the company was unable to pay for the land; Lagos state demanded for a bank guarantee to cover the payment. Grant Properties the promoters approached a consortium of banks for the Bank Guarantee. Grant Properties was a shareholder of Knight Rook Limited before transferring its shares to the four banks led by Sterling Bank in 2006. At all times the property belonged to Knight Rook Limited and not Grant Properties.

The Victory Park Estate debt under reference arose due to this failed obligation to Lagos State Government. Grant Properties had approached the four banks in 2003 (Sterling Bank, WEMA Bank, Unity Bank and Skye Bank) for the Bank Guarantee to be issued in favor of Lagos State Government for a Site and Services estate Scheme. The lead bank was Sterling Bank (formerly NAL Bank). Mr. Awosedo was a staff of NAL Bank before resigning to enter private business.

Grant Properties failed to make payment on the due date and Lagos State claimed the due funds on the Bank Guarantee from the four Banks. Since the property was in the name of a company called Knight Rook Limited and the banks fully paid for the Land. (Awosedo did not contribute any money to the purchase of the property). The Banks demanded for their funds which were not forthcoming. Therefore in 2006 the bank foreclosed and all the shares of Knight Rook Limited were transferred to the four banks and the Banks appointed directors to Knight Rook Limited which meant that the banks fully owned Knight Rook. Grant Properties transferred all its shares to the banks and Mr. Awosedo and his wife resigned from Knight Rook Limited. Knight Rook secretariat and administrative matters were domiciled with Sterling Bank as the Lead Bank.

By an MOU, the Banks also appointed Grant Properties as developer to develop the phase 1 of 90 flats in Victory park estate. The Banks also funded and sponsored the phase 1 development. The Four Banks also paid the salaries of Awosedo’s staff during the period and customers paid deposits to the banks for the phase 2 development. The Banks did not charge any interest during this period because it was an investment. Upon completion of Phase 1 , the construction loan granted by the Banks remained unpaid and the project was declared a loss.

At this point, the debt figure was about over N10 billion. The consortium of banks explored every avenue to recover their money without success.

The Banks later discovered that Olajide Awosedo diverted 9 of the flats to his children and family which was an abuse and breach of trust. As a result all four banks were unwilling to provide further loans and the loan was classified as a bad debt. The banks further resolved to transfer the debt to AMCON. However, before the debt could be purchased by AMCON, the banks needed to refund all the creditors and depositors.

Grant properties proposed the sale of 10 hectares to raise funds to repay some of the debts. The four banks gave Grant Properties over 2 years to find a buyer but Grant properties informed the banks that they could not find a buyer due to the economic situation. So the Banks found a buyer and sold the 10 hectares and then refunded all the depositors with the proceeds. In the process the banks lost a lot of money. This meant that even if the land was sold at a higher price, Grant Properties would NOT have received the money because it would have been applied to repay the remaining debts which were written off by the banks before they transferred the EBA to AMCON. The 4 Banks also agreed to transfer the remaining 14 hectares to AMCON as consideration for the EBA purchased from the banks. Considering the fact that this was depositors’ money and pressed in a tight corner, the banks sold the bad debt to the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON). The corporation bought the liability for N5.1 billion which was not enough to cover the N10 billion debt sum which meant that the Banks lost another N5 billion on the debts.

Meanwhile Awosedo of Grant Properties continued to sell parcels of land in Victory Park Estate, Lekki, to unsuspecting buyers even after AMCON had acquired the asset. AMCON considered this action fraudulent and took legal action against him. Awosedo then petitioned AMCON claiming that the Banks sold the 10 hectares without his knowledge and that the 10 hectares sold by the Banks was part of the 14 hectares belonging to AMCON and that he was not involved or aware of the sale of the 10 hectares by the four banks. He also claimed that the property was sold below the true market value.

