Former Minister blasts Aisha Buhari for assaulting student, calls on IGP to invite her for questioning – Newstrends
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Former Minister blasts Aisha Buhari for assaulting student, calls on IGP to invite her for questioning

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Former Minister of Youth and Sports, Solomon Dalung

A former Minister of Youth and Sports, Solomon Dalung, has taken a swipe at the First Lady, Aisha Buhari, over arrest and torture of a final year student of the Federal University Dutse, Aminu Mohammed.

DAILY NIGERIAN reports that Mr Mohammed was secretly whisked away by plainclothes security operatives on the orders of Mrs Buhari over a Twitter post.

The final-year student was on Tuesday remanded in Suleja Correctional Center after he was secretly arraigned before an FCT high court by the Nigerian police.

Condemning the first lady’s action in a Facebook Live video on Tuesday, Mr Dalung reminded the first lady that Nigerians didn’t elect President Muhammadu Buhari into the office for them to be oppressed.

Mr Dalung said: “Let me condemn in categorical terms, the tyranny, the abuse of power, and the dictatorship that are coming out of the sanctuary of leadership in Nigeria, which is the Aso Rock.

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“Disheartening reports of the deployment of security to kidnap innocent Nigerians by the wife of the president, Hajiya Aisha Buhari, beating them mercilessly, and handing them over to security to be detained, is a highly condemnable act by every right thinking human being all over the world.

“It’s a shame that this is happening under the watch of President Muhammadu Buhari. It is a big threat to democracy. The wife of the president is no better than any other Nigerian except being the wife of the president.

“That she went out of her way, to kidnap Aminu Mohammed, a 400-level student from [Federal University Dutse] Jigawa, and also abducted someone who had worked with her, Zainab Kazeem, and brought them to the villa, instructed her security to beat them mercilessly, and subsequently handed them over to be detained by the security forces of Nigeria.

“This is very disheartening and shameful. Aisha Buhari has no right to order for the arrest of any Nigerian. That she’s married to the president of Nigeria does not confer any advantage on her to take the laws into her own hands.”

Mr Dalung called on the Inspector General of Police to order Immediate investigation into the matter and invite her for questioning, assuring the victims that they would stand by them until Justice is served.

“If the two people have breached the law, the only option open to her is to invite the police for questioning. But kidnapping them and taking them to the presidential villa and organizing security men to beat them up is a breach of the law.

“Aisha Buhari has no immunity, and the Inspector General of Police must invite her for investigation and questioning.

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“For those citizens of Nigeria whose rights have been violated, I want to put it on record that every possible action will be taken to secure of their freedom and we will fight against this injustice meted out on them until they are appropriately compensated as required by law.

“Aisha is a beneficiary of the goodwill of Nigerians. Common people sold their assets, bought cards and scratch and sent money, to raise campaign funds for her husband. They didn’t do that because they wanted to be enslaved by her.

“Nigerians didn’t suffer to elect Buhari just for Aisha to emerge as a terror in the state house, and be kidnapping innocent citizens into the villa and beating them.

“You have bitten more than you can chew. And I want to assure you that the human rights community, both nationally and internationally, will mobilize every asset to ensure justice is done to Aminu Mohammed and Zainab Kazeem.

”The security agencies holding these two people must release them within the next 24 hours. Failure to do this, we will, of course, employ all lawful means to enforce and expose all forces behind this,” he said.

The former minister added that, “Aisha, as the wife of the president, is not concerned about the abductions of secondary school girls in FGGC Yauri who are now married to bandits. She is not concerned about the Christian women who were kidnapped in Southern Kaduna, and are still in the hands of bandits after over six months.

“She is not concerned about the kidnapping of students in an Islamic school in Niger. She’s not concerned about setting ablaze a bus traveling to Sokoto, where people were burned alive by bandits. She is only concerned about her selfish and personal interests.”

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BREAKING: FEC proposes N47.9 trillion budget for 2025 fiscal year

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BREAKING: FEC proposes N47.9 trillion budget for 2025 fiscal year

The federal government has unveiled a proposed budget of N47.9 trillion for the 2025 fiscal year.

Atiku Bagudu, Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, disclosed this to journalists on Thursday following the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting chaired by President Bola Tinubu.

Bagudu revealed that the council had approved the Medium-Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) for 2025-2027.

