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Tag: probe

  • REC promises prompt probe

    REC promises prompt probe

    Delta State Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) Mr. Aniedi Ikoiwak has assured the All Progressives Congress (APC) and its governorship candidate in Delta State, Olorogun O’tega Emerhor, that he will look into the complaints of his party.

    Emerhor led party faithful to Asaba yesterday to register the party’s displeasure.

    He said: “Deltans voted for General Muhammadu Buhari and all APC candidates.’’

    APC’s Director of Media & Political Communication, Dr Fred Latimore Oghenesivbe said PDP had perfected plans to increase the doctored results with over 200 per cent.

    “With the assurances from the REC to scrutinise the results in his possession, it is hoped that the commission will do the needful by cancelling the results and announce a fresh date for the conduct of presidential elections in Delta State,” he added.

     

     

     

  • Why probe of Obasanjo’s allegation against government is stalled

    Why probe of Obasanjo’s allegation against government is stalled

    The National Human Rights Commission(NHRC)  cannot proceed, for now, with its planned probe of an allegation that the administration of President Goodluck Jonathan has been training snipers to deal with perceived political detractors.

    The commission  is unable to raise  the   N150million which it had asked from government to enable it probe the allegation.

    Former President Olusegun Obasanjo  made the allegation in a December 2, 2013 letter.

    He also  alleged that  the Jonathan  administration had   over 1,000 people on political watch  list  and  other  armed personnel  secretly.

    The alarm forced the presidency on December 23, 2013, through the Attorney-General of the Federation, Mr. Mohammed Bello Adoke (SAN), to order the  investigation of  the  allegations.

    But 15 months after, the NHRC has not made any headway with  the probe despite the increasing outcry by the opposition that some of its leaders are under security watch.

    It was gathered that  the NHRC submitted a budget  of  N150million to the federal government for the probe.

    The budget was for media coverage(including pre-hearing advertorials); panel sittings in designated venues across the country;  honouraria for consultants, researchers , external counsel, verbatim reporters, translators and so on;  travels to conduct investigations;  secretariat;  logistics; and servicing of panel sittings.

    However, a  government source   said  the Ministry  of Justice  considered  the matter not to be an issue because the annual budget of the NHRC can accommodate such investigation.

    “At a point, the NHRC reduced the budget for the probe to N75million and even offered the ministry to appoint an external counsel, but the requests were turned down. There is no way the NHRC cannot afford  N75million.

    “And the government refused to appoint any counsel for the commission in order not to be seeing as a judge in its own case,”  the source said.

    Last week, the Chairman of the NHRC, Dr. Chidi Odinkalu  blamed the uncooperative attitude of the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF), Mohammed Adoke (SAN), and Obasanjo for the hindrance facing the probe.

    Odinkalu said: “What happened was very straightforward. We need materials and evidence from different people. We have written to the Attorney General of the Federation to give us his evidence. We have written to General Obasanjo to give us his evidence. And we have heard from neither side. Now, we have repeated the demand and we have heard from neither side.

    “The process is facts-based. It is evidence-led. We are not going to sit down here and manufacture evidence. We want to give everybody a chance before proceeding. Again, we want to convene the public hearing. But again, it is close to the elections.

    “So, we took a deliberate decision that we did not want to make that a factor. After the elections, we are going to convene that hearing. But if the attitude continues, which is that neither side is willing to give us evidence, we will adjourn it  indefinitely.”

    The Presidency asked the NHRC to “investigate the allegations bordering on the human rights violations contained on pages 9-10 of the letter dated December 2, 2013, written by former President Olusegun Obasanjo (GCFR) to President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan (GCFR) attached to the memorandum under reference.

    “In order to properly delineate the issues within your sphere of competence, particularly as other issues raised in the letter are being investigated by appropriate agencies of government.”

    The letter cited two offensive paragraphs in Obasanjo’s letter for investigation by the NHRC.

    Section 5(b) of the 2010 (Amendment Act) of the NHRC empowers it to conduct such an enquiry.

    The section reads in part: “The commission shall deal with all matters relating to the protection of human rights as guaranteed by the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999, the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, the United Nations Charter and the Universal Declaration on Human Rights and other international treaties on human rights to which Nigeria is a signatory.

    It continues: “The commission shall monitor and investigate all alleged cases of human rights violation in Nigeria and make appropriate recommendation to the President for the prosecution and such other actions as it may deem expedient in each circumstance and assist victims of human rights violation and seek appropriate redress and remedies on their behalf.”

