Court remands Ex-Minister, Moro in Prison

The Federal High Court in Abuja Monday remanded the immediate past Minister of Interior, Abba Moro, in Prison custody over his alleged roles in the N676million immigration recruitment scam.

Justice Anwuli Chikere, ordered that Moro be remanded at Kuje prison after the former Minister pleaded not guilty to an 11-count criminal charge that was preferred against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC.

The court however granted an administrative bail to the 2nd defendant, Mrs. Anastasia Daniel-Nwobia, who was the ‎Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Interior when the alleged fraud was committed. Daniel-Nwobia, nursing a baby, had through her lawyer, Chief Chris Uche, SAN, sought the permission of the court to allow her go home and take care of her baby.

Also remanded in prison custody was ‎a Deputy Director in the Interior Ministry, Mr. F. O Alayebami.

Age Fraud: Rickey Tarfa lied

                                                                           Rickey Tarfa

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission on Monday accused Mr. Rickey Tarfa of falsifying his age, urging Justice Mohammed Idris of a Federal High Court in Lagos not to allow a further and better affidavit filed by the Senior Advocate of Nigeria in support of his N2.5bn suit against the EFCC.

“He who comes to equity must come with clean hands,” lawyer for the EFCC, Mr. Wahab Shittu, said on Monday while moving a counter-affidavit to Tarfa’s application seeking to tender a better and further affidavit to support his case.

An   EFCC operative, Moses Awolusi, claimed in a counter-affidavit, that though Tarfa gave his age as 43 in the statement he made to the EFCC on the day of his arrest, findings showed that Tarfa’s real age is 54, The PUNCH reported.

“I know as a fact that the applicant, in his extrajudicial statement to the 1st respondent upon his arrest, falsely stated that his age was 43 years in the document marked Exhibit 1 to the counter-affidavit of the 1st respondent dated 18th February, 2016, whereas the true age of the applicant, as stated in the compendium published for all Senior Advocates of Nigeria referred to, is 54 years old,” Awolusi averred.

But Tarfa’s lawyer, Chief Bolaji Ayorinde (SAN), urged Justice Idris to discountenance the EFCC’s claim, saying that anyone could misrepresent his age under the kind of treatment that the EFCC subjected Tarfa to on February 5.

“In such a situation, I would put my age at 25 because I will be u nder shock,” Ayorinde said.

Ayorinde argued that what the EFCC needed to concentrate on was how it would debunk Tarfa’s claim that an Access Bank account into which his law firm paid N225,000 into on January 7, 2014 belonged to one Mohammed Awal Yunusa and not Justice Mohammed Nasir Yunusa as the EFCC had claimed.

Ayorinde urged the judge to admit Mohammed Awal Yunusa’s further and better affidavit in support of Tarfa’s N2.5bn fundamental rights enforcement suit against the EFCC, saying it was in the interest of justice to do so.

But the EFCC’s lawyer, Shittu, described Tarfa’s application as an abuse of court processes and a ploy to arrest the judgment of the court, which was earlier slated for delivery on Monday, in the report.

Shittu, who claimed that Tarfa had already admitted paying N225,000 to the judge and had also lied to the EFCC about his age, said the SAN did not deserve the discretionary favour of the court.

The anti-graft agency had earlier alleged that it traced the payment of N225,000 from Tarfa’s law firm into Justice Yunusa’s Access Bank account, claiming that it was a bribe.

In response to the allegation, Tarfa had, in a further affidavit deposed to by the head of his chambers, John Odubela, denied bribing the judge, stating that the N225,000 he paid into the judge’s bank account was donated by some friends of Justice Yunusa towards the funeral rites of the judge’s father-in-law, Alhaji Audi Damasa.

Odubela had said, “That the applicant and some friends of Honourable Justice M.N. Yunusa made some donations for the said funeral rites and to commiserate with the judge since they could not physically go and commiserate with him in Maiduguri, where he was, said The PUNCH.

“That the contributed monies amounted to N225,000, which was given to the applicant with the responsibility to get same across to the bereaved judge.

“That the applicant consequently made arrangement to forward the sum of N225,000.”

But in the better and further affidavit, which Tarfa sought to tender, Mohammed Awal Yunusa claimed to be the owner of the Access Bank account into which Tarfa’s law firm paid N225,000 into on January 7, 2014, contrary to the EFCC’s claim that the account belonged to Justice Mohammed Nasir Yunusa.

We are bound to support Buhari's administration - Ohaneze chieftain

The Chairman of Ohaneze Ndigbo in Anambra, Chief Chris Eluemuno, has said that the organisation is bound to support President Mohammadu Buhari in the interest of the Igbo.

Eluemuno told newsmen on Sunday after being conferred with the traditional title of “Ogbuefi Nwajiugo” by his Nkwelle- Ezunaka community in Anambra that the apex socio-cultural organisation had no choice but to partner with the government.

“Ohaneze has no choice than to partner with the Federal Government because we are not there to support any political party but to support any government in power in the interest of the Igbo.

“We are bound to support President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration in the interest of the Igbo,” Eluemuno said.