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According to the minister, the government has pegged the crude oil benchmark at $75 per barrel, with an oil production target of 2.06 million barrels per day (bpd).

The budget also sets the exchange rate at N1,400 per dollar and aims for a gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate of 6.4%.

 

BREAKING: FEC proposes N47.9 trillion budget for 2025 fiscal year

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EFCC arrests ex-NCMB boss over $35m energy project fraud

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EFCC arrests ex-NCMB boss over $35m energy project fraud

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) told FIJ that they have arrested Timber Wabote, the former executive secretary of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCMB), on the grounds of a failed $35 million Bayelsa refinery project fraud.

Dele Oyewale, the EFCC’s spokesperson, confirmed this to FIJ on Thursday.

“It is true,” Oyewale responded to FIJ’s inquiries.

Wabote is accused of misappropriating public funds for a refinery project that should have improved local energy production.

Vanguard reported that the NCDMB under Wabote paid $35 million to support the development of energy infrastructure in the Brass Local Government Area of Bayelsa, yet there was nothing to show for it.

The EFCC picked Wabote up following the arrest of Akintoye Adeoye Akindele, the Managing Director of Atlantic International Refinery and Petrochemical Limited, for alleged misappropriation, money laundering and diversion of $35 million in public funds.

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“NCDMB under the watch of Wabote allegedly paid the $35 million to Akindele to build a 2,000 barrel per day (BPD), refinery, jetty, gas plant, power plant, data centre and tank farm at Brass free trade zone (FTZ), Okpoama Community in Brass LGA of Bayelsa State,” a source with the EFCC had explained.

Since December 2020 when the payments were made, Akindele abandoned the project with little or nothing to show for the huge sum he received.

Preliminary investigations showed that Wabote’s NCDMB financed 17 different projects, including the 2,000 BPD refinery in Brass LGA.

There has been a series of public fund misappropriation cases in the energy sector in recent times.

FIJ earlier reported that members of the House of Representatives summoned three ministers to defend how over $2 billion was spent on renewable energy with not much to show for it.

A recent FIJ report also recently detailed how residents of Yenagoa, the capital of Bayelsa, have not had power in their homes since July due to the vandalisation of the Ahoada-Yenagoa transmission towers caused by unidentified persons.

The Bayelsa state government told FIJ it was the federal government’s responsibility to provide electricity for residents. The state has no renewable energy options reliable enough to power its capital despite the multi-million-dollar NCMB energy project.

Transparency in the energy sector has become necessary at a time when Nigerians have suffered power instability due to frequent grid collapses.

EFCC arrests ex-NCMB boss over $35m energy project fraud

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Court adjourns Yahaya Bello’s trial till Nov 27

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Yahaya Bello

Court adjourns Yahaya Bello’s trial till Nov 27

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has requested an adjournment in the new case against the immediate past Governor of Kogi State, Yahaya Bello, stating that the 30-day window for the previously issued summons is still active.

The commission has granted administrative bail to his co-defendants, Umar Oricha and Abdulsalami Hudu, and asked the court for an extension of time for Bello to appear.

At the resumed hearing before Justice Maryann Anenih of the Federal Capital Territory High Court, Abuja, EFCC Counsel Jamiu Agoro noted that the court’s order from October 3rd had not yet expired.

“In that wise, we feel it will not be appropriate for us to take proceedings while that 30 days is still running. So we have discussed and agreed to come back on the 27th day of November, 2024, my lord,” he told the court.

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He also mentioned that the previously set date of November 20th was not convenient for the prosecution counsels.

Counsel to the second defendant, Aliyu Saiki, SAN, confirmed that his client had been granted administrative bail by the prosecution and had no objection to the adjournment request. The third defendant’s counsel, ZE Abass, concurred.

The prosecution counsel also requested the court to allow the notice of hearing to be pasted on the last known address of the first defendant.

After hearing from all counsels, the judge granted the EFCC’s application for adjournment and the issuance of the hearing notice.

“I have considered the application for adjournment by the complainant and issuance of hearing notice and the submission by the second and third defendants. The application is granted,” she said.

Justice Anenih then adjourned the case to November 27th for arraignment.

The former governor, alongside Umar Oricha and Abdulsalami Hudu, are being prosecuted as 1st to 3rd defendants, respectively, in a fresh 16-count charge instituted against them by the EFCC.

Court adjourns Yahaya Bello’s trial till Nov 27

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