The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has recovered 214 landed properties in Abuja, Lagos, Kaduna, Katsina, Jigawa, Kogi, Adamawa, Oyo states and in different cities across the country between 2015 and 2018.

The real estate was recovered from over 70 individuals and seven firms who were prosecuted for various financial crimes, including money laundering.
A breakdown of the recoveries obtained by SUNDAY PUNCH on Friday, showed that 179 properties were recovered through interim forfeiture court orders.

Thirty-five of the properties have been finally forfeited to the commission while two, including a hotel belonging to Ima Niboro, former spokesman to ex-President Goodluck Jonathan, were returned voluntarily.

Other prominent Nigerians who lost their properties through court forfeiture orders include a former petroleum minister, Diezani Alison-Madueke; ex-National Security Adviser, Dasuki Sambo; former minister, Iyorchia Ayu; the late Chief of Defence Staff, Alex Badeh and a former Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Adesola Amosu (retd.)

Others were former Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose, ex-Bauchi State Governor, Isa Yuguda, Col. Bello Fadile (retd.) and a former Katsina State Governor, Ibrahim Shema who had 20 properties under interim forfeiture.

The list also included George Turner whose 17 properties in different parts of Bayelsa State were placed under interim forfeiture; former Niger State Governor, Babangida Aliyu and Garba Birni-kudu who had 14 properties under interim forfeiture.

Similarly, the commission recovered three properties, including a seven-storey building under construction in Gudu district, Abuja, belonging to one Emmanuel Ozigi and two others, while six properties located in different parts of Ibadan, Oyo State, were recovered from one Oni Ademola.

Five choice properties were recovered from Alison-Madueke; they include a multi-storey building on Banana Island, six flats in Ikoyi and 21 mixed housing in Yaba, Lagos; 16 terrace houses in Port Harcourt, Rivers State and 13 terrace duplexes in Mabushi, Abuja.

The anti-graft commission also obtained a final forfeiture order in respect of buildings in Ikorodu, Agege, Lagos-Ibadan Expressway; Cranbel Court, Citiview Estate, Arepo, which were recovered from Jamiu Anifowoshe and forfeited to the Lagos State Government.

Real estate consisting of seven buildings located on Obafemi Awolowo Way, Ikeja, Victoria Garden City, Ikota, Port Harcourt, Lekki and Utako, Abuja, were also recovered from Obasuyi Osasoghie and forfeited to First Bank Plc.

Between January and April, 2019, the EFCC had recovered N3.2bn (final forfeiture) from Amosu who paid N2.2bn; Olugbenga Gbadebo, N190.8m; Solomon Enterprise, N101m and Paul Boroh and 16 others, who coughed up N686.7m cash.

Last year, the agency recovered 141 vehicles; 44 bank accounts; one barge; farmland; four filling stations; two hotels and 47 parcels of land which were considered proceeds of crime.

lafuria1:
Fake news, the link is well known PDP social media outlet

OEPHIUS:


http://leaders.ng/osun-guber-we-now-have-the-appeal-court-in-our-pocket-apc-leaders-boast/

daprince098:


I've been trying to upload my CV but the size of the PDF is larger than the required. Pls how do I go about it?

PS: I've tried to compress it but it keeps saying no file found.

Four states of the federation – Lagos, Rivers, Ogun and Delta – generated N2.71tn in internal revenue between 2013 and 2017, an investigation has shown.

Statistics on the performance of the 36 states of the federation obtained by our correspondent showed that the 36 states generated a total of N4.5tn within the five years under review.

This meant that the top four states in IGR generated as much as 60.22 per cent of the total IGR of the subnational governments in the country while the remaining 32 states accounted for the remaining 39.78 per cent or N1.79tn.

Expectedly, Lagos came tops on the table with a total of N1.72tn within the five-year period. With this performance, Lagos alone accounted for 38.22 per cent of the entire IGR generated by the subnational governments in the five-year period.

In 2013, Lagos generated a total of N236.2bn. The performance went up in 2014 with a total of N276.16bn. It went down slightly in 2015 to N268.2bn. In 2016, the state’s IGR went up again to N302.43bn before peaking at N333.97bn in 2017.

Rivers State came a distant second with a revenue performance of N433.9bn. Thus, the state accounted for 9.64 per cent of the total IGR collected by the states in the five-year period.

The state generated N87.91bn; N89.11bn; N82.1bn; N85.29bn and N89.48bn in 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2017 respectively.

On the third place is Ogun State, which generated a total of N286.67bn within the period of five years. Thus, the state accounted for 6.37 per cent of the total IGR that the 36 states of the federation collected within the same period of time.