Further investigation by AMCON and the CBN found his petition to be false and untrue. AMCON found that the banks acted within the bounds of the law, and that sale of the assets to refund the depositors was legal. Contrary to the claim by Awosedo that the banks sold “his land” after AMCON had acquired his debt. The corporation confirmed that the sale of this asset (10 Hectares) happened before its acquisition of the liability. AMCON also found that he had been aware of the sale of 10 Hectares, that the proceeds were used to refund depositors and subscribers for buildings which Awosedo failed to deliver, that most of the refund cheques and deposits were handled by Grant properties and Awosedo. In refunding the subscribers, the lead bank (Sterling Bank) issued cheques, which were then handed over to Grant Properties Limited for distribution. Grant Properties Limited not only acknowledged the cheques but replied with corrections to be made in the name of some subscribers. Consequently, contrary to the petition, Mr Awosedo, through his companies was clearly involved in the sale of the 10 hectares and distribution of the proceeds of same.

AMCON discovered that Awosedo had fraudulently sold 2 Hectares of the 10 Hectares to unsuspecting buyers at N24,000/ sq meter. AMCON also discovered that the sales proceeds were diverted by Grant Properties and the proceeds were not used to pay down the bank debts or the AMCON EBA. The four banks had sold the 10 hectares - at N18,500/sq meter (about N1.85 billion) to Real Estate Development Company (RED) before AMCON took over the assets. RED sold 2.4 hectares of this land to UAC Property Development Company at the rate of N26,000/ sq meter. The price was higher because the value of the property had appreciated owing to the construction of a pivotal access road – Oba Akinloye Way. The entire 10 Hectares is now fully developed with over 300 families living in the estate.

Notwithstanding the above, AMCON negotiated between the two parties and sought an amicable resolution. Awosedo demanded for N750 million, the difference between N26,000/ sq meter price sold to UAC and the N18,000/ sq meter purchase price of RED (despite having sold two hectares at N24,000/ sq meter). Mr. Awosedo put his demands in writing offering to accept N600 million which was applied to reduce his liability to AMCON. The Banks counterclaimed through Sterling Bank that Awosedo withheld the proceeds of nine developed apartments valued at N270 million and the sales proceeds of two hectares. After protracted negotiations and mediation by AMCON, the banks agreed to forfeit the 9 apartments valued at N270 million and 10% of the EBA proceeds valued at N510 million. AMCON wrote to the banks confirming the final settlement and the four banks replied through sterling bank accepting the offer with the condition that AMCON will compel Awosedo and Grant properties to accept the same. AMCON replied and accepted the terms. AMCON is therefore now also bound by the terms of settlement reached by both parties.

However, Mr. Awosedo commenced legal action in 2012 – in the name of Knight Rook Limited (despite being fully aware that Knight Rook Limited was by this time wholly owned by AMCON and not having AMCON’s permission to do so) – purportedly to challenge the sale of land to UAC in SUIT NO: LD/576/12 – GRANT PROPERTIES LIMITED & ANOR V. UACN PROPERTY DEVELOPMENT COMPANY PLC & ANOR. Throughout this case, Mr. Awosedo never disclosed, until he was challenged, that he did not have AMCON’s authority to sue in the name of a company wholly owned by AMCON. The defendants contested his authority to sue, at which point his counsel – a senior advocate of Nigeria Bonajo Badejo SAN admitted the lack of authority to initiate the case in the name of Knight Rook Limited and Knight Rook Limited was struck out as a plaintiff in the suit (but inexplicably then joined as a defendant); more materially, Mr. Awosedo also never disclosed to the court that the issue had been resolved at his instance by AMCON. In June 2017 the high court nullified the transfer of 2.4 hectares to UAC but the court reaffirmed that the entire property still belonged to Knight Rook limited which was owned by AMCON. Awosedo then approached AMCON requesting to benefit from the judgment but AMCON as a responsible organization chose to honor the terms of the resolution earlier reached with all parties.


THE JUDGMENT OF A FEDERAL HIGH COURT SACKING GRANT PROPERTIES

In 2015, a Federal High Court in Lagos had ruled that the asset in dispute was the property of Knight Rook, not Awosedo’s Grant Properties. So, having resigned from the Knight Rook and transferring his shares to the four banks, Awosedo had no legal right to the asset. During the court case against UAC, Grant properties suppressed this information from the Lagos State court to his advantage. This forms part of the grounds of appeal by UAC in the Court of Appeal.

