Category: General News

My son doesn’t have link with Moroccan terrorists – Osun mother

Courtesy: Punch

By Daniel Ayantoye

Misturah Adesiyan, a trader and mother of Nurudeen Adesiyan, a young man, who was arrested by the Department of State Services for allegedly having a link with Moroccan terrorists, shares her experience with DANIEL AYANTOYE about the sudden arrest of her son and his fiancée, Ayomide (Kehinde) Akintunde

Can you recall how your son and his fiancée were picked up at your place by security operatives?

Yesterday, Friday (January 17, 2025) made it the eighth Friday that they took our children away. I woke up very early on Friday, November 29, 2024, when they came to our house. It was like an ambush. Before then, my landlord’s wife had woken up, and the people (DSS personnel) had surrounded the house. They held my landlord’s wfe down and told her not to talk or call anyone.

Immediately I opened our door, I saw the security men with big guns. Some were on the veranda, backyard, and everywhere. I was shocked and asked them what happened. I told them we were not lawless people and asked them what could have warranted such an attack on us. One of them called out, ‘Iya Olosan, be patient’. When I heard that, I became more frightened because it dawned on me that this might be someone who knew me.

Do you know the person who called your name?

While I was trying to look at his face to know if he was someone I knew, he left, and another person came forward to replace him. They were up to 18 and were all carrying guns. They collected my phone and dragged me inside to where the children were. That was when Nurudeen stood up to ask why they were dragging me. One of them slapped him. They immediately checked my phone, and after going through my call log, they asked who ‘Kehinde 2’ was.

I couldn’t answer because the same Kehinde was standing beside me there. I was startled and wondered if they were looking for someone; should they not know the person facially? I just told them ‘Kehinde is also my child’. They asked if I knew where she slept and her house. I told them to follow me to Kehinde’s house so that I wouldn’t be the only one to see what would transpire after identifying Kehinde.

I asked myself how I was going to explain that they arrested someone’s daughter, who is my son’s fiancée, from my house. They surrounded me and didn’t allow me to change my clothes until we all entered their vehicles.

How many vehicles did they come with?

They came with four vehicles, including a white Hilux and another that looked like a police van. When we entered one of their vehicles, I saw a female who was also one of them. I asked her, ‘Please, what did these children do?’ She responded by asking me the type of job Kehinde was doing. I said Kehinde just graduated from pharmaceutical training, and her people were looking for funds for her freedom.

I further said she was not doing any job. When we got to their house, I told them (security personnel) to allow me to come down to knock, but they refused. They all came down and left us inside the vehicle. They went to the house and took all the children and their mother. They drove all of us to the community school, where they asked us to come down.

They then gave us our phones. Immediately, they drove our children away. I have tried their numbers several times, but it is not going through. We don’t know where they are holding them. They arrested my children; they took my son away with only a boxer on him. They didn’t allow him to wear trousers. I have not slept well; I could not even take my bath since they carried my children away.

Did the security personnel identify themselves to you?

They didn’t. It was in the morning when we went to report at the police station that they told us that the security personnel might be from the DSS. That was after we described their vehicles and their appearances. The police also asked how many vehicles Kehinde had, and how many houses she had. We were amazed and told them that she was a young girl who was still being fed.

They also asked what type of vehicle the fiancé was using. I told the police that the two of them only had one room at my place at Ajape. Then, they directed us to the DSS office in Ife. When we got there, they told us there was no report of the arrest. Then we went to the DSS office in Osogbo, and we were told the same thing.

There was confusion. Someone was saying maybe the people who came to arrest them were hired killers; another person said they wouldn’t be that much in number if they were hired killers. They said such a movement might have come from the “top” (Abuja). Since that day, we have not been able to find out where our children are.

Where is Nurudeen based?

He usually goes to his elder brother in Ibadan and comes back here (Modakeke).

What job is he doing?

He does not have a job. His father’s death created a setback for him in his education pursuit, and there is no certainty that he will go back to school. He is currently learning spare parts trade.

According to a report, he and his fiancee were arrested because they were linked to Moroccan terrorists. Have you heard them speaking to foreigners on the phone before?

It is not possible. I have never heard them talking to such people. God help me! This is too much! My children should be sent back to me. They should not lie against my children. They didn’t do anything. They took them away and Kehinde was three months pregnant already. They should not let my children suffer for what they know nothing about.

