Friday, 22 April 2016

Saraki Faces Fresh Charges For Receiving Governor’s Salary As Senator

The Federal Government has amended the charges of false asset declaration preferred against the Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki, before the Code of Conduct Tribunal in Abuja.

With the amendment, Saraki will be facing two fresh charges in addition to the 13 counts originally preferred against him, which comprised false asset declaration and maintaining of offshore account while serving as Governor of Kwara State between 2003 and 2011.

The additional charges, include allegation that Saraki continued to receive salary and emoluments as Governor of Kwara State after the expiration of his tenure and at the same time, from the Federal Government as a senator between June 2011 and October 2013.

The offence is said to be contrary to section 6(a) of the Code of Conduct Bureau and Tribunal Act. CAP. C15, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004 and as incorporated under paragraph 2(a), Part I of the Fifth Schedule to the Constitution.

It is said to be punishable under section 23(2) of the code of conduct bureau and tribunal act as incorporated under paragraph 18, Part I of the Fifth Schedule to the Constitution.

The other additional charge is that Saraki failed to declare to the Code of Conduct Bureau on assumption of office as Governor of Kwara State in 2003, his leasehold interest leasehold in the property at 42, Remi Fani Kayode Street, Ikeja, Lagos.

He was said to have acquired the property in December 12, 1996 through his company, Skyview Properties Limited from First Finance trust Limited.

The offence is said to be contrary to section 15(1)(2) of the Code of Conduct Bureau and Tribunal Act, CAP. C15, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004 and as incorporated under paragraph 11(1) and (2), Part I o the Fifth Schedule to the Constitution.

It is said to be punishable under section 23(2) of the Code of Conduct Bureau and Tribunal Act as incorporated under paragraph 18, Part I of the Fifth Schedule to the Constitution.

Our correspondent learnt on Thursday shortly after Saraki’s ongoing trial before the CCT was adjourned till April 27 for further cross-examination of the first prosecution witness, that the Federal Government might further amend the charges before they will be read to the accused person.

ARRING any last minute change of plan, a re-jig would soon be announced in the Senate and some principal officers, especially members of the All Progressives Congress (APC), would vacate their positions.

This, Daily Sun learnt, is part of the new agreement reached by the feuding lawmakers to douse the lingering crisis that has rocked the Senate since inception last year.

Part of the option on the table is the ceding of the position of the Senate Majority Leader to the Barnabas Gemade-led Unity Forum in line with the earlier position of the leadership of the APC.

In a June 25, letter to the Senate President, Bukola Saraki, Chief John Odigie- Oyegun, the APC National Chairman had detailed the names of party’s preferred candidates thus: Senate Majority Leader (North East – Ahmad Lawan); Deputy Majority Leader (North Central – George Akume); Senate Chief Whip (South West – Olusola Adeyeye) and Deputy Chief Whip (North West- Abu Ibrahim).

The Senate President, while refusing to implement the APC position, had explained that the party’s letter got to the Senate after the various caucuses had decided to nominate candidates for the vacant positions.

But under the imminent deal, Ahmad Lawan would replace Ali Ndume as Majority Leader.

A feeler to this effect emerged following last Wednesday’s closed-door meeting where the lawmakers were said to have resolved to shelve their differences and forge a common front.

Daily Sun gathered that the Senate leadership might also tinker with the current composition of the headships of the 64 standing committees to accommodate aggrieved members of the Unity Forum who are believed to have been shortchanged.

After a three-hour closed-door session, the lawmakers had released a list of resolutions reached by both members of the ruling APC and the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

Part of the resolutions, according to Deputy President of the Senate, Senator Ike Ekweremadu was the setting up of a 12-man committee, two from each of the six geopolitical zones with a mandated to explore every option available to ensure the contentious issues are resolved amicably.

A PDP Senator who spoke to Daily Sun in confidence, said lawmakers agreed during the closed-door session not to disclose details of the meeting to the public, until the committee submits its report.

But he stated briefly: “Senators are worried that our image has been severely damaged and we need to quickly do something about it. Everyday, I wonder if coming to the Senate at this time was not a mistake. We have been fighting ourselves and we think that enough is enough.

“That was why we had to enter that closed-door session and that is the longest we have had since we were inaugurated last June. If removing the Senate Leader or even the Senate President will bring this crisis to an end, I am for it. The Senate is bigger than any individual.”

Spokesman of the Unity Forum, Senator Kabir Marafa also stated that APC lawmakers were ready to support the reconstitution of the headships of the various standing committees as part of the peace deal.

“At the end of our meeting, we came up with a three point agenda. We talked about the issue of committees’ composition. We talked about APC members in the Unity Forum who were sidelined in the composition of the committees. We said if you want to come together, we need to review certain things. The third thing was the issue of leadership.

“We agreed on two out of the three items on the agenda. We are still on the third issue on how the Senate can comply with the position of the party, APC. We have agreed that it in the best interest of APC for us to work together,” he said.

Senate spokesman, Senator Abdullahi Sabi could not be reached to comment on when the committee will submit its report.

Cristiano Ronaldo is set to miss out on another record by sitting out of Real madrid's La Liga clash with Rayo Vallecano on Saturday.

The Portugal international limped out of Madrid’s 3-0 victory over Villarreal on Wednesday and a subsequent MRI scan has confirmed that the 31-year-old is suffering from muscle fatigue.

Ronaldo has not missed a game in La Liga this term and the forward, who has 31 goals in 34 appearances so far, was on course to be only the second outfield player to have played every minute of an entire season.Other than goalkeepers, Fabricio Coloccini is currently the only outfield player to achieve this after he played in all of Deportivo La Coruna’s 38 games in the 2007-08 campaign.

Russian forces in Syria have fired at least twice on Israeli military aircraft, prompting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to seek improved operational coordination with Moscow, Israel's top-selling newspaper said on Friday.

The unsourced report in Yedioth Ahronoth gave no dates or locations for the incidents nor any indication Israeli planes were hit. Russia mounted its military intervention in Syria in September to shore Damascus up amid a now 5-year-old rebellion.

Separately, Israel's Channel 10 TV said a Russian warplane approached an Israeli warplane off the Mediterranean coast of Syria last week but that there was no contact between them.

An Israeli military spokesman declined comment. Netanyahu's office and the Russian embassy in Israel did not immediately respond.

Israel, which has repeatedly bombed Syria to foil suspected arms handovers to Lebanese Hezbollah guerrillas, was quick to set up an operational hotline with Moscow designed to avoid accidentally trading fire with Russian interventionary forces.

Visiting Moscow on Thursday, Netanyahu told Russian President Vladimir Putin in televised remarks: "I came here with one main goal - to strengthen the security coordination between us so as to avoid mishaps, misunderstandings and unnecessary confrontations."

In an apparent allusion to Syria, Putin said: "I think there are understandable reasons for these intensive contacts (with Israel), given the complicated situation in the region."

According to Yedioth, the reported Russian fire on Israeli planes was first raised with Putin by Israeli President Reuven Rivlin, who visited Moscow on March 15. At the time, Putin responded that he was unaware of the incidents, Yedioth said.