AMCON, which played a mediatory role between the consortium of banks and Grant Properties, says Awosedo has no legal right to Knight Rook or to its assets according to the 2015 judgment.
Mr. Jide Olasetin, a legal representative of the corporation, disclosed that the banks made 100 percent payment for the assets. He said Grant Properties made no single contribution to the purchase and development of the assets. He said the banks had exercised legal authority on the assets.

As required by law, AMCON duly gave Knight Rook Limited and thus Mr. Olajide Awosedo and his companies notice of the acquisition of their debts.

Today the assets belong to 180 million Nigerians and it is held in trust by AMCON until all the debts are recovered. Thus no amount of blackmail or intimidation will change the position of the Federal Government or AMCON until all the debts are paid.

The position of AMCON is unassailable and this position has been further confirmed “On 3rd October 2017, in Suit No: FHC/L/CS/744/17 – AMCON V. KNIGHT ROOK LIMITED & ORS, Hon Justice Buba of the Federal High Court (FHC), Lagos entered judgment in favour of AMCON against Knight Rook Limited & 5 Ors in the sum of N12, 566,910,191.00 plus interest. Counsel to Knight Rook Limited who was in court submitted to judgment stating that having reviewed records there was no defence to the claim while the other defendants including Mr. Olajide Awosedo who were duly served with the originating processes and had appeared in court through counsel prior to that day and had also applied for and obtained copies of all processes filed through their counsel, were absent and had Judgment entered against them in default of defence, pursuant to the extant provisions of the AMCON Practice Direction 2013,” AMCON said.

“Buba J also made an order forfeiting all and any residuary rights, which Mr. Olajide Awosedo may have to Knight Rook Limited amongst other orders.

“AMCON immediately executed this judgment by attaching and taking possession of the chattels and landed properties (including Victory Park Estate) which the receiver/Manager, Mr. Lanre Olaoluwa, had earlier taken possession of Victory Park Estate and other assets of Mr. Olajide Awosedo and his companies. The receiver/manager, in compliance with the judgment of the Federal High Court in that regard, handed over all those assets to AMCON.”

As a result of this action Olajide Awosedo has embarked on a smear campaign against individuals in AMCON and the banks on the social and print media. This blackmail is a usual strategy employed by chronic debtors who are unwilling to pay their debts. But AMCON and its senior management are undeterred.

According to the corporation, Justice Buba of the Federal High Court, Lagos ruled in October that Awosedo had no residuary right to Knight Rook. AMCON says the judgment also gave it the necessary legal muscle to acquire the assets.

This judgment, from a constitutional court, validates the action of AMCON.

http://www.nigerianeye.com/2017/12/grant-properties-promoter-olajide.html

tesppidd:
See high tension 415V cables flying all over the place. This is a mine just waiting to be stepped upon. Ma guy just park out o.

415V is not high tension.

CampuChan:
Osibanjo will never rule Nigeria, maybe odua republic but Nigeria, shortman devil.

Look at this one, LOL. He is ruling Nigeria now as Acting President.

The Senior Special Assistant to the Vice President on Legal Matters, Dr Bilkisu Saidu has dismissed recent nepotism charges credited to a faceless Social Media contributor using the name Ismaila Farouk from Zamfara State regarding appointments made by Acting President Yemi Osinbajo, SAN, into some Federal agencies and the ones done in the office of the Vice President.

Dr Saidu, regarded as one of the foremost aides to the Acting President, spoke on “Shirin Safe’’, an interview programme on BBC Hausa Radio on Sunday. She was a law teacher from the Usmanu Dan Fodiyo University Sokoto before she was named an SSA in the Office of the Vice President last year.

She described the nepotism charges as simply laughable, untrue, unfair and should not be taken seriously.

According to her contrary to Mr Farouk’s conclusions, most senior positions on the Vice President’s office are held by Muslims including by individuals who are from the north.