Some people said it is possible that it was a mistake of number, and that sometimes, calls clash. They should not punish my children for what they do not know. The government should come to our aid. We don’t know anybody; we don’t have anybody.

There are instances where someone will call me or other people and they will be speaking Igbo or Hausa, because of network issues. So, it is possible the call came as a mistake.

I became more afraid when I told the security personnel to allow me to call someone inside the vehicle; and the woman among them responded, saying, ‘Even if we call Tinubu, it will not change anything. I asked them what my children’s offence was, but they didn’t answer me. They said I should not worry. I have never found myself in this situation before.

February 2, 2025
Before It Becomes ECO-WAS

By Chidi Anselm Odinkalu

In the aftermath of the announcement on 28 January 2024 by Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger Republic denouncing the Revised Treaty of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and leaving the regional bloc “without delay”, reactions spanned the spectrum from hubris to hyperbole. From Nigeria, the regional anchor and chair of the Community, the predominant sentiment was – “the three countries would have more to lose.”

Outside the continent some described the situation as “West Africa’s ‘Brexit’ moment” or Sahelexit, likening it to Britain’s decision in 2016 to quit the European Union (EU). Reinforcing the comparison, the finalization this past week of the exit of the three countries from ECOWAS coincided with the fifth anniversary of the United Kingdom’s exit from the EU. The temptation to read too much into this coincidence should be resisted.

It is significant that the announcement by the three ECOWAS frontier states in 2024 was made shortly after the arrival in France of Nigeria’s President Bola Tinubu for what was said to be a “private visit”. All three countries have been involved in a plurinational dispute involving both Nigeria and France and connected with military rule and transitions to elected government.

In reality, however, the disputes have been more about the historical legacies of French colonial rule, the complex insecurity in the Sahel, and Nigeria’s regional role. In their joint statement, the three countries accused ECOWAS of being “under the influence of foreign powers and betraying its founding principles.”

These were not allegations to be treated lightly. There was also significance to the fact that the announcement came on the eve of ECOWAS’ golden jubilee year and represented the latest escalation in the debate about how to calibrate inter-state relations in an increasingly complex regional environment.

It did not have to end this way. As a matter of law and notwithstanding the peremptory language deployed, the departure declaration by Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger in 2024 denouncing the ECOWAS Treaty was not immediate. Article 91(1) of the Revised ECOWAS Treaty requires departing countries to “give to the Executive Secretary (President of the Commission) one year’s notice in writing” and their departure can only take effect at the end of the period.

ECOWAS had every opportunity during this period to exert itself to show it desired a different outcome. In the end, the Community appeared manifestly incapable of sustaining two contradictory ideas. One is the strategic importance of good neighbourliness within ECOWAS as a regional community of sovereign peers; the other is the commitment to government founded on democratic legitimacy.

The fact that ECOWAS finds itself in the current predicament ostensibly over the fate of elective government in the region is a somewhat, perverse acknowledgement of how far it has advanced since its origins.

Of the 15 heads of state and government present at the adoption of the Treaty of the Economic Community of West African States in May 1975, seven were military rulers and another six were succeeded by soldiers. Felix Houphöuet-Boigny of Côte d’Ivoire was the only president among the original signatories who was neither a soldier nor directly succeeded by one, but his successor was toppled by the military in December 1999. Abdou Diouf, who represented Senegal at the adoption ceremony was a Prime Minister to President Leopold Senghor, whom he later succeeded as president on 1 April 1981.

Cape Verde and Senegal remain the only ECOWAS countries to have been spared the experience of military rule. This fact should ordinarily have equipped the Community and its member states with adequate skills in reacting to military coups. However, it would be a mistake to suppose that this denouement is the result of an argument over coups alone or mostly.

ECOWAS began life in the middle of the global energy crisis of the 1970s, founded by rulers who declared it their goal to “foster and accelerate the economic and social development of our states, to improve the living standards of our peoples.” A combination of misrule and debt overhang miscarried this objective even before the ink was dry on the parchment it was written on.

In the wake of the instability that followed, the Community adjusted its mission in 1981 to include mutual defence and security, importing an implicit obligation of regional solidarity. When the Mano River countries, first Liberia and then Sierra Leone, descended into war from 1989, Nigeria, then led by military ruler, Ibrahim Babangida, launched a regional intervention known as ECOWAS Ceasefire Monitoring Group (ECOMOG) in 1990.