THE Senate, on Thursday, proposed a way out of the ongoing budget impasse, when it decided to send peacemakers to President Muhammadu Buhari, to persuade him to sign the budget and then present the amendments in a supplementary budget.
This was the result of an executive session held by the senators to discuss the way forward on the 2016 budget impasse at the start of Thursday’s sitting.
Sources in the Senate told the Nigerian Tribune that the lawmakers had a stormy session during the executive session, leading to many members of the Appropriation Committee revealing that they did not see the final document of the budget before it was sent to the president.
Sources also said that a number of senators called for the removal of the chairman of appropriation committee, Senator Danjuma Goje, for his failure to do a good job on the Appropriation Bill and handing the budget over to the chairman, House Committee on Appropriation, Honourable Abdumumin Jibril.
The senators, it was gathered, had an explosive session inside, but as usual, they later calmed down and made resolutions.
The Senate had resolved to send a delegation to the president to persuade him to sign the budget, in view of the fact that the National Assembly was already constrained by Section 59(4) of the 1999 Constitution as amended.
The section only recognises that the budget, once passed to the president, cannot be returned and that if the president refuses assent within 30 days, the lawmakers are expected to vote for an override of the veto.
The section which deals with “Mode of Exercising Federal Legislative Power: Money Bills” stated that “where the president, within 30 days after the presentation of the bill to him, fails to signify his assent or where he withholds assent, then the bill shall again be presented to the National Assembly sitting at a joint meeting, and if passed by two-thirds majority of members of both Houses at such joint meeting, the bill shall become law and the assent of the president shall not be required.”
A source said the only option open to the National Assembly was to persuade the president to sign the budget as passed, while he was required to present a supplementary budget to take care of all gray areas.
It was gathered that the Ministry of Budget and National Planning had already submitted a list of the gray areas to the leadership of the National Assembly at different meetings last week.
Sources at the executive session in the Senate said the senators were angry that only a handful members of the Committee on Appropriation saw the final copy of the budget presented to the president.
“Many of the senators, who spoke at the session, were said to have expressed disappointment that they did not see the final copy of the budget before it was sent to the president,” a source said.
It was also gathered that the lawmakers had reviews all the gray areas submitted by the budget office and had resolved to accommodate them through a supplementary budget to be submitted by President Buhari.
Following the disapproval of the way the budget was handled by the Appropriation Committee in the Senate, it was gathered that senators openly called for Senator Goje to step down. The sitting lasted two hours.
Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, who briefed the Senate after the closed session, said one major topic on the agenda was the 2016 Appropriation Bill.
He said: “The Senate, in a closed session, deliberated on issues relating to the 2016 Appropriation Bill and the way forward for the quick resolution of all the matters related to the early implementation of the budget in the best interest of our nation going budget impasse.”
The senators were said to have realised that time was running fast, in view of the constitutionally guaranteed 30 days allowed the president to withhold his assent.
They also observed that once the budget is not signed after 30 days, it would be assumed that he had vetoed the bill and that the National Assembly would have no options than to override the president’s veto.
But speaking to newsmen on Thursday, Senate Leader, Senator Ali Ndume, said that the Senate, at closed session, did not ask Danjuma to resign as Appropriation chairman.
He said: “Nobody should expect me, on my honour, to disclose details of what we discussed in closed session. It is not true that we asked the chairman of the Senate Committee, Senator Goje to resign. That is not what we discussed. Goje was appointed and he could only be removed by a vote of no confidence. We can only ask the elected officers of the Senate to resign, not chairmen of committees. For a chairman that was appointed, we can decide to appoint another one, we can swap chairmen, we change their responsibilities.
“We have seen the president already on the budget, in fact, meeting the president by the Senate leadership is not a big deal.
“It is not true that the budget had been sent back to the National Assembly. I am also not aware that there is any communication from the president on the issue.
“What I know is that areas of concern to the Presidency are now with us here. We are talking with the Presidency to resolve all the issues.”
On the purchase of the 36 cars by the Senate, Ndume insisted that the cars were project vehicles aimed to aid the work of the senators.
He said: “I think it is being overflogged. I say it several times. We are senators and these cars are not being bought for our personal usage. They are meant for the committees to do their work.
“A minister who is appointed, not elected, drives a convoy of four cars. Permanent Secretaries, Directors, Commissioners, House of Assembly members and councils chairmen all drive official vehicles. Are you all saying federal lawmakers should not have an official vehicle?
“As a senator, I can ride in any means of transportation, including Keke NAPEP, if it will take me to my destination.
“I am privileged to be the Senate Leader and there are some privileges attached to that office. Am I supposed to strip that because of sentiments?
“My constituents are happy with me even if I am given 10 cars.”
Also, on Thursday, the Senate inaugurated the 12 member peace committee raised to review the composition of the leadership of the Senate.
The Senate had, on Wednesday, constituted a committee to review the composition of standing committees and the leadership of the chamber, in line with equity and fairness.
While inaugurating the committee, Ndume said the committee was to resolve all the issues outside and within the Senate.

HE chairman of the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) sitting in Abuja, Danladi Yakubu Umar, on Thursday, refused to entertain a motion filed by counsel for the Senate President, Dr Bukola Saraki, asking the chairman to disqualify himself from further presiding over the false assets declaration and money laundering charges preferred against him by the Federal Government on the ground of bias.
At the resumed hearing of the Federal Government’s case against Saraki on Thursday, Umar, while dismissing the motion, held that “the motion, as far as the tribunal is concerned, is of no consequence; not worthy to be entertained and is, hereby, thrown away.”
The defence counsel, Mr Raphael Oluyede, had brought to the attention of the Tribunal, a motion filed on Wednesday, April 20, seeking the CCT boss to excuse himself from participating in the trial, based on bias.
Oluyede had sought to move his motion when the prosecution counsel, Rotimi Jacobs interjected and told the Tribunal that Oluyede had tried to serve him the previous day, but he refused to accept it and that even the lead counsel, Kanu Agabi, to the defendant was not aware of the application.
He also told the court that Oluyede was not part of the defense team and that the application was not ripe for hearing.
The motion argued that the continued presence of Umar on the panel of Tribunal offended the provisions of Section 36(1) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, which provides that “in the determination of his civil rights and obligations, including any question or determination by or against any government or authority, a person shall be entitled to a fair hearing within a reasonable time by a court or other tribunal established by law and constituted in such manner as to secure its independence and impartiality.”
When Oluyede attempted to bring up the motion on Thursday, Justice Umar repeatedly yelled at him to “Sit down.” After Oluyede demanded to be heard, Umar called for police officers to throw out the counsel for the Senate President.
The Tribunal chairman said such application was “utter rubbish” coming from a “busy body.”
Oluyede, however, responded that he had the right to file an application and address the court on it.
However, upon the arrival of the police officers, the defence lawyer took his seat, as he maintained that he would not be intimidated and the prosecution counsel, Rotimi Jacobs intervened and pleaded with the Tribunal chairman to calm the situation.
Saraki’s lead counsel, Kanu Agabi, later told the Tribunal that Oluyede was a member of the defence team and that he (Agabi) was aware of the motion sought to be moved by Oluyede and, however, apologised to the Tribunal.
After the mild drama, the business of the day, the trial of the Senate President, who is facing a 13-count charge bordering on false asset declaration, began.
Another member of the defence team, Paul Usoro, cross-examined the Prosecution Witness one, Michael Wetkas, who said the Senate President, Dr Saraki was not interrogated by the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) before the commencement of his trial at the Tribunal.
He said the Senate President was not invited, when the team of three EFCC investigators met with the CCB regarding Saraki’s matter and that as of the time the enlarged team met with the CCB, Saraki was not interrogated by the Bureau.
He further affirmed that the only time he was aware that Saraki made a statement was during the investigation by the EFCC and that the statement was made before two of his team members (excluding himself) Usman Iman and Musa Sunday; but added that he got to know about the interrogation through the other team members.
“I know my larger team asked him questions relating to his properties and about the asset declaration that he made before the CCB, as well as the companies he has interest in; both local and international, among others things,” Mr Wetkas stated.
Usoro then asked the witness questions on Count 12 of the charge, which alleged that Saraki operated a bank account outside Nigeria where he transferred an average sum of $3.4 million to America Express Europe Limited for onward transfer to his card account with America Express Bank, New York.
When asked if Count 12 was the same as Count 11, which also accused Saraki of operating a foreign account, Wetkas answered in the affirmative and added that the cover letter which the EFCC wrote to GTBank Plc in exhibit 8, covered the issue raised in Count 11 and 12.
When asked to point out the transaction in his exhibit that relates to Count 12, he said it was summation of the total transfer of the said account.
Usoro further asked Wetkas to point out the transactions in the document, Wetkas responded that such would make to run through the entire document and when confronted with the figures, Wetkas said that they were charges on the account and did not constitute the final figure of $3.4 million.
On the figures pointed out to him, Wetkas said he could confirm that they formed part of the total sum until it was computed again.
He, however, admitted that besides three huge transfer, other figures in the account were just charges, but that in the cause of his work, he was required to give a summation of all the transactions in his report.
However, Wetkas had started listing out the transfers, but was cut short by the tribunal chairman on ground that such would waste the time of the Tribunal, as they already had a copy of the exhibit.
Usoro then interjected, asking the panel to allow him establish his case in the interest of justice.
Speaking further, Wetkas stated that the strength of the position of the investigation team was more on the statement of account, which showed clear narration of the transaction in respect to the transfer to the America Express Europe Limited.
He added that they investigated the money laundering allegation.
As the cross examination was going on, the lead counsel, Agabi, asked for a week adjournment to enable them to study the amended charge and other documents which had been tendered.
Prosecution counsel, however, opposed the application, arguing that a week was too long and that the documents had been with them for a while.
Delivering a short ruling, the tribunal chairman refused the application for one week adjournment, but adjourned till April 27 for continuation of cross examination.