Said she, “If you are talking about religion, the most senior official or position in the Office of the Vice President apart from the Vice President himself, is the office of the Deputy Chief of Staff to the President and the name of the person occupying that office is Abdulrahman Ipaye and he is a Muslim.’’

“The positions following the Chief of Staff’s in the order of hierarchy are the Special Advisers in the office of the Vice President. Here there are three Special Advisers and two out of the three Special Advisers are Muslims, Senator Babafemi Ojudu and Barrister Mariam Uwais from Kano State,’’ she added.

Dr Saidu said that a cursory look at the other senior positions in the Vice President’s office indicate that religious consideration was never a factor in the appointment of the officers, noting that “If you look at the remaining senior positions in that office, most of them are in the hands of Muslims from the north.’’

She said: “For instance the person in charge of Protocol (i.e. the Director of Protocol) is Ambassador Abdullahi Gwary from Yobe State; those in charge of welfare and health in the office of the Vice President are mostly Muslims and from the north.

“Worthy of note are the stewards, those who serve the Vice President’s meals, they are mostly Muslims, so what do the critics mean when they talk about religion.’’

Dr Saidu concluded that when non-progressive minded people fail to win public support on their personal agenda they often resort to making some nepotism charges by the use of religion given its sensitivity among Nigerians.

According to her, “when people lack what to use or have exhausted all avenues to speak evil against perceived opponents or ridicule the good works that they are doing, they resort to use of religion or other means possible to damage the image and reputation of that opponent.’’

The faceless Ismaila Farouk from Zamfara State recently criticized Acting President Yemi Osinbajo’s recent outings and appointments made in his office describing them as sectional and not in the interest of the north.

http://www.nigerianeye.com/2017/06/nepotism-charges-against-osinbajo.html

Olympic team star Segun Oduduwa was a year ago on the radar of several top clubs in Europe including Juventus, but today he is back home in Lagos, abandoned by his country and in desperate need of at least $100,000 for surgeries on a knee injury he suffered while training with the Rio Olympics-bound team.

This is yet another pathetic case of a sportsman left to his own fate after putting his body and life on the line for Nigeria, while raising fundamental questions as regards insurance cover for the country’s athletes on national duty.

The highly-rated Nath Boys of Lagos central defender suffered a horrific left knee dislocation in training on May 26, 2016, just about the time the Dream Team VI were to fly out for a training camp in Atlanta, United States of America.

The 21-year-old Oduduwa spent about a month before the sports ministry will get him down to the Aspetar Hospital in Doha, Qatar.

After a five-month delay, his Anterior Cruciate Ligaments (ACL) were reconstructed at the hospital in Qatar at the cost of $30,000, which has yet to be paid.

His club Nath Boys owned by Sports Philantropist Yemi Idowu were forced to send him a flight ticket to return home at the expiration of his visa and the non-payment of his bills, while he still requires another corrective surgery and rehabilitation, which will gulp about $70,000 in Qatar.

Oduduwa’s once promising career, which has seen him win gold at the 2015 U23 AFCON in Senegal as well as bronze at the 2015 All Africa Games, is now at crossroads.

“I do not even have the words to really describe how I feel, it’s that bad,” Oduduwa lamented to joyurnalist recently.

“My career is in serious danger now even after I served Nigeria with everything I had.

“My club and I have done everything to save my career even though I suffered the injury in the national team.

“Coach Samson Siasia (coach of Olympic team Oduduwa played for) has severally met with officials, but there is no hope in sight.

“I have been abandoned to rot.”

It has been an anti-climax for the star defender, who was widely compared to another Nath Boys protégée Wilfred Ndidi, who now plays in the Premier League for Leicester City.

“Genk of Belgium and Juventus were interested in me and they were to watch me at the Olympics,” recounted a devastated Oduduwa, whose father is an 80-year-old pensioner.

“And even when I got injured they were still asking after me.”

Investigations by our correspondents revealed that the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) insist the Olympic team fell under the sports ministry and as such Oduduwa should be the full responsibility of the ministry.

