Gist Arena

A Federal High Court in Lagos on Thursday held that a plea bargain agreement between the EFCC and an INEC official charged with money laundering, cannot avail the accused. Justice Mohammed Idris held that by the provisions of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, ACJA, such an accused deserves a heavier sentence. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had charged a former Minister of Petroleum Resources, Diezani Allison-Madueke, and three officials of INEC for money laundering. Mrs. Alison-Madueke was however, described in the charge as “still at large.” The officials are: Christian Nwosu, Yisa Olarenwaju and Tijani Bashir. When the three officials were arraigned, Mr. Nwosu, pleaded guilty to the charges, while Messrs. Olanrewaju and Bashir pleaded not guilty. The commission had informed the court of a plea bargain agreement between the EFCC and Mr. Nwosu. The court had adjourned the case for sentencing of the accused until April 2...

The All Progressives Congress (APC) Governors Forum insist that there was nothing unusual about the absence of President Muhammadu Buhari at the weekly federal executive council (FEC) meeting. Kaduna State Governor, Nasir Ahmed El-Rufai who spoke on behalf of the twenty-four-member governors’ forum while addressing journalists on the outcome of the meeting with members of the National Working Committee (NWC) on Wednesday, April 26, said the constitution made provision for Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo, to preside over such meetings in the president's absence. "We are not worried about the development. It is not compulsory for Mr President to preside at every federal executive council meeting. That is why our Constitution makes provision for a vice president. Mr President is over 70 years old and it is such at that age to have one medical challenge or the other. “Even I at 57 take medication for one ailment or another. Our prayer is that the preside...

Justice Mohammed B. Idris of the Federal High Court, sitting in Ikoyi, Lagos, today April 27, 2017 ordered the final forfeiture of the proceed of bribe given by former Petroleum Minister, Deziani Alison Maduekwe to some staff of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC in the build up to the 2015 General elections. The properties belonging to Christian Nwosu, the convict, are a landed property measuring 100ft by 80, lying and another situated at Okotomi layout, Obodogwugwu Quarters, Okpanam, Oshimili North LG and 100ft by 50, lying in the same local government area of Delta State.  Also to be forfeited by Nwosu to the federal government is the sum of N5m (Five Million Naira) recovered from the convict. Nwosu and two others were earlier arraigned on April 5, 2017 by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC before Honourable Justice Idris on a 7-count charge bordering on receiving gratification to the tune of N264,880,000.00 (Two hundred...

The Nigerian Police have debunked claims by the Chairman of the Senate committee on appropriations, Danjuma Goje, that files containing work on Nigeria’s 2017 budget proposals were carted away during a raid on his Abuja residence last week. Mr. Goje, a former governor of Gombe State, had told the Senate on Wednesday that police officers took away cash, a laptop and 18 documents on the budget proposal being worked on by his committee during the raid on his residence, located at Asokoro, Abuja. Based on Mr. Goje’s claim, the House of Representatives gave the Inspector General of Police 24 hours to  return the budget documents purportedly taken away from Mr. Goje’s residence. But in a statement released early Thursday by the police spokesperson, Moshood Jimoh, the force said Mr. Goje’s claim was misleading and deliberately made to cast the police in bad light. Mr. Jimoh said the raid police action was professionally and lawfully carried out. He confirmed that cash, la...

A former governor of Lagos State and chieftain of the All Progressives Congress, Bola Tinubu, has accused Senate President Bukola Saraki and the Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, of being responsible for his failure to run in the 2015 presidential election as running mate to President Muhammadu Buhari on the ticket of the All Progressives Congress. According to Punch Newspaper, quoting ‘Against the Run of Play’, a book by the chairman of editorial board of ThisDay Newspaper, Olusegun Adeniyi, Mr. Tinubu said Messrs. Saraki and El-Rufai worked separately but for one purpose, influencing Mr. Buhari not to pick him as his running mate. He said both politicians played the religious card, telling Mr. Buhari a Muslim-Muslim ticket would be unpopular. In what appeared a background to the political game that marked the June 2015 National Assembly leadership elections, Mr. Tinubu was reported to have said Mr. Saraki and other former PDP leaders who defected to the APC d...

Former president Olusegun Obasanjo has disclosed why he opposed the re-election of immediate past president, Mr. Goodluck Jonathan in the 2015 presidential election. Mr. Obasanjo’s reasons are contained in a book, Against the Run of Play, written by Mr. Segun Adeniyi, Chairman of the Editorial Board of ThisDay Newspapers. The book, an account of what happened in the 2015 presidential election, is due for public presentation in Lagos on Friday.  The relationship between the former presidents, noted the author, had soured long before the election. Mr. Jonathan, whose political rise is widely credited to Mr. Obasanjo’s influence, had sought to make up with his presumed benefactor and keep him on his side for re-election. He arranged for a meeting with Mr. Obasanjo in his Abeokuta home. Before leaving for the Ogun State leg of his campaign in January 2015 wrote the author, Mr. Jonathan had concluded plans to visit Mr. Obasanjo, who had agreed to meet him. Mr....