A review of the original ECOWAS Treaty followed in 1993, chaired by Nigeria’s former military ruler, Yakubu Gowon, himself the prime mover behind the original ECOWAS vision. The Revised ECOWAS Treaty again enhanced the obligations of mutual solidarity among the countries of the sub-region.

As the anchor country in ECOWAS, Nigeria was naturally expected to bear much of the burden of financing this obligation. But a straitened economy at the end of decades of misrule has frustrated that capability on the part of Nigeria at precisely the time that the countries of the Sahel needed its presence the most in response to Islamist insurgencies.

The resulting vacuum has been filled by external actors. The French proved to be the worst enemies in their attempt to fill this vacuum, providing the soldiers who seized power in these countries with a common foil. French departure in November 2022 and regional isolation by ECOWAS have proved to be a boon to Russia which has quickly built up assets and relations with the regimes in Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger.

Notionally, the departure of these three countries will cost ECOWAS 54.35% of its landmass, 20% of its sovereign membership, 16.5% of its population and seven per cent of its GDP. The actual costs are incalculable. First, Mali and Niger, which are landlocked, have been historic buffers between the violence of the Sahel and the Maghreb on the one hand and the coastal states of the Gulf of Guinea on the other. Their departure could create new security exposures.

Second, the informal economies of West Africa depend significantly on these countries. Trade, migration and pilgrimage routes traverse through them, and the impact on the poor and the excluded who rely on these informal routes could either prove to be prohibitive or expose the hollowness of the region’s inter-state borders in legitimacy and meaning in the lives of ordinary people.

Third, the three countries are important for civil aviation in West Africa for overflights. If they were to deny these, ticketing and routing into their southern neighbours could also become prohibitive.

The upshot in a region defined by notoriously porous borders and transnational communities is that severing ties could be easier said than done. Even now, there is still a reason not to give up hope: Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger retain their membership of the CFA Franc Zone in the West African Economic and Monetary Union, UEMOA, five of whose members remain in the ECOWAS.

ECOWAS has put a brave face on its diminution, claiming that its institutional doors remain open to these countries but their Alliance of Sahel States (AES) is up and running. The feeling remains inescapable that this outcome was not foregone and that it has been enabled by high-level ineptitude among the leadership of ECOWAS.

Ghana’s new president John Mahama, has in a practical manner made it a priority to advance rapprochement with the AES countries, by appointing a personal envoy to lead this process. The Community should fully support him.

It is impossible not to contemplate what might have been. Over the past year while the imminence of these losses escalated, Nigeria’s President and Chairperson of ECOWAS, Bola Tinubu, has been to France on numerous occasions. Consider what might have been if he found time to engage and personally visit these West African neighbours. Surely, that was a mission fit for a new presidential jet.

*A lawyer & a teacher, Odinkalu can be reached at chidi.odinkalu@tufts.edu*

February 2, 2025
FX code will stabilize naira, ensure more transparent forex market -TMSG

By Iyiola Olalere

The Tinubu Media Support Group (TMSG) has described the Nigeria Foreign Exchange code (FX code) introduced by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) as the beginning of a new era of regulation in the country’s foreign exchange market.

In a statement signed by its Chairman Emeka Nwankpa and Secretary Dapo Okubanjo, TMSG maintained that the new regulations would prevent a situation that led the current CBN leadership to launch a forensic audit into the $7 billion backlog it inherited.

“We see the Central Bank’s introduction of the new code of ethics to guide operations in Nigeria’s foreign exchange market as long overdue.

“Coming off the back of the end of the free-for-all that bookmarked the era of multiple exchange rate, it is clear the move would enhance transparency and help stabilize the naira.

“Listening to the CBN governor Olayemi Cardoso speak on the forensic audit of the $7 billion backlog, it is obvious that the Nigerian forex environment was replete with unethical practices that the apex bank is no longer prepared to tolerate.

“For us, it was heartwarming hearing the CBN governor reading the riot act to bank executives about the bank’s zero tolerance to attempts to revert to the past with a clear warning that any individual or institution that violates the FX code will face swift and decisive sanctions.

“We agree with Cardoso’s submission that exchange rate stability remained a ‘cornerstone of macroeconomic health for the Nigerian economy that is capable of influencing critical indicators including balance of payments, external reserves, international trade, inflation, economic growth, and foreign investment.