It was further gathered that a memo on the subject has yet to be replied to by the NFF and the Local olympic Commitee (LOC) has remained silent on the issue.

The Ring leader of the reps trying to scuttle the process is Mohammed Ali Wudil from Kano, he is the chairman of the house committee on poverty alleviation.

vanbonattel:
Summary of the report : The executive is trying to blackmail the legislature and find more excuses why it cannot fulfil it's campaign promises.

Wuru wuru government

You sound like a wailer, is it that you dont know that the NPower initiative is already underway? or that the government has started paying the beneficiaries of the N5000 monthly conditional cash transfer?, or that the home grown school feeding programme has started in many states.

Dont die of hate, see proof here. https://www.facebook.com/SIPNGR/

Legislooters, we are just in trouble in Nigeria, the Reps member from Kano will be APC, why cant he support his party's plans?

Some members of the National Assembly have set their sights on a fat new pie: President Muhammadu Buhari’s N500B Social Investment Programs (SIP).


Officials of the Budget and Planning Ministry, which is responsible for disbursing the fund, say the Senators and Representatives have tabled a list of their demands regarding how they can share of the money.


The sources say the legislators are demanding that unless they are allowed to select the beneficiaries of the SIP as well as award and take contracts under the scheme, they would simply terminate the program, which is designed to benefit ordinary Nigerians including the most vulnerable and the poorest, as well as unemployed youths.

One Senator from one of the Niger Delta States, Bayelsa to be precise, threatened to “kill the entire program,” if Senators are not allowed to choose beneficiaries of the N-Power jobs for unemployed graduates, while a Representative from Kano State (the chairman house committee on poverty alleviation) specifically demanded contract benefits. According to a Kano State government source, it took the intervention of the governor of that state to call the Representative to order.

Similarly, some Senators have demanded of the Presidency that Senators be allowed to nominate 50 beneficiaries each for N-Power. That is in opposition to a selection system that would guarantee equal opportunity for all Nigerian youth by means of an online application process. That system has already allowed in 200,000 Nigerian previously unemployed graduates who got in without needing to press any buttons whatsoever.

The Presidency has explained that the beneficiaries of all the SIPs are being produced through that fair online application process, which is also easily audited and cross-checked.

In several instances, some of the National Assembly and other partisan political operatives have been reported to be selling illegal application forms to unsuspecting Nigerians and charging illegal fees in the process.

Said a government official, “They simply don't understand that President Buhari would not tolerate any form of diversion of the resources. Many of them still think it is business as usual. Why are National Assembly members so desperate and when did it become a duty of the legislator to implement or execute policies?”

An informed source explained that if the Buhari administration ever succumbs to the demand of legislators to choose beneficiaries, not only would they produce bogus lists, they would also exploit them by taking significant percentages of their stipends and other monetary proceeds.

While it is true that the SIP budgetary allocations in the 2016 budget is the largest of its kind in the country, similar efforts of its kind are known to have been compromised in the past by political opportunists who see such programs as opportunities to enrich themselves rather than to deliver services to the targeted demographics.

It would be recalled that already all the SIPs of the current government have taken off. They include the employment of 200,000 graduates; the National Homegrown School Feeding program, in seven states; and the Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT), which is being paid to beneficiaries in nine states and is aimed at one million Nigerians in its first budget cycle.

There is also the Government Economic and Enterprise Program, (GEEP), which giving interest-free soft loans to Nigerians in over 13 states of the federation in sums ranging from N10,000 to N100,000 each. GEEP is meant to benefit about 1.6m Nigerian traders, and artisans, as well as market men and women.

http://www.nigerianeye.com/2017/02/legislators-want-control-of-n500bn-sip.html

SeverusSnape:
okay, But does this change the fact that dullhari is not able to sustain all the developmental strides of the last administration??

When caught in a lie, you try to change the Topic. OK, Kontinu.

In Response to the thread....
https://www.nairaland.com/2569825/power-supply-drops-1047mw

The article below clearly shows that power did not actually drop by 1047mw....