The president of the Senate, Bukola Saraki, has requested the National Assembly Service Commission to reverse the appointment of Mohammed Sani-Omolori, as the Clerk to the Assembly, to allow further consultations.
Mr. Sani-Omolori was named the acting Clerk to the National Assembly on Wednesday in a letter by the Executive Chairman of the NASC. He was until his appointment the Clerk of the House of Representatives.
In a letter dated April 21 by his Chief of Staff, Isa Galaudu, to Mr. Fika, the senate president, who is the chairman of the National Assembly, said the appointment did not follow due process.
He argued that the Commission should have first considered Ben Efeturi, who is currently the deputy clerk to the National Assembly, for the position to replace Salisu Maikasuwa, who is proceeding on pre-retirement leave this month.
The letter said, “The President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives were informed that Mr. Efeturi was not considered for the appointment because he was not duly appointed as Deputy Clerk of the National Assembly.
“On further enquiry, we found he was duly appointed by the National Assembly Service Commission vide Extract from Minutes of its 403rd Meeting held on Friday, 21st November, 2014.
“From the foregoing, you have misled and misinformed the President of the Senate and Speaker of the House of Representatives.
“Consequently, I am directed by His Excellency, the Senate President, to inform you that the letter appointing Mr Sani Omolori as Acting Clerk of the National Assembly, be withdrawn immediately for further consultations.”

Below is Saraki’s Letter
21st April, 2016
The Chairman
National Assembly Service Commission
TOS Benson Street, Utako,
Abuja
Withdrawal of Letter of Appointment of Acting Clerk of National Assembly
We present to you the compliments of the President of the Senate and Chairman of the National Assembly, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki, CON. Please recall that during your last meeting with the Senate President on April 20, 2016, the procedure of the appointment of the Acting Clerk of the National Assembly was discussed.
The Commission was directed to follow due process and ensure that seniority is adhered to. Of course, Mr Benedict Efeturi who is Deputy Clerk of the National Assembly (DCNA) and who has previously acted as the Clerk of the National Assembly should be the first to be considered.
The President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives were informed that Mr. Efeturi was not considered for the appointment because he was not duly appointed as Deputy Clerk of the National Assembly. On further enquiry, we found he was duly appointed by the National Assembly Service Commission vide Extract from Minutes of its 403rd Meeting held on Friday, 21st November, 2014.
From the foregoing, you have misled and misinformed the President of the Senate and Speaker of the House of Representatives.
Consequently, I am directed by His Excellency, the Senate President, to inform you that the letter appointing Mr Sani Omolori as Acting Clerk of the National Assembly, be withdrawn immediately for further consultations.
Please accept the assurances of my warmest regards.
Sen. Isa Galaudu
Chief of Staff to the Senate President

The Federal High Court, Abuja will on May 3, 2016 begin hearing in a suit filed by 10 plaintiffs against the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Mr. Godwin Emefiele.

The suit was filed on behalf of Achilike Anderson and nine others by their counsel, Ezenwa Ibegbunam.

In the suit Number FHC/ABJ/CS/218/16, the plaintiffs are seeking 10 reliefs, including an order directing the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission to arrest and prosecute the CBN governor for “offences of money laundering, unlawful, illegal and fraudulent direct cash payment to the Office of the National Security Adviser via a letter dated November 26, 2014 referenced: NSA/366/S.”

Besides the CBN governor, other defendants are the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (second defendant); the EFCC (third defendant); and the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (fourth defendant).

The plaintiffs are seeking “an order directing the second defendant (the President) pursuant of Section 11 (2) (c) and (f) of the CBN (Establishment) Act Cap C4 LFN 2004 to write to the fourth defendant (Senate)” praying for the removal of the CBN governor.”

They are also asking the court to order the EFCC to carry out an investigation into the “unlawful, illegal, and fraudulent act of the first defendant in making direct cash payment to the office of the NSA.”

The plaintiffs urged the court to declare that by “virtue of the combined effect of Sections 1 and 10 (1) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act 2004, the act of the first defendant (the CBN governor) in making direct cash payment in various sums of money to the Office of the NSA under the cover of ‘special services” in excess of the authorised limit cash payment and without giving the requisite report in writing within seven days to the third defendant (EFCC) constitutes a gross abuse of and misconduct in relation to the discharge of his duties.”

They are demanding that the court should declare that the special cash payment to the NSA office constitutes “a flagrant abuse of financial regulations, lacking in due process and therefore illegal and unlawful.”

The plaintiffs are seeking a declaration that the first defendant is in breach of his statutory duty to promote sound financial system in Nigeria; ensure monetary stability and provide financial advice.

They asked the court to declare that the CBN governor has “misconducted” himself in the discharge of his duties such that pursuant to Sections 5 (1) (B), (D); (E) (H), (I), (L) and 6 of the EFCC Act,2002, the anti-graft commission had the powers to investigate the cash payment to the NSA office.

They want the court to declare that the President is under the obligation to write the Senate praying for the removal of Emefiele as the CBN governor.

Beside the cash payment, the plaintiffs are seeking a declaration that the first defendant (Emefiele) in employing 91 persons as members of staff of the CBN “amounted to gross act of misconduct, abuse of office and breach of due process and therefore illegal, void and of no effect.”

They are urging the court to “set aside and/or nullify the employment, offer of employment or hiring of the 91 persons by the first defendant (Emefiele) for being illegal and lacking in due process.”

The summons was taken by Ezenwa Ibegbunam of Ezenwa Ibegbunam and Co, Abuja.

source: the punch

Two artisans – Rilwanu Jamiu and Balogun Oyewole – have been nabbed for allegedly cloning the mobile line of the Lagos State Governor, Akinwunmi Ambode, and attempting to withdraw N50m from the state government’s account.

It was gathered that the suspects, who claimed to be cocoa dealers, allegedly attempted to perfect a N50m transfer through the mobile line of the governor, which they had cloned.

An officer of the Department of State Services, Mr. Peter Okerinmodun, said, “The duo used the cloned mobile line of the governor to send a text message to the Accountant General of the state requesting a transfer of N50m.”

The officer stated that the ruse was, however, detected and the two men were arrested by the DSS, adding that others, who connived with them to commit the crime, were at large.

The artisans were arraigned on Wednesday before an Isolo Magistrate’s Court on two counts bordering on the alleged offence.

Okerinmodun, who was also the DSS prosecutor, told Chief Magistrate Adeola Adedayo that the suspects were arrested after using the cloned mobile line, but had yet to get the N50m.

The charges read, “That you, Rilwanu Jamiu of Giwa Street, Oka Akoko, Lagos, and Balogun Oyewole of Unity Street, Ikotun, Lagos, and others at large, on February 10, 2016, at about 10.02am, in the Lagos Magisterial District, conspired to commit felony to wit: obtaining by false pretences, thereby committing an offence punishable under Section 312 (2) and (3) of the Criminal Law of Lagos State.

“That you, Rilwanu Jamiu, and Balogun Oyewole, of the above named addresses, and others at large, on the same date, time and place, fraudulently cloned the Glo line of the Governor of Lagos State, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode, with intent to induce him by false pretences, used the Glo line to send a text message for the transfer of a sum of N50m, thereby committing an offence punishable under Section 312 (2) and (3) of the Criminal Law of Lagos State.”

The accused pleaded not guilty to the charges.

The prosecutor asked that they be kept in protective custody pending the outcome of the legal advice of the Directorate of Public Prosecutions, pointing out that their lives could be endangered by other suspects who were on the run.

Adedayo, however, admitted them to bail in the sum of N1m each with two sureties each in like sum, adding that one of the sureties must be a religious or a community leader within the jurisdiction of the court, and that the accused must provide five years’ tax certificates.

She ordered the accused to be remanded in the Kirikiri Medium Prison pending the perfection of their bail, and adjourned the matter till May 10, 2016.
Source:- The punch

I've coped well with Real Madrid's lofty expectations- Bale

Gareth Bale believes he has coped well with the pressure of playing for Real madrid and says his game has improved since joining them.

The 26-year-old moved to Madrid from Tottenham in a deal worth a reported €100 million (£86m) in 2013 and won the Champions League in his first season, scoring in the final against Atletico Madrid.
Bale notably struggled last season with Madrid but has bounced back in style in the current campaign, scoring 15 goals and registering 13 assists in all competitions so far.
And the Wales international believes, on the whole, that he has handled the pressure that comes with pulling on the famous white jersey to good effect.
"It's been an amazing experience for me," the Wales international told UEFA.com.
"It's obviously a massive club with big expectations. I've come here, I've done well. We have won four trophies, which is a good return, but we want to win more.
"A lot of things have come good. I think my possession game is improving still – obviously the Premier League is a lot of attacking, end to end, and Spanish-based football is more possession.
"I feel I've improved in that area and my finishing. All round I've improved, and I still feel I've got a lot more to improve on.