  • Reps to probe NNPC for $14.9bn NLNG profit

    Reps to probe NNPC for $14.9bn NLNG profit

    •Corporation heads for court to stop lawmakers

    The House of Representatives is set to probe the whereabouts of $14.9 billion (about N3 trillion) profit the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas  (NLNG) Company paid to the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).

    The amount represents dividends accruing from the sales of liquefied gas from 2004 to 2014 and which the NLNG Company said it paid into the corporation’s accounts.

    The Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Public Accounts, Solomon Olamilekan Adeola, who said this at the weekend, added that the committee would move a motion of urgent national importance at plenary tomorrow to compel the NNPC to bring relevant documents.

    But, the NNPC has moved to stop the House from getting the documents as its lawyer, Mike Ozekhome & Co Chambers, wrote the House Committee last Friday saying it has no right to request for the LNG accounts.

    Speaking at the weekend, Adeola said: “Just about a month ago, we invited the NLNG to appear before the committee on Public Accounts. They came and told us that Federal Government has 51 per cent holding in the LNG while 41 per cent is owned by Shell and others in the private sector.

    “Yes, if we have 51 per cent, how much of these funds have returned to the Federal Government as dividend? They said they have it. And between 2004 and 2014, they remitted to the NNPC coffers in form of dividends $14.9 billion.

    “We wrote to NNPC asking for an evidence for the sources of revenue, the bank statements, and if there is any expenditure for that account and any other item they can furnish us with.

    “We received a letter from their lawyer, Mike Ozekhome & Co, quoting Section 88 and other relevant sections of the constitution as to why they cannot and will not come before the committee with these particular documents.”

    The lawmaker said Ozekhome’s chamber was a private law firm and did not represent the law courts and that NNPC’s action showed  “that there is more to what we’re seeing.”

    He stated that the committee made a simple request on transactions that concern the generality of Nigerians, “and the next line of action is to go to your lawyer to start writing us and from there move to court to seek injunction preventing us from that document.

    “This tells you the extent to which they have used the judiciary to stall a lot of investigations we are carrying out as a House.

    “And on Tuesday (tomorrow), I want to come by a motion of urgent national importance so that the House can know what is in the offing as far as NLNG is concerned,” the committee chair said.

    He noted that a similar fate befell the investigation of the N10 billion allegedly used by the Petroleum Minister, Mrs. Diezani Allison- Madueke, for chartered flights for private travels.

    A court injunction truncated the probe by the same House Committee.

  • NHRC to begin probe of pre-polls violence, hate speech

    NHRC to begin probe of pre-polls violence, hate speech

    The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has begun investigation into cases of pre-election violence and hate speech.

    Members of the governing council/management of commission will soon be dispatched to states like Kaduna, Benue, Lagos and Rivers, which had recorded high cases of pre-election violence.

    In a statement yesterday, the commission’s Chief Press Secretary, Mrs. Fatimah Mohammed Agwai, said the NHRC has so far received about 16 complaints from persons and groups on election related violence.

    She said the visit by the commission’s officials to the identified states would enable them interact with key political actors and security personnel on strategies to prevent election violence during the general elections.

    The NHRC urged “all stakeholders to avail it with useful information  to enable it take informed decisions on cases of election violence.”

  • Ekiti pollgate : Fayose, Obanikoro, Omisore, others for probe

    Ekiti pollgate : Fayose, Obanikoro, Omisore, others for probe

    Adesiyan, Olukolade also

    THE police are now poised to investigate  the leaked   audio tape  on how top members of the Peoples Democratic  Party (PDP) , including two ministers  and an army general , allegedly plotted to rig the June 2014 governorship election in Ekiti State.

    Federal Attorney-General / Minister of Justice  Mohammed Bello Adoke(SAN)  directed Police Inspector-General  Suleiman Abba to   conduct the investigation following receipt of a petition on the matter.

    Caught on the tape discussing the plot were Mr.Ayo Fayose who was declared winner of the election; ex-Minister of Defence, Mr. Musiliu Obanikoro; Police Affairs Minister Jelili Adesiyan; ex-Minister Caleb Olukolade; the defeated governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party in Osun State , Otunba Iyiola Omisore and a serving Army General .

    Some of those heard on the tape including Fayose, have admitted being part of the meeting where the recording was made.

    All of them are expected to come under the police scrutiny in establishing the authenticity of the recording made by Captain Sagir Koli of the 32nd Artillery Brigade of the army.

    However, Fayose has immunity under the 1999 Constitution except he willingly offers to subject himself for probe.

    Koli later confirmed to Sahara TV and The Nation in separate interviews that he recorded proceeding at the meeting held on the eve of the election to show his resentment at the involvement of the military in politics.

    The audio recording and the video of Koli’s interview have gone viral and made available to some foreign missions in the country.