“And with the signing of the commitment charter by chief executives of banks at the launch of the FX code, we dare say that Nigeria is on the cusp of a new era of professionalism and ethical operation in the foreign exchange market.

“It is also not surprising that even before the launch, Nigerians have been witnessing some sanity in recent months in the forex market with the naira becoming more stable while also appreciating further in the parallel market,” it added.

The group urged the CBN leadership to stay the course in its quest to entrench good governance and restore sanity in the forex market as well as strengthen the naira.

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February 2, 2025
American Seal Rescues US Hostage From Northern Nigerian Bandits Within 60 Seconds

– Trump’s FBI director pick says U.S. SEAL Team Six rescued American hostage from northern Nigerian bandits within 60 seconds

– Mr Patel was the brain behind the rescue operation.

President Donald Trump’s nominee for the FBI director, Kash Patel, on Thursday, said the U.S. SEAL Team Six spent only 60 seconds in rescuing a kidnapped American citizen who had been kept hostage in northern Nigeria.

Mr Patel stated this during his confirmation hearing before the U.S. Senate on January 30, 2025.

He was grilled about his role in the secret operation to rescue Philip Walton, a 27-year-old son of American missionaries who had been kidnapped by armed bandits from the neighbouring Niger and moved to northern Nigeria for ransom.

“The operation lasted for 60 seconds,” Mr Patel told the U.S. Congress on Thursday.

He was further grilled about his alleged carelessness in parroting a false approval that the Nigerian government had given the SEAL Team Six clearance to use the Nigerian airspace. Mr Patel was the brain behind the rescue operation, having obtained intelligence on the location where Mr Walton was being held.

He saw the opportunity for the Seal Team Six to strike given the bandits could move Mr Walton to a new location.

It was while the aircraft was aboard with agents mid-air that the U.S. senior officials learnt that the Nigerian government had not yet granted the Navy SEALs clearance to use their airspace, let alone land.

Then-Defence Secretary, Mark Esper, in his memoir, noted it was one of Mr Patel’s numerous slip-ups and that he was highly concerned for the SEALs, particularly whether they would get shot down from the unauthorised mission.

“I was concerned that being packed in an aircraft burning holes in the sky for an extra hour or so would wear on the special operators, that it might affect their readiness somehow,” ABC cited Mr Esper’s memoir recounting the op.

Mr Esper said the SEALs had their suspicions that Mr Patel fabricated the clearance he said the Nigerian government gave them.

“My team suspected Patel made the approval story up, but they didn’t have all the facts,” Mr Esper wrote.

Mr Patel refuted the allegations in his own book “Government Gangsters” claiming there were persons who tried to undermine the president’s agenda by raising roadblocks to counterterrorism missions in Africa and the Middle East.

The operation was eventually a success after the State Department intervened and acted swiftly to obtain airspace permission from the Nigerian authorities before the Navy SEALs landed.

Mr Patel has faced significant opposition in his quest to become FBI director and it is yet unclear whether he answered the queries satisfactorily.

February 2, 2025
Breaking: Hope Rises as Dangote Refinery Slashes Petrol Price to N890

For many Nigerians struggling with the rising cost of living, Dangote Petroleum Refinery’s latest decision to reduce the ex-depot price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) from N950 to N890 brings a glimmer of hope.

The move, which takes effect on Saturday, is expected to ease the financial burden on ordinary citizens, particularly transporters, traders, and low-income earners who have been grappling with high fuel prices.

Many see this as a potential turning point in their daily struggles, as cheaper petrol could mean reduced transportation fares and lower costs of goods and services.

For Oluchi, a Lagos-based bus driver, the news couldn’t have come at a better time. “Fuel price has been killing us. Every day, passengers complain about high fares, but we have no choice because petrol is expensive. If the price really comes down, it will be a relief for all of us,” he said.

Market traders also anticipate a positive impact. “Everything we sell depends on transportation. If transport costs reduce, food prices may also drop, and that will help families trying to survive,” said Mama Bisi, a tomato seller in Mushin.

The Dangote Refinery, in a statement by its Group Chief Branding and Communications Officer, Anthony Chiejina, emphasized that the price adjustment aligns with the drop in global crude oil prices.

The company urged petroleum marketers to ensure that the reduction reaches consumers, reinforcing its commitment to economic stability.

