Bagudu, Ekweremadu, Etete, 331 Others Linked To 800 Dubai Properties Worth N152bn –Report [PUNCH]
The Kebbi State Governor, Atiku Bagudu, and the senator representing Enugu West Senatorial District in the National Assembly, Ike Ekweremadu, are alleged to be among serving political office holders linked to 800 properties in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
Bagudu and Ekweremadu were named as part of 334 prominent Nigerians, including politically exposed persons, who own properties valued at N152bn ($400m) in the UAE. The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Godwin Emefiele, had said the exchange rate had been adjusted to N380 to a dollar.
The linkage of these prominent Nigerians to the properties was contained in a report published by an American-based non-governmental organisation, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, on its website on Thursday.
Titled “Dubai Properties” An Oasis for Nigeria’s Corrupt Political Elites”, the report, according to its author, Mathew Page, is based largely on private data compiled by UAE-based real estate and property professionals.
Bagudu is the Chairman of the Progressives Governors Forum, which is a forum of governors elected on the platform of the ruling All Progressives Congress, which rode to power on the promise to fight corruption. This is also in spite of the anti-graft stand of the current regime of the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.).
The Federal Government and the UAE had in 2017 signed the Judicial Agreements on Extradition, Transfer of Sentenced Persons, Mutual Legal Assistance on Criminal Matters and Mutual Legal Assistance on Criminal and Commercial Matters, which include the recovery and repatriation of stolen wealth.
Other legal instruments between Nigeria and UAE were the Agreement on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters; Agreement on Mutual Legal Assistance in Civil and Commercial Matters and the Agreement on the Transfer of Sentenced Persons.
Described in the report as the Gen Sani Abacha’s money man, Bagudu was linked to eight properties on the 12th floor of Dubai’s capital bay towers development valued at more than $4.8m in total.
Bagudu, who is in his second term as the governor of Kebbi State, reportedly helped Abacha to launder billions of dollars stolen from Nigeria. A Bloomberg report few weeks ago had shown that the governor signed a deal with the Federal Government that he would be given $100m from the funds he helped Abacha to loot from Nigeria. The report relied on court papers filed by the United States Department of Justice.
Ekweremadu, a former deputy senate president, was allegedly linked to eight Dubai properties, with an estimated total value of more than $7m (N2.66bn). The properties include a luxury flat in Park Towers bought for $2.2m (N836m) and one in Burj Dubai purchased for $1.4m (N532m), including other properties in the United Kingdom.
The investigative research alleged that about 20 former and serving governors, seven former and serving senators, current and former heads of ministries, departments and agencies of government, commissioners and bureau de change operators, own a significant number of the properties.
Other prominent Nigerians who allegedly own properties in Dubai include a former Peoples Democratic Party chairman, Ahmadu Ali; former Kwara State governor, Mohammed Lawal; former petroleum minister, Dan Etete; a former deputy senate president, Ibrahim Mantu and a former managing director of the defunct Oceanic Bank, Mrs Cecilia Ibru.
Others are a former Inspector-General of Police, Tafa Balogun; former chairman of Military Pension Board, Bala Mshelia; former group managing director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, Ladan Shehu, and a former head of the Petroleum Product Marketing Company, Samuel Okeke, among others.
The report also identified possible use of fronts by prominent Nigerians, including former Delta State governor, James Ibori, adding that about four political associates of the former governor were found to have ties to properties in Dubai.
“One is linked to four Dubai properties purchased for a total of $3.8m (N1.44bn), according to Sandcastles data,” it noted.
A breakdown indicates that 156 politically exposed persons own 226 properties in Dubai; 13 known Nigerian law enforcement agency suspects own 216 properties; 50 PEP-linked business persons own 91 properties while 14 security sector leaders own 71 properties.
The report further linked 69 properties to 35 governors; 16 properties to 45 lawmakers; 25 properties to 16 heads of departments/agencies; 24 to 15 ministers; 13 to NNPC staff members; 13 properties to five Presidency staff and one property to a judge totalling 800 properties.
The report stated, “The 800 Dubai properties linked to Nigerian PEPs are estimated to be worth well over $400m. This equals roughly two-thirds of the Nigerian Army’s annual budget and over three times the annual budget of the country’s Independent National Electoral Commission.”
The report said the PEPs’ appetite for Dubai property was so voracious that a burgeoning group of middlemen now specialise in selling Dubai property to recently elected politicians and newly appointed officials.
It described some of the salesmen as scam artists seeking to con naive legislators keen to convert some of their ill-gotten gains into offshore real estate.
It added, “One former legislator from Kaduna State, for example, lost tens of thousands of dollars to one such hustler.”
Responding to the allegations, Bagudu dismissed the report, saying it had no substance. The governor, who spoke through one of his aides, Yahaya Sarki, described the report as “one of those online reports which have no substance.”
When contacted, former Deputy President of the Senate Ike Ekweremadu, said, “I have said this before, let anybody who finds any property listed against my name that is not in my asset declaration form which I duly submitted to the Code of Conduct Bureau take such a property.’’
Coronavirus: Delta, Emirates, Air France, Lufthansa, KLM, Others Suspend Flights To Nigeria [PUNCH]
Mega international airlines based in the United States, Europe, Middle East and other parts of the world have suspended flights operations to Nigeria as the world battles to stem coronavirus spread, Sunday PUNCH has learnt.
This came as the Federal Government announced the closure of Lagos and Abuja airports to international flights from Monday.
As the number of coronavirus cases in Nigeria increased from 12 on Thursday to 22 on Saturday, the FG, through the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority, said on Saturday it would close Abuja and Lagos airports on Monday.
The Director-General, NCAA, Capt Musa Nuhu, in a circular to airline operators on Saturday, said only emergency and essential flights would be exempted from the restrictions.
Nuhu, however, said domestic airlines would continue normal flight operations.
The NCAA’s directive came barely 48 hours after it announced the closure of the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport, Kano, Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu, and Port Harcourt International Airport, Omagwa.
The NCAA’s circular read in part, “Further to our earlier letter on restrictions of international flights to Nigeria, we wish to inform you that effective March 23 to April 23, the Murtala Muhammed International Airport and Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja will be closed to all international flights.
COVID-19: Adeboye, Oyedepo, Okonkwo Adeyemi, Others Hold Online Services [PUNCH]
Prominent pastors in the country will begin to conduct Sunday services online and on television stations in compliance with the directive of government banning all gatherings, including religious gatherings to curb the spread of coronavirus.
The virus which started in Wuhan, China in the late 2019, has claimed many lives with many nations shutting down completely to prevent further spread of the deadly virus.
Many of the big churches have been transmitting their services online, on their television and radio stations for a long time but these platforms will now replace the physical gatherings at their various auditoriums.
The Presiding Bishop of Living Faith Church Worldwide, Dr David Oyedepo, who announced the postponement of the church’s Sunday services across Nigeria and other parts of the world, asked members of the church to join the Sunday service through the church’s YouTube; online radio and other social media platforms.
The memo which announced the suspension of worship in Winners’ Chapel churches dated March 20 was written by the First Vice President of the LFC, Bishop David Abioye.
The memo read, “In view of the spread of COVID-19 pandemic across the globe which has necessitated temporary shutdown of activities within nations of the world to curb its further spread, all stations are hereby informed that the Mothers’ Day celebration earlier scheduled for Sunday, 22nd March is hereby postponed indefinitely.
“Furthermore, all stations are to comply with any restriction introduced by the government of their nation, so as not to be seen as contravening the laws of the land.
“Church members should be admonished to take advantage of the various online primary links and other social media platforms below, to watch services in their homes while the situation subsists, believing that an end has come to the spread in the name of Jesus. Amen!
“We should also encourage members to continue to engage the various mysteries of the kingdom to provoke our Covenant of Exemption as established in Psa. 91:10.”
The leadership of the Redeemed Christian Church of God has also announced that the General Overseer of the mission, Pastor Enoch Adeboye, will begin Sunday service on the church’s television station and other online platforms.
The Assistant General Overseer in charge of Administration and Personnel, Pastor Funso Odesola, who announced this in a statement issued by the Public Relations Officer of the church, Pastor Olaitan Olubiyi, said this was in compliance with the order of government banning religious gatherings and other human gatherings.