    The police investigation is expected to be fast tracked and a source said yesterday that its outcome might determine the confirmation of the renomination of Obanikoro as minister by President Goodluck Jonathan.

    Investigation showed that the AGF ordered the investigation after receiving a February 13, 2015 petition from the Chairman of the All Progressives Congress(APC) in Ekiti State, Chief Olajide Awe.

    Although Awe specifically asked the AGF to prosecute those implicated, Adoke opted for investigation for now.

    Sources said the minister resolved that he could not prosecute anyone involved in the matter without an investigation by a relevant security agency.

    An APC source quoted Adoke as saying in his response to Awe that he is “unable to exercise the discretion to prosecute one way or the other without an investigation of the contents of your petition and the accompanying audio recording.

    “I have accordingly forwarded the petition and accompanying audio recording to the Inspector-General of Police for investigation.”

    Awe had,in his petition,asked for “the prosecution of persons involved in conspiring and perpetrating acts of unsitting the incumbent Governor of Ekiti State in a manner other than envisaged by the constitution.”

    He said: “We write to report to you and formally bring to your attention the recent leak of an audio recording by Capt. Sagir Koli of the 32nd Artillery Brigade in Ekiti State.

    “On February 8, 2015, an audio recording was released to the general public. This recording captured the voices of Ayo Fayose (the Governor of Ekiti State), Brig- Gen. Aliyu Momoh, who was the commanding officer in charge of soldiers deployed to give security cover for the June 21st, 2014 Ekiti State Gubernatorial election: Senator Iyiola Omisore, Jelili Adesiyan who is the Minister of Police Affairs and Musiliu Obanikoro (the Minister of Defence at that time), Caleb Olulolade and others in a meeting wherein these persons conspired and strategized to rig the June 21, 2014 Ekiti State Gubernatorial Election in which Ayo Fayose finally emerged the winner.

    “The import of this audio recording is the revelation of the criminal acts which were planned and perpetrated by these men.

    “The above listed persons conspired to tamper with the constitutionally and statutorily laid down procedures for the conduct of election. Section 1(2) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended) provides that; “The Federal Republic of Nigeria shall not be governed nor shall any person or group of persons take control of the Government of Nigeria or any part thereof, except in accordance with the provisions of this Constitution.”

    “During the meeting, strategies and plans to intimidate voters and perform electoral fraud, and other criminal acts, in a bid to take over the government of Ekiti State in a manner contrary to the provisions of the Constitution and other relevant statues, were discussed. Below are the key points of what was discussed at the meeting:

    “The use of the military to assist in electoral manipulation contrary to the purpose of the military as provided for by the Constitution.

    “The use of stickers for the identification of persons not to be harassed and detained by the military.

    Ayo Fayose admitted to copying voting materials provided by INEC.

    “The reprimanding of military personnel for detaining members of the Peoples Democratic Party who were engaged in electoral fraud and malpractices.

    “Musiliu Obanikoro who was the Minister of State for Defence at that time, clearly stated that he was under instructions from the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria: and also offered inducements, and promises of promotion to the military personnel if the plans discussed were carried out. Some of what he said can be quoted thus: “Look here, you can’t get promotion without me sitting on top of top military council. If I am a happy man tomorrow night, the sky is your limit.”

    The APC chairman party said he chose to write the petition to the AGF because the tape had become an embarrassment to the nation,adding: “It is pertinent to point out that the audio recording has gone viral on the internet with people from all over the world listening to it and this is a source of embarrassment and shame to the people and government of Ekiti State and Nigeria as a whole.

    “A copy of the recording is hereby forwarded with this letter inclusive of its transcription for our records and information.

    “The event that you want to verify the viral spread of this recording, you may visit https://soundcloud.com/saharareporters/secret-meetings-that-led-to-the-rigging-of-ekiti-gubernatorial-for-fa or https://www.youtube.com/watch? or any other site to listen to the audio recording.

    “In furtherance of the above highlighted disturbing issues which are in clear violation of the provision of the Nigerian Constitution, the Electoral Act, the Armed Forces Act and the Criminal Code, we , most respectfully urge you to use the instrumentality of your office to investigate this matter with a view to prosecuting and bringing the persons involved to justice for the criminal acts of conspiracy, treason and unduly influencing electoral process.

    “This is against the backdrop of the seriousness of the content of the said audio recording and its implication to the forthcoming general elections.

    “Please be informed that within 7 days of the receipt of this petition you fail to act, we shall without further recourse to you; proceed to Court to seek an Order of Mandamus compelling you to so act.

    “While we appreciate your anticipated cooperation, be assured of our esteemed regards.”