Obviously people put a lot of expectation on you with the price tag and everything like that, but for me I just try and come in every day, try and concentrate on my football, try and focus on what I'm doing [in] training and games.
"I feel I've just got on with it and I just to try to enjoy every day as it comes."
Madrid are set to face Wolfsburg in the second leg of their Champions League quarter-final tie on Tuesday, trailing 2-0 from the opening encounter in Germany.
And ahead of the affair, Bale has opened up about how Madrid president Florentino Perez told him he was signing him in order to help the club win their 10th European Cup, which he did.
"I remember being brought in and the president saying to me that he's bringing me in to win the tenth Champions League," he said.
"A big reason for me coming to Real Madrid was to play Champions League football and to win the Champions League. To do it in my first season was very special.

A 21-year-old suspected robber, Akeem Popoola, says a police inspector attached to the Special Anti-Robbery Squad of the Lagos State Police Command, Ikeja, uses him to swindle unsuspecting victims.

He said he had worked for the policeman, identified as Inspector Festus, aka Ijaya, for about four months before he was arrested.

The carpenter, who is currently in custody at the Agbado divison, Ogun State, was arrested for robbery and burglary. A mattress and speakers of a sound system were reportedly recovered from him in the Giwa area of Agbado on April 6.

He told PUNCH Metro that apart from burglary, he used to collect phones from the inspector and he would later sell them.

He added that Ijaya and two others – Abbey and Aluko – would get the buyers arrested minutes later for buying stolen items.

Akeem said their victims paid Ijaya between N120,000 and N150,000 before they were released, adding that he got N5,000 as his share on each ‘deal’.

“In November 2015, one of my father’s tenants and I fought. When my daddy came back home on that day, she reported me to him and he handed me over to Inspector Festus at the state police command headquarters, Ikeja. He told him I was too troublesome and wanted him to discipline me. But he (Ijaya) did not. He took me to a beer parlor at Alakuko and gave me N5,000. I was very surprised.

“Two days after, we met at another beer parlour around Agbado, where I was made to swear an oath. He brought out a gun and put some gin inside the barrel. He drank from it and gave me the gun to do same. He said he would be sending me on some errands. He gave me a mobile phone and drove me in his Toyota Camry to POWA complex in Ikeja.

“He told me to sell the phone inside the complex which I did for N20,000. After an hour, he handcuffed me and took me in his car with his boys – Abbey and Aluko – to the man that bought the phone. He arrested the man and told him to pay N200,000 if he did not want to be taken to the station. The man raised N150,000 among his friends in that complex and gave him.

“When we left there, he removed the handcuffs and gave me N5,000 and we departed.”

The Oke Ona, Abeokuta indigene said the second deal he had with Ijaya was an iPad he sold to another unsuspecting victim around Ikeja. He said he got a N5,000 share from the N150,000 bribe the inspector allegedly collected from the buyer, who was also accused of acquiring stolen property.

He added that when he decided to quit, Ijaya refused.

Akeem told our correspondent that Ijaya threatened they had sworn an oath and that he would die if he backed out from the deal or revealed it to his father.

“Sometime in February, the inspector gave me a Techo phone which I sold to a guy at Agbado. The guy gave me N7,000 and a small phone. Thirty minutes later, we went back with my hands handcuffed. And as he normally did, he collected about N120,000 from him before he was released. I also got my N5,000 share. I can say all this in his presence,” he added.

Akeem said he had stolen a plasma television at Oke Aro area of Agbado on the order of Ijaya, insisting that the item was still with the policeman.

His father, Mr. Ahmed Popoola, who regretted handing him over to the policeman, said his son was a thief before he took him to Ijaya for discipline.

He said he strove to meet Akeem’s needs and had counselled him on several occasions to no avail.

“He had been stealing before I took him to a police friend, Yekini, who handed him over to Ijaya with a belief that he (Akeem) will change if he sees the way thieves are being punished. He had been embarrassing me. He still has a case in the Sango-Ota division. I was arrested and detained because of him.

“When he finished his secondary school, he told me he did not want to proceed to a higher institution. I enrolled him as an apprentice in my carpentry workshop and constructed a wooden shop for him when he graduated. He removed all the planks I used to construct the shop and sold them. Let the law take its course.”

The spokesperson for the Ogun State Police Command, DSP Muyiwa Adejobi, said the police were on the trail of Ijaya and his accomplices. He added that the case had been transferred to the command’s Special Anti-Robbery Squad.

He said, “The suspect was arrested for robbery and burglary. He mentioned Ijaya and some others and we have commenced investigation. If any of them is actually a policeman, we are going to send a signal to the command he is attached to and he will be arrested.”

But the Lagos State Police spokesperson, SP Dolapo Badmos, denied that Ijaya was a serving cop in the command.

“We don’t have a policeman bearing Festus or Ijaya in the command,” she said.

Finally LAGOS! I am coming home!” That was the screaming Twitter message posted by Nigerian international soul singer Bukola Elemide popularly known as Asa, days ago, to announce her first-ever concert in Lagos, Nigeria.
Set to hold on Sunday 1 May at the Eko Convention Centre of Eko Hotels & Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos, Asa’s May Day debut concert has already been tagged ‘Asa Live In Lagos’ #BOSTOUR.
Asa will thrill her fans and connoisseurs of good music to an enthralling performance and songs from her three internationally released studio albums including the latest ‘Bed of Stone’.
The concert, it was gathered, will have a very few select acts as guest artistes.
In a tweet message, Asa’s long time manager and friend, Janet Nwose stated that “Asa Live in Lagos Concert is a live musical concert showcasing one of the most exciting artists to have emerged in the last decade.”
Asa’s name has been synonymous with quality music. She has performed in different cities and countries around the world, winning acclaim for her breathtaking live performances.

Jamie Vardy scores for Leicester against Sunderland

Jamie Vardy scored twice as Leicester edged closer to a shock Premier League title with victory over Sunderland.
Vardy coolly slotted in the first, before outpacing the opposition defence and tucking home a second late on.
The hosts’ best chance fell to substitute Jack Rodwell, who somehow blazed over from just eight yards out.
Three wins from their last five games will guarantee Leicester their first ever top-flight title, while Sunderland remain four points from safety.
Solid in defence, clinical in attack
Leicester’s remarkable surge towards the title shows no signs of slowing up after a battling victory over relegation-threatened Sunderland.
Foxes goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel said there is “no pressure” on his side in the run-in and there were certainly no signs of nerves at the Stadium of Light, even after going ahead in the 66th minute.
England internationals Danny Drinkwater and Vardy combined for the striker’s 20th league goal of the season, the first Leicester striker to reach the milestone in the top flight since Gary Lineker in the 1984-85 season. His 21st in injury time was superb, leaving Patrick van Aanholt floundering before going round Vito Mannone to slip the ball into an open net.
Claudio Ranieri’s men have now won their past five league games with conceding, picking up their 14th clean sheet of the campaign. They have lost just three of their 33 league games so far.
The supporters stayed inside the ground well after the final whistle chanting “we’re gonna win the league” and it now seems only an astonishing collapse will stop them from lifting the trophy.
Toothless Black Cats need to find goals
Sam Allardyce’s Sunderland side gave a good account of themselves against the leaders, but that is not enough at this stage of the season as they cling on to their Premier League status.
They left the Stadium of Light without any points and are 18th in the table, though they do have a game in hand on Norwich, who are four points and one place above them.
Centre-back Younes Kaboul, who should have done better with a header in the first half, made 25 clearances in the match – the most by a player in the division this season.
And German Jan Kirschoff, patrolling the space in front of the defence, kept key Leicester man Riyad Mahrez quiet, completing seven tackles and gaining possession back 18 times.
However, their problems lie at the other end of the pitch, having scored just four goals in their past six games.
The result could have been different if Rodwell buried his gilt-edged chance, while top scorer Jermain Defoe, with 12 league goals, was on the periphery for much of the game