The state moved steadily up in the five-year period. The state generated N13.78bn in 2013; N17.5 in 2014; N34.6bn in 2015; N72.98bn in 2016 and N74.84bn in 2017.

On the fourth position in IGR is Delta State, which generated N273.84bn in the five-year period. It, therefore, accounted for 6.09 per cent of the entire IGR collected by the subnational governments in five years.

The state generated N50.21bn; N42.82bn; N40.81bn; N44.06bn and N51.89bn in 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2017 respectively.

Four other states hit the N100bn mark in the revenues they generated within the period under review. These are Kano, Edo, Oyo and Akwa Ibom.

Kano State generated N148.75bn in the following order: N17.9bn in 2013; N13.66bn in 2014; N13.61bn in 2015; N30.96bn in 2016 and N42.42bn in 2017.

Edo State generated N126.47bn in the following order: N18.9bn in 2013; N17.02bn in 2014; N19.12bn in 2015; N23.04bn in 2016 and N25.34bn in 2017.

On the other hand, Akwa Ibom made N108.36bn spread thus in five years – N15.4bn in 2013; N15.68bn in 2014; N14.79bn in 2015; N23.27bn in 2016 and N15.96bn in 2017.

Similarly, Oyo State generated N107.43bn – N15.25bn; N16.31bn; N15.66bn; N18.88bn and N22.45bn in 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2017 respectively.

The 10 states on the bottom of the table are Yobe, Borno, Ekiti, Kebbi, Gombe, Nasarawa, Zamfara, Taraba, Katsina and Ebonyi.

Thus, no state in the South-South geopolitical zone was among the bottom of the table. Ebonyi represented the South-East in the bottom league while Ekiti represented the South-West in the bottom league.

Kebbi, Zamfara and Katsina represented the North-West on the bottom of the table. Nasarawa and Taraba represented the North-Central on the bottom of the table while the North-East was represented by Yobe, Borno and Gombe.

Yobe made a total of N18.48bn in five years. Borno generated N18.76bn in the period under review while Ekiti made N20.05bn within the five-year period.

On the other hand, Kebbi made N21.82bn; Gombe generated N21.91bn while Nasarawa generated N23bn within the period under review.

Similarly, Zamfara generated N24.51bn; Taraba generated N27.41bn; Katsina generated N30.44bn while Ebonyi made N30.91bn.

Mid-table states in terms of IGR include Kaduna which generated N95.89bn; Enugu (the first state from the South-East to show up on the radar), N93.81bn; Cross River, N88.97bn; Kwara, N87.62bn and Abia, N78.54bn.

Others are Anambara, N68.13bn; Ondo, N60.61bn; Bayelsa, N58.51bn; Benue, N55.8bn; Osun, N53.37bn; Plateau, N52.88bn; Kogi, N48.75bn; Imo, N39.76bn; Bauchi, N36.91bn; Sokoto, N35.46bn; Jigawa, N34.83bn; Niger, N34.11bn and Adamawa, N31.38bn.

On an annual basis, the 36 states generated a total of N662.05bn in 2013. This increased to N707.86bn in 2014 before coming down to N682.67bn in 2015. It rose to N820.19bn in 2016 and peaked at N936.47bn in 2017.

Low IGR has been the bane of development in the states, with many of them depending virtually on what they get from the federation account. Thus, some experts have queried the viability of the many state governments, given their low IGRs.

While some experts think that true federalism will wean the states of overdependence on the federation account, others think that there is an urgent need to restructure the federation into a federation of six geopolitical zones, instead of operating 36-state structure with three arms of government in each state of the federation.

Even in 2017 when IGR of the states stood at its peak, a higher proportion of the fund available to the states came from the federation account. While IGR accounted for N936.47bn, the states received N1.73tn from the federation account.

This means that IGR accounted for only 35.21 per cent while the federation account was responsible for 64.79 per cent of the funds available to the states.

Acting Chairman of Revenue Mobilisation, Allocation and Fiscal Commission, Mr Umar Gana, told our correspondent that the states needed help to increase their IGR but only two states – Kebbi and Katsina – had accepted to host IGR workshops facilitated by the agency.

According to him, only a few states have effective IGR system. Gana said it was because of low IGR that the states were now clamouring for new revenue formula to be able to pay the new minimum wage.

A lot more needed to be done, he added.

Esyb:


Kaiiiii...! God bless you.. I'm sure That's the exact issue because there's an apostrophe in my school's name.. I'll try it ASAP..

Esyb:
@yns4real... Thank you once again.. It was successful.. God bless.!

