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Alleged $5m Bribe: Court Okays Ganduje’s Trial

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A High Court of the Federal Capital Territory sitting at Maitama, has okayed accelerated hearing of a suit seeking to compel the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, to arrest and prosecute the First Lady of Kano State, Dr. Hafsatu Abdullahi Ganduje, over alleged role she played in a $5million bribery scandal involving her husband.
The court, in a ruling by Justice Yusuf Halilu, further ordered the EFCC, the Kano State government and the All Progressives Congress, APC, who were listed as 1st to 3rd Defendants, to show cause why all assets owned by and or traceable to governor Ganduje and his wife, should not be temporarily forfeited, pending the hearing and disposal of a suit that was lodged before it by a Non Governmental Organisation. Likewise, the court ordered the APC, through its National Working Committee, to equally show cause why it should not be directed to immediately remove and substitute governor Ganduje’s name as its candidate for the 2019 general election in Kano State.
The orders followed a suit marked CV/344/18 and a motion ex-parte marked M/887/18, which was lodged by a group under the aegis of the Incorporated Trustees of Hope Development and Empowerment Foundation.
Though the plaintiff had in the motion ex-parte it filed through its lawyer, Mr. Johnmary Jideobi, prayed the court to order EFCC to temporarily seize all assets traceable to governor Ganduje and his wife, pending the determination of the suit.
However, Justice Halilu declined the request, even as he directed service of all the processes on the Defendants to enable them to appear before the court on January 31 to show cause why the orders should not be made.
Specifically, the Plaintiff had in the substantive suit, prayed the court to determine: “Whether having regard to the provision of Section 15 (5) of the amended 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and upon an intimate reading and complete understanding of the decisions of the Nigerian Supreme Court in A.G.,Ondo State v.A.G.,Fed (2002) 9 NWLR (Pt.772) 222 and Fawehinmi v. I.G.P.(2002) 7 NWLR (Pt.767) 606, the 1st Defendant herein is not duty-bound to immediately commence the criminal investigation of the Governor of Kano State regarding the corrupt episode of kick-back (bribe) taking [to the tune of $5, 000,000.00] by the Governor as contained in a viral online video?
“Whether upon a calm reading of Section 15 (5) of the amended 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and intimate understanding of the decision of the Nigerian Supreme Court in A.G.,Ondo State v.A.G.,Fed (2002) 9 NWLR (Pt.772) 222, it is not imperative on the 3rd Defendant to remove and substitute the name of the Governor of Kano State as its candidate for the governorship election in Kano State of Nigeria scheduled for 2019.
As well as, “Whether kick-back(bribe) taking [to the tune of $5, 000,000.00] by the Governor of Kano State as contained in a viral online video is not a grave violation of Section 15(5) of the amended 1999 Constitution, Public Procurement Act, 2011 and Code of Conduct for Public Officers in Nigeria?”.
“That the corrupt episode as contained in the said video has lowered the image of public governance and shocks the conscience of ordinary Nigerians whose situation have been worsened, overtime, by the ravaging impacts of corruption such as depicted by the video the subject-matter of the instant suit.
“That time is of the essence of this application as the more delay recorded by the 1st and 3rd Defendants in doing the needful regarding the corrupt episode the more irreparable damage it does to all what good governance stands for in Nigeria.
“It is in the interest of justice that prayers contained on the face of the Motion Ex-Parte of the Claimant herein are granted by this Honourable Court”, it added.

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I’m Committed To Community Dev – Ajinwo

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The Sole Administrator of Emohua Local Government Area, Barr. Franklin Ajinwo, has reaffirmed his unwavering commitment to supporting community development, peace, and progress, describing it as his life’s calling.
Ajinwo made this known on when Okporowo Vanguard—a foremost association dedicated to driving sustainable development in Okporowo community—paid him a courtesy visit at the Council Secretariat, Emohua.

Speaking during the visit, the Emolga  Council boss advised the group to shun internal wranglings and leadership tussles, cautioning that such impediments could undermine their collective goals. He emphasized that unity is strength, and true power comes only from God.

Highlighting his ongoing efforts in repositioning standards within Emohua Local Government, Barr. Ajinwo commended Okporowo Vanguard for initiating plans to conduct large-scale skills acquisition training for young people in Okporowo. He assured them of his steadfast support towards such developmental initiative.

The former Chairman of the National Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE) in Rivers State stressed the need for selfless service, saying it is essential for achieving peace, unity, and development in any community.

He applauded the group’s vision of empowering youths through skills acquisition, aligning it with global best practices aimed at reducing dependency on white-collar jobs.

Earlier, the President of Okporowo Vanguard, Hon. Israel Emeji, outlined Barr. Ajinwo’s numerous and impactful contributions to the development of Okporowo community.

According to him, every family in the community has benefited from Barr. Ajinwo’s dedicated employment initiatives.

Hon. Emeji disclosed that during his tenure as Head of Local Government Administration (HLGA) and as NULGE Chairman, Barr. Ajinwo facilitated the employment of over five hundred (500) individuals from Okporowo community—a record that informed the association’s decision to honour him with the Excellent Leadership Award.

In a vote of thanks, the Secretary of the group, Dr. Okechukwu Godwin Amadi, praised Barr. Ajinwo’s outstanding leadership and unwavering support, both before and after his appointment as Sole Administrator.