The statement read, “With effect from Sunday, 22nd March 2020, the General Overseer of the Mission, Pastor E.A Adeboye will be on air every Sunday morning for the next four Sundays.
“The sermon which would be transmitted on the church’s Dove Television and other platforms would be another opportunity for a corporate prayer to God for help in the present circumstance.”
The church urged its pastors to guide their congregations to maintain all COVID-19 etiquette such as social distancing and high standard of personal hygiene, including hand-washing regularly with running water and soap and proper use of hand sanitisers.
“With prayer and faith, we believe that God will help us, so that our lives may return to normalcy soon,” he added.
He appealed to members of the church to use the opportunity to draw closer to God and intercede for themselves, relatives and friends and the world at large.
Following the new directive of the Lagos State Government that the number of people in any gathering should not be more than 20, the RCCG urged its churches to comply with the directive where service will hold.
The statement, read, “The attention of the leadership of the Redeemed Christian Church of God has been drawn to the new directive of the Lagos State Government reducing the number of people permitted at any social or religious gathering from 50 to 20.
“This cancelled the government’s initial order which formed the basis of arrangements made by many of our Churches for their worship services tomorrow.
It is important that we all adhere to this directive.
“Assured that our God is not limited by space, our Churches are encouraged to put in place any arrangement within the law, suitable to each location, to reach out to their members at this critical time. Plans should be made to have a number of Pastors on ground in all churches to guide and counsel those who would be in Church.
“Where any gathering would hold, we are advised to ensure that the ideal social distancing rule of at least one metre is observed.”
Also, the Resident Pastor of The Redeemed Evangelical Mission, Bishop Peace Okonkwo, has said in compliance with the directive of the Lagos State Government, the TREM headquarters church will from March 22 (today) start running online services on the church’s YouTube channel and other social media platforms.
This is contained in a notice to all TREM headquarter members obtained by our correspondent on Saturday. Okonkwo also said there would be no gathering of people at the headquarters.
The notice read, “Due to COVID 19 pandemic, TREM will run dedicated services on our You-Tube and social media platforms starting from Sunday March 22. We encourage you to locate a G12 Centre for a worship centre.
“As a follow-up to the government directives on the pandemic situation the world is facing with the coronavirus, I encourage you to please take the issues of hygiene very seriously. Also kindly wash your hands often and desist from touching your face with unwashed hands.
“In response to the Lagos State directive on COVID-19, we have developed a multi-channel digital approach during our church engagement over the period of the state’s directive. To this end, starting from Sunday, March 22, we will be running online services on our You-Tube channel (TREM Headquarters) Faceboook and Twitter (@mytremword). There will be no physical gathering at the headquarters. However, I encourage you to locate a G-12 centre closest to you for a worship experience on Sundays, (9am) and Tuesday (6pm) as the Presiding Bishop (Mike Okonkwo) will be ministering to us.”
The founder and Senior Pastor of House on the Rock, Paul Aderarasin, also said all church services would hold online in compliance with the ban on public gatherings.
Adefarasin announced this on his Twitter handle.
It read, “Hello friends. In the midst of all the noise, don’t forget that God has got you. We speak peace to every troubled heart and healing to ailing bodies in Jesus’ name. See you online this Sunday (today),” the cleric wrote via his Twitter handle, @pauladefarasin.
Another cleric that has moved his church services online is the Senior Pastor of Trinity House, Lagos, Ituah Ighodalo, who encouraged his members not to be shaken by the coronavirus spread.
He wrote, “Due to the spread of COVID-19 in Nigeria and in line with the Lagos State Government directive, we will be conducting services differently and making changes to our usual way of gathering.
“Please note, we are not shutting down, we are simply ensuring that our effectiveness as a family is still as potent as when we meet physically.
“There is no distance in the spirit and God will move in the same way he would normally move even when we gather physically. Tune in on the various social media platforms and be blessed.”
On a banner accompanying the post on his Instagram page, @pastorituahighodalo, the cleric added two bank accounts where worshippers could pay in their tithes and offering.
Similarly, the Senior Pastors of Daystar Christian Centre, Pastors Sam and Nike Adeyemi, said in a statement that church services, both at the main auditorium in Oregun, Ikeja and all its satellite centres, would now hold on the church’s online platforms.
Hence, it said there would be no physical gathering.
Ordinarily, the church’s weekend service starts on Saturday evening, which was specifically designed for worshippers who couldn’t make it to church on Sunday. And on Sunday, the church runs four services, and from the beginning of the first service to the end of the fourth service, the attendance is always massive.
But following the directive, the church says all its services, including its mid-week service would now hold online on its main website, its Facebook, Twitter and Instagram pages and its mobile App.
The statement partly read, “Following the directive of the Lagos State Government to restrict public gathering for religious activities with more than 50 worshippers over the COVID-19 pandemic, we have taken some measures to comply for the safety of all while maintaining our unique worship experience.
“From the weekend of March 21, Daystar Christian Centre will not hold physical gathering for worshippers at any of our locations in Oregun, Lekki, Ikorodu and Badagry centres till further notice. The Daystar experience will henceforth hold online on Saturdays, Sundays and Wednesdays only on our online platforms.”
The church added that the proposed launch of its Alimosho satellite centre that was to hold on Sunday (today) had been put on hold. “A new date will be made known in due course,” it added.
FG Shuts Down Airports As Coronavirus Hits Abuja [LEADERSHIP]
From tomorrow, Monday, all Nigerian airports, including the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport Abuja and Murtala Muhammed International Airport Lagos, will remain closed to all incoming international flights, except emergency and essential ones.
This was contained in a letter to all airline operators by the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) which was made public yesterday.
LEADERSHIP Sunday also learnt that the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) is also planning to suspend all passenger services in the country effective from tomorrow, Monday, March 23, 2020.
Bashir Ahmad, personal assistant on New Media to President Muhammadu Buhari, gave the hint on Saturday through his Twitter handle.
The suspension of railway service, just like flight operations, is not unconnected to the spread of the novel COVID-19 which increased from 12 to 22 cases in the country on Saturday.
The closure of airports to international flights, which would last till April 23, 2020, is sequel to the restriction of entry for travellers from 13 countries and restrictions of international flights into only Lagos and Abuja.
Government had yesterday announced that the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport Abuja and Murtala Muhammed International Airport Lagos would remain open to international flights.
But barely 24 hours after, the federal government has upturned that decision and has joined both airports in the closure to international traffic apart from emergency and essential flights.
In the letter signed by its director-general, Capt Musa Nuhu, NCAA stated that the closure of international flight operations at the Lagos and Abuja airports were in addition to the three other international airports in Kano, Enugu and Port Harcourt that were also closed to all International flights on Saturday.
This total closure is coming just as the Federal Ministry of Health has announced 10 new cases of the COVID-19 virus, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 12 in the country.
In the letter addressed to all operators, with Ref: NCAA/DG/AIR/11/16/106, dated March 21, 2020, the regulatory agency warned all airline operators to be guided accordingly.
The letter entitled, “Update On Clarification On Flight Restriction Into Nigeria Due To COVID-19 Pandemic” noted: “Further to our earlier letter on restriction of international flights into Nigeria, we wish to inform you that effective Monday, March 23, at 2300Z to April 23, at 2300Z, Murtala Muhammed Airport, Lagos (DNMM) and Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport Abuja (DNAA) will be closed to all International flights.
“This is in addition to the closure of Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport, Kano (DNKN), Akanu lbiam International Airport, Enugu (DNEN) and Port-Harcourt International Airport, Omagwa (DNPO) effective Saturday, March 21, at 2300Z.
“Henceforth, all airports in Nigeria are closed to all incoming international flights with the exception of emergency and essential flights.Domestic flights will continue normal operations at all airports.
“All airlines are required to submit passenger manifest to Port Health Authorities prior to arrival of flights into Nigeria”.
22 Cases Confirmed Nationwide
Meanwhile, the Federal Ministry of Health (FMoH) has confirmed 10 new cases of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Nigeria, including three new cases in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), and seven new cases in Lagos State.