Esyb:
Good morning Nairalanders..
Please I haven't been able to get past uploading my O'level certificate... It always says 'Operation failed'.. Pls what do i do to rectify this.. Thank you ��

WilsonMayowa:
No space for uploading CV, pls what is the way out

Naijji:


Good bless you. Worked like a charm after hours of trying

agya1:

Thanks bro, it worked!!! One the many reasons I love nairaland

blackteddy:
Good evening guys, please I need yo
ur help. I have registered all that needs to be registered except my o level grades, it keeps saying "operation failed". I've been stuck here for days, please help. Thanks.

samwobi:
I Didnt Leave Wrk Experience Blank, Although D I Couldnt Insert D Year I Started Wrk Cos Its Nt Responding, Still Didnt See Where To Upload Cv, Pls Help Me Out

Spygadgets19:
Thanks a lot I have now seen where the problem lies and I was able to successfully complete my application. Downloaded the guarantors form and slip.

Spygadgets19:
Thanks for your response, where do I upload my CV? I have uploaded 6 already.

Spygadgets19:
This is were I am uploading it to and it keep showing PNG or JPG required.

chilucy:
B.Sc. Economics

hpymoment:


thanks
None has agreed to have any work experience. Lol

hpymoment:


I haven't seen where they upload cv since I have been registering this application for people. Would you mind telling me?
Thanks in advance.

haywhy009:
Still not accepting my O'level saying operation fail, who can help me out here

Information about the hearing date is contained in notices sent to parties by the court’s Registry, a copy of which The Nation sighted on Monday in Abuja.

The tribunal, in a split decision of two-to-one, voided the victory of Oyetola and the APC in the election held on September 22, 2018, but concluded with a rerun on September 27, 2018.

Two members of the tribunal’s three-member panel upheld the petition filed by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its candidate Senator Ademola Adeleke against the outcome of election, while its chairman dismissed it for being unmeritorious.

Justices Peter Obiorah and Adegboye Gbolagunte gave the majority decision, which replaced Oyetola and APC with Adeleke and PDP as winners of the election.

The tribunal Chairman, Justice Muhammad Sirajo, in his dissenting judgment/minority decision, held otherwise.

He dismissed the petition by Adeleke and PDP on the grounds that the petitioners failed to prove their claims.

In the separate notices of appeal they filed against the tribunal’s majority judgment, Oyetola and the APC ripped the judgment apart, arguing that “it is perverse, replete with contradictions and against the weight of evidence.”

They want the Court of Appeal to uphold their appeals, set aside the majority judgment and dismiss the October 16, 2018 petition by Adeleke and the PDP.

Oyetola and the APC said they were contesting the entire majority judgment, except where it held that it lacked jurisdiction to set aside the INEC Guidelines used for the election; that the allegation of over voting was not proved; that the petitioners did not prove voided votes, and other parts of the judgment where it agreed with their arguments.

They queried the validity of the judgment, which was authored and delivered by Justice Obiorah, who they noted, did not participate in all the sittings of the tribunal during trial.

The appellants are of the view that the entire of the majority judgment is a nullity, because it was written and delivered by Justice Obiorah “who did not participate in all the proceedings of the tribunal and who was not present when all the witnesses gave evidence.”

They noted that Justice Obiorah was absent on February 6, 2019 when the respondents witnesses (RWs) 12 and 13 – Ayoola Soji and Oladejo Kazeem – testified and tendered exhibits, which the tribunal admitted in evidence.

The appellants are contending that, having not attended the tribunal’s siting on February 6, 2019, Justice Obiorah did not see the two witnesses and was unable to examine their demeanour, as required, and therefore, it was unlawful for the judge to have authored a judgment in which he reviewed the evidence given by the witnesses.

In the notice of appeal filed for Oyetola by his lawyer, Wole Olanipekun (SAN), it was argued that: “The writing of and or the participation of the Honourable Justice P. C. Obiorah in the writing of the judgment of the lower tribunal of 22nd March 2019 and delivery of same, vitiates the entire judgment.”

Oyetola and the APC faulted the decision of the tribunal, in the majority judgment, to declare the rerun election unlawful and proceeded to set it aside.

They also faulted the tribunal’s finding that the respondents did not deny the claim by the petitions, through PW74, that the Returning Officer cancelled election in the seven polling units and ordered a rerun.

The appellants said: “The first and third respondents (INEC and APC), in their pleadings, did not admit that it was the Returning Officer that cancelled the result of the election in the seven polling units, but rather, that it was the 1st respondent that cancelled the election in the seven units as distinct from the units’ results.

“Indeed, as pleaded at paragraphs 24, 25, 27 and 29 of the petition, it was the 1st respondent that cancelled the election in the seven units for the reasons alleged by the petitioners.

“The tribunal ought to have held the petitioners bound by their pleadings that it was the 1st respondent that cancelled the election in the units and the fact that the 3rd respondent also pleaded that it was the 1sy respondent that cancelled the election in the units.”