Tottenham maintained their Premier League title challenge with a thumping victory over Manchester United.
Having seen Leicester beat Sunderland earlier, Tottenham scored three goals in six second-half minutes to stay seven points behind the Foxes.
Dele Alli slotted in from inside the area and Toby Alderweireld headed home, before Erik Lamela’s sweet strike.
Anthony Martial drove straight at Hugo Lloris after a weaving run, to register the away side’s only shot on target.
Kick-off was delayed by half an hour as the United team bus was stuck in London traffic en route to White Hart Lane.
And they barely provided a threat in the match, taking until the 62nd minute to test goalkeeper Lloris and capitulating in the second period.
Spurs do their bit to stay in touch
Spurs had not beaten their opponents at home since 2001, a run of 14 games, while manager Mauricio Pochettino was winless in six previous games against United.
But the home side ended that sequence with a stunning passage of attacking play to stay second in the table and in touch with leaders Leicester.
There was concern among the home fans as the deadlock lasted for 70 minutes, before Alli – who turns 20 on Monday – latched on to Christian Eriksen’s pass for the opener.
Four minutes later, Alderweireld looped in a header to calm the nerves, and Argentine Lamela, who missed a header from six yards out in the first half, stroked in his 10th goal of the season.
Tottenham, who have conceded the fewest goals in the league this season (25), still need help from leaders Leicester if they are to clinch their first league title since 1961, but this deserved victory keeps their title bid alive.
Van Gaal’s tactics baffle
Having turned up to the ground late, United seemed set up to contain the opposition and finished with just five shots in the match.
Defeat means the Red Devils face a struggle to finish in the Champions League places at the end of the season, slipping four points behind rivals Manchester City, who currently occupy the crucial fourth place.
Bizarrely, Louis van Gaal decided to substitute young striker Marcus Rashford at half-time and sent on winger Ashley Young, who played as the furthest man forward for the second 45 minutes.
Young made little impression, while 18-year-old right-back Timothy Fosu-Mensah was United’s best player, defending robustly with five tackles, five interceptions and six clearances during his 68 minutes on the pitch.
Just two minutes after the Dutchman was replaced by Matteo Darmian because of injury, Tottenham broke the deadlock in a move that came from his side of the pitch.
The scoreline might have been worse for Van Gaal’s side, as goalkeeper David de Gea saved a deflected Eric Dier shot and tipped over Harry Kane’s looping header.

Former Nigeria coach, Sunday Oliseh, bags FIFA job

For the second time, football world governing body, Federation of International Football Association, FIFA, has appointed immediate past chief coach of Nigeria national team, Super Eagles, Sunday Oliseh, as a member of its new technical department.
Oliseh, personally announced the cheering news on his official Twitter handle, @SundayOOliseh, early Monday morning.
“Honoured To Be Appointed Into the “new look” FIFA Technical Department. Next mission; The 2016 Rio Olympics Football.” Oliseh tweeted.

n the tweet, Oliseh didn’t reveal the details of his assignment.
In March 2013, Oliseh, former Nigeria midfielder was appointed by FIFA as a member of its technical study group.

Students of the University of Port Harcourt this morning protested against the increase in school fees by the school authorities blocking the entrance and exit into the institution.
The protest caused traffic jam on the East-West road as the protest spilled over to the Express road.
It was learnt the institution have given the directive that fees had been jacked up to N47,000 since November 2015 and students had up to April 4 2016, to pay up or be deregistered as students of the institution.
However students of the institution are saying the deadline given to them to pay up is too short and should be extended.
At the time of this report the students are marching towards Abuja campus of the institution, while access roads to the campuses have been barricaded.
However, when Dr. Williams Wodi, a deputy registrar and spokesman of the institution was called to react to the protest he said: “What’s going on is that less than two per cent of our students are protesting and are refusing to allow workers and other students to come into the campus to start their exams or do their legitimate duties.
“We sensitized our students as far back as November 2015, that we are going to change the perception of University where students carry over school fees from year one to the final year and that they should pay what we gave as outstanding charges because we do charge school fees.
“We told them that all returning students are to pay N45,000. That has been communicated through the school website, circular and the school bulletins. When we wanted to enforce the payment at the beginning of the session we saw that the compliance was very low the first deadline was 21 February 2016 so we extended it to March 11, 2016, we made it lecture free for all students so they could pay their fees. We recorded some mileage. Then we extended it to March 30, 2016.
“We still had some students who had still not paid so we opened our portal on April 5 for them to pay but we still had problems with a couple of them and reopened it on April 6 and closed it on midnight of April 7. You can see that from November last year to February 12, March 11, March 30, April 5 and finally April 7 about 98 per cent of students complied but about two per cent of the students have not complied and they are the ones making heaven and earth meet”.
On the penalty for not paying, Wodi said “My position is the position of the Senate of the institution. All those who are yet to pay by midnight of April 7, 2016 will automatically carry over the semester not deregistered.”
Asked if the UNIPORT would be ready to allow the defaulting students to write their examinations and pay later, Wodi said “No. The same Federal Government insisted based on the negotiations between Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, and other unions that if lecturers invigilate for exams they need to be paid. Where will the institution have money to pay invigilators? Over the years parents and students have had the notion that students can pass through the institution without paying and after graduation they would pay. The decision of the institution is a recent development.”
Wodi argued that Nigerian parents have spent about N860 billion as fees for their children and wards in Ghanaian Universities that cannot compare with some state universities.
But Andrew Ajayi, a former student Union leader who commented on face-off between students and school authorities said the institution was insensitive. He argued that it was insensitivity on the part of UNIPORT authorities to have increased the fees in January and to expect parents to pay in the month of January when parents and guardians have scarce resources after Christmas festivities.
Ajayi did not spare students who are protesting over school fees increment stated that between January to April parents should have struggled to pay the fees of their children.
Source: Pm news

PanamaPapers: SERAP wants indicted Nigerian leaders probed and prosecuted

THE Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project says it is giving the Code of Conduct Bureau only 14 days to commence the probe of Nigeria’s past and serving public officials indicted in the PanamaPapers scam.

The group, which decried the extent to which Nigerian public officials had gone in breaching the code of conduct by going to conceal stolen wealth in offshore jurisdictions, said it would sue the CCB if a probe of those indicted in the PanamaPapers did not start in 14 days.

In a statement on Sunday by its Executive Director, Adetokunbo Mumuni, SERAP said it was important for the CCB to leverage on the revelations in the PanamaPapers in demonstration of its readiness to combat the abuse of asset declaration requirements by Nigerian public officials.

It said unless the CCB probed and prosecuted the high-ranking public officers indicted in the PanamaPapers, it would lose public credibility.

It urged the CCB chairman, Mr. Sam Samba, to “use your good offices and leadership to urgently investigate current and immediate-past high-ranking public officers named in the PanamaPapers and others that are maintaining and operating or have maintained and operated foreign accounts in other safe havens and secrecy jurisdictions, and to where appropriate, refer such officers to the Code of Conduct Tribunal for prosecution.”

The statement added, “We would be grateful if the bureau could begin to take these steps within 14 days of the receipt and/or publication of this letter.

“If we have not heard from you by then as to the steps the bureau is taking to address the concerns raised in this letter, the Registered Trustees of SERAP shall take all appropriate legal actions to compel the bureau to effectively discharge its constitutional and statutory mandates in this instance.

“SERAP also believes that bodies like the Code of Conduct Bureau should now seize the opportunity and use its mandate to react to this international scandal by taking concrete and proactive steps to address increasing breaches of constitutional provisions by high-ranking public officers.

“This action will be entirely consistent with the Nigerian 1999 Constitution (as amended), the law establishing the bureau, and will meet demands by Nigerians for improvement in transparency regarding asset declaration and sanctions of public officers for breaches.”

The Governor, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele, has assured genuine investors of cooperation and support toward self-sufficiency in local production of essential goods and the economic diversification drive.
The assurance was contained in a statement made available to newsmen on Sunday in Abuja by the bank’s acting Director, Corporate Communications, Mr Isaac Okorafor.
According to the statement, Emefiele said this during the facility tour of the newly completed Sunti Golden Sugar factory in Sunti, Niger.
The CBN governor said “the bank invested about N26 billion in the project in order to encourage import substitution and backward integration strategy.
“Such investments are geared toward self-sufficiency, generate employment and create wealth.”
Emefiele urged small scale sugarcane farmers in the area to leverage on the presence of the Sunti Golden Sugar factory
to boost production, as the company would now buy all their produce.
Also, the Chairman of the Flour Mill of Nigeria Group, owners of Sunti Golden Sugar Company, Mr John Coumantaros, expressed appreciation for the uncommon support which the CBN gave the company.
He said the CBN’s support had led to the scheduled completion of the project.
Coumantaros said the N45 billion sugar-refining project was expected to create over 15,000 jobs, including 3,500 direct jobs and 3,000 small scale out-grower farmers.
According to him, the sugar company will save over 50 million dollars in foreign exchange for the country annually.
He added that “Nigeria presently produces 1.7 million tonnes of raw sugar which is about two per cent of her needs whereas countries like Benin Republic, Senegal and Mali currently produce 26 per cent, 48 per cent and 28 per cent of their needs.
“As such, the planned 100,000 tonnes of raw sugar to be produced by Sunti Golden Sugar Company will augment the supply gap, create jobs and save foreign exchange for the country.
“This is in addition to generation of 10 megawatts of electricity , animal feeds and fertiliser from the sugarcane residue.”
In his remarks, the Niger Governor, Alhaji Abubakar Bello, commended the management of the CBN for providing the much-needed fund for the projects.
He urged Nigeria Flour Mills to fulfill its obligations to the host community by providing access roads, boreholes, electricity and health facility.
According to him, the project is expected to be inaugurated in May 2016 by President Muhammadu Buhari.