He, however, urged Buhari to consider more appointments for the people of the zone and fulfill his promises in the infrastructural development of the zone, especially the roads and the Second Niger Bridge.

“If you give good roads, power supply, water and other enabling environment for businesses to thrive to the Igbo man, he will do wonders because he is industrious,” Eluemuno said.

The Ohaneze chieftain also advised the Igbo to imbibe traditional discipline and guard against bearing the ‘Eze Ndigbo’ title outside their indigenous communities.

``If you are an Igbo leader outside your indigenous community, call yourself one, but don’t bear the `Eze Ndigbo’ title.

“We in Ohaneze have said that it is no longer acceptable for people to bear such titles as Eze Ndigbo in the Diaspora,” he said.

Eluemuno advised the various communities to mete out punishments to their sons who bore the title Eze in Diaspora.

The Ohaneze chieftain said that chieftaincy title taking in Igbo land signified respect, identity and accomplishments.

He assured his people that the title given to him would spur him to do more for them.

He commended Gov. Willie Obiano of Anambra, members of Ohaneze Ndigbo, state functionaries and stakeholders for gracing the occasion. (NAN)

Confusion as court dismisses contempt suit against NERC

 A Federal High Court in Lagos on Monday, dismissed a contempt suit against the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) over alleged disobedience of its order.

A Lawyer and Human Rights Activist, Mr Toluwani Adebiyi, had filed the suit, challenging the hike in electricity tariff.

He had sought an order of court, committing NERC's Chairman and the Chief Executive Officers of the Distribution Companies (Discos) to prison for allegedly flouting a subsisting order of the court.

Justice Mohammed Idris had on May 28, 2015, directed NERC to suspend all actions relating to any increment in electricity tariff pending the determination of a suit filed by Adebiyi.

Adebiyi had argued that despite the subsisting order, NERC in conjunction with the Electricity Distribution Companies commenced the implementation of the new electricity tariff on Feb.1, 2016.

He said the implementation of the new tariff by the defendants indicated that the substantive suit meant nothing to them.

Delivering his ruling on Monday, Justice Idris held that the procedure for committing a party for contempt outside the face of the court must be strictly adhered.

``Before a party can be committed for contempt it must be shown that he is aware of the order or judgment because a person cannot be said to be in contempt of an order he is not aware of.

``The best way to notify the alleged contemnor of the pending order or judgment is to serve him with the order personally.

``In the light of the law, it is clear in this case that the purported service of form 49 without service of form 48 is premature.

``In the circumstances, I hold that the defendant's objection have merit. The form 49 and the motion for order for committal are hereby set aside,’’ he said

Idris held that he set aside the contempt proceeding due to procedural irregularities.

``However, let me warn that where the disciplinary jurisdiction of this court is properly invoked, anyone found to have neglected the order of court will be dealt with.

``Those who intend to take the judicial system for a ride should think twice and those who have done so should retrace their steps.

``To be fore warned, is to be fore armed; this is the ruling of the court,’’ he said
Idris then adjourned the case to March 15 for hearing.

It was recalls that Adebiyi, in the substantive suit, is seeking an order restraining NERC from implementing any upward review of electricity tariff without a significant improvement in power supply.

He also wants an order restraining NERC from foisting compulsory service charge on pre-paid meters, until the meters are designed to read charges per second of consumption. (NAN)

APC govs tackles Buhari over N5000 stipends for youths

A crack may have developed among the ranks of the governors of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) as Governor Tanko Umaru Al-makura of Nasarawa State and his Imo State counterpart, Owelle Rochas Okorocha, yesterday took different positions in their reaction to President Muhamnadu Buhari’s decision to ditch the N5000 unemployment benefits to Nigerians, The Guardian reported.

The governors gave their opinions separately yesterday while speaking with reporters after their meeting with Vice President Yemi Osinbajo in Abuja.

To Al-makura, the President has the prerogative to so review any policy at any given time and his decision stands in as much as it is to the best interest of the nation.

According to the Nasarawa governor, “the President is the person that can tell you precisely how he is working on campaign promises and interventions that he has created, using his ingenuity. And if at any point in time, the President is reviewing that issue, I think he is the only person that can do so in the best interest of the country. And so, it is not challengeable by anybody whatever his position.” In the report.

He, therefore, called on Nigerians to give the benefit of doubt to enable him implant the laudable agenda that he has for Nigerians.

While Okorocha, who is Chairman of the Progressives Governors’ Forum (PGF) agreed with the President on the need to improve on infrastructure to boost productivity, he, however, believed that, one way or the other, the APC campaign promises must be fulfilled to the people.

“To be honest with you, it is a great idea, but there are many ways to give that support. Sometimes, it could be in cash which has its own challenges. Handling of that is also in itself a wonderful and great idea,” he said.

The President had declared in Saudi Arabia, during a meeting with a select group of Nigerian community in Makkah that, rather than paying the N5000 as canvassed by his party on the heels of the presidential election, he would instead focus on repairing infrastructures such as roads, bridges, schools, among others.