He thanked him for the warm reception and appreciated members of Okporowo Vanguard for their strong turnout and continuous support for the present administration.

In their separate remarks, Barr. Kelvin Ajinwo, Chief Polycarp Ndala, and other dignitaries present prayed for God’s continued guidance and protection over Barr. Ajinwo, describing him as a divine gift to the Okporowo community.

They expressed hope that he would be granted even more leadership opportunities to further uplift the living standards of the people.

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RSG Tasks Rural Dwellers On RAAMP  …As Sensitization Team Visits Akulga, Degema, Three Others

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Rivers State Head of Service, Dr (Mrs) Inyingi Brown, has called on rural communities in the State to embrace the Rural Access and Agricultural marketing project (RAAMP) with a view to improving their  living conditions.

This follows the ongoing sensitization campaign by the State Project Implementation Unit (SPIU) visits to Degema, Abonnema, Afam headquarters of Degema, Akuku Toru and Oyigbo Etche and Omuma local government areas respectively.

Dr Brown who was represented by the Deputy Director, Special Duties in her office, Mrs Dein Akpanah, said RAAMP was initiated by the Federal Government and World Bank to economically empower rural dwellers.s

She said the World Bank understands the plights of rural farmers and traders in the State, and therefore came up with the programme to address them.

According to her, RAAMP will improve the conditions of farmers, traders and fishermen, and therefore, behoves on every rural communities in the State to embrace the programme.

The Head of Service also said the programme would support the youths to be gainfully employed while  bridges and roads will be built to link farms and fishing settlements.

Also speaking, the State project coordinator, Mr Joshua Kpakol, said the programme has the potential of creating millionaires among farmers and fishermen in the State.

Kpakol who was represented by Engr. Sam Tombari, said RAAMP would help farmers and fishermen to preserve their produce.

According to him, the project will build cold rooms and Silos for preservation of crops and fishes while access roads will also be created to link farmers and fishermen to the market.

He, however, warned them against any act that will lead to the suspension of the projects by the World Bank.

Kpakol particularly warned against acts such as kidnapping, marching ground, gender based violence and child labour, adding that such acts if they occur may  lead to the cancellation of the project by the World Bank.

During the visit to Oyigbo local government area, Mr Joshua Kpakol, said the team was there to let them know how they will benefit from the Raamp.

The coordinator who was personally at Oyigbo said the World Bank introduced the project to check food insecurity in the State.

He said already 19 states in Nigeria are already benefitting from the project and called on them to embrace the project.

Meanwhile, stakeholders in the three local government areas have commended the World Bank for including their areas in the project.

They, however, complained over the incessant attacks by pirates on their waterways.

At Degema, King Agolia of Ke kingdom said land was a major problem in the kingdom.

King Agolia represented by High Chief Alpheus Damiebi said many indigenes of the kingdom are willing to go into farming but are handicapped by lack of land.

Also at Degema, the representative of the Omu Onyam Ekeim of Usokun Degema kingdom, Osoabo Isaac, said Degema has embraced the programme but needed more information on the implementation of the programme.

Similarly, while High Chief Precious Abadi advised that the project should not be narrowed to only crop farming, a community women leader, Mrs Orikinge Eremabo Otto, called for the construction of cold rooms in all fishing settlements in the area.

At Abonnema, Mr Diamond Kio linked the problem of the area to incessant piracy along waterways.

He also expressed fears over the possibility of the project being hijacked by politicians.

Also at Abonnema, a stakeholder, Ikiriko Kelvin, called on the World Bank to design an agricultural project that will suit the riverine environment, while at Oyigbo, HRH Eze Boniface Akawo expressed satisfaction with the project.

 

John Bibor

 

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Senate Replaces Natasha As Committee Chairman 

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The political mudslinging between the Senate leadership and Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan continued yesterday as the Senate named Senator Aniekan Bassey as the new Chairman of the Committee on Diaspora and Non-Governmental Organisations.

Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, announced the appointment during yesterday’s plenary, confirming Bassey’s replacement of Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, who is currently on suspension.

Akpoti-Uduaghan was reassigned to the Diaspora and NGOs Committee in February after she was removed as Chair of the Senate Committee on Local Content during a minor reshuffle.

Bassey is the senator representing Akwa Ibom North-East Senatorial District.

Although no reason was given for her removal yesterday, the change is believed to be connected to her unresolved suspension.

In May, Justice Binta Nyako of the Federal High Court ordered her reinstatement and directed her to tender an apology to the Senate.

However, the Senate has insisted it has not received a certified true copy of the court judgment.

Akpoti-Uduaghan who represents Kogi Central, has yet to resume her legislative duties despite a recent court ruling that voided her suspension.

In a televised interview on Tuesday, Akpoti-Uduaghan said she was awaiting the Certified True Copy of the judgment before officially returning to plenary, citing legal advice and respect for institutional process.

Although the Federal High Court described her suspension as “excessive and unconstitutional”, a legal opinion dated July 5 and attributed to the Senate’s counsel, Paul Daudu (SAN), argued that the ruling lacked any binding directive to enforce her reinstatement.

Akpoti-Uduaghan, one of only three female senators in the current assembly, said the continued delay in allowing her return was not only a denial of her mandate but also a blow to democratic representation.

“By keeping me out of the chambers, the Senate is not just silencing Kogi Central, it’s denying Nigerian women and children representation. We are only three female senators now, down from eight,” she said.

 

 

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