There were indications on Sunday that the National Assembly’s peace moves with the executive over the 2016 budget crisis had flopped.

The PUNCH learnt that as part of the peace moves, the National Assembly had, on Saturday, reached out to the executive and asked President Muhammadu Buhari to sign the document and then send a supplementary budget to the lawmakers.

It was gathered that the President did not accept the suggestion against the backdrop that the distortions in the budget discovered in the document transmitted by the National Assembly were too many.

A minister, who confided in The PUNCH, said both arms of government had been discussing the issue, but the President had been advised by members of his cabinet not to sign the appropriation bill.

“The National Assembly has initiated some peace moves. The lawmakers have suggested that the budget should be signed by the President before he will send a supplementary budget to cover the omissions, but he had turned down the proposal,” a competent source told one of our correspondents on Sunday.

Also, a competent Presidency source told The PUNCH on condition of anonymity on Sunday that with the level of distortions noticed in the document returned to the President, there was no way he could have been advised to append his signature to the budget.

The source stated, “I can confirm to you that the President has been advised not to sign the budget as it is. The initial plan was for him to sign it before going to China and thereafter present a supplementary budget to the National Assembly.

“But as it is, with the level of distortions noticed, the President has been advised not to sign it at all.”

It was gathered that Buhari on Sunday afternoon met behind closed doors with Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo and the Minister of Budget and National Planning, Senator Udo Udoma, in continuation of his consultation on the budget.

The meeting was held inside the President’s official residence in the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

The meeting was held shortly before Buhari left Abuja for China on a one-week official visit.

It was learnt that the meeting was a follow-up to an earlier one held by the President with the leadership of the National Assembly.

Presidential spokesmen, Mr. Femi Adesina and Garba Shehu, were not available for comments on Sunday as they were on the President’s entourage to China.

Investigations by our correspondents at the National Assembly showed that the majority of the 109 senators and the 360 members of the House of Representatives had no knowledge of the details of the 2016 budget before they passed the document on March 23.

It was learnt on Sunday that the lawmakers placed too much confidence on the judgment of the Joint National Assembly Committee on Appropriation, chaired by Senator Danjuma Goje and Mr. Abdulmumin Jibrin, to work out the details that they reportedly paid less attention to the work of the committee.

One senior legislative official, who followed the budget through, said, “Let the truth be told; the budget was passed without any information on the breakdown.

“We all trusted the committee that due to the pressure to pass the budget, the members should work out the details while we passed the highlights.

“The news of inserting projects or removing some came as a surprise to many us.”

It was learnt that in the case of the House of Representatives in particular, only the Chairman, Jibrin, and a few members of the Committee on Appropriation sat to work on the details of the budget without the knowledge of other members.

“Although members of the committee were asked to stay behind during the Easter break for the purpose of working on the details, they were not called to meetings to work on the details.

“What we heard was that some consultants were hired by the chairman to work on the details, while he pleaded with members for understanding because of the exigencies of time,” another legislative official disclosed to The PUNCH.

As the development unfolded, opposition party lawmakers, in a surprise move, backed Buhari’s objections to the budget, saying the President was right.

Speaking on their behalf, the Minority Leader of the House and member of the main opposition Peoples Democratic Party, Mr. Leo Ogor, told The PUNCH that Buhari was free to reject the budget if it did not fall in line with his economic agenda.

Citing the alleged removal of the Lagos-Calabar rail line project from the budget, Ogor noted that the President must have made provision for it because he believed it would be a major boost to his economic agenda.

Ogor stated that the Committees on Transport and all other committees supervising agencies whose projects were removed would have to explain whether the removal was done with their knowledge.

However, Jibrin took to his Twitter handle to respond to allegations levelled against the National Assembly and specifically the Committee on Appropriation.

In a series of tweets, he addressed some of the issues one after another.

In the tweets, he said, “The Lagos-Calabar rail (line project) was never included. How could NASS have removed what was not there? But the nation is being misled.

“This is unfortunate as it is quite clear to all and sundry that #Budget2016 and all its headaches and controversies didn’t emanate from NASS.

“We will come up with a comprehensive position especially with respect to our observation of the budget and what we did to make it better.”

He added, “What NASS did with the N54bn? We added N39.7bn to the Lagos-Kano Rail project. This will help complete the project once and for all.

“That N50bn be set aside as special bursary for students of tertiary institutions.”

When contacted, the Senate Leader, Ali Ndume, on Sunday, said he was not aware of any meeting between the leadership of the National Assembly and the Presidency over the 2016 budget.

Ndume, who spoke in a telephone interview with one of our correspondents in Abuja, said, “Our concern as Nigerians should be how to collectively move the nation forward instead of writing on speculations that could heat up the polity.”

Attempts to get the Director, Information, Ministry of Budget and Planning, Mr Charles Dafe, to comment on steps being taken to resolve the grey areas in the budget were not successful.

The Senate on Sunday also denied allegations of padding levelled against the appropriation committees of the National Assembly.

Senate spokesman, Senator Abdullahi Sabi, said in Abuja that the Constitution of Nigeria did not make the legislature a rubber stamp.

He said, “I can say authoritatively that we did not pad the budget at all. I reject that in its entirety. We appropriated in line with what we believe the issues are and we did so in consultation with the Ministries, Departments and Agencies.”

He added that the National Assembly, in reality, helped the executive to pass a badly written budget, saying having done its job within the law, the lawmakers expected the executive to follow the constitutional process.

Source: The punch

former Niger Delta militant leader, Government Ekpemulopo, alias Tompolo, has commenced legal action against the Federal Government of Nigeria, challenging the N45.9bn fraud charges filed against him.
Tompolo, who approached the Federal High Court in Lagos through his lawyer, Mr. Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa, is seeking an order restraining the Federal Government and its agencies from further proceeding with the N45.9bn fraud charges filed against him.

The defendants in the suit are the Federal Government of Nigeria, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, the Inspector-General of Police, the Chief of Army Staff, the Chief of Naval Staff and the Chief of Air Staff.
Tompolo, through Adegboruwa, is contending that sections 221 and 306 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2015, which prohibits him from seeking a stay of proceedings in his trial, are infringing on his constitutional rights to fair hearing.
He is urging the court to nullify sections 221 and 306 of the ACJA and restrain the Federal Government, the EFCC and the IGP from deploying those sections of the law against him.
Adegboruwa argued that sections 221 and 306 are in conflict with Section 36 of the Constitution which guarantees his client’s right to fair hearing.
The suit followed an appeal filed by Tompolo against the dismissal of his application seeking to set aside the arrest warrant issued against him by Justice Ibrahim Buba on February 8, 2016.
Tompolo is urging the Court of Appeal to not only vacate the arrest warrant issued against him but also disqualify Justice Buba from presiding over his case.
Adegboruwa said Justice Buba must suspend all actions on the charges against his client pending the decision of the Court of Appeal.
He contended further in the suit he filed on Tompolo’s behalf that the Federal Government and its agencies were “not entitled to file, initiate, prosecute or in any other manner pursue any criminal charge or information, against the applicant, in any manner that will constitute a flagrant violation of the applicant’s fundamental right to fair hearing as guaranteed under Sections 36(1), (4) and (6) as well the inherent powers of a court of law under Section 6(6)(a)(b) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999.”
He also sought an order “nullifying, voiding, striking down and expunging sections 221 and 306 from the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2015 to the extent of their inconsistency with the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999.”
The EFCC had in January this year charged Tompolo alongside nine others before Justice Buba for an alleged N45.9bn since January.
But Tompolo had repeatedly spurned the summons issued on him by the court to appear to answer the charges.
Justice Buba had on two occasions, January 14 and February 8, issued a bench warrant against him and ordered his arrest.
The EFCC subsequently placed a newspaper advertorial declaring Tompolo wanted and also obtained a court order to seize all his known assets pending when he will submit himself to the court.
But efforts to arrest and produce him in court had proved abortive, a development which forced the EFCC to apply to the court to separate his trial from that of his co-accused persons.