This development aligns with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s economic revival plan, which aims to make Nigeria self-sufficient in refined petroleum products.

As the nation watches closely, many Nigerians hope that this price drop will translate into tangible relief, making everyday life a little easielllT

February 1, 2025
Act like a statesman, stop denigrating the judiciary, TMSG urges Atiku

By Majeed Ishola

The Tinubu Media Support Group (TMSG) has described as utterly befuddling and baffling former Vice President Atiku Abubakar’s recent attempt to denigrate the judiciary, an arm of government that saved him from the hands of his then-former boss, President Olusegun Obasanjo.

In a statement signed by its Chairman Emeka Nwankpa and Secretary Dapo Okubanjo, the group said it was also reckless and unstatesmanly of the former Vice President to make sweeping allegations against the judiciary on election matters.

It read in part: “We are indeed baffled that former Vice President has again resumed his penchant for throwing tantrums and making uncomplimentary remarks about the nation’s judiciary in the public space when things do not go his way.

“For us, it is a worrisome trend that a supposed statesman who once occupied the second highest office in the land could spare no effort in talking down on the judiciary and making wild allegations against the courts.

“If there is indeed a senior Nigerian citizen who has had a working knowledge of governance, especially the Independence of the Nigerian judiciary, that person has to be the former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2023 Presidential election.

“This is one man who, as a sitting Vice President, his principal, Olusegun Obasanjo, literally stripped and publicly disrobed of the constitutional rights of the nation’s No. 2 office which he held in 2006 and dragged him before the anti-graft agency, amongst other ignoble treatment had to be saved by the judiciary. It took the courage of judges at different levels of the strata to save him from the hangman.

” We are aware that Atiku Abubakar, in fact, waged a series of successive court battles which not only ended in his favour but also drew huge satisfaction from the then Vice President who was on record to have described the judiciary as truly, truly independent.

“He is also known to have had nice words for the judiciary whenever politicians from his party won at election tribunals and we cannot recall at any time that he called to question the intervention of the judiciary in electoral matters that went against his direction.

“We therefore find it utterly strange that the judiciary is considered perfect whenever he or his party members secure positive verdicts in courts but when things fail to go his way, the former Vice President riles against the judiciary in the most scathing of words as if it was placed there to satisfy his ego.

“There was even an instance in 2019 when the former Vice President subtly called to question the credibility of a one-time President of the Appeal Court Justice Zainab Bulkachuwa and demanded that she recuse herself from a 5-man tribunal to hear his legal challenge of President Muhammadu Buhari’s election on the ground that her husband was a member of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).

“The country had never seen anything like that before and even though the tribunal did not see any reason for her to step down from the panel, Justice Bulkachuwa did but Atiku still failed to have the tribunal overturn Buhari’s election.

“So aside from the series of electoral losses to his name, the former Vice President also regularly failed at various tribunals but we do not expect him as a statesman to make unsavoury comments against the judiciary and rubbish the institution.

TMSG urged the former vice president to show more belief in the same system that had been so desperate to rule over and be statesman-like in his public intervention.

February 1, 2025
Shelve Your Planned Protest, 50% Telecomm Tariff Hike is Private Sector- Driven – TMV Admonishes NLC

By Danladi Ahmed

The Tinubu Media Volunteers have berated the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) for planning to embark on a nationwide protest over the 50% tariff hike by the telecommunication service providers.

In a statement signed by its Chairman Chukwudi Enekwechi and Secretary Shedrach Sunday, the group noted that it was surprising that NLC was taking that line of action.

It said: “We are indeed surprised that the NLC will contemplate embarking on a protest over an issue that is clearly private-sector driven.

“It must be recalled that the telecommunication companies are into business. They have invested in the acquisition of licenses, with some having to obtain huge bank loans at high interest rates to procure gadgets and expand their businesses.

“Similarly, the companies have in a bid to improve their services as well as expand their networks found the need to increase their tariffs to a rate commensurate to what obtains in many African countries, and rather than seeing the move in the realm of pure business venture, the Nigeria Labour Congress has chosen to once again delve into a matter that should not be blamed on government.

“It is, for us, a case of misplaced aggression on the part of the NLC to pick up the gauntlet at every turn and blame the federal government for the tariff hike.

“In reality, the tariff increase is in response to market realities, locally and globally. It must also be borne in mind that over time, the operational costs of telecommunication companies have increased, hence the need to increase the tariff for more efficiency in their service delivery.

