News
N45.9bn Fraud Case: Tompolo Wants New Judge
A former Niger Delta militant leader, Government Ekpemupolo, alias Tompolo, has urged the Lagos Division of the Court of Appeal to order Justice Ibrahim Buba of a Federal High Court in Lagos to withdraw from the fraud charges filed against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
The EFCC charged Tompolo and nine others with an alleged fraud of N45.9billion before Justice Buba.
One of his counsels, Mr. Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa, said in a statement, yesterday, that his client had since last Friday filed his appellant’s brief of argument before the Lagos Division of the Court of Appeal.
The implication of this, according to Adegboruwa, is that Justice Buba is expected to cease action on Tompolo’s case in deference to the appellate court.
Since the 40 counts were filed by the EFCC against Tompolo and his co-suspects early January, efforts to arraign them had proved abortive as Tompolo had repeatedly shunned the summons issued on him to appear in court.
On two occasions Justice Buba issued a bench warrant against Tompolo and ordered his arrest.
The EFCC had subsequently declared him wanted through a newspaper advertorial and obtained an order to confiscate his assets pending when he will show up and submit himself to the court.
But Tompolo, who is contending that the summons were not properly served on him, had on February 8 urged Justice Buba to set aside the warrant issued on January 14 for his arrest.
The judge, however, rejected his application and re-validated the arrest warrant.
Not pleased, Tompolo, through his lawyers, Mr. Tayo Oyetibo (SAN) and Adegboruwa, headed for the Court of Appeal, seeking to set aside the arrest warrant.
In his statement, yesterday, Adegboruwa said his client’s brief of argument was entered at the Court of Appeal last Friday and the EFCC had been served.
According to him, the step taken by Tompolo was a demonstration of his respect for the rule of law and his desire to have his matter heard and determined expeditiously.
Adegboruwa stressed that the filing of the appeal marked CA/L/240/2016 and its acceptance by the appellate court’s registrar, Nassara Williams, on March 3, 2016, meant that Justice Buba should “cede jurisdiction over Tompolo’s case to the Court of Appeal.”
He said, “In further demonstration of his commitment to the rule of law and due process, Tompolo filed his appellant’s brief of argument, through the law firms of Tayo Oyetibo, SAN and Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa, Esq., on Friday, March 11, 2016, thus activating the judicial process for the prompt and effective determination of the said appeal.
“The consequence of this in law is that Tompolo’s case is now before the Court of Appeal, with the concomitant effect that the Federal High Court will willingly cede jurisdiction over Tompolo’s case, to the Court of Appeal, since the appeal has now been entered in the Court of Appeal.”
He said he and Oyetibo were awaiting the response of the EFCC so that the appeal could be heard on time.
Part of Tompolo’s prayers, according to Adegboruwa, is for the Court of Appeal to order the Chief of the Federal High Court, Justice Ibrahim Auta, to re-assign Tompolo’s case from Justice Buba to another judge.
Adegboruwa said, “Tompolo is thus asking the Court of Appeal to set aside the warrant for his arrest and vacate all subsequent proceedings emanating from the flawed process of the criminal charge.
“He is further seeking that the charge against him should be transferred from the current judge, to another judge of the Federal High Court.
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
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.