    The AGF’s directive to the police came a few days after President Jonathan said in an interview that the audio recording could not be investigated because Captain Koli had not come forward to authenticate it.

  • Reps to probe Stallion Group, two others for alleged N43b duty evasion

    Reps to probe Stallion Group, two others for alleged N43b duty evasion

    The House of Representatives is to  investigate  all investor companies involved in rice importation under the new policy to determine, it emerged yesterday.

    The investigation was prompted by the violation of the policy by  three major companies found to have exceeded their approved quota.

    The three companies were also alleged to have evaded payment of import duties to the Federal government to the tune of about N43 billion.

    The investigation is expected to ascertain the exact amount owed government by the affected companies.

    In addition, the investigation would ascertain the approved quota for each importer against their excess imports in metric tons.

    Appropriate measures for recovering the debt would also be recommended by the investigation panel.

    The decision of the lawmakers followed the adoption of the prayers of a motion by Simon Arabo (PDP, Kaduna) who accused major importers of conniving with foreign investors to undermine the nation’s economy.

    He said: “Stallion Group, Popular Foods and Olam Nig Ltd in collusion with their foreign investors have imported rice exceeding their approved quota and thus owe the Federal government about N28,399b.

    “Stallion Group and Popular Foods with an unpaid outstanding import duty of over N15b has imported another 85,000mts of rice into the country.

    “The actions of the companies are capable of scuttling the country’s self-sufficiency drive in rice production and act and also deny the Federal government the needed revenue on import duties”.

    The motion was unanimously adopted when it was put to voice vote by the Speaker, Aminu Tambuwal.

    When The Nation contacted the Director, Corporate and Government Relations, Olams Nigeria Limited, Mr. Ade Adefeko, he said his firm has not been contacted formally, hence, there is nothing to say for now. “We have only heard it in the news like every other person; We, as a company, have not received any official communication on this matter. If we are officially notified, then we will respond either orally, or in writing and if need be, we are willing to appear before the honourable House physically,” Adefeko said.

    The report on the investigation is expected to be turned in three weeks.

  • APC renews call for probe of Ekiti alleged audio rigging tape

    APC renews call for probe of Ekiti alleged audio rigging tape

    The All Progressives Congress (APC) has renewed its call for a comprehensive probe of the alleged Ekiti audio rigging tape released by an army captain who recorded it.

    Its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, in a statement in Lagos yesterday, said it was wrong for anyone to label the tape a fake without a forensic investigation.

    The party noted that the issues exposed by the tape were too grievous to be swept under the carpet or dismissed on the basis of nothing, but gross partisanship.

    The investigation, APC stated, was necessary because of the alleged role the military played in the whole rigging scenario, and against the background of the court ruling against the deployment of troops for elections.

    ‘’If the government officials and politicians, whose voices were heard on the tape are not interested in clearing their names, what about the military institution that was dragged into the show of shame? Has the integrity of the military not been compromised by the alleged role of a general and hundreds of his troops in the rigging saga?’’ APC queried.

    The inconsistency of the Federal Government’s response to the whole saga, the party added, has exposed its underbelly and made it more urgent for a forensic investigation of the tape to be carried out.

    “First, those whose voices were heard on the tape rushed to deny there was any such meeting. Later, after they were confronted with a preponderance of evidence, they started owning up one by one, starting with Police Affairs Minister Jelili Adesiyan, then Minister of State for Defence Musiliu Obanikoro and then Ekiti Governor Ayodele Fayose, even though they all denied the meeting was about rigging. Of course, Nigerians know better.

    “But these men, on the basis of their initial denial, are no longer credible as far as the rigging tape is concerned, hence it is necessary to have an independent investigation of the whole issue,” it said.

    APC said while President Goodluck Jonathan had rushed to dismiss the authenticity of the tape, telling the Wall Street Journal “it’s all fabrications”, his campaign spokesman Femi Fani-Kayode said the exact opposite: “We have listened to the audio clip and we make bold to say that the discussion that took place in it did not make any mention of any form of rigging in the Ekiti State governorship election and neither did it contain any evidence of any conspiracy to rig.”

    The statement queried: “Can anyone listen to a non-existent audio tape? This confusion in the government circles is the clearest indication yet that they were so panicked by the revelation that they could not fashion out a coherent response to it, hence the discordant notes by the major culprits and their oga at the top!

    ‘’We sympathise with them, but we are more worried about the effect this revelation will have on a respectable national institution as the military, which was dragged into the rigging mess. This is why even the military itself must carry out its own investigation.