This brings the total number of confirmed cases in Nigeria to 22.
All 10 new cases are Nigerian nationals, with nine of them having travel history to Canada, France, Netherlands, Spain and the United Kingdom.
The nine persons returned to the country in the past one week, while the 10th case is a close contact of a previously confirmed case.
The three cases in the FCT are being treated at the University of Abuja Teaching Hospital (UATH), Gwagwalada, while the seven new cases in Lagos are being treated at the Infectious Disease Hospital (IDH), Yaba.
All 10 new cases have mild to moderate symptoms and are currently receiving treatment.
As at yesterday, 22 cases have been confirmed, two cases have been discharged and there has been no death from COVID-19 in Nigeria.
In a statement issued yesterday and signed by the minister of health, Dr. E. Osagie Ehanire, the ministry said, “The Federal Government of Nigeria remains committed to working with states to provide optimal care for all confirmed COVID-19 cases in the country.
“Contact tracing is ongoing to identify all persons who have been in contact with the new confirmed cases. The Port Health Services of the Federal Ministry of Health has heightened screening at all air, land and sea points of entry into Nigeria and adapted the protocols to reflect the travel guidance issued by the Presidential Task Force on the Control of Coronavirus (COVID-19).
“The National Emergency Operations Centre (EOC) led by the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) supported by partners continues to coordinate response activities and strengthen preparedness capacity across states nationwide. An intensive national risk communications campaign is ongoing to inform Nigerians about COVID-19.
“The Federal Ministry of Health (FMoH) working closely with states and the Presidential Task Force on the Control of Coronavirus (COVID-19) continues to review response activities and institute measures to protect the health of Nigerians.
“It is important that Nigerians strictly adhere to social distancing and other necessary precautions in place.The Federal Ministry of Health through the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control will maintain a real-time update on new cases through the website: covid19.ncdc.gov.ng. We will continue to provide updates as and when they become available. The Federal Ministry of Health reiterates its commitment to ensure the control of the COVID-19 outbreak in Nigeria.”
NRC Offers Conditional Service To Passengers
In view of the earlier decision to suspend all passenger train services, the board and management of Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) have reviewed the situation and decided to provide passengers train services with conditions.
In a statement issued yesterday by the deputy director, Public Affairs, Yakub Mahmood, NRC said passengers are from tomorrow expected to provide full names, address, date of birth and means of identity before they would be allowed to enter any passenger train.
He enjoined passengers to cooperate with any other measures put in place to protect people from the spread of coronavirus.
Based on this development, passenger train service from Lagos to Kano, Abuja to Kaduna as well as Iddo to Ijoko/Kajola mass transit train services would commence.
Suspected Case Tests Negative In Ondo
A patient in Ondo State, who was suspected to have contracted COVID19, has tested negative to the virus, the state commissioner for health, Dr Wahab Adegbenro has said.
Adegbenro, however, disclosed that the state was still maintaining a coronavirus free status.
The commissioner in a statement by his press officer, Abooluwa Famakinwa, said the result of the blood sample of the suspect that was sent for coronavirus screening came out negative yesterday evening.
NMGS Postpones Conference/Exhibition
As part of measures to curb the spread of the coronavirus pandemic, the Nigerian Mining and Geosciences Society (NMGS) has announced the postponement of its 56th annual conference and exhibition scheduled to hold in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, from today to Friday, March 27, 2020.
The postponement which is till further notice was made public in a statement signed by the president of NMGS, Engr Obadiah Simon Nkom.
The statement said the postponement was necessitated by the directives from the federal health authorities on the need to limit social interactions among crowds exceeding 50 till further notice as a result of the pandemic in the country.
No Coronavirus Case At FIRS – Nami
The executive chairman, Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Mr Muhammad Nami, has said that there is no coronavirus case in the agency.
According to him, there was fake news making the rounds on social media that a member of staff at the FIRS had tested positive to COVID-19.
A statement issued by the director, Communications and Liaison Department, Abdullahi Ismaila Ahmad, the Service stated unequivocally that no member of staff at the FIRS has tested positive to COVID-19 as being peddled on social media.
He said, “The Service can confirm that a member of staff who went to pick his wife from the airport following her return from a trip abroad is currently and voluntarily observing the federal government’s advisory of self-isolation alongside his spouse at the couple’s home since Monday.
“Both husband and wife have not visited any FIRS offices or events since the wife returned to Nigeria last Sunday.More importantly, both husband and wife have only been in self-isolation for five days and have not tested positive to COVID-19.
“Before now, all FIRS offices had taken necessary precautions to protect both staff and our esteemed taxpayers from COVID-19 through such safety measures as social distancing, temperature testing, disabling of the biometric sign in, and provision of hand sanitisers for staff and visitors to our offices nationwide as advised by the Federal Ministry of Health.Members of the public are therefore advised to discountenance the claim that an FIRS official has tested positive to COVID-19.”
More States Close Schools, Public Centres
The Imo State governor, Senator Hope Uzodimma, has ordered the immediate closure of all primary, secondary and tertiary institutions in the state.
He also announced plans to establish a specialist hospital for coronavirus, and subsequent health concerns in the future.
The governor made the disclosure when he addressed Imo people via a state wide broadcast on measures to prevent and control the coronavirus disease (COVID-19).
Governor Uzodinma announced the provision of a state- of – the – art ambulance equipped with necessary medical gadgets for quick analysis and test for the virus which would be on 24 hours standby to respond to any emergency anywhere in the state.
Also, Bayelsa State governor, Senator Douye Diri, has ordered the immediate closure of all public and private primary and secondary schools and the restriction of all gatherings at religious worship centres, night clubs and public gatherings that are above 50 persons in the state.
According to him, the private and public schools were to proceed on vacation with effect from Thursday, March 26, 2020, and the suspension of public gathering of persons above 50 would take effect from Monday, March 23, 2020.
The governor, who made this known yesterday in a statewide broadcast monitored on radio stations in the state, declared that despite the fact that over 200,000 confirmed cases and over 8,000 deaths had been recorded globally with a dozen and more confirmed cases in Lagos and a few other states, there has not been any recorded case of COVID-19 in the state.
CBN, Bankers C’ttee To Support Local Drug Production With Forex, Loan Facilities [LEADERSHIP]
In furtherance to the measures it had taken to mitigate the impact of the spread of Coronavirus on the Nigerian economy, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) yesterday announced more stimulus packages, including assisting pharmaceutical companies and healthcare practitioners with forex and loan facilities for local drug production.
This brings the combination of the measures to N3.5 trillion, even as the apex bank has directed that oil companies sell their foreign exchange proceeds directly to it.
Rising from an emergency bankers committee meeting in Lagos yesterday, CBN governor, Godwin Emefiele, said the committee which is made up of bank chief executives resolved that profit will not be the primary motive of the banking industry at this time.
“Rather, preserving confidence, financial stability and support for the economy will be the overriding objectives”, he added.
To ensure that the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on the economy is not damning, Emefiele said in addition to the N1 trillion in loans to boost local manufacturing and production across critical sectors that had been announced last week, the CBN will have an additional N100 billion intervention in healthcare loans to pharmaceutical companies and healthcare practitioners intending to expand/build capacity.
There will also be the activation of the N1.5 trillion InfraCo Project for building critical infrastructure alongside the creation of N50 billion targeted credit facility for affected households & SMEs and the granting of regulatory forbearance to banks to restructure terms of facilities in affected sectors.
These measures are in addition to the earlier steps taken, including additional moratorium of one year on CBN intervention facilities, interest rate reduction on intervention facilities from nine per cent to five per cent and the strengthening of the loan to deposit ratio (LDR) policy which is encouraging significant extra lending from banks.
Also, in a bid to improve foreign exchange supply to the CBN, the apex bank is directing all oil companies, both international and domestic as well as all related companies including oil servicing companies, to sell forex to CBN and no longer to the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).
Emefiele said, “The Committee discussed the significant health and economic crisis caused by the novel Coronavirus (COVlD-19) which has resulted in escalating worldwide infections, deaths, disruptions in global supply chains, travel restrictions and turmoil in the international financial markets.