They argued that even if it was any of the electoral officials that announced the cancellation and rerun election, in law, they acted as INEC’s agents of the first respondent (INEC).

The appellants noted that the petitioners did not only fail to tender results from the seven polling units to support their claim that election actually held in the polling units and the results were cancelled; they also failed to exhibit the votes scored by the parties that participated in the election, if actually their was an election.

Oyetayo and APC argued that, rather than holding against the petitioners, for not supplying the necessary evidence, the tribunal wrongly relied on the evidence of PW74, which it had earlier expunged from the record for being hearsay.

They argued that, in the absence of vital evidence, “the tribunal ought to have held that the petitioners did not make out the case that there was any election in the seven polling units and that the Returning Officer cancelled the results of the election in the seven units.”

Justice Walter Onnoghen’s name has been removed from the National Judicial Council’s members’ list, preparing the ground for a Justice of the Supreme Court, Justice Bode Rhodes-Vivour, to emerge as the council’s deputy chairman, The PUNCH reports.

The altered membership list of the NJC was observed on the council’s website at about 7.15pm on Sunday.

The list, displaying 23 members instead of the full membership of 24, shows that the council has yet to have a deputy chairman as constitutionally provided.

It was gathered that following Onnoghen’s exit, Justice Rhodes-Vivour as the second most senior Justice of the Supreme Court would be announced as the deputy chairman at the next meeting of the council.

“The date of the next meeting of the NJC is not known yet; but because the acting CJN has just taken over as the acting chairman of the council, it is expected that the deputy chairman will be announced at the next meeting,” a top judiciary source told our correspondent on Sunday.

Paragraph 20 (a) of Part I of the Third Schedule to the Constitution makes “the next most senior Justice of the Supreme Court” a member of the council and provides that the person “shall be the Deputy Chairman.”

Our correspondent also observed on the website of the council on Sunday that the membership list of the NJC had been altered to reflect the Acting Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Tanko Muhammad, as the acting chairman.

Onnoghen now occupies the 16th position on the list of former Chief Justices of Nigeria as observed on the website by our correspondent on Sunday.

The Code of Conduct Tribunal had last Thursday convicted Onnoghen on charges of breach of the Code of Conduct for Public Officers and ordered his removal as the Chief Justice of Nigeria and the chairman of both the NJC and the Federal Judicial Service Commission.

But multiple judiciary sources told our correspondent on Sunday that the NJC’s membership list was altered shortly after Justice Onnoghen tendered his resignation letter on April 4.

Constitutionally, the CJN is automatically the chairman of both the NJC and the Federal Judicial Service Commission, but Muhammad only took over the headship of the council on April 4, over two months after he began to act as the CJN.

This was a day after the NJC cleared him of wrongdoing in allowing himself to be sworn in as the acting CJN without NJC’s recommendation.

The council, which also investigated Onnoghen for various acts of misconduct, was said to have recommended him for retirement.

Onnoghen reportedly resigned on April 4, barely 24 hours after the NJC sent its recommendations to President Buhari.

Muhammad took over as the acting CJN after he was cleared by the NJC and Onnoghen resigned.

The current members of the NJC as observed on the council’s website on Sunday included Justice Muhammad; President of the Court of Appeal, Justice Zainab Bulkachuwa; a former Justice of the Supreme Court and a former chairman of the Independent Corrupt Practices and other Related Offences Commission, Justice Emmanuel Ayoola; a former Justice of the Supreme Court, Justice Sunday Akintan; and a former President of the Court of Appeal, Justice Umaru Abdullahi.

They also included a retired Justice of the Court of Appeal, Justice, V.O.A Omage;

Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, Justice Adamu Abdu-Kafarati; President, National Industrial Court of Nigeria, Justice Babatunde Adejumo; Chief Judge of the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, Justice Ishaq Bello; and Chief Judge of Oyo State, Justice Munta Abiola.

The Chief Judge of Borno State, Justice Kashim Zannah; Chief Judge of Imo State, Pascal Nnadi; Chief Judge of Delta State, Marshal Umukoro; Grand Kadi, Sharia Court of Appeal, Kwara State Grand Kadi Mohammed Abdulkadir; and President, Customary Court of Appeal, Plateau State, Justice Julia Kyentu are also members.

They also included the President of the Nigerian Bar Association, Mr Paul Usoro (SAN); a former NBA President, Abubakar Mahmoud (SAN); and three NBA members, namely Dr Muiz Banire (SAN); Damien Dodo (SAN), and Efe Etomi.

