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Court adjourns Yahaya Bello’s arraignment

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Yahaya Bello

Court adjourns Yahaya Bello’s arraignment

A Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has adjourned the arraignment of the immediate past Governor of Kogi State, Yahaya Bello, on an alleged money laundering case instituted against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, to July 17, 2024.

At the resumed hearing on Thursday, the former governor’s lawyer, Adeola Adedipe, SAN, brought the court’s attention to an application before the Chief Judge for transfer of charge no: FHC/ABJ/CR/98/2024 to Federal High Court, Lokoja, pursuant to Section 45 of the Federal High Court Establishment Act.

He said the Prosecution had been notified and their opinion had been sought via a letter dated 14th June 2024 from the Chief Judge’s office.

The letter, addressed to EFCC Counsel, Rotimi Oyedepo, SAN, was signed by the Special Assistant to the Chief Judge, Joshua Ibrahim AJI, Esq.

“You will find attached the copy of a letter by Counsel to the Defendant on the above subject matter, dated 10th June 2024.

“I am directed by His Lordship, the Honourable, the Chief Judge, to forward the letter to you for your response within 6 (six) days of receipt,” the letter read in part.

The former governor was supposed to appear in court on June 13, the last adjourned date but for the EFCC counsels’ decision to seek adjournment to June 27, having indicated that the previous date would not be convenient.

Adedipe SAN reminded the court that his appearance at the last hearing was accidental and that this would be seen from the court’s records.

He said, “After the proceeding on that day, and we gave him the report of what happened in court, I was made to understand that a letter had been written on behalf of the defendant to the Honourable Chief Judge of the FHC requesting in substance that this matter be administratively transferred to the FHC Lokoja judicial division believed to have territorial jurisdiction.

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In the EFCC’s charge, the offence was said to have been committed when the former Governor was Governor of Kogi State.

Adedipe said, “The letter was received and the office of the Honourable Chief Judge of FHC did write to the prosecution team through Mr Rotimi Oyedepo, SAN, on 14th June 2024, notifying him that the Honourable Chief Judge of FHC had activated the administrative process to that request whereof it was directed that he should provide a response to the request of counsel made on behalf of the defendant.”

He said the issue was no longer in the hands of the bar but the bench.

“After the last case, a letter was written. This issue is no longer in the hands of the bar but the bench. If the honourable chief judge has taken an initiative, I need to give him the necessary respect.”

The Prosecution counsel, Kemi Pinheiro, disagreed, saying that the matter was for arraignment and that the former Governor’s counsel had, on June 13, undertaken to produce the defendant in court.

“The letter to the CJ doesn’t discharge the undertaken. It’s not a judicial decision,” he said.

“Since no reason has been offered by Adeola. Your lordship should treat this as professional misconduct and contempt of court,” the EFCC lawyer urged.

In his response, Adeola said he had already told the court that his appearance on June 13 was accidental.

“I only appeared in the matter that day when I noticed the senior advocate was in court contrary to the prior agreement.

“Because Mr Pinheiro sent a letter to Mr Wahab, the lead counsel for the defendant, saying that the set date won’t be convenient and it was decided that junior lawyers will be sent to court to take dates,” he argued.

But Pinheiro argued that since the defendant had not been produced despite the undertaking of two senior advocates of Nigeria, he would be moving an application of contempt against them.

Adeola, SAN cut in, saying that the EFCC counsels were trying to trade blames where none existed, and indicated his interest in withdrawing from the case, considering the posture of the EFCC counsels on the matter.

After arguments, Justice Emeka Nwite adjourned to July 17 for ruling and arraignment.

Court adjourns Yahaya Bello’s arraignment

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Yahaya Bello reports to EFCC office with lawyers

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Yahaya Bello reports to EFCC office with lawyers

 

A former Governor of Kogi State, Yahaya Bello, on Tuesday visited the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to honour another invitation extended to him over alleged misappropriation of funds.

Bello went to the anti-graft office with his lawyers in the morning.

The ex-Kogi governor reportedly drove himself to the EFCC’s office in a black Toyota Hilux van with some lawyers.

He was said to have been taken by some operatives of the agency and are currently being grilled.

This is  coming after the Supreme Court judgment which dismissed a suit brought by some state governments challenging the constitutionality of the agency.