“It was resolved that the CBN and banking industry will collaborate at this critical moment with one coherent strategy to provide confidence to the customers, counter parties, the public and most importantly, put Nigeria first.
“The industry has learnt lessons from previous crisis, including the 2008 global financial crisis and the oil price slump of 2016, which will be applicable and position the industry to better deal with this crisis. Engagements will be held with correspondent banks, trade creditors, trading partners regarding existing LC and trade commitments. The industry is committed to resolving these commitments in a comprehensive and orderly way. There will be transparent and open communication with all counterparties.
“In view of the significant disruption of the global supply chains, the bankers committee advises Nigerians and companies to begin prioritizing their import needs and focus more on sourcing raw materials and inputs locally. The industry resolved that profit will not be the primary motive at this time. Rather, preserving confidence, financial stability and support for the economy will be the overriding objectives.
“Given that this crisis is first and foremost a public health crisis, we are paying particular attention to our health industry. As aforementioned, global supply chains have been disrupted including dominant drug supply channels from China and India. In fact, many countries have or are planning to ban export of drugs and medical supplies from their countries. Clearly, we have no choice but to produce these items locally.
“Thus, the Committee has identified a few key local pharmaceutical companies who shall be granted Naira and FX funding facilities to support procurement of raw materials and equipment required to exponentially increase local drug production in Nigeria. These include but are not limited to Emzor, Fidson, GSK, May & Baker, Unique Pharma, Swiss Pharma, Neimeth, Sagar, Orange Drugs, and Dana Pharma.”
Country Music Icon, Kenny Rogers Dies At 81 [LEADERSHIP]
American country music legend, Kenny Rogers, who dominated the pop and country charts in the 1970s and 1980s has died aged 81.
Rogers died under hospice care at his home in Sandy Springs, Georgia, a family representative for the singer said in a statement.
The Houston-born performer with the husky voice and silver beard sold tens of millions of records, won three Grammys and was the star of TV movies based on “The Gambler” and other songs, making him a superstar in the `70s and ‘80s.
Rogers thrived for some 60 years before he retired from touring in 2017 at age 79 despite his crossover success, he always preferred to be thought of as a country singer.
He was raised in public housing in Houston Heights with seven siblings and as a 20-year-old, he had a gold single called “That Crazy Feeling,” under the name Kenneth Rogers, but when that early success stalled, he joined a jazz group, the Bobby Doyle Trio, as a standup bass player.
However, his breakthrough came when he was asked to join the New Christy Minstrels, a folk group, in 1966. The band reformed as First Edition and scored a pop hit with the psychedelic song, “Just Dropped In (To See What Condition My Condition Was In).” Rogers and First Edition mixed country-rock and folk on songs like “Ruby, Don’t Take Your Love To Town,” a story of a Vietnam veteran begging his girlfriend to stay.
After the group broke up in 1974, Rogers started his solo career and found a big hit with the sad country ballad “Lucille,” in 1977, which crossed over to the pop charts and earned Rogers his first Grammy.
Suddenly the star, Rogers added hit after hit for more than a decade. “The Gambler,” the Grammy-winning story song penned by Don Schlitz, came out in 1978 and became his signature song with a signature refrain: “You gotta know when to hold `em, know when to fold ‘em.” The song spawned a hit TV movie of the same name and several more sequels featuring Rogers as professional gambler Brady Hawkes, and led to a lengthy side career for Rogers as a TV actor and host of several TV specials.
Other hits included, “You Decorated My Life,” “Every Time Two Fools Collide” with Dottie West, “Don’t Fall In Love with a Dreamer” with Kim Carnes, and “Coward of the County.” One of his biggest successes was “Lady,” written by Lionel Richie, a chart topper for six weeks straight in 1980. Richie said in a 2017 interview with the AP that he often didn’t finish songs until he had already pitched them, which was the case for “Lady.”
During his time on earth, Rogers was married five times (with each marriage lasting longer than the previous one) and had five children.
He married Janice Gordon on May 15, 1958; they divorced in April 1960 with one child. Rogers married Jean Rogers in October 1960 and divorced her in 1963.
He married Margo Anderson in October 1964 and divorced her in 1976 with one child. Rogers married Marianne Gordon on October 1, 1977, and divorced her in 1993 with one child. Rogers married for the fifth and final time when he married Wanda Miller on June 1, 1997. The couple had twin sons together.
He was never a favourite of music critics, but became one of the most successful pop-country crossover acts of all time, and the 10th best-selling male artist in US history in terms of album sales and collaborated with other country music legends during his career, including Dolly Parton and Willie Nelson.
Rogers was also a member of the Country Music Hall of Fame though, he was most successful with country audiences, Rogers charted more than 120 hit singles across various music genres, topped the country and pop album charts for more than 200 individual weeks in the United States alone, and sold over 100 million records worldwide, making him one of the best-selling music artists of all time.
Meanwhile, due to the national COVID-19 emergency, the family is planning a small private service at this time with a public memorial planned for a later date.
COVID-19: Nigeria Heading For Recession – Utomi, Unegbu, Others [THE NATION]
Agusto: Weak crude oil price driving economy into trouble
Computer hardware, software dealers count losses in billions
Local pharmaceutical companies face drugs scarcity
Nigeria’s economy, already taking a lot of heat from global oil shocks may slide into another recession in no time if the coronavirus crisis gets out of hand.
A cross-section of experts who have monitored the turn of events in the last few weeks gave this damning verdict.
Signs of imminent recession are self-evident – what with some of the measures and actions being enforced by different tiers of government as well as businesses ostensibly to stem the debilitating trend.
Last week, panic selling on a large scale not only caused the market capitalisation of the Nigerian equity market to go slimmer but led to a total loss of N1.081 trillion in two days in what observers say is the biggest consecutive loss on the Exchange so far this year.
Among the top losers include Aliko Dangote, Africa’s richest businessman and President of Dangote Group, which has the largest capitalised firm on the Exchange losing a whopping N240billion in the last couple of days.
The market has been at the mercy of the free fall in the global oil prices lately since the new price war between Saudi and Russia in the aftermath of the refusal of the latter to agree to an oil output cut.
This is even as there have been myriad sweeping effects of Covid-19 on several stock markets across the globe from Dow Jones to Nikkei 225 and the implacable epidemic is having its moment too on the Nigerian bourse.
The tourism and hospitality industry which is the second biggest employer of labour after agriculture is the worst heat.
The Lagos Hoteliers Association (LHA) on Friday decried low patronage in hotels, attributing it to people’s reaction to the spread of COVID-19.
The Association’s President, Mr Adekunle Akilo, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) that a good number of hoteliers lamented over the low patronage during their recent meeting in Lagos.
According to him, the low patronage can also be attributed to government’s recent directives to minimise social gatherings.
He noted that visits from neighboring towns had reduced as people were trying to be careful and guide against contacting the viral disease.
“Business in hotels is now at a standstill; personally I don’t even have one customer in my hotel presently. It is that bad.
“We had a meeting yesterday with members and the major issue discussed was on how to tackle this issue of low patronage, it is the same story across board.
“We observed that visits from neighboring towns have reduced and hotel businesses cannot thrive when there are restrictions on travels,” he said.
The president urged the Federal Government to put into consideration the economic implications of restricting some gatherings.
He said government should rather intensify efforts in sensitising Nigerians on the precautionary measures for guidance and not stop people’s activities.
“Government is only compounding issues by stopping people from attending religious gatherings and schools; this will have adverse effect on the economy. We hope things will take the right shape soon anyway,” he said.
Some of the existing turnkey projects by the federal government like the 150km major railway project linking Lagos to Ibadan may be delayed by the as workers from China had not returned to the country.
The railway line is being developed by the state-owned China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation, reported South China Morning Post.
Nigeria’s Transport Minister Rotimi Amaechi said: “Most of the Chinese workers who went on their New Year holiday have not yet returned due to the coronavirus and this has delayed the work.”
Expected to be completed in May, the $1.5bn project has been repeatedly facing delays since it was first agreed in 2012.
China has since invested billions of dollars in constructing infrastructure across Africa, building its influence in the region.