“We therefore implore the NLC to rescind its decision to embark on a nationwide protest on February 4, 2025 as it will be counterproductive and inimical to the numerous efforts of the federal government to reform the country’s economy and make life better for the people.”

TMV urged NLC to note that the federal government is only a regulator of the sector and, therefore, not in a position to dictate or fix tariffs for operators who are looking for returns on their investments

February 1, 2025
Edo poll: Oshiomhole keeps mum on PDP’s petition hearing at tribunal

Sen. Adams Oshiomhole, on Friday, refrained from making comments on the ongoing hearing of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)’s petition at the Edo Governorship Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Abuja.

Oshiomhole, who represents the Edo North Senatorial District, refused to comment on his observation of the proceedings while fielding questions from newsmen.

“You know you don’t comment on matters in court. I came to watch, to observe the proceedings and I am satisfied that the proceedings are going well.

“It is not for me to do any evaluation that is the prerogative and absolute responsibility of the tribuna.

“Well, I cannot comment on it,” he simply responded.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the hearing of the petition filed by the PDP and its governorship candidate, Asue Ighodalo, continued with the presentation of their 16th witness.

The witness, Haruna Ibrahim, told Justice Wilfred Kpochi-led three-member panel that he served as a polling unit agent during the Sept. 21, 2024 election that was held in the state.
He told the tribunal that though the election was properly conducted, he observed some irregularities in the form of over-voting and immediately complained to officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) at the polling unit.
Ibrahim mounted the box shortly after Oshiomhole, who is also a former governor of Edo, arrived at the venue of the tribunal to show solidarity with Gov. Monday Okpebholo.
Okpebholo is the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) who was declared the winner of the governorship contest by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
The immediate-past Deputy Governor of Edo, Philip Shaibu, who had since defected from the PDP to the APC, was also at the tribunal to observe proceedings.
NAN reports that the tribunal had, on Thursday, admitted in evidence, 148 Bimodal Voter Accreditation System Machines (BVAS) that were used during the conduct of the disputed governorship poll.
The electronic devices were tendered by a Senior Technical Officer in the ICT Department of INEC, Anthony Itodo, and admitted in evidence by the panel.
The petitioners had subpoenaed INEC to produce the BVAS machines that were used in 133 polling units where election results are being disputed.
INEC had declared that Okpebholo of the APC secured a total of 291, 667 votes to defeat his closest rival, Ighodalo of the PDP, who got a total of 247, 655 votes.
Dissatisfied with the outcome of the poll, the PDP and its candidate approached the tribunal, praying it to nullify INEC’s declaration of the APC and Okpebholo as winners of the contest.
The petitioners, among other things, contended that the governorship election was invalid because of alleged non-compliance with provisions of the Electoral Act, 2022.

February 1, 2025
Alleged N1.96bn fraud: Banker, director testify against ex-acting AGF