It is no doubt that the power supply sector in Nigeria is currently experiencing serious crisis. Nigeria, with a population of over 170 million is generating just about 4,000 MW of electricity. As the population increases and standard of living increases, the increase in energy consumption associated with households and public facilities will continue to put pressure on existing power supply infrastructure.

The recent stability in the gas supply infrastructure and the underground efforts by government to pacify gas pipeline vandals has brought about sustained power supply in recent weeks to the delight of many Nigerians.


I recently came across an article published in Punch news-daily where the author Mr. Femi Asu alleged that Power Supply had dropped nationwide by about 1,047MW in a space of 6 days between August 25th and August 31st 2015.
While I agree it is very possible for such a sudden drop in supply to occur given the nature and volatility of the sector, the authors attempt to justify the claim based on reports obtained from the Presidential Task Force on Power (PTFP) exposed a fundamental lack of understanding on the part of the author.

I was quick to contact the PTFP seeking power generation data over the same period. My findings revealed that a maximum of 235 MWH/H drop in average daily power evacuated was recorded between 25th August 2015 and 31st August 2015. While this sudden drop is worrisome, there is sufficient evidence as to the causes of the drop and what can be done to improve the situation.
The shutdown of the Utorogu Gas Plant depreciated supply into the Escravos Lagos Pipeline coupled with a similar shutdown of both the Trans Niger Pipeline and Nembe Creek Trunkline cumulatively led to the drop in average power supply recorded over the said period.

From the data made available by the PTFP, it was clear that in August 25th 2015 a peak of 4,812 MW was recorded as against a peak of 4,642 MW recorded on 31st August 2015. Similarly, average capacity evacuated on 25th August 2015 was 3,998 MWH/H as against a 3,763 MWH/H average evacuated on the 31st of August 2015.

For clarity, there is a fundamental difference between daily peak generation which is the highest recorded instantaneous generating capacity for any given day and the daily average evacuated power which is a mean computed over 24 hour period.

In arriving at the alleged 1,047 MW drop in 6 days headline, it is clear that the author mischievously decided to deduct the daily average power evacuated on 31st August 2015 from the peak power generation recorded on 25th August 2015. This sort of desperate attempt to misinform the public is quiet disgraceful and must be condemned if we are to make progress collectively as a nation.

Whilst I insist that all hands must continue to be on deck to ensure the current momentum is sustained in the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry, it is important that we continue to condemn deliberate acts to misinform public and support government with objective criticism.

A lot of what the current administration has embarked on to improve supply can best be described a low hanging fruits. The real work is yet to commence and we will be waiting and watching with keen interest.

Oluwole Isaac

Investigations have revealed that the story that the vice President is a target for a bomb attack is untrue,
There was allegedly a typographical error in the press briefing document circulated to Journalists after the 6 hour Long National Economic Council Meeting.

The Vice president actually said that there were plans that involved scavengers being prepared by
insurgents to dump refuse laden with bombs in the houses of VIPs, VIP was erronously reported as VP.
See statement from the Office of the Vice president explaining the error below.


A press briefing note circulated today by the Secretariat of theNational Economic Council, NEC, contains a typo on the very last lineof the last paragraph.

That paragraph should read “The Vice President also disclosed thatsecurity reports has it that scavengers are now being prepared byinsurgents to dump refuse laden with bombs in the houses of VIPs.”

The last line erroneously says “in the house of the Vice President.”Please take note of the correction.
The 59th NEC meeting was presided over by the Vice President, Prof.Yemi Osinbajo, earlier today.

Laolu Akande
Senior Special Assistant to the Vice President
(Media and Publicity)
July 23, 2015

Source: http://www.nigerianeye.com/2015/07/no-bomb-threat-to-vice-president-yemi.html

37 Billion Ke?

its only about 3 Billion Naira at the official rate.

Calm down ogbeni.

richidinho:
That's close to N37 billion
Hope Nigerians will see the project executed with this money

Even if its a public toilet

We want to start seeing projects not arrest