The rest are a retired public servant, Mrs Rakiya Ibrahim; a former Permanent Secretary, Mrs R. Inga and Secretary to the Council, Ahmed Saleh.

lanreabbey:
please guys can I get state of origin certificate in my state liasson office with the local government chairman signature stamp on it....pleeeessseee your hellp is needed

(NAN)Abubakar Atiku, the defeated presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party has debunked notions that he was Cameroonian by birth and thus not qualified to contest the election of 23 February 2019.

Atiku who was born in Jada in 1946, in present-day Adamawa state, but then part of Northern Cameroon, said he was born by Nigerian parents and therefore ‘a citizen of Nigeria by birth”.

According to his response to the All Progressives Congress filing before the Presidential election tribunal, Atiku said his father, Garba Atiku Abdulkadir was a Nigerian by birth who hailed from Wurmo in present day Sokoto State, while the mother, Aisha Kande was also a Nigerian who hailed from Dutse in present day Jigawa State.

“The parents of the 1st Petitioner(Atiku) are both Fulani, a community/tribe indigenous to Nigeria”, his lawyers, an array of senior advocates said.

“The birth of the 1st Petitioner in Jada, in the present-day Adamawa State of Nigeria was occasioned by the movement of his paternal grandfather called Atiku who was an itinerant trader, from Wurmo in present-day Sokoto State to Jada in the company of his friend, Ardo Usman.

“That in Jada, Atiku, the grandfather of the 1st Petitioner gave birth to Garba who in tum gave birth to the 1st Petitioner and named him after his own father Atiku.

“The 1st Petitioner’s mother, Aisha Kande was the grand-daughter of Inuwa Dutse who came to Jada as an itinerant trader too from Dutse in present day Jigawa State.

“That all averments concerning Germany, British Cameroons, League of Nations and Plebiscite are false and misleading in relation to the 1st Petitioner and therefore completely irrelevant more so that the 1st Petitioner is a Nigerian by birth within the contemplation of the Constitution of the Federal Republic ofNigeria, 1999 (as amended).

“The averments in the aforesaid paragraphs are indeed fabricated, contrived, made in bad faith and designed to embarrass the 1st Petitioner.”

Abubakar said that the votes he secured in the presidential election were not wasted votes, and still claimed that he got more votes than President Buhari.

To buttress his Nigerian citizenship, Atiku listed his career path and political activities and the awards and honours that he had received.

These included his being a civil servant in the Nigerian Customs Service for over 20 years, retiring as a Deputy Director; a politician for about 30 years, who in 1992 contested the Presidential Primaries under the platform of then Social Democratic Party (SDP) alongside the late Chief M.K.O Abiola and Ambassador Baba Gana Kingibe.

He also mentioned his participation in the 1999 governorship election in Adamawa State in 1999, which he won and the presidential elections of 1999 and 2003, which he won as running mate to former President Olusegun Obasanjo.

Mentioned also was his being a recipient of the National Honour of Grand Commander of the Order of the Niger (GCON) and holder of the traditional title holder of Turakin Adamawa from 1982 to 2017 when he was elevated to Wazirin Adamawa.

“In 2007, the 1st Petitioner contested Presidential election under the platform of Action Congress (AC) and the 2nd Respondent contested under the platform of the All Nigeria Peoples’ Party (ANPP).

“In 2014, the 1st Petitioner and the 2nd Respondent contested the Presidential Primaries of the All Progressives Congress (APC), the 3rd Respondent for the 2015 Presidential Elections”.

Atiku’s response was signed by Dr. Livy Uzuokwu, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria on behalf of 20 other SANs.

They are Kabiru T. Turaki, Chief Chris Uche, Pius A. Akubo,
Chief Bolaji Ayorinde, Adebayo 0. Adelodun, Saka Abimola Isau, Isiyaku Ibrahim,
Paul Erokoro, K.C.O. Njemanze, Eyitayo Jegede, Sebastine T. Hon, Dr. Mike Ozekhome,
Chukwuma-MachukwuUme, Prof. Maxwell Gidado, Dr. Akinpelu Onigbinde, Emeka Etiaba, SAN,
Chief Gordy Uche,Dr. Mrs. V.J.O. Azinge, Emeka Okpoko, Olalekan Ojo.

Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has filed a cross-appeal at the Court of Appeal sitting in Jos, Plateau State capital, against the judgment of a Federal High Court in Gombe that partially upheld a no-case submission by former Governor Danjuma Goje.

The commission tried Goje and two others — Alhaji Aliyu El-Nafaty and Dokoro Gombe (alias S.M Dokoro) — on an amended N5billion fraud charge.

Making his claim through Wahab Shittu, the EFCC prosecuting counsel, the commission said Goje, between September and November 2010, allegedly forged a document titled 'Resolution authorising His Excellency the Executive Governor of Gombe State to acquire loan of N5,000,000,000.00 only', with Ref. No: GM/HA/RES/VOL. 1/17.