Review of 2020 budget
Meanwhile the federal government has disclosed plans to reduce the 2020 budget by as much as N1.5 trillion.
The disclosure was made by the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs. Zainab Ahmed, while briefing State House correspondents at the end of the Federal Executive Council, (FEC) meeting presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari at the Council Chamber, Presidential Villa, Abuja.
Ahmed said that there will be a cut of 20% from the capital expenditure of the 2020 budget while recurrent expenditure will be reduced by as much as 25%.
Recall that she had earlier in the month hinted at the possibility of reducing the 2020 budget due to the coronavirus outbreak.
According to Ahmed, Buhari had approved other far-reaching measures in the face of the current economic realities occasioned by COVID-19. One of those measures is the cut in crude oil benchmark from $57 per barrel to $30 per barrel in the revised budget. The global crude oil prices are now less than $30 per barrel.
“We should cut down on the size of the federally funded upstream projects of the Petroleum sector. The reason being that we want to be able to receive more revenue by less reduction from NNPC,” the minister said, adding: “The reduction of the crude oil price from $57 per barrel to $30 means that we are going to get so much less revenue, almost 45 percent loss as we planned. And because of that, we have to amend a number of projections in the budget as well as in the MTEF to reflect our current reality.”
Speaking further, Ahmed said the government would continue to pay salaries and would not sack workers, but would not be recruiting or increasing its workforce size for the time being.
On concerns of the economy slipping back into recession, Ahmed said the budget cut would result in about 40 to 45% reduction and also it will affect states because it means FAAC will be significantly reduced.
“FAAC is just a pool of funds and we share what is realised, so it will affect the states as well. So we are expecting the states to take similar measures to amend the plans that we have made and bring them down to current realities.
“On plans to scale back VAT and excise duty, I am not making any commitment on that right now because these are provisions in the law in the Finance Act and as you know, we will, even in the amendment to the MTEF and the budget, have to engage with the National Assembly. The fiscal authorities are working with the fiscal authority team and we will get the President’s approval before we come up with what we will announce to the public,” Ahmed added.
Fear of recession
Firing the first salvo, Prof. Pat Utomi, renowned political economist said, the fear of imminent recession is indeed founded.
While noting that recession is indeed a reality, Utomi however said, “It can either become a huge threat that is converted to opportunity, and therefore the restructuring of the Nigerian economy for good or it can just become devastation as we plunge yet into another recession which would perhaps be prolonged.”
Waxing philosophical, Utomi who noted that, “The nature of Nigerian politics makes it impossible for Nigerians to make money at home and those who find money at home quickly move it out of the country for safety. The way they behave is making it impossible for investors to come from abroad to invest. Nigeria is a classic perfect case that unravels very quickly into a prolonged recession. But it is possible that what happened in India to happen in Nigeria.”
Echoing similar sentiments, Mazi Okechukwu Unegbu, lawyer and banker, said Nigeria is not immune to happenings around it as such, the citizens should braze up for the worst.
While noting that Italy has locked down totally because of the coronavirus as well as Denmark, the United States and more sophisticated countries, including China, which Nigeria relies upon for a number of supplies, there is a crisis at hand.
“We have a problem because most of the shops in Lagos, Kano, Enugu, Aba, and Onitsha depend on China for their supplies. China now has locked down since nothing is coming from there,” Unegbu said.
On the likely impact of the continuous spread of coronavirus on the economy, Unegbu, who sits atop as the Maxifund Investment and Securities Plc, said recession is indeed imminent. “They said Nigeria has come out of recession but I assure you now we are going to see the real recession.”
Unegbu, who once held sway as the President of the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN), however impressed on the nation’s economic mangers the need to review the Finance Bill.
“What I will advise is that we should get all the factors of production that we have, get the very good things in Nigeria and see how we can manage without depending on other economies. Remember that our border is closed and our neighbours are complaining. When the border was closed I did say that when you close a border and there is no free movement of trade what is going to happen is that our inflation rate will spike up but people didn’t believe me. At the time the border was closed the inflation rate was about 9-10 percent but after the closure of the border it increased to about 12-15%.”
At a time the world’s economy is imperiled on account of the cut in crude oil price caused by the spread of coronavirus, Olabode Agusto, Director, Agusto & Co. Limited has impressed on the federal government, the need to diversify the nation’s economy away from oil.
At a time the world’s economy is imperiled on account of the cut in crude oil price caused by the spread of coronavirus, Olabode Agusto, Director, Agusto & Co. Limited has impressed on the federal government, the need to diversify the nation’s economy away from oil.
The diversification of the economy becomes inevitable in view of the credit crunch the country contends with during oil crisis at the global market.
According to Agusto who was guest speaker at the 17th annual Aret Adams memorial lecture in Lagos, organised by the Aret Adams Foundation recently, where he presented a paper entitled: ‘Nigeria’s Economy after Oil: How should we prepare?’ while noting that crude oil has provided Nigeria with a sizeable amount of USD revenues which the country has used to trade with the rest of the world, however lamented that in periods of high crude oil prices, Nigeria uses her forex earnings to support the exchange rate but in periods of weak prices she allows sharp currency depreciations.
Agusto, the former Director General, Budget Office said, “Severe devaluation of the NGN is usually accompanied by a banking crisis. This is because weak crude oil price drives the economy into recession, devaluation increases the financing needs of businesses and those who owe hard currencies suffer large exchange losses. All these weaken the ability of businesses in the real sector to repay their loans resulting in large credit losses that erode banking industry capital.”
Government, he stressed, ”should then use these three sectors – external trade and investment, tax revenues and the financial sector to help businesses and households to thrive. What happens in Nigeria is that we experience economic booms in periods of high oil prices and recession when prices fall.”
Members of the organised private (OPS), who have also raised their voices above the din were unanimous in calling for decisive measures to fight the scourge in order to prevent the economy from dire consequences.
In separate statements issued by the Dr. Muda Yusuf, Director General, Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) and his counterpart at the Nigerian Association Of Chamber Of Commerce Industry Mines And Agriculture (NACCIMA) National President Hajiya Saratu Iya Aliyu has called on government to take steps through a clear plan of action to mitigate the negative economic impact of COVID-19 which the WHO has now declared as a global pandemic.
According to Yusuf, the outbreak of the coronavirus has profound implications for the Nigeria economy. “It poses a major threat to Nigeria’s macroeconomic fundamentals, the impact of which may be systemic and far reaching. The looming price war contemplated by Saudi Arabia, the largest crude oil exporter, portends even more ominous signs for Nigeria’s economy. This is on the back of the collapse of the OPEC– Russia alliance. Saudi Arabia is offering significant discounts to its customers and also increasing output.”
The LCCI boss, who noted that there is also the revenue effect of the coronavirus which is related to the drop in oil price, stressed that oil revenue currently accounts for about 50% of government revenue and about 85% of foreign exchange earnings. “With the current scenario of tumbling oil price, a drastic reduction in the revenue of government becomes inevitable in the near time. This has implications for the level of fiscal deficit in the budget; budget implementation will be constrained; infrastructure financing will be affected; borrowing may increase, and the capacity to fund capital project will be severely constricted. With this scenario, the outlook for oil dependent economies looks rather gloomy.”
Oil revenue accounts for about 85% of foreign exchange earnings and is the major driver of accretion to the foreign reserves. The slump in oil price and the associated adverse expectations will put fresh pressures on the reserves. Currently, is at all-time low of $36.2 billion as at 3rd March 2020. This outlook has the following implications.
“The global supply chain has been deeply disrupted as China, which is the second largest economy in the world, is a major supplier of inputs for manufacturing companies around the world, Nigeria inclusive. Many manufacturers and service providers in the country are already experiencing acute shortage of raw materials and intermediate inputs. This has implications for capacity utilisation, employment generation [and retention] and adequacy of products’ supply to the domestic market. There is also an implication for inflation.”
On impact on events, conferences and workshops, Yusuf said, “Many events and conferences in Nigeria and around the world have been cancelled as a result of the coronavirus scare. For most of these events, huge sum of money and resources have been committed to the organisation, planning and logistics. These translate into huge loses to the promoters of these events.”
