₦airaland Forum

swaggerjack:
When Kemi Badenoch was speaking out against corrupt politicians who use national resources as their personal piggybank who do you think she was referring to?

… Arrests 193 Chinese, Arabs, Filipinos, Others

The Executive Chairman  of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Ola Olukoyede, has disclosed that the Commission, in a landmark raid,  arrested 792 suspects  for their alleged involvement in cryptocurrency investment fraud and romance scam.

The suspects were apprehended on Tuesday, December 10, 2024, in a surprise operation at their hideout, an imposing seven-storey edifice known as Big Leaf Building, on No.7, Oyin Jolayemi Street, Victoria Island, Lagos, following verifiable intelligence received by the Commission .

Speaking during a media briefing on Monday, December 16, 2024, at the Lagos Zonal Directorate of the Commission, Olukoyede stated that 148 Chinese, 40 Filipinos, two Kharzartans, one Pakistani, one Indonesian were arrested during the operation.

The EFCC’s boss, who spoke though the Director, Public Affairs, EFCC, Commander of the EFCC, CE Wilson Uwujaren, further stated that the foreign nationals used the facility, which could be mistaken for a corporate headquarters of a financial establishment, to train their Nigerian accomplices on how to initiate romance and investment scams and also used the identities of their Nigerian accomplices to perpetrate their criminal activities.

According to him, “All the floors are equipped with high-end desktop computers. On the 5th floor alone, investigators recovered 500 SIM cards of local telcos that were bought for criminal purposes.

“Their Nigerian accomplices were recruited by the foreign kingpins to prospect for victims online through phishing, targeting mostly Americans, Canadians, Mexicans, and several others from European countries.

“They usually arm them with desktop computers and mobile devices and create fake profiles for them.

“The Nigerian accomplices are equally provided with logs that allow them access to foreign communication lines and victims, which they chat with on WhatsApp, Instagram and Telegram.”

While giving  further details about the modus operandi of the syndicate, the EFCC Chair said the Nigerian accomplices, who are assigned WhatsApp accounts linked to foreign telephone numbers, especially from Germany and Italy, engage victims in romantic conversations as well as phantom business and investment discussions to trick them to shop on the purported online investment shopping platform called yooto.com.

He added: “For those who show interest, activation fees for an account on the platform starts from $35USD.

“Investigation revealed that the criterion for recruiting these young Nigerians is proficiency in the use of computers, especially typing skill. Those who passed the test are given desktop computers and mobile devices and then taken through a two-week induction on how to personate foreign females in romance scam chats and convince victims to invest in their employers' cryptocurrency investment scam.

“Once the Nigerians are able to win the confidence of would-be victims, the foreigners would take over the actual task of defrauding the victims and proceed to block their Nigerian accomplices from the network. This would then leave them in the dark about the transaction.”

He, however, said the Nigerians involved in the alleged fraudulent activities “do not know the owners of the 'company' they work for because they are not offered letters of appointments or receive payment from a corporate account.”

According to him, the  suspected Nigerian accomplices are usually paid either in cash or through an individual's account.

Olukoyede said the Commission was working with its foregoing partners to establish the extent of the scam and the accomplices as well as the likelihood of any collaboration with organized international fraud cells.

The EFCC Chair also used the occasion to debunk the notion that Nigerians are behind the tonnes of frauds emanating from the country.

“Foreigners are taking advantage of our nation's unfortunate reputation as a haven of frauds to establish a foothold here to disguise their atrocious criminal enterprises. But, as this operation has shown, there will be no hiding places for criminals in Nigeria,”he said.

Also speaking during the occasion, the acting Zonal Director, Lagos Zonal Directorate of the Commission, Michael Wetkas, sought greater collaboration with the media in the fight against  corruption and economic and financial crimes.

Items recovered from the suspects include desktop computers, mobile phones, laptop computers and cars at the point of arrest.

The suspects will be charged to court after investigations are concluded.

Validated:
Come 2027, T-Pain must go. Even if we have to go to outsourcing the office of president, so be it. A failure is a failure, no two ways about it.
Nobody cares about North-South ridership dichotomy. In the over 47 years f Northern rule, what Development have they achieved?
If you even talk of lopsided rulership, why would a region in the South dominate ridership of Southern share? Are other regions not Nigerians enough to rule?

Abeg, away with T-Pain and his Southerners-Turn agenda. We need incorruptible leaders, not the likes of Economy Destroyer like T-Pain. They have ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to offer than rhetorics and propaganda.