The commission said the resolution was purportedly signed by Shehu Atiku, Clerk of the Gombe State House of Assembly, with the intent that it be acted on as genuine by Access Bank Plc.

The N5 billion facility was obtained from Access Bank by the Goje administration for infrastructural projects.

EFCC said its investigations on the loan revealed that the purported House resolution authorising it was forged; the approval did not pass through the right processes.

Ruling on Goje’s no-case submission on March 22, Justice O. B. Quadri dismissed 19 of the 21-count charge.

Goje filed an appeal to challenge the court’s refusal to up-hold his no-case submission in its entirety.

In its cross-appeal, EFCC faulted lower court ruling on several grounds.

The commission said the lower court embarked on extensive evaluation of evidence, including the credibility of prosecution witnesses in its ruling.

“The court at the stage of no-case submission is not expected to consider credibility of witnesses or evaluate the evidence,” Shittu said.

Also cited as evidence against the ruling of the lower court was that it ignored prima facie evidential materials contained in several exhibits tendered before it.

The EFCC counsel added that the court failed to consider that the N5 billion facility did not comply with rules for capital expenditure.

He said the court also ignored the fact that the purported resolution authorising the loan was forged.

After highlighting several other errors by the lower court, Shittu urged the Court of Appeal to set aside aspects of the ruling sustaining Goje’s no-case submission, and also asked for an order directing the defendants to enter their defence in respect of the counts for which they were discharged.

The politician said those who feel they know his mind better than he does are spreading such rumours.

Tinubu said he aligned with President Muhammadu Buhari’s position on the leadership of the national assembly in order to show support for his second term in office.

Buhari and the leadership of the ruling party have endorsed Ahmad Lawan as senate president and Femi Gbajabiamila as speaker of the house of representatives.

Gbajabiamila, an ally of Tinubu, was elected into the lower legislative chamber of the national assembly during the second term of the APC leader as governor of Lagos state.

In a statement from his media office on Sunday, Tinubu said he has no ulterior motive backing Lawan and Gbajabiamila.

He said his mind, heart and efforts are focused on making the APC and Buhari in achieving their “shared vision of a flourishing economy and a prosperous people”.

“We have monitored, with rising incredulity, the rash of news stories claiming Asiwaju Tinubu is manipulating the APC nomination process for the national assembly leadership,” the statement read.

“The stories claim this supposed manipulation is the first salvo in Asiwaju’s effort to position himself for a presidential run during the 2023 election cycle. Not only are these reports utterly false, based as they are in the febrile imaginations of those persons by whom they are being peddled, they are injurious to President Buhari’s historic quest to reform Nigeria. It is for this latter reason that we find cause to speak out where otherwise we would have continued to watch on in silent amusement.

“The peddlers of these rumors have arrogated to themselves the preternatural ability to read Asiwaju’s mind more than he himself can know it. They also seem to have acquired the unique gift of bending time so that 2023 appears before we even reach the midway point of 2019. If these people would only enlist their uncanny talents in the service of the nation instead of in the service of political intrigue and gossip mongering our country would be much the better.

“This attempt to caricature Asiwaju as if his words and actions are all aimed at grabbing power will fail because this portrait distorts the plain truth. While the headlines are sensational they are also senseless because they are not grounded in fact.

“The rumor-mongers should court greater discipline and wisdom. As Asiwaju recently said there is no action a person can take that constitutes a political guarantee as to what may come four years from now.Moreover, that having allies in the national assembly leadership positions will greatly enhance someone’s presidential ambitions is a spurious claim.”

Taking a swipe at Senate President Bukola Saraki and Yakubu Dogara, speaker of the house of reps, Tinubu said the APC must do its best to avoid those who would frustrate Buhari in power.

He said under Saraki and Dogara, budgets were hijacked while the interest of the party was not duly served.

“As he enters his second term, President Buhari has stated that he will give the economy special priority. His goal is to defeat poverty and joblessness while spurring the type of growth and development that will make Nigeria’s a durable and flourishing economy. These goals are laudable and necessary to move Nigeria forward. However, the obstacles before us are vast and complex.

“Just look at the way Saraki, Dogara and their ilk hijacked the budget process these past four years. National budgets were delayed and distorted as these actors repeatedly sought to pad budgets with pet projects that would profit them,” he said.

“Even worse, they cut funds intended to prosper projects that would have benefitted the average person. After four years of their antics halting the progress of government, we should do all we can to prevent a repeat of their malign control of the National Assembly.