I can't quit acting because of political appointment- Femi Adebayo

Femi Adebayo needs little or no introduction in the Nigerian movie scene. Asides from being the son of legendary actor, Adebayo Salami alias Oga Bello, the actor is sometimes referred to as a poster boy for Yoruba movies.

Recently, he got an appointment as the Special Adviser to the Governor of Kwara State, AbdulFatah Ahmed, on tourism and culture. Even though the actor is ecstatic about his appointment, he believes his new position is currently a huge distraction to his career.

He said that although the appointment has taken most of his time, he has no regrets.

He said, “I was called to serve and I would give it all I got. Serving as the special assistant to the governor of Kwara State is a huge distraction but I do not mind because the society has given me so much and it is time for me to give back. I cannot remember the last time I went to a movie location.”

In a chat with Saturday Beats, the actor shut down rumours that he was gradually quitting acting for politics, emphasising that his post is only an appointment and not an elective one.

“I am not a politician. It is an appointment and not an elective post. It is a call to serve and the governor believes that I am capable enough to handle the area of arts, culture and tourism of my state and that is why I was appointed, I am not a politician,” he said.

Known to be a ladies’ man, the actor modestly refused the title, claiming that he has mutual respect for all his fans both male and female. He also told Saturday Beats about his plans for marriage.

“I am not a ladies’ man. My female fans appreciate my work and I appreciate my fans as well.”

On whether he has any plans for marital life anytime soon, the actor simply said, “I am waiting for God’s time.”

The actor further told Saturday Beats that his plate is very full at the moment because apart from being a special adviser to the governor, he just bagged an endorsement deal with a real estate company, Kayode-Obembe &CO.

“I recently bagged an endorsement deal with Kayode-Obembe &CO and I am glad to be a part of the team. I had several offers but I decided to be a part of this because it is a very reputable company. Before I accepted the offer, I did my investigation and I was very convinced that this company is highly reputable and reliable and the CEO is a pastor. It means that I am on the right path,” he said.

There is only one option for the female students to get an A grade in their courses — sleep with the male lecturer taking the course or refuse to do so and keep failing.

It’s either sex or no marks.

For a male student, because he is sexually unattractive to the lecturer, the only way to bail out himself is to hire a lady who will sleep with the concerned lecturer on his behalf in order to pass the course.

Sexual harassment, especially of the female students by male lecturers, is perhaps not a new thing in tertiary institutions in Nigeria and globally, with many people tagging it as the “greatest education epidemic” ever known.

But in Auchi Polytechnic, Auchi, Edo State, one of the first four federal polytechnics established in the country — in 1963 — frustrated students told our correspondent the extent some randy male lecturers go before they could pass them in their courses.

“The better ones among the lecturers give us the option of paying by cash for the course or finding a lady who will sleep with them on our behalf before we can pass. Passing a course costs us between N10,000 and N20,000,” a Higher National Diploma student of the Department of Accountancy, simply called Alex, told Saturday PUNCH on the telephone.

However, the downside to choosing to pay by cash rather than sex, according to Alex, is that the student can never get more than a C grade.

He continued, “Paying by cash is for those who want just a pass. But if I find a girl who will sleep with the lecturer on my behalf, I’ll get an A, for sure. I’ll get at least 90 per cent in the course, even if I write nothing exceptional in the exam. This option of paying with money instead of sex only comes from about one or two of the lecturers out of 10.

“Some of the lecturers tell us point blank that they don’t need our money. They will tell us to find them ladies who will sleep with them before we can pass their courses. They teach very important courses, so you cannot ignore them. They will keep failing us until we’re given notice of withdrawal from the institution. It’s something that has happened to a friend who claimed to be a born-again Christian. The guy wrote the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination afresh and is now at the University of Benin.

“So this is what we guys do: If I have a loyal girlfriend and I beg her, she can sleep with the lecturer on my behalf. The lecturer picks the hotel of his choice on the day we’ve agreed. I will book for it. I’ll order for the meal he’ll eat before the action. He will sleep with my girl and give me my A. I’ll give the lady my name so that the lecturer will know she’s from me.

“But if my girlfriend says no, then I have to hire someone else. I will get a prostitute from outside, pay her, book for the hotel the lecturer has picked, order for their meal and then I get an A in his course. I have done this for three lecturers now.

“The reality is we can’t pass their courses by mere brilliance. Only one or two lecturers are sane in my department. They don’t ask for anything. We read hard to pass their own courses. For the rest, sex is the key. This is why most of us don’t fidget when exam period approaches. We know the way out. The lecturers have shown us.”

Another male student in the Department of Accountancy who spoke with Saturday PUNCH, simply named Dickson, in HND 1, said he usually budgets some money right from the beginning of the semester to hire prostitutes who will sleep with the randy lecturers on his behalf.

He said, “I love my girlfriend and can’t allow her to sleep for me. Some other guys do that. They beg their girlfriends to help them. It’s not a coded thing. We all discuss it. The prostitutes make serious money from us, all because of the extent these lecturers have gone.

“Apart from the money my parents give me, I hustle on my own in the school. If I want to pass a course now, I need to budget at least N20,000 for it — N7,000 for hotel booking, N3,000 for meal and N10,000 to pay the prostitute.”

Asked how he hustles on the campus, he said he co-founded a computer centre outside the school premises from which he makes some money.

Alex and Dickson told Saturday PUNCH that the randy lecturers usually pick the expensive hotels in the city to enjoy the pleasure at the cost to the students.

“Some of the hotels are along the Benin-Okene Expressway, Ekpoma-Auchi Road, Benin-Auchi Road, etc. The least amount for booking is N5,000,” they said.

A lawyer and social commentator in Lagos, Bisoye Odubona, said the “devilish practice” the lecturers had caused the students to indulge in could turn them into riff-raff.

He said, “How will a student get N20,000 to pay the ‘total package’ on a course, all because of a randy lecturer? Don’t be surprised that these students might be stealing laptops and smartphones of their colleagues and selling them in order to raise money just to get an A.

“I know sexual harassment happens in tertiary institutions, just like everywhere else, but I never knew it had gone to this level. These are the lecturers turning our graduates to riff-raff. They deserve a cruel punishment if they are ever caught and I hope they are.”

All-expenses paid sex nights

According to some other students who spoke with Saturday PUNCH, sex is the only bailout option from these randy lecturers’ snares.

But even the sex option doesn’t come cheap.

“There was a lecturer then, a very randy one, who taught us Public Sector Accounting in HND 1. That was around 2013. He would tell us openly in the class, ‘I don’t want your money. I am richer than you. Give me a girl and you get your A,’” an ex-student of the department, simply known as Sam, who now works in Port Harcourt, told our correspondent.

He added, “There is a popular hotel along the Benin-Auchi Road where these lecturers used to tell us to book when they wanted to sleep with the ladies we gave them. It is one of the most expensive hotels to rent in the city. It’s also a bit distant from the school, so they would not be seen, I guess. They chose whatever hotel they wanted and we would pay for it. It’s an overnight session. An all-expenses paid sex night for them.

“Some other lecturers gave us two options to get good marks — sex or money. If you chose sex, you were sure of getting grade A in the course. If you chose money, you would get C, D or E, depending on how much you paid. The least was N10,000 per course when I was in HND 1 and N15,000 for HND 2 students. Out of the 10 courses I offered in HND 1, three of the lecturers wanted sex only. Four others would give you the option of sex or money, depending on the grade you wanted.

“In HND 2, I offered nine courses. Five of the lecturers taking the courses were highly randy. Only two were good lecturers. They would give you marks according to what you wrote. Those two were highly disciplined. There was a particular lecturer who would tell us to come to class (even on Sundays) at so-so time. He would be in class 10 minutes before the time and start teaching empty class if no student was around. He would be talking to the board and empty seats until we arrived. He was very strict, but I liked him.”

Apart from the Accountancy Department, Saturday PUNCH also gathered that this practice also happens in some other departments, for example, the departments of business administration and management, public administration, banking and finance, and so on.

“It’s only that the practice was rampant in Accounting Department. Everybody knew that,” said Moses Franklin, a former student of the school who graduated in 2014 and now works and lives in Lagos.

He added, “The situation is just not too obvious in some other departments. If you sleep with the lecturer, you get a good A, like 90 per cent, even if you know nothing. Sex is their food. They cannot do without it. They are cursed with it.