Coronavirus: 10 New Cases In Lagos, Abuja [THE NATION]
Total number of cases in Nigeria rises to 22
Lagos restricts religious, social gatherings to 20 persons; bars public from courts
FG shuts Murtala Muhammed, Nnamdi Azikiwe Airports to international flights
Five suspected cases test negative in Nasarawa
The Federal Ministry of Health (FMoH) on Saturday confirmed 10 new cases of the coronavirus in Nigeria, less than 24 hours after the discharge from hospital of the COVID-19 index case.
Government immediately placed a ban on international flights in and out of the country.
The Lagos State Government pegged attendance at social, religious and other gatherings at 20 people as against the 50 announced earlier in the week.
The new rule sparked confusion especially in churches which had re-ordered their services to accommodate not more than 50 at a time.
The police said they had deployed adequate resources across the state to ensure enforcement of restriction on social and religious gatherings.
Seven of the new coronavirus cases are in Lagos State, and three in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) to bring the total number in the country to 22.
Health Minister Osagie Ehanire said in Abuja that all 10 new cases are Nigerians.
Of the total of 22 cases Lagos has 16; FCT, three; Ekiti, one ; and Ogun, two.
Nine of the 10 new cases, according to the minister, “have travel history to Canada, France, Netherlands, Spain and United Kingdom,” and returned home over the last one week.
He said the 10th case, who is in his 50s is a close contact of a previously confirmed case.
His words: “The three cases in the FCT are being treated at the University of Abuja Teaching Hospital (UATH), Gwagwalada while the seven new cases in Lagos are being treated at the Infectious Disease Hospital (IDH), Yaba. All 10 new cases have mild to moderate symptoms and are currently receiving treatment.
“As of March 21, 2020, 22 cases have been confirmed, two cases have been discharged and there has been no death from COVID-19 in Nigeria. The Federal Government of Nigeria remains committed to working with states to provide optimal care for all confirmed COVID-19 cases in the country.”
He said contact tracing was ongoing to “identify all persons who have been in contact with the new confirmed cases. The Port Health Services of the Federal Ministry of Health has heightened screening at all air, land and sea points of entry into Nigeria and adapted the protocols to reflect the travel guidance issued by the Presidential Task Force on the Control of Coronavirus (COVID-19).
“The National Emergency Operations Centre (EOC) led by the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) supported by partners continues to coordinate response activities and strengthen preparedness capacity across states nationwide.”
He added: “An intensive national risk communications campaign is ongoing to inform Nigerians about COVID-19. The Federal Ministry of Health (FMoH) working closely with states and the Presidential Task Force on the Control of Coronavirus (COVID-19) continues to review response activities and institute measures to protect the health of Nigerians.
“It is important that Nigerians strictly adhere to social distancing and other necessary precautions in place. These measures include taking the following precautions below to protect yourself and your family.”
Dr. Ehanire advised people to wash hands regularly with soap and water or use an alcohol-based sanitizer if no water and soap is available, maintain social distancing as it is crucial to reducing the spread of COVID-19 through; use of no-touch greetings, maintaining at least 2 metres (5 feet) distance between yourself and anyone who is coughing or sneezing.
He also advised people to stay home if they feel unwell with symptoms like fever, cough and difficulty in breathing. Immediately call NCDC’s 24/7 toll-free number 0800 9700 0010.
“Do not self-medicate, and avoid or postpone events with large gatherings of people including schools, workplaces, places of worship, crowded supermarkets and pharmacies, social and sporting events
“Persons with a persistent cough or sneezing, should stay at home until they recover. Make sure you and people around you observe hand and respiratory hygiene by: Covering your nose with tissue when sneezing or coughing.
“Immediately dispose of tissue in a covered bin and wash your hands with soap and water. Use an alcohol-based sanitiser if no water and soap is available. Cough or sneeze into the sleeve of your bent elbow if no tissue is available, and avoid all non-essential travel to all countries.
“The Federal Ministry of Health through the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control will maintain a real-time update on new cases through the website: covid19.ncdc.gov.ng. We will continue to provide updates as and when they become available. The Federal Ministry of Health reiterates its commitment to ensure the control of the COVID-19 outbreak in Nigeria,” he said.
Federal government bans international flights
With effect from tomorrow, there will be no international flights into or out of the country after the federal government ordered the shutdown of the Murtala Muhammed and Nnamdi Azikiwe Airports in Ikeja and Abuja.
The closure will last one month for both airports and the others which were ordered closed earlier.
The Director-General, Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Captain Musa Nuhu said in a statement on Saturday that “effective Monday, March 23, 2020 to 23rd of April 2020, the two aerodromes will be close to international flights.”
According to him, the new measure is in addition to the closure of Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport, Kano, Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu and the Port-Harcourt International Airport.
He stated that henceforth, all airports in Nigeria are closed to all incoming international flights with the exception of emergency and essential flights, adding that domestic flights will continue normal operations at all airports.
The NCAA chief directed all airlines to ensure they submit passenger manifest to Port Health authorities prior to the arrival of flights into Nigeria.
However, the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA) in a guidance last night explained that some categories of international flights would be allowed during the period.
These are state aircraft, emergency aircraft and any other aircraft approved by the appropriate authority.
It said such approved flights will be required to submit manifest of passengers to port health officials prior to arrival in the country.
The guidance was signed by NAMA’s Director of Operations, Pwajok M.L. on behalf of the Managing Director/CEO.
Lagos pegs attendance at social, religious gatherings at 20
The Lagos State Government yesterday reviewed downward its ceiling on the number of people that may gather in the state for religious, social and other functions as it sought ways of combatting the coronavirus.
“The Lagos State Government has banned all religious or social gathering of over 20 people within the state,” it said on its Facebook account.
“It is important we all adhere to this directive,” it warned.
The development sparked confusion in churches which had, all through the week, worked out ways of holding services without violating the government rules on gathering.
Clergies immediately returned to the drawing board to re-plan their programmes.
Apart from the index case, Lagos has the highest number –seven – of the new 10 cases in the country confirmed on Saturday by the Federal Ministry of Health.
Police deploy personnel, resources to enforce restrictions on gatherings
The police in Lagos said yesterday that they had deployed adequate resources across the state to ensure enforcement of restriction on social and religious gatherings.
The Police Command, in a statement by its spokesman, Bala Elkana, particularly warned commercial bus operators and club houses to ensure compliance with the regulation.
He declared that no gathering in excess of the number specified by the government would be tolerated.
The command, according to him,” has deployed adequate resources across the state to ensure that the orders are fully obeyed.
“Commercial vehicles carrying passengers above capacity (overloading) are also part of this order. Members of the public are encouraged to avoid overcrowding themselves at bus stops, market places, business places and the scene of incidents.”
He urged Lagosians to obey the order because they were put in place for everyone’s safety and benefit.
“We must be alive and healthy before socioeconomic activities will be effective. The command has rolled out its medical team to market places for awareness creation and police detention facilities for the safety of suspects.”
He also said Police Commissioner Hakeem Odumosu had ordered the “immediate release of suspects arrested for minor offences as part of preventive measures. “
Five suspected COVID-19 cases in Nasarawa test negative
Five suspected coronavirus cases in Nasarawa State have tested negative and will soon be discharged from the hospital.
Health Commissioner Yahaya Ahmed told reporters in Lafia, the state capital that “the family of five that were earlier on suspected to be carriers of the COVID 19 have been tested and found to be negative of the pandemic. At the moment, they are undergoing clinical procedures that will lead to their discharge.”
He said a committee has been set up in the state to educate the people of the state on ways of containing the pandemic.
A task force was also set up to oversee Local Governments’ implementation of the sensitization campaign to contain the coronavirus across the state.
He said : “ the state is working out modalities to restrict gathering of people beyond 50 in an environment.
“Also consultations are underway with the National Union of Road Transport Workers on how to work out modalities for the testing of passengers in motor parks.”
Lagos Assembly Crisis Deepens [THE NATION]
The crisis rocking the Lagos State House of Assembly has deepened, following the reconstitution of the House Committees.
According to the aggrieved lawmakers, the pre-existing crisis foisted on the House by the suspension of two lawmakers and deposition of two principal officers should have been resolved before reconstituting the committees.