“If we are truly committed to optimal governance, then we also must be equally committed to ensuring that the National Assembly leadership be competent and experienced as well as imbued with a progressive mindset and a desire to work in close cooperation with executive. This is all Asiwaju has hoped to achieve. There are no ulterior motives. Everything he has done is in concert with and in furtherance of the wishes of President Buhari and the party.”

Tinubu warned those who are against the president to be bold enough to make their stand known rather than trying to drive a wedge between him and Buhari.

“Thus, those who cast aspersions at Asiwaju, in reality are bucking against the stated position of the President,” he said.

“This is a democracy and people have the right to oppose whomever they wish to oppose. However, if these mongers oppose the president let them be of sufficient courage to plainly say so. They should not disparage Asiwaju as an indirect way to contend against the President.

“What everyone who cares about Nigeria should now do is rally around the president to give him all possible support in driving to reality his economic policies and objectives. This is how we progress as a nation.”

azeemyte73:
Please what is there in the medical test, can we use the test of 2018

Dclasyc:
[color=#006600][/color]

Is any one having this same challenge? Pending Action: Kindly Enter NYSC Discharge/Exemption Certificate. However, I had uploaded all required documents, just for me to review all info I dropped, I got that prompt.

umsquare:
pls

frenchkisser:
Pls my documents ....

Senators-elect on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party have also said they will weigh the offers on the table from the three APC senators aspiring to become the Senate President before adopting one of them.

While some are lobbying newly elected members, others are reaching out to the APC National Working Committee and presidency.

The PDP senators, who spoke with one of our correspondents on condition of anonymity, confirmed that Senators Ahmed Lawan, Ali Ndume, and Danjuma Goje had been having regular discussions with them.

They also confirmed that they had given their terms and that the aspirants agreed to honour their part of the deal if elected.

Speaking to our correspondent on the telephone on Saturday, a source in the camp of Senator Ovie Omo-Agege (Delta-Central) said the lawmaker was lobbying the Presidency and the APC NWC after indications emerged that the Deputy Senate Presidency would be zoned to the South-South.

The source, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said, “Omo-Agege has reached out to other critical stakeholders outside the chamber and he now has the full backing of the Presidential Villa and the National Chairman (of the APC, Adams Oshiomhole). The issue is settled. The Deputy Senate presidency has been zoned to the South-South; it is true.”

The source also said Omo- Agege’s only South-South opponent in the race for the Deputy Senate presidency, Senator Francis Alimikhena, is from the same local government area with Oshiomhole in Edo State, which would be considered in the zoning plan.

Omo-Agege neither confirmed nor denied the steps he was said to have taken to achieve his aim. “I’m reaching out like every other aspirant,” he said.

Another aspirant to the Deputy Senate presidency, Senator Ajayi Boroffice, also wrote to senators-elect to congratulate them on their victory at the polls and sought their support for his ambition.

Boroffice, representing Ondo North Senatorial District, is one of the three ranking senators from the South-West to be in the 9th Senate.

In the letter, the lawmaker partly wrote, “With an excellent public service record, rich legislative experience and amiable personae, I consider myself the best candidate for the office of the Deputy Senate President.

“In spite of our different backgrounds, religious beliefs and political inclinations, the business of national lawmaking has pulled us together as friends and colleagues. I humbly seek your cooperation, support and prayers in this election. Together, we shall succeed.”

In the House, an aspirant from Oyo State, Mr Olusegun Odebunmi, who is Gbajabiamila’s only opponent in the South-West, hinted that he was reaching out to northern states.

When contacted on the telephone earlier on Tuesday, Odebunmi said, “As I am talking to you now, I am on my way from Katsina State and it is about my project. I won’t make the details public for now.”

Efforts to contact him since Tuesday to speak more on his campaign were not successful as the lawmaker did not return calls to comment.

Meanwhile, another aspirant from Niger State (North-Central), Mr Mohammed Bago, on Saturday visited the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi, to seek his support.

A statement by spokesman for the Bago Campaign Organisation, Mr Victor Ogene, quoted Oba Ogunwusi as saying that to avoid a lacuna in the administration of the country, youths must be encouraged to assume leadership.

“Yes, we now have a ‘Not-too-young-to-run’ law but to complement that, we need to consciously bring the youths into leadership positions,” the Ooni was quoted as saying.

However, the PDP senators-elect, who spoke with one of our correspondents on Saturday, said a recent statement by the National Chairman of the APC, Adams Oshiomhole, on the issue appeared to have affected their relationships with the aspirants.

Oshiomhole had said that the leaders who would emerge on his party’s platform in the 9th National Assembly would not share power with the PDP lawmakers, who he called “the devils”.