Flowerbudnews

A Zenith Bank Plc staff, Eucharia Ezeodi, and a director with the federal civil service, Felix Nweke, on Friday, testified against Anamekwe Nnabuoku, former acting Accountant-General of the Federation (AGF), in the alleged N1.96 billion fraud.
They gave their testimonies before Justice James Omotosho of a Federal High Court in Abuja, while being led in evidence by counsel to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ekele Iheanacho, SAN.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Nnabuoku was admitted to a N500 million bail with two sureties in the like sum after he was arraigned on Jan. 15 on a nine-count amended charge.
The EFCC had, in the charge marked: FHC/ABJ/CR/240/2024, listed Nnabuoku as sole defendant.
In count one of the charge filed on Nov. 27, 2024, the EFCC alleged that Nnabuoku, alongside Temeeo Synergy Concept Limited (at large), Turge Global Investment Limited (at large), Laptev Bridge Limited, Arafura Transnational Afro Limited (at large) and other persons (all at large) conspired to convert funds.
The funds were said to be proceeds of unlawful activities.
The anti-graft agency said the offence was contrary to Section 18 of the Money Laundering Prohibition Act, 2011 as (amended by Act No. 1 of 2012) and punishable under Section 15(3) of the same Act.
Giving her evidence, Ezeodi, the 1st prosecution witness (PW-1), admitted knowing the latter while he was a director in the Federal Ministry of Defence.
“I am a banker with Zenith Bank. My office is at Ralph Shodeinde Street, Central Business District in Abuja.
“I have worked for 15 years. I am a marketer in the bank. My duty is to generate business, bring new customers to the bank, etc,” she said.
The witness said sometimes in 2019, she met Nnabuoku at Federal Ministry of Defence as a Director of Finance and Account.
“I know him through Mr Felix Nweke,” she said.
She said sometimes in 2022, she was invited by the EFCC in respect of the corporate accounts opened for the four companies allegedly used by Nnabuoku to move money out of the ministry’s coffers.
She said the companies include Temeeo Synergy Concept Limited, Turge Global Investment Limited, Laptev Bridge Limited and Arafura Transnational Afro Limited.
The PW-1 said she was questioned about what she knew about the accounts and those behind the opening.
She said the accounts, which were opened in 2019, had Mr Gideon Joseph as signatory.
“In 2019, I met them with Mr Nweke, I open the corporate account for them for Arafura Ltd, Theo Synergy Ltd,
She said in the course of her interaction with Mr Nweke, she also met Nnabuoku.
The witness identified the bank documents, including the statements of account for the four companies, account opening packages, the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC)’s documents, her signature on the documents, etc.
Iheanacho tendered all the documents and after it was not opposed by the defendant’s lawyer, Isidore Udenko, the judge admitted them in evidence.
During cross examination by Udenko, the banker said she had no personal relationship with Nnabuoku except on bank transactions.
When she was asked if Nnabuoku’s name reflected in any of the transactions, the witness said a director must not necessarily be a signatory to a company’s account.
She, however, said that a signatory to an account must bring his Identity Card, a Bank Verification Number (BVN), passport photograph, among others, which she said Joseph did.
Ezeodi said the nature of transactions in the account statements was simply deposit and withdrawal and that Mr Gideon Joseph did all the withdrawals, although Nnabuoku allegedly benefitted.
Also giving his evidence, Mr Felix Nweke said he worked under Nnabuoku when he was in Defence Ministry as deputy director.
“I am a civil servant and presently a director with federal civil service. I am in the office of the Accountant-General of the Federation awaiting posting,” he said.
Nweke said between 2018 and 2020, he was a deputy director in charge of expenditure at the Defence Ministry.
He said part of his function was to prepare schedule of inflows and outflows that were due to the services (i.e the Army, Navy and the Air Force).
He said when he resumed in the ministry in 2018, Nnabuoku told him that there was the need to make funds available to facilitate the stakeholders, the National Assembly and the Federal Ministry of Finance.
The witness said the defendant told him that they needed to be creative with regards to generating funds to facilitate the activities of the ministry.
He said the defendant told him that they needed to get companies through which funds could be pulled out and to be able to raise money and service the stakeholders in the ministry.
Nweke, who is the 2nd prosecution witness (PW-2), said he then contacted Gideon Joseph who comes to the ministry with his brother at the time to make supply.
He said though Joseph wanted him to assist in giving him contracts, Nweke said he told him that issues of contract were not within his purview.
He said he told Nnabuoku about Joseph and he advised that they should help him (Joseph).
“I took Gideon to Eucharia who has been coming to the ministry for business. I assisted him to open account with Zenith Bank,” he said.
The PW-2 said the banker assisted in opening the four accounts with Joseph’s name as signatory.
“When we go to public hearing and the National Assembly, after the hearing, we would have a private sitting where we discussed the need to raise the money for the ministry,” he said.
He said they would raise money either in naira or foreign currencies
He alleged that the money was then given to Nnabuoku either directly or by proxy.
“Sometimes, the director will ask me to do some transfers to private persons,” he said.
Nweke said the generated funds were often used for welfare packages for the military because there was no such provision.
When the EFCC’s lawyer asked him how the funds were paid into these accounts, Nweke said the money “is from the internal security operations account of the military.”
When asked who paid the money into the internal security operations account, the witness said “it is from the ministry’s account that payments were made.”
The witness mentioned about five names from the bank documents who were workers in the Ministry of Defence.
He alleged that funds were also transferred into the bank accounts of these staff members and withdrawals were made and the money paid back into the four companies’ accounts where Nnabuoku was allegedly the beneficiary.
After a cross examination by Nnabuoku’s lawyer, Udenko, Justice Omotosho adjourned the matter until Feb 26 and March 5 for continuation of trial.

February 1, 2025