News
Southern Reps Back Govs On 2023 Presidency, PIB, Electoral Act
Members of the House of Representatives from the southern part of Nigeria have adopted the resolutions by the Southern Governors’ Forum (SGF) on the Petroleum Industry Bill, Electoral Act (Amendment) Bill and the rotation of the Presidency in 2023.
The Chairman of the Southern Caucus, Hon Victor Nwokolo, made this known in a statement, yesterday, and titled, ‘Southern Reps Backs Southern Governors On Presidency, Electronic Transmission of Election Results, PIB, Others.’
It would be recalled that 17 governors from the region had met in Lagos, last Monday, where they took position on sundry issues in the polity.
The lawmakers said members of the House from the 17 southern states “unanimously and unequivocally endorse the patriotic resolution of the SGF on the resolve that the next president of Nigeria should emerge from the southern region.”
According to the caucus, the resolution by the governors reinforces their stance, as federal lawmakers that “our nation must and should exist on the pillars of justice, equity, fairness, peaceful co-existence and mutual respect, particularly in the political, economic and structural management of our national diversity.”
The statement read in part, “We note that the demand that the next President of Nigeria should come from the southern region unambiguously represents the opinion of the majority of Nigerians across board, in tandem with the already established rotation of presidency position between southern and northern Nigeria.
“Furthermore, against the backdrop of our commitment towards free, fair, credible and transparent elections, the members of the House of Representatives from the South also back our governors in rejecting the moves to outlaw the electronic transmission of election result in the Electoral Act, as well as the confirmation of exclusive jurisdiction in pre-election matters on the Federal High Court.
“We hold that electronic transmission of results directly from the polling unit is a firm step towards the elimination of result collation related malpractices, including alteration of figures, mutilation of documents, snatching and diversion of ballot materials on transit to collation centres, among others.
“The attempt to tamper with the Electoral Act to remove electronic transmission of result is therefore a malicious and unpatriotic act aimed to emasculate our electoral system, undermine our democracy and destabilize our dear country, and such cannot be condoned or justified under any guise whatsoever.”
The statement further read, “On the PIB, the southern members of the House of Representatives also back our governors in rejecting the proposed 30 per cent share of profit for the exploration of oil and gas in the basins.
“We also reject the moves to vest the ownership structure of Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited in the Federal Ministry of Finance and support the governors in their resolve that such should be held in trust by Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority, since all tiers of government have stakes in that agency.
“As lawmakers, we insist that the 30 per cent share of profit as well as vesting ownership structure of the proposed NNPC on the ministry of finance instead of the NSIA do not reflect the desired essentials of justice, equity and fairness.
“We, however, note the support lent by our governors to the 5 per cent share of the oil revenue to the host communities as recommended by the House of Representatives, and we assure that every effort would be made to sustain our position at the harmonisation level.”
On security, the southern lawmakers restated their support for the establishment of state police and ban on open grazing by southern states, stressing that governors, as chief security officers of their respective states, must be duly informed before any security institution undertakes any operation in their states.
“We also fully support the resolution by the governors that deductions from the Federation Account for the Nigeria Police Security Trust Fund should be distributed among the states and Federal Government to combat security challenges.
“We believe that these steps are imperative in guaranteeing the security of lives and property in the states under the prevailing situation and circumstance in our country.
“The southern members of the House of Representatives restate our commitment to the unity, stability and peaceful coexistence in our country while applauding the southern governors for their unwavering patriotic stand on national issues, especially at this critical time in our national life,” the statement added.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has indicted a new generation bank, six Fintechs and some microfinance banks in major financial scams by allowing fraudsters to launder huge sums of money.
Director of public Affairs of the Commission, Mr Wilson Uwujaren, made this known at a press briefing at the commission’s headquarters in Abuja, yesterday.
According to him, the compromised institutions allegedly allowed cryptocurrency transactions worth N162 billion to pass through without proper due diligence within the 2024/2025 financial year.
He said that the financial institutions clearly compromised banking procedures and allowed the fraudsters to safely change their ill-gotten gains into digital assets and move them to safe destinations.
“A total sum of N18.1 billion was moved through the financial system without due diligence of customers by the banks.
“It is worrisome that investigations by the commission showed that cryptocurrency transactions to the tune of N162 billion passed through a new generation bank without any due diligence.
“Investigations showed that a single customer maintained 960 accounts in another new bank and all the accounts were used for fraudulent purposes.
“That is bad news but the good news is that following our intervention the commission has been able to recover N33.62 million, which has been returned to some of the victims.”
He explained that the scams were in two categories, adding that the first was a syndicate of fraudsters that employed an airline discount scheme to lure their victims.
He said that they advertised a discount system for the purchase of flight tickets of a particular foreign carrier.
“The payment module is designed in such a way that the victims’ payment is actually made into the account of the airline.
“After payment is made the passenger’s entire funds in his bank account are emptied.
“Investigations showed that more than 700 victims have been scammed so far, with a loss of N651 million,” he said.
According to him, investigations show that the scheme is being masterminded by a foreign national; the commission has so far recovered and released N33 million to victims of the fraud.
He said that another scheme involved a company named Fred and Farid Investment Limited, simply called FF investment, which lured Nigerians into a bogus investment arrangement.
“More than 200, 000 victims have been defrauded in this regard. A total sum of N18 billion was raked in through nine companies offering diverse investment packages.
“The companies are: Credio Banco Limited; Deliberty Rock Limited; Liam Chumeks Global Service; Ngwuoke Daniels Technology; and Icons Autos and Import Merchant.
“Others are : Newpace Technology Services Limited, Primepath Ways Ventures Limited, Kaka Synergy Network Limited and Sunlight Tech Hub Services Limited.”
He said that foreign nationals were behind the schemes, while there are three Nigerian accomplices who have been arrested and charged to court.
He said that the masterminds were on the run and efforts are being made to bring them to book.
“The Commission is calling on regulatory bodies to bring financial institutions to compulsory compliance with regulations in the areas of Know Your Customers (KYC), Customer Due Diligence (CDD), Suspicious Transaction Reports (STRs) and others.
“Deposit Money Banks, Fintechs, Micro Finance Banks found to be aiding and abetting fraudsters should be suspended and referred to the EFCC for thorough investigation and possible prosecution.
“Negligence and failure to monitor suspicious and structured transactions by banks should no longer be allowed,” he said.
While cautioning members of the public to be wary of these actors, he said that the EFCC would continue its works against money laundering by fraudulent actors.
Uwujaren urged financial institutions to firm up their operational dynamics and save the nation leakages and compromises bleeding the economy.
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