According to the suspended lawmakers, Moshood Oshun and Raheem Olawale, the suspension violated the House Rules.
However, a lawmaker, Bisi Yusuf, who represents Alimoso Constituency 11, urged caution, saying that political solution was necessary.
On March 9, Speaker Mudasiru Obasa had suddenly announced the removal of two principal officers of the Assembly; the Chief Whip, Rotimi Abiru (Somolu II) and Deputy Majority Leader, Olumiyiwa Jimoh (Apapa II) and the indefinite suspension of two other members, Moshood Oshun and Raheem Olawale.
The two principal officers and suspended lawmakers were accused of misconduct and insubordination as well as acts capable of causing disunity in the house.
However, when reporters asked him to shed light on what constitutes ‘misconduct’ and ‘insubordination’, the spokesman of the Assembly, Tunde Buraimoh, dismissed the enquiry, saying; “the reconciliation committee set up by the Assembly would resolve all that.”
Curiously, the reconciliation committee referred to by the spokesman headed by Ibrahim Layode from Badagry was prematurely dissolved last week by the Speaker during plenary.
The Speaker blamed the dissolution on a newspaper interview granted by one of the demoted principal officers, Abiru. According to the Speaker, there was no need for reconciliation after the press chat granted by the suspended lawmaker.
The Speaker also declared at the same plenary that there was no going back on the action taken against the four lawmakers by the House.
However, some political observers are of the opinion that some of the Lagos Assembly’s decisions since the imbroglio started were in clear breach of legislative norms in a democracy. To them, the culture of robust debates and constructive engagements is dying in the House of Assembly.
The irregularities that had since defined the conduct of the business of the Lagos Assembly became apparent with the circulation of an internal memo on Friday 20th March, which announced the reconstitution and reshuffling of standing committees of the Assembly.
In the memo issued by the Clerk of the House, Azeez Sanni, the ‘demoted’ Deputy Majority Leader, Olumuyiwa Jimoh, was assigned to chair the Committee on Central Business District (CBD) while his counterpart, who was removed as Chief Whip, Rotimi Abiru, is now the Chairman of Inter-Parliamentary Committee.
In addition, the suspended Oshun who was removed from the Chairmanship of the Public Accounts Committee (State) is now named Chairman of the Committee on Legislative Compliance, while the other suspended member, Nurudeen Saka-Solaja is now the Chairman of PAC (State).
According to the memo, Kazeem Adewale Raheem, another suspended member, is now the Chairman of Establishments, Training and Pensions having been moved from his earlier position as chairman of the Special Duties and Inter-Governmental Relations.
Some lawmakers complained during the week that the standard norm seemed to have been turned upside down.
Reflecting on the crisis, Bisi Yusuf, said the political solution will end the conflict.
Abba Kyari Opens Up On Exploits As Police Detective [SUN]
■ Dismisses allegation of use of Juju in operations ■ Reveals how billionaire kidnapper, Evans wanted to bribe them with $2 million ■ Says his 5-year-old daughter believes Evans is biggest thief in Nigeria
His ambition in life was to become a pilot and fly huge aeroplane around the globe. But because his poor parents could not afford to pay the huge amount required to train a pilot, he opted for his other love, the police.
But before becoming a police officer, Abba Kyari, the top cop in charge of the Inspector General of Police Intelligence Response Team (IRT), played the role of a judge advocate in his family of over 30 children, where he presided over the family court and meted punishment to whoever was found guilty.
Apart from that he also worked as an Okada rider because of his poor parental background to see him through his secondary and university education and with the proceeds he got from the Okada business he was able to take care of his younger siblings having come from a polygamous family.
So, after his secondary and university education, he applied to join the police. He was successful and thereafter went for training.
However, before applying to join the police, Kyari, had applied for the job of a lecturer in one of the universities and another at the printing and minting company.
Incidentally, he got the offer as a lecturer while at the same time he was called for training at the police college, even as the offer from the printing and minting company came when he was already in training at the police college.
Upon his passing out from the police college, he was posted to Adamawa State where he started his career as an officer.
As a young officer, Kyari said that he enjoyed watching investigative channels, reading books on crime and investigations, coupled with his background of being the judge in his family. All these, he said, helped built him to become good at what he is doing today.
Married with children, the Yobe State-born cop, said the secret to his success and that of his team lies purely on God first, technology, dedication, hard work, determination and most of the welfare of his men.
In this interview with Sunday Sun, Kyari, who has been a cop for about 20 years, said that even though his kind of job involves taking very dangerous risks, what keep him going is when he gets the culprits arrested after a hard chase, which sometimes take months and even years. Hear him:
Why I chose to join the police
I chose to join the police because I wanted to be a detective, I want to investigate matters, I want to detect the cause of crime, I want to arrest the culprit and I have always had these three things on my mind right from when I was a child. It has always been my ambition right from when I was in the primary school to join the police. I have always had interest in anything that has to do with detective work. I actually wanted to become a pilot or a detective, but when I reached my secondary school level, I now discovered that to be a pilot, there are some compulsory things that you will follow and it is very expensive. The schools are very expensive and my family was not that rich to sponsor me in flying school. From there I started thinking of plan B, which is to become a police officer. You know I was watching so many detective movies and reading many books on detective and all of that. I got admission into the university and by the time I finished, I picked the police form and I was successful and went for training. But before this time, as the eldest son of my father who has more than 30 children, I use to handle most of the domestic cases among my younger ones. You know we are from different mothers and so we use to have too many troubles like fighting, quarreling and all those usual disagreements amongst children and I was always the one to judge the cases because somehow they will bring the cases to me. What I do is that I will first hear from both sides and that way I detect easily the one that is lying, pass the judgment and give the appropriate punishment to whoever caused the problem.
So, I did that for a very long time in the house so much so that everybody trusted my judgment. As a matter of fact they trusted my judgment more than that of my father to the extent that they prefer to bring their cases to me whenever they have problems. And because of the large family that we have, I automatically became the detective of that house from that time, so that was how I started. During my university days it was the same thing, all the cases in our family were being handled by me and that helped me very much.
When I finished my NYSC, the police was recruiting and I got the form, filled it and was lucky to be among the few that were selected for training, I was 24 years at the time and I happened to be the youngest candidate from my state. I had the right height and my birth certificate was the original from the hospital where I was born and it tallied with my primary and secondary school. All my appearance was right, I had the height right, I was the youngest from my state and there was no godfather from anywhere. I attended the state screening and out of 60 of us that attended, they took 19 and I was fortunate and we went for yet another national screening and among the 19, they took 10 of us and that was how my journey in the police started in 1999/2000 when I reported for training along other of my colleagues from different parts of the country.
After 19 months of training we passed out and I was sent to Adamawa State in May, 2002, where I started work as a police officer.
A hustler from childhood
I have been a hustler and a go-getter right from my childhood days. I became an Okada rider while I was in secondary school and continued even while I was in the university. That was what I used to support myself and even took care of many of my younger ones because their mothers were no longer in the house.
You know my mother left our house when I was just seven years old, leaving me and three of my younger ones, and there were also other mothers and wives of my father who also left leaving their children behind, so those of my siblings whose mothers were still in the house had more advantage over those of us whose mothers have left, so it was not easy especially during meal time.
At that time, we used to eat twice in a day and the food is usually served in a group and if you miss that group eating for any reason, you are on your own. So one must be around when it’s time for the group food. But if you have a mother in the house you don’t have a problem because she will always give you food; so that was what pushed me to start doing the Okada business to feed myself and take care of my younger ones. My Okada experience was very tedious because no matter how I worked, the highest I got was N80. But whenever there is scarcity of fuel, I make more money because I will always buy and resell to make about N200 daily, but when there is no fuel scarcity, I have to do my normal Okada business of carrying passengers that was how I survived.
Experiences as family judge
Some of the experiences I gathered while being a judge in my family were not to believe in everything people tell you because they will never tell you the truth. My reason was because people always try to defend themselves wherever there is a problem. People will try to lie, dodge and do all manner of things just to declare their innocence. So, it’s important that you listen to both sides and you also try and get witnesses who will come and tell you what they have seen and then you will now look at your evidences from people on the ground that you can use to corroborate whatever they have told you or not.