You share N3T allocation that is equivalence of N200b allocation two years ago and you are jubutilating, are you not a mad man?

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu welcomes Shell and its partners' announcement today of the Final Investment Decision (FID) on the Bonga North Deep Offshore Field. This landmark development, Nigeria's first deepwater oil project in over a decade, underscores the transformative impact of the President's policies and reforms in attracting investments in the oil and gas sector.

The Bonga North oilfield, located 130 kilometres offshore in Oil Mining Lease (OML) 118, represents an impressive estimated $5 billion investment and is expected to yield approximately 350 million barrels of crude oil. Shell holds the largest operational interest, with 55%. Its other partners are the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), ExxonMobil, TotalEnergies, and Eni.

The FID signals renewed confidence in Nigeria's energy sector and demonstrates the effectiveness of the Tinubu administration's strategic focus on engendering a robust and competitive investment climate.

President Tinubu remarked: "The Renewed Hope Agenda fundamentally focuses on attracting investments to transform the Nigerian economy and deliver prosperity to our people. We designed our policies and reforms from the start of my administration to achieve this goal. Shell and its partners' decision to invest in Bonga North affirms the success of our efforts. We will continue to offer the necessary support to ensure their success and the realisation of Nigeria's energy potential."

President Tinubu's strategic engagement with global energy stakeholders has been instrumental in this renewed wave of investments.

In July 2023, at the first of several high-level meetings with Shell's global leadership, President Tinubu declared, "We are open for business and serious about creating a stable, predictable, and investor-friendly environment."

Presidential Directives issued in early 2024 reinforced this commitment by fast-tracking regulatory approvals, reducing operational costs, and introducing competitive fiscal incentives.

The Bonga North project is the second of the blueprint projects President Bola Ahmed Tinubu selected to drive the implementation of the transformative Presidential Directives 40, 41, and 42 issued in the first quarter of 2024.

These directives, aimed at enhancing regulatory clarity, accelerating project timelines, and incentivising investment in Nigeria's energy sector, have yielded remarkable results. Earlier this year, the Ubeta oilfield (OML 58), the first blueprint project under this initiative, achieved a Final Investment Decision (FID) through a partnership between TotalEnergies and NNPC Limited. Dormant since its discovery in 1965, the Ubeta project will produce 350 million standard cubic feet of gas per day, bolstering domestic supply and expanding Nigeria's presence in the global energy market.

With both blueprint projects now achieving FID, the success of these initiatives underscores the effectiveness of the President's strategic vision for Nigeria's energy future.

Ms Olu Arowolo Verheijen, Special Adviser to the President on Energy, commented on the Bonga North milestone: "The Bonga North FID dispels the misconceptions about International Oil Companies leaving Nigeria. Instead, we are witnessing a strategic pivot of IOCs-powered capital and technical capacity to deepwater and integrated gas projects, which align with President Tinubu's vision of transforming Nigeria into a global energy hub. The divestments from onshore operations create opportunities for local oil and gas companies to expand and thrive, building a strong foundation for Nigeria's energy future."

Ms Verheijen further noted: "The success of Bonga North and Ubeta demonstrates the efficacy of the reforms and directives championed by the President. These projects will trigger broader investments to revolutionise Nigeria's power generation, transportation, and manufacturing sectors. As we look ahead to 2025, we anticipate further FIDs from international and domestic players, marking a new era of growth and opportunity for Nigeria."

The Tinubu administration remains steadfast in positioning Nigeria as a global leader in energy innovation and investment, ensuring that these efforts translate into tangible benefits for all Nigerians.

Bayo Onanuga
Special Adviser to the President,
(Information & Strategy)
December 16, 2024

calabaman:
@ op

What does all this big english mean to the starving masses?

> Does it mean that a bag of garri would now be 10k?
> Does it mean there would be more jobs for the unemployed?
> Does it mean that onions won't be 500 naira/2 (my location)

Please explain...

A gross total revenue of N3.143 Trillion is the highest ever recorded since FAAC allocations began. Kudos to President @officialabat for blocking loopholes and freeing up funds for rapid development. States and Local governments are now receiving unprecedented allocations, and it's time for Nigerians to enjoy the dividends of these reforms.

I enjoin our State Governors to make judicious use of these increments in allocations in service of our people.

The time to harvest the different gains of the Renewed Hope is nigh; continue keeping faith with the Prophet of the Renewed Hope Prophecy.

SadiqBabaSani:
Who owns seplat?

TINUBU family?

Kukutente23:
Where are the notes

Whois:
Seems they're about to create BRT lane on lekki-epe expressway