    “If an Army General could be so bullied into submission by political partisans, to the point where he said he will cry, what will they not do to any other military officer or men? Does this whole rigging saga not call into question the role of the military in elections?”

    The party vowed not to allow the issue to be swept under the carpet in the interest of the nation, praising the media and the citizenry for sustaining the discourse on the rigging tape.

  • Falana seeks probe

    Falana seeks probe

    Lagos-based lawyer Femi Falana (SAN) has condemned last week’s disruption of the national conference of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and election of its national officers by persons suspected to be “hired thugs”.

    Falana described the incident, which led to the hired thugs carting away ballot papers and other voting materials, as a national embarrassment, urging the NLC leadership to probe the incident.

    He noted that the disruption came too soon after the postponement of the nation’s general elections.

    The lawyer contended that the failure of the congress to conduct its election had exposed the country to ridicule before the international community.

    In a statement yesterday in Lagos, the erudite lawyer advised the NLC to reconvene as soon as possible and conclude the election of its national officers in strict compliance with the provisions of the congress’ registered constitution.

    He said history was beckoning on the congress to play a leading role in ensuring that the country’s fragile democratic process was not truncated by desperate anti-democratic forces.

    Falana said as the nation’s most organised civil society body, the congress could not afford to be distracted at this critical period in the life of the nation.

    The lawyer, who noted that the country was once again on the edge of a precipice, said the disruption of the conference of the labour movement was a replay of the 1993 scenario “by the service chiefs in cahoots with a faction of the ruling class”.

  • Reps probe N3.4b payment to Ajaokuta staff

    Reps probe N3.4b payment to Ajaokuta staff

    The House of Representatives has expressed concerns over the payment of N3.4b as monthly salary to workers of  Ajaokuta Steel Company.

    House Committee on Steel was mandated to investigate the claim of the huge expenditure by the management of the company.

    In additoon, the Committee was requested to investigate the current developments in the company and report back within two weeks.

    The decision of the lawmakers followed the adoption of the prayers of a motion by Abbas Tajuddeen (APC, Kaduna), who regretted that the company has failed to achieve the purpose it was set up for.

    According to him, the intervention of the Legislature is required to complement the efforts of the Federal Government in reviving the steel company and bring it to a functional state.

    He said: “Despite the fact that the company was conceived and built with the aim of its facilitating the industrialisation and economic transformation of the country, it has failed to fulfill that expectation; hence, the engagement of consultants from the United States of America and India under the technical management contracts for 10 years, respectively.

    “It is surprising  that a media report of September 5, 2014, where the Iron and Steel Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (ISSSAN), in conjunction with Engineering Workers Union of Nigeria (EWUN) addressed a press conference claiming that the monthly wage bill for 2,900 staff of the company is actually N288m and not the sum of N3.4b as alleged”.

  • Rights groups allege foul-play in Synagogue building probe

    Rights groups allege foul-play in Synagogue building probe

    The Nigerian Human Rights Community (NHRC) has urged the Federal Government to release the report of its investigation into the collapsed Synagogue Church of All Nations (SCOAN) guest house last September 12.

    Also, the Pan-Yoruba group, Oodua Nationalist Coalition (ONAC), a coalition of 35 Yoruba self-determination groups, has urged the United Nations (UN) to join in the investigation of the causes of the tragedy.

    The NHRC, a coalition of 135 civil right groups, failure to release the report, suggests a cover which strengthens the growing public perception that the collapse was as a result of a bomb attack.

    In a statement signed by Mallam Yaya Abdulkadir, NHRC urged the Federal Government and the police to determine the cause of the collapse of the since many Nigerians believe that it might have been caused by a bomb.

    “The Federal Government and the police owe Nigerians and the world the urgent need to get to the root of this matter. Many Nigerians now think that the building may have been brought down through a bomb attack. It is imperative to allay the fears of the public,” the statement claims.

    According to the statement, despite the presence of the strange plane around the building, there has not been any statement by the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) or the military authority, to clarify the mission.

    Rising from its National Working Committee (NWC) meeting ONAC condemned the investigation into the collapse, alleging: “There is a grand conspiracy to malign the Pastor of SCOAN, Temitope Joshua.

    “We are left with no room but to conclude that the attack was planned. There have been a series of evidence by experts, showing that the collapse of that building was an extra-ordinary affair. There is the need for international investigators to show interest in this case.”

    In a statement signed by its Director of Publicity, Popoola Ajayi, ONAC said: “In the intelligence world, there are all sorts of intrigues and games of treachery. We have seen 20,000 people killed in the drive to assassinate only one person. The international investigators from the UN will have to determine whether the attack was part of a global campaign against Christianity, a lone plot targeting an individual or a combination of both.”