Fayemi free to turn Ekiti upside down, says Fayose as he signs N10bn supplementary budget

Ayodele Fayose, governor of Ekiti state, has signed into law, the N10 billion supplementary budget approved by the state house of assembly on Thursday.

Speaking at a session attended by Kola Oluwalwole, speaker of the assembly, and some legislators, Fayose said Kayode Fayemi, his predecessor was free to turn the state upside down but history would judge him.

He said Fayemi had no moral justification to raise questions over the supplementary budget, given that he did something similar in his last weeks in office.

“It is amusing to hear that Dr Kayode Fayemi said the revised budget being signed today was unnecessary,” he said.

“He (Fayemi) signed his own on September 15, 2014, exactly a month to his leaving office, now I’m signing my own on September 14. They should keep quiet and stop crying wolf, I’m still the governor.

“It is laughable that Fayemi won’t stop at anything to blackmail me even when he had to go to a ridiculous level.

“This revised budget being signed today September 14, 2018, Fayemi did sign the same kind of budget on September 15, 2014, when he had less than a month to leave office. Maybe he has forgotten, but Ekiti people are not suffering from dementia and are students of history.

“The clerk of the House in 2014 when Fayemi signed his revised budget, Mr Tola Esan is still the clerk and he is here today. We are not robots and when there are things to attend to we will still do that before we leave office.

“When Fayemi finally resumes, he can turn the state upside down, history will record him.”

Meanwhile, APC lawmakers in the state have described the action of the governor as fraudulent.

Speaking on behalf of his colleagues, member representing Ikole constituency 1 and minority leader, Gboyega Aribisogan said: “The APC lawmakers and some members are not in support of the bill because it has been discovered that the outgoing governor wanted to use the house to legitimise fraud.”

He argued that the appropriation committee did not sit on the bill, that it was rather back-dated to August 30 to give an impression that the committee had since been deliberating on it. - TheCable

Buhari pushes for ECOWAS single currency

Having failed to meet the convergence criteria again, President Muhammadu Buhari has called on countries under the ECOWAS sub-region to put in more efforts to achieve the single currency program by 2020.

President Buhari insisted that “convergence must be based on sound and sustainable macro economic fundamentals.”

The President said, there is no denying that considerable amount of resources, time and effort had been expended in the pursuit of regional integration agenda. He said this should be justified by achieving the objectives of the monetary union by 2020.

He assured West African leaders that Nigeria is still committed “to providing a leadership role in assisting ECOWAS achieve the single currency regime as well as moving the ECOWAS integration agenda forward.”

President made this assertion at the West African Monetary Zone (WAMZ) 2018 mid-year statutory meetings in Abuja yesterday.

President Buhari who was represented at the event by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Mr Boss Mustapha, noted that, as the largest economy in the sub-region, a lot of responsibility rest on Nigeria for the establishment and sustainability of the monetary union.

With barely 18 months to the target date for the introduction of ECOWAS single currency, Buhari, urged Members of council to situate the issues within the global context and the challenges confronting existing monetary zones.

According to him, “the lessons of the euro zones for example should guide us in putting in place robust frameworks for the establishment of a durable monetary union.”

He admitted that compliance with fiscal deficit criterion is the most challenging of the four fiscal macro-economic convergence criterion for member states, and noted that “there is need to identify those developments that derail fiscal policy implementation in member countries and relate them to the overall objectives.”

According to him, “Nigeria remains committed to the integration agenda and a sustainable development of our community with the over all goal of improving the quality of life of all ECOWAS citizen.

Buhari also pleaded with member countries to reconsider the issue of transforming the West Africa Monetary Institute (WAMI) into a commission. - The Nation

Moghalu : Why I can’t debate with Osinbajo, but Buhari

The presidential candidate of Young Progressives Party, YPP, Kingsley Moghalu, has challenged President Muhammadu Buhari to a public debate ahead