As at that tender age, I was able to do all those kinds of investigations independently and at the end of the day, they themselves will now come and confess and say that my discovery is true that this is actually what happened. So, that was how I started in our extended polygamous family.
Some people believe most police officers use juju to succeed
No, no, no. I don’t believe in all those fetish stuffs. I will tell you that the reason for all our successes is the use of technology, dedication, hard work and relentlessness. These are the things that come together and make things happen.
I always tell people that if you go to Europe and America, you will see how these people have advanced in fighting crime and they are like 500 years ahead of us. Would you say they are using juju? It is not juju that they use to get to where they are today, it is cheer dedication and hard work. If you are dedicated in whatever job you do and put in your best, you will always get result. So, if we get a society where everybody is doing his best and working hard to make sure that they are doing the right thing and being patriotic, things would move forward. So, there is nothing like juju, there is nothing like that. It’s sheer hard work, dedication, use of technology and relentlessness, which is what we have been doing. And I always follow up my cases. I make sure that I follow up on what the boys are doing. I give them directives, I follow up, I have plan A, I have plan B and I have plan C, of all the matters I am handling so that in the event that the first one doesn’t work, the second and third would certainly yield result. So that is how we have been operating. Another secret of our success is that I so much believe in the welfare of my personnel. Their welfare is very, very important. I don’t believe in numbers without adequate welfare. Most times that they have deployed 500 to 600 men. If this number of men has been deployed and there is no RCA, no incentives for them to take care for themselves, you will find that they will go there demoralized and they will not do their work well. But when you move men and all their logistics and whatever that they need is provided, you will see that they will certainly perform. So, that is one of our secret at the IRT, and not juju as its perceived by people with dirty minds.
Have you ever been tempted with bribe?
Sure, I have been tempted on many occasions because of the nature of my job. There are so many cases that we have been doing that people will come with lots of money, I mean huge, huge sums of money to bribe us to throw away such cases. Some people would definitely want you to compromise after stolen or eating somebody’s else money. When you arrest them, they will be telling you oh, please I will give you so and so percentage if you allow me go and all of that. That is virtually a daily happening as far as our detective work is concerned.
What was the highest amount that you have ever been tempted with?
Yes, when we arrested Evans, he offered us $2million if we can keep quiet and let him go and he offered to provide the cash in 48hours.
But we rejected his offer, we had to move away with him and then I blew the thing up. And I think that should be the highest amount that I have ever been tempted with. There was also the case where some people stole money from a Bureau De Change outlet totaling $2million that was brought to us and we were able to recover $1.8million from the thieves among them a bank staff.
So, after the recovery, those guys offered to pay us 50 per cent of the money that we recovered which is about $900,000. We also rejected that offer and informed the owner of the money about the arrest and recovering $1.8million. So, that was another big offer that was made to us.
What keeps you going
What keeps me going, one is that I have a passion for the job and I always believe that whatever is worth doing is worth doing well. I hate cheating, I don’t like people being attacked, I don’t like people being killed, I don’t want people being defrauded. I hate crime against innocent people, so whenever it happens, I will go to the extreme to see that justice is done. I will go all out to see that that person’s money or property has been recovered back. I really derive happiness from that. That for me is better than all the money in the world. If we are looking for a notorious criminal for sometime, the moment we arrest such person, it makes me very happy. All the happiest moments in my life is when we arrest criminals, that is when you will see me very happy and you can never quantify that kind of happiness with money. Money cannot give me such happiness. Like the period when we arrested Evans, Godogo, when we got all those vampires and so many deadly criminals we arrested along these Abuja/Kaduna express road and all those many breakthroughs, give me so much happiness in life. And that is why I always strive to make sure we get these people so that we can have peace of mind because if we don’t get these criminals our minds are always troubled.
Are you not scared going after these criminals in the bush?
Scared! Not at all because we prepare ourselves very well and gather our intelligence before we move for such deadly operations. We make sure we know their total number, the strength of their armoury, how they operate, their hideouts, their exact locations, where they can possibly ambush us when we eventually go for them and several other intelligence. We take note of all these threats before we go after them. We don’t just rush people, we must gather enough evidence before swooping on them. And besides, this is what we have sworn to do, this is what we have taken the oath as polices officers to do; so we must do it and whatever happens in the process especially death, we feel that we didn’t die in vain. We feel that in the event that any of our men gets killed in the cause of our operations, he died a good cause and that cause is that we are fighting for our country, we are fighting to restore peace in our country. So, it is a good cause. But we don’t pray that anything should happen to us, but at the same time, you know we cannot be succeeding all the time. You cannot be 100 per cent successful in whatever you are doing. Sometimes things can happen and because such things happen do not mean you start to give up. Yes, you get dampened emotionally, but at the same time, you learn from the mistakes, take precautions and do a general overhauling and re-strategize.
Do you have time for your family?
Yes I do, but not everyday. I create time for them mostly on Sundays. I go to work everyday, but I don’t work late on Sundays because that is the only time that I have to spend with them.
How do your children feel about your absence and successes?
My children know the kind of work that I do and I make sure I call them especially when I am out for an operation. Like my youngest child that is just five years old, each time I call, she will ask how many thieves did you catch? My children all know Evans. In fact, my youngest child likes talking so whenever I tell her that we caught about 30 criminals, she will ask are they like Evans, is Evans their boss. She always wants to know because she believes that Evans is the biggest thief in the country. So, whoever I catch she wants to know if they are big like Evans and I will now explain to her no they are not like him and she will now say yes I know because there is no one like Evans.
How do you fulfill your fatherly role when you are around?
When I am around I am always with them, we chat, I take them out and all of that. But when I am not around, I am always on a video call with them and that way they don’t miss me that much because seeing me on the video call makes them feel like I am in the house with them.
Do you ever sleep?
Yes I sleep around 3 O’clock in the mornings everyday because of the fact that I have been OC SARS, in Lagos State for five years and I have not been sleeping until 3-30 a.m, so my system automatically adjusted to that so I don’t feel sleepy until around this time.
Having achieved your dream of becoming a police officer what are your challenges?
We actually need support from the government because for more than 30 years the Nigerian Police Force has not gotten the kind of funding that it needed. We have deficiency in so many-areas and many of the logistics that we needed to work with are not on the ground. These are some of the things that we are lacking so I believe that if we can get proper funding, we can do even better.
Lagos Explosion: Governors Pay Condolence Visit To Sanwo-Olu, Donate N200m To Relief Fund [SUN]
The Nigeria Governors’ Forum has donated the sum of N200 million to the Abule Ado/Soba Emergency Relief Fund set up by the Lagos State government.
Recalled that Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu had on Monday announced a N2 billion Appeal Fund for the Abule Ado explosion victims.
The state government had announced the donation of N250 million to the fund and solicited support from all Nigerians, including the private sector.
The Chairman of NGF, Governor Kayode Fayemi yesterday led a delegation comprising his colleagues from Edo, Godwin Obaseki and Kano, Abdullahi Ganduje to the site of the incident in Lagos, where they are meant to do a review of the situation before reporting back to the house at their next meeting.
Fayemi expressed surprise that with the kind of devastation they saw the casualty figure was low, adding that but for the prompt response more lives would have been lost.
He thanked God that few lives that the devastation would have taken was lost.
Fayemi said the sum of N200 million was donated on behalf of the 36 state governors, adding that as the information gets back to the house, there is a likelihood that governors would make more donations according to each state’s capacity.
The NGF chairman blamed the explosion on the disagreement between states and Federal Government on ownership of land while commending the Lagos State government for the attention given to the place, he promised that such issues would be addressed going forward.
The governors sympathised and commiserated with those who lost loved ones and property during the unfortunate incident and hope that this never occurs again.
Earlier, Sanwo-Olu took the visiting governors round the explosion site, explaining in details what led to the disaster and how the state government plans to avert a re-occurrence in the future.
Also in the delegation were the Director General of NGF, Asishana Okauru and NGF’s Head, Media and Public Affairs, Abdulrazaque Bello-Barkindo.