The EFCC at the last hearing on November 14, sought the adjournment till November 27 in the fresh case it instituted against Bello.

It stated that the 30-day window was still running for the summons earlier issued.

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Just in: Ebonyi governor suspends two commissioners, Perm Sec for misconduct 

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Just in: Ebonyi governor suspends two commissioners, Perm Sec for misconduct 

 

Ebonyi State Governor Francis Nwifuru has announced the immediate suspension of two commissioners with a permanent secretary among others for gross misconduct.

Those suspended are the Commissioner for Housing and Urban Development Francis Ori, and the Commissioner for Health, Moses Ekuma, with the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Health.

The suspension followed an incident on Saturday night, when the governor reportedly visited the Ministry of Health’s premises and was said to have found six officials diverting government materials.

Others suspended for three months are the Executive Secretaries of the State Primary Healthcare Development Agency and the Ebonyi State Health Insurance Agency

The suspension order was announced by the state Commissioner for Information, Jude Okpor, who cited alleged misconduct and dereliction of duties as the reasons for the disciplinary actions.

Okpor made the disclosure on Tuesday during a press briefing on the outcomes of the State Executive Council meeting held on Monday at the New Government House in Abakaliki, the state capital.

“Following cases of gross misconduct and dereliction of duties by some government officials and matters related thereto, the Chairman of Council directed the indefinite suspension of the Honourable Commissioner for Housing and Urban Development and three months suspension of the Honourable Commissioner for Health, respectively

“In view of the development, the Special Assistant to the Governor on Primary Health was directed to take charge of the ministry in the absence of the suspended commissioner.

Governor Nwifuru directed the suspended government officials to hand over all government properties in their possession including vehicles to the Secretary to the State Government.

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Why we’re borrowing despite surplus revenues – FG

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Nigeria’s Minister of Finance, Mr Wale Edun

Why we’re borrowing despite surplus revenues – FG

The Federal Government has defended its decision to borrow to address budget deficits, despite surpassing revenue targets in 2024.

Finance Minister Wale Edun and Budget Minister Atiku Bagudu clarified this position during a session with the National Assembly’s Joint Committee on Finance, Budget, and National Planning. The meeting focused on the 2025–2027 Medium-Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) and Fiscal Strategy Paper (FSP).

Last week, the National Assembly approved President Bola Tinubu’s $2.2 billion loan request to fund the N9.7 trillion deficit in the 2024 budget partially.

During the session, key agency heads, including Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) CEO Mele Kyari, Customs Comptroller-General Bashir Adeniyi, and Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) Chairman Zacch Adedeji, presented their revenue reports.

The agencies reported exceeding their 2024 targets.

  • Customs Service: Generated ₦5.352 trillion by September 30, surpassing its ₦5.09 trillion target for the year. For 2025, the agency projects ₦6.3 trillion, with a 10% increase planned for 2026.
  • NNPCL: Achieved ₦13.1 trillion in revenue, exceeding the ₦12.3 trillion projection for 2024. Kyari announced a ₦23.7 trillion revenue target for 2025.

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  • FIRS: Surpassed multiple tax collection goals, including ₦5.7 trillion from company income tax against a ₦4 trillion target. Education tax collections also exceeded expectations, reaching ₦1.5 trillion compared to a ₦70 billion target.

Overall, ₦18.5 trillion of the ₦19.4 trillion 2024 revenue target had been achieved by September, indicating the goal will be exceeded by year-end.

Despite these surpluses, the government insists borrowing remains essential to cover budget gaps and support vulnerable populations.

Bagudu explained, “Even with agencies exceeding revenue targets, borrowing is necessary to address deficits and boost productivity, particularly for the poorest. This aligns with Agenda 2050, which aims for a GDP per capita of $33,000.”

Edun also reiterated that loans were critical for adequately funding the budget.

The committee, led by Senator Sani Musa, questioned the rationale behind the borrowing and demanded further transparency. The Immigration Service was specifically asked to provide documents regarding an “unacceptable PPP arrangement” before the end of the week.

The session underscored the government’s balancing act between increased revenues and fiscal challenges requiring external borrowing.

Why we’re borrowing despite surplus revenues – FG

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