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Alleged Fraud: Court Grants N500m Bail To Saipem MD, Others
A Rivers State High Court in Port Harcourt has granted bail to the Managing Director of Saipem Contracting, Mr. Walter Peviana, and Kelechi Sinteh Chinakwe with N500million.
On January 11, the duo were remanded at the Port Harcourt Correctional Centre over an alleged conspiracy to defraud the Rivers State Government the sum of $130million.
At the resumed hearing, for bail consideration, the trial Judge, Justice Okogbule Gbasam, granted bail to the defendants in the matter filed by the state government as registered in suit number PHC/3106/CR/2021.
The prosecution in the matter is the Government of Rivers State, while the defendants are Saipem SPA (1st defendant); Saipem Contracting Nigeria Limited (2nd defendant); Mr. Walter Peviana (3rd defendant); Kelechi Sinteh Chinakwe (4th defendant); Giandomenico Zingali (5th defendant); Vitto Testaguzza (6th defendant), and Davide Anelli (7th defendant).
Earlier, the counsel for the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 6th defendants, Odein Ajumogobia (SAN), and the counsel for the 4th defendant, relying on Sections 194 and 169 of the Administration of Criminal Justice and Sections 35 and 36 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, pleaded for the bail of their clients.
The counsel told the court to grant the defendants bail considering the facility where they were detained, explaining that their clients could fall ill following the spread of the COVID-19.
Ajumogobia urged the court to grant his client, Peviana, bail owing that he is the “managing director of one of the largest company in West Africa (Saipem),” and would not jump bail.
The counsel pleaded that the court has the power to grant bail to the defendants.
But the applicant counsel, Godwin Obla (SAN), urged the court to dismiss the bail application for the defendants.
Obla argued that the money involved in the allegation, if converted to Nigeria currency, would amount to N32billion, which he said is about 6.7percent of the total state budget for the year.
He argued that the 4th defendant counsel filed application of bail a day to the client arraignment in court, saying the application did not comply with the law; hence, the court should dismiss such.
The counsel further argued that: “It shows the seriousness of the crime the accused persons were charged with and reason why the accused should not be granted bail.”
Ruling on the bail application, Gbasam noted the error in filing a bail application before the defendant appears in court.
The judge said: “The anticipation is that bail should come before arraignment, arrest or remand. The application made on January 10, 2022, was merely speculation and presumption. The 4th defendant should have filed his application after the case has been brought to court.”
He stated that the application was null and void.
Gbasam, who also expressed the discretion of the court in granting bail to the 2nd and 4th defendant, ordered that they should present two sureties each, and surety for the 2nd defendant must be a principle officer of the 1st defendant (Saipem), and must own a landed property in the state with Certificate of Ownership.
Also, as the bail condition, the judge said the defendants should deposit their international passports to the court and that sureties must deposit original papers of their landed property in the court.
However, the court adjourned the matter till February 2, 3 and 4, 2022, for accelerated hearing.
Speaking with newsmen outside the courtroom, counsel for the applicant, Obla, explained that: “The matter came up today (Tuesday) for plea as previously scheduled by the court, and the plea of the defendants were all taken to the 15 count-charge, and they moved their application for bail.
“We opposed the application for bail but also left a window for the judge to also exercise his discretion.
“He has now granted bail to the 3rd and 4th defendants in the sum of N500million each, two sureties to provide landed property, the surety for the 3rd defendant must be a managerial level with the second defendant.
“The case has been adjourned till February 2, 3, and 4, 2022, for hearing on the day-by-day basis.”
Also speaking, counsel for the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 6th defendants, Ajumogobia, lauded the court for granting bail to his clients, but noted the high conditions of the bail.
He said: “Bail is at the discretion of the court. We made an appeal that the court should issue conditions that are not too stringent. I think the court was gracious enough to issue difficult conditions, but we will try and see how we can meet those conditions-I mean N500million is not a small amount of money for the two of the defendants.
“But at least the challenge now is to meet those conditions for bail so that they can come out of the prison,” he said.
President Bola Tinubu has ordered a security outreach to the hotbeds of recent killings in Plateau, Benue and Borno States, to restore peace to areas wracked by mass killings and bomb attacks.
National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, disclosed this to State House correspondents after a four-hour security briefing with the President at the Aso Rock Villa, Abuja on Wednesday.
“We listened and we took instructions from him. We got new directives…to go meet with the political authorities there,” Ribadu told reporters, adding that Tinubu directed them to engage state-level authorities in the worst-hit regions.