A PDP senator-elect from the South-West, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told SUNDAY PUNCH, “Oshiomhole seems to have truncated the discussions we have had with the aspirants. I was one of those who argued that the PDP should not produce a candidate for the presiding positions after listening to the APC aspirants.

“The three of them have good programmes and agenda, but it appears that the APC leadership would have an overwhelming influence on the chamber, which is supposed to be independent.”

The Federal Government will, on Tuesday, start the process of taking ownership of the five bank accounts lost by the former Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Walter Onnoghen, following his conviction last Thursday by the Code of Conduct Tribunal, SUNDAY PUNCH has learnt.

The CCT had, on Thursday, convicted Onnoghen on charges of breach of the Code of Conduct for Public Officer by failing to declare as part of his assets the five accounts domiciled at the Wuse 2, Abuja branch of Standard Chartered Bank (Nig,) Limited.

The tribunal had convicted the former CJN on six counts including a specific allegation that he failed to declare his assets to the Code of Conduct Bureau between June 2005 and December 14, 2016.

It also convicted him on five other counts in which he was alleged to have falsely declared his assets on December 14, 2016, by omitting to declare his domiciliary dollar, euro and pound sterling accounts as well as two naira accounts as his assets.

Imposing the punishment for the alleged offences, the three-man tribunal, led by Danladi Umar, ordered Onnoghen’s removal as the CJN, and as the Chairman of both the National Judicial Council and the Federal Judicial Service Commission.

It also banned him from holding any public office for a period of 10 years.

The tribunal also ordered the forfeiture of the funds in the five bank accounts which the defendant was said to have failed to declare as part of his assets in breach of the Code of Conduct for Public Officers.

Although the tribunal did not mention the amount in the accounts, calculations of the balances in the accounts released as part of the prosecution’s evidence in the course of the trial show that the total amount to be forfeited is over N46m.

The prosecuting counsel, Mr. Umar Aliyu (SAN), confirmed to our correspondent on Saturday that the tribunal would draw the order for forfeiture of the accounts from its judgment and the Federal Government would have it served on the bank, Standard Chartered Bank (Nig.) Ltd, on Tuesday.

He noted that without the service of the order of forfeiture on the bank, the Federal Government would not be able to take ownership of the accounts as ordered by the CCT.

He said, “The order of the court will have to be served on the bank.

“In line with the judgment of the tribunal, an order will now have to be drawn from the judgment to the effect that the money in the accounts should be forfeited to the Federal Government.

“Without that, the bank will not accede to any request by the Federal Government for the forfeiture of the accounts.

“We expect that after the Easter break (which ends on Monday), the order will be drawn up by the tribunal and would be subsequently served on the bank.”

The Head, Press and Public Relations Unit of the CCT, Mr. Ibraheem Al-Hassan, also confirmed to our correspondent that the order would be ready for service on the bank on Tuesday.

He explained that the order had not been drawn up from the judgment because there was no time to do so since the verdict was delivered late on Thursday, the last working day before the Easter break started on Friday.

Al-Hassan said, “The order would be ready by Tuesday. If you recall, the judgment was delivered late into the closing time on Thursday; so, there was no time to draw the order from the judgment. Friday and Monday are public holidays.

“So, the next work day is Tuesday. By Tuesday, the order will be ready for service.”

Only one of the senior lawyers that defended Onnoghen during the trial could be reached on Saturday as the telephone of others rang out or no connection could be established with them.

But the senior advocate that was reached by our correspondent said he could not speak on the matter since he was not in the country when the judgment was delivered.

While giving evidence as the third prosecution witness in the trial on March 21, an official of Standard Chartered Bank, Ifeoma Okeagbue, had given the details of the balances in the five accounts of ex-CJN.

Okeagbue, the Team Leader, Priority Banking as well as Onnoghen’s Relationship Manager at the branch of the bank in Wuse 2, Abuja, said all the bank accounts were still active as of the time of her testimony.

The banker said the accounts, opened separately between 2009 and 2010, were in euro, pounds, dollar and naira denominations.

According to her, the balance in the Euro account number 5001062686, as of December 2018 was €10,187.18. At N404 per €, this amounts to N4,115,620.72

She said for the Naira account, with number 5001062693, had N12,852,580.52 as its balance as of December 2018.

She said the Pounds Sterling account, with number 5001062679, had as its balance as of December 2018, the sum of £13,730.70. This translates to N6,411,910 at N467 to £1.

The second Naira account with number, 0001062667, was said to have had a balance of N2,656,019.21 as of December 2018.

The witness also said the dollar account numbered 0001062650, had the balance of $56,878 as of January 2019. At the exchange rate of 1$ to N365, the balance translates to N20,476,080.

The naira equivalents of the proceeds in the accounts amount to N46,512,210.45.

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