“I remember a certain lecturer then, one of the randy ones, who was paralysed in an accident while I was in HND 1. God was merciful on him, he didn’t die. But despite that, the man came into the class in a wheelchair one day and said, ‘The fact that I’m paralysed doesn’t mean I’m impotent. I can still use my hands.’ From the way he was making gestures, he meant he could still use his hands to fondle ladies’ breasts and buttocks; a very mad man.”

“Sleep for two”

This is a slogan some students of the school have coined from the situation, as explained by Joseph, another HND 1 student of the Department of Accountancy of the school.

He narrated how it works, “For the lecturers who want only sex to pass us, they demand from the ladies as well. Any lady who refuses to agree is frustrated by the lecturer. But for us guys, since they can’t have sex with us, they ask us to bring somebody that will do the job for us.

“We hire prostitutes to do the job for us. We rent the hotel room, pay for the lecturer’s meal, then pay the prostitute some cash, depending on our agreement.

“But surprisingly, some female students in our department are also exploiting this situation to make money for themselves. They tell us not to go outside to hire prostitutes. Instead of paying prostitutes, they ask us to let them assist us and we pay them. But in the process, the female student, apart from doing the male student a favour, also does herself one. She sleeps with the lecturer for the guy, for her own sake too and she still gets paid by the male student.

“It’s called ‘sleep for two.’ The lady helps both the guy and herself at once. Both of them get As. But if the male student has a loyal girlfriend, she does the job freely, except that the guy still pays for the hotel booking and meal.”

“This is highly sickening,” an educationist in Port Harcourt, Dr. Fidelia Peters, simply said, not knowing what else to say when she heard about the situation.She only added, “Those lecturers deserve to be placed in front of the firing squad and be got rid of. All of them will perhaps be blaming Nigeria’s woes on corruption, but look at it, are they not also corrupt?

“Talking about eliminating corruption, this is where it should start from. How can we improve or be intellectually sound if we are being taught by these sorts of lecturers? How can our education system improve? Not sure this is possible.”

The President of the Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics, Mr. Usman Dutse, said members of the body were always being cautioned against extorting and sexually victimising students.

“The students should report to the management. If they want the situation to be addressed, they have to report such lecturers. If perhaps they are afraid, they could report under condition of anonymity and such lecturers will be dealt with. But when they keep quiet, nothing much can be done. We hear these things too and we usually caution our members,” he said.

Sleeping for marks: Ex-female student’s account

While male students hire prostitutes, female students have to sleep with the randy lecturers themselves or they risk failing. For them, there is no option of hiring a prostitute or paying with cash in order to pass.

A former student of the school, simply called Mercy, who graduated in 2014, narrated her experience to our correspondent in Lagos.

She said, “All along, I was a very serious student, and of course, I should. I was sent to the school to study, not to sleep with lecturers to get marks.

“I didn’t do my National Diploma in Auchi Poly. I only did my HND there. I was not exposed to that kind of practice in my previous school. Probably it was not rampant there. When I got to Auchi Poly, I didn’t know those lecturers had set their eyes on me until when it was time to do my project. All the courses I offered while in the school, I never got more than a C, maybe in one or two. I did have lots of Ds and Es, and sometimes Fs, despite studying and writing well. That is why I graduated with just a pass from the school.

“When it was time for project, I never knew why this particular lecturer who taught us Public Sector Accounting in HND 1 was frustrating me. He also took us Financial Management in HND 2. He was my project supervisor. I submitted 10 project topics to him, but he didn’t approve any. I started submitting project topics to him right from the beginning of the first semester in HND 2, but he didn’t approve any until it got to mid-second semester. It got to a point when I was frustrated and felt like committing suicide. So I approached him one day, ‘Sir, I don’t even have any project topic idea. Please tell me what topic to work on.’ He replied, ‘You’re funny. It’s because you don’t know what to do like your colleagues. Go and ask what your friends are doing. Have you ever come to greet me in my office?’ I became dumb, couldn’t utter a word. I made up my mind never to succumb to his pressure. That’s why he approved my project topic in the middle of second semester when most students had gone far ahead of me in writing almost all the chapters of theirs.

“When he finally approved it, I started rushing through it. He approved the last chapter of my project two days before the day of defence. I was helpless, but there was nothing I could do but to accept my fate. On the day he approved it, I had to sleep in a business centre in the school to write, type, print, make photocopies and spiral-bind it. I couldn’t eat. I didn’t take my bath. I slept in the school till the morning of the day of defence. I couldn’t go to the hostel for two days. In the morning of the day of defence, I showed up and tried my best. After my presentation, he shook my hand and refused to let it go. He was practically fondling with my fingers. He asked me, ‘You think you are smart, right?’ It was when the final results came that I knew what he was talking about.

“Other lecturers who took us Managerial Economics, Accounting Theory and Practice and some others were like that. Very randy people. The lecturer teaching us Taxation had his only special way. His case was different from others. No matter what you wrote, you could never get more than a C grade. He could set his eyes on and sleep with a female student, but that didn’t translate to special marks. His was not a quid-pro-quo situation. We were always scared of him. He was a great womaniser.

“If a lady refused to give him sex, he would frustrate her. If he saw a guy hanging out frequently with the lady he had set his eyes on, he would assume the guy to be the lady’s boyfriend. He then set his eyes on the guy. He would take the guy as his competitor and the reason why the lady refused him. He would frustrate him by failing him over and over again until the guy was given a notice of withdrawal. We ladies used to pray that the man shouldn’t like us.”

Mercy said she wished she didn’t school in the institution, adding, “but to get an admission is not easy in this country. I am carrying a pass certificate around because of what I passed through in those lecturers’ hands. I do wish sometimes I didn’t school in Nigeria.”

“I tried reporting, but the lecturers would tell us they’re irremovable from the system. They wielded great influence, they claimed. ‘If you like, go and report to the rector, there’s nothing she can do,’ they would say,” she said of the lecturers.

Why students give in

Sexual harassment in tertiary institutions is used as a tool to create a fear of the future in the minds of the students by the lecturers who indulge in it, a psychologist, Mrs. Moyo Owolabi, said.

She said, “The students want good grades to boost their Grade Point Averages, which have an eternal influence on the way they are treated in the job market later in life. Everyone knows that most companies hire based on the academic result a candidate has.

“If you don’t have a minimum of 2-1, for instance, there are some jobs you cannot apply for. They tell you specifically it’s a minimum of 2-1. So the desperation for good marks will always be there. The lecturers too know this, and they use it to exploit the students. ‘If you want a good score, sleep with me or pay with money.’ That’s what they say. In many tertiary institutions, this is happening.”

The institution’s spokesperson, Mr. Mustapha Oshiobugie, asked students to report the lecturers to the school authorities, vowing that lecturers who harass their students sexually would be sanctioned if found guilty after investigation.

He said, “We hear all these things, but they are false. When we ask students to report such lecturers, they wouldn’t come forward. No lecturer is above the law here, so when students come forward with reports, we will question the lecturer, but they wouldn’t come.

“We tell them that if perhaps they are afraid, they should tell their parents to report on their behalf, but we don’t see anyone. The students can also write us with proof and we will look into the allegations.

“We cannot just question a lecturer without a proof. There are policies in place which allow us to deal with such lecturers, but we need the students to report first, not just carrying rumours about. Our former rector — Dr. (Mrs.) Philipa Idogho — even gave her phone numbers to the students, but they wouldn’t report. And we can’t take on a lecturer based on rumours.

“They have the opportunity to report to even the Dean of Student Affairs, or why do we have him? We encourage our students to avail themselves of the opportunity to report.”

An education advocate in Lagos, Ms Viola Akhigbe, told our correspondent via Twitter that it was high time the authorities set up structures to fight sexual harassment in all forms in the institution.

She said of sexual harassment, “I think it is one of the most horrible developments of our time. In all fairness, some tertiary institutions in Nigeria, as in other parts of the world, have put structures in place to prevent incidences of sexual harassment, such as policies, increased awareness and heavy sanctions. Unfortunately, the effects of these measures have not been significant enough to stop the perpetrators.

“In the first place, we need to see sexual harassment, not as a school problem, but as a societal issue. It is a social crime which requires a whole societal response. Institutions need to be more articulate, decisive, sincere and transparent in their policy provisions and procedures for handling incidences of sexual harassment so that people are not only aware, but can also trust that justice will be served.

“Students themselves have to become smarter in handling such cases. Technology can definitely be helpful here, because evidence is also important. Our society is becoming more alive to issues of social responsibility and technology has been such a blessing. So lecturers, and indeed institutions, should not imagine that they will continue to get away with sexual harassment. It just must stop!”

Source: The Punch

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