Director-General, National Intelligence Agency, Mohammed Mohammed; Chief Defence Intelligence of the Nigerian Army, Gen. Emmanuel Undianeye; Director-General, Department of State Services, Oluwatosin Ajayi and Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, appeared for the briefing.
The Tide’s source reports that in Plateau State, inter-communal violence between predominantly Christian farmers and nomadic herders spiralled into gory slaughter when gunmen stormed Zikke village in Bassa Local Government early on April 14, killing at least 51 people and razing homes in a single night.
In Benue, at least 56 people were killed in Logo and Gbagir after twin assaults blamed on armed herders.
Meanwhile, in Borno State, eight passengers perished and scores were injured when an improvised explosive device ripped through a bus on the Damboa–Maiduguri highway on April 12.
Ribadu explained that after an extensive briefing, intelligence chiefs received fresh instructions to restore peace, security and stability across Nigeria.
“In particular, Tinubu had ordered immediate outreach to the political authorities in Plateau, Benue and Borno States, and the defence team had gone round those States to carry out his directives and report back.
“We gave him an update on what has been the case and what is going on, and even when he was out there, before coming back, he was constantly in touch. He was giving directives. He was following developments, and we, in charge of the security, got the opportunity today to come and brief him properly for hours. And it was exhaustive.
“We listened and we took instructions from him. We got new directives. The fact is, Mr. President is insisting and working so hard to ensure that we have peace, security and stability in our country. We gave him an update on what is going on, and we also assured him that work is ongoing and continues.
“We also carried out his instructions. We went round, the chiefs were all out where we had these incidents of insecurity in Plateau State, Benue State, even Borno, these particular three states, and we gave him feedback, because he directed us to go meet with the political authorities there,” the NSA explained.
Ribadu described Tinubu as “worried and concerned,” and said he directed that all security arms be deployed around the clock.
The government, he added, believes these steps have already produced measurable improvements, even if the situation is not yet 100 per cent safe and secure.
“He’s so worried and concerned, he insisted that enough is enough, and we are working and to ensure that we restore peace and security and all of us are there. The armed forces are there, the Civil Police, intelligence communities, they are there.
“They are working there 24 hours, and we feel that we have done enough to believe that we are on the right course, and we’ll be able to be on top of things,” Ribadu stated.
The NSA emphasised that combating insecurity was not solely a Federal Government responsibility.
He stated, “The issue of insecurity often is not just for the government. It involves the subunits. They are the ones who are directly with the people, especially if some of the challenges are more or less bordering on community problems.
“Not entirely everything is that, but of course it also plays a significant role. You need to work with the communities, the local governments, and the governors, especially the governors.
“The President will continue to direct that. We should be doing that, and that’s what we are able to. We are very happy and very satisfied with the instructions and directives given by Mr. President this evening.”
In Borno State, the NSA noted that while violence had surged in recent months, the insurgents refused to accept defeat.
He warned that most recent casualties there resulted from improvised explosive devices—”cowardly” IED attacks targeting civilians—and from opportunistic raids that follow any lull in fighting.
“We are getting the cooperation of the leadership at the state level, and everybody. It’s not 100 per cent…but we are going there.
“When you are having peace and you are beginning to get used to it, if one bad incident happens, you forget the periods that you enjoyed peacefully,” he added.
He paid tribute to the “many who do not sleep, who walk throughout, who do not go for any break or holiday”—the soldiers, police and intelligence officers whose sacrifices have created the fragile calm Nigerians now experience.
“They will continue to be there,” he said, adding, “Things have changed in this country…we are on the right track and we will not relent. We will not sit down; we will not stop until we are able to achieve results.”
A Federal Government agency – the National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure, has decried the low patronage of Nigerian-made products by Nigerians.
The agency identified some challenges leading to the low patronage of the local products as affordability and public perception, among others.
Speaking during a stakeholders meeting organised by the agency in Akure, Ondo State capital, yesterday, the Deputy Director of Engineering at NASENI, Mr Joseph Alasoluyi, said Nigerians preferred buying foreign goods compared to local goods.
Alasoluyi, however disclosed that the agency had trained over 50 participants in the production of hand-made products, in a bid to ensure Nigeria-made products are patronised.
He explained that NASENI was set up to promote science, technology, and engineering as a foundation for Nigeria’s development and currently operates 12 institutes nationwide to achieve its objectives.
According to him, the aim of President Bola Tinubu, who is also the overall chairman of NASENI, was to ensure high production and patronage of “our local products thereby creating employment opportunities for many.”
He said, “The idea of this programme is to interface to ensure we produce products using our indigenous technology. This is what NASENI is out for, to ensure that homegrown technologies are encouraged.
“We are out there to ensure we integrate efforts to ensure that local technology is used to develop products within the resources we have.
“ The NASENI’s ‘3 Cs’ – Creation, Collaboration, and Commercialisation – that define NASENI’s strategic mandate: Creating innovations through research, Collaborating with partners to develop and refine products, and Commercialising these solutions to benefit the economy.
“Our achievements include the development of solar irrigation systems, CNG conversion centres, building machines capable of producing up to 1,000 blocks per hour, 10-inch tablets, locally made laptops, and electric tricycles (Keke Napep) set for market launch.”
In his remarks, the Deputy Vice Chancellor of the Federal University of Technology, Akure, Prof. Samuel Oluyamo, blamed the Federal Government for not properly funding research in the varsities, also noting that many research outputs were left halfway due to lack of funding and weak linkages between research institutions and industry.
Oluyamo also queried the Federal Government’s commitment to funding research and development, saying many academic innovations remained on the shelve due to a lack of support for commercialisation and poor infrastructure.
“Until we upscale research into mass production, technological growth will remain elusive. The government is not funding research in the universities enough. Thank God for TETfund that is trying in this regime. The major interest in beefing up research in universities and research institutions is really not there,” he said.
The Director-General of the Debt Management Office, Patience Oniha, has said that Nigeria is in advanced discussions with JP Morgan to re-enter the Government Bond Index and renew investors’ confidence.
Oniha disclosed this on Wednesday at a Nigerian Investors’ Forum on the sidelines of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund Spring Meetings in Washington, D.C.
The DMO boss explained that Nigeria has enjoyed favourable credit assessment among rating agencies in recent times on the back of the sweeping reforms initiated by the Central Bank of Nigeria.
Fitch Ratings recently upgraded the Long-Term Issuer Default Ratings of seven Nigerian banks and two bank holding companies to ‘B’ from ‘B-‘, noting that the outlooks are Stable.
The affected issuers are Access Bank Plc, Zenith Bank Plc, United Bank for Africa Plc, Guaranty Trust Bank Limited, Guaranty Trust Holding Company Plc, First HoldCo Plc, First Bank of Nigeria Ltd, Fidelity Bank Plc and Bank of Industry Limited.
The upgrades of the Long-Term IDRs of the banks followed the recent sovereign upgrade and reflect Fitch’s view that Nigeria’s sovereign credit profile has become less of a constraint on the issuers’ standalone creditworthiness, the rating agency said.
Fitch also upgraded Nigeria’s Long-Term IDRs to ‘B’ from ‘B-‘ on 11 April, a decision that reflected increased confidence in the government’s broad commitment to policy reforms implemented since its move to orthodox economic policies in June 2023, including exchange rate liberalisation, monetary policy tightening and steps to end deficit monetisation and remove fuel subsidies.
“These have improved policy coherence and credibility and reduced economic distortions and near-term risks to macroeconomic stability, enhancing resilience in the context of persistent domestic challenges and heightened external risks,” Fitch said.
Nigeria was removed from the JP Morgan index in 2015 ostensibly due to its deviation from orthodox monetary policies and influence of capital control in its management of foreign exchange.
Principally due to reduction in oil revenues at the time, Nigeria introduced currency restrictions to defend the naira after it failed to halt a dangerous slide with burning of dollar reserves. The bank had earlier warned Nigeria to restore liquidity to its currency market in a way that allowed foreign investors tracking the index to conduct transactions with minimal hurdles.
“Foreign investors who track the GBI-EM series continue to face challenges and uncertainty while transacting in the naira due to the lack of a fully functional two-way FX market and limited transparency,” the bank said in a 2015 note.
Nigeria was listed in JP Morgan’s emerging government bond index in October 2012, after the Central Bank removed a requirement that foreign investors hold government bonds for a minimum of one year before exiting.
The JP Morgan Government Bond Index reflects investor confidence and opens doors to billions of investment flows, making Nigeria’s proposed re-entry a positive signal to the market and investors.
Oniha explained that talks with JP Morgan were ongoing and had gained momentum in recent times due to the stability created by the FX market reforms.
“With all the reforms that have taken place, particularly around FX, we have started engaging JP Morgan again to get back into the index. We think we are eligible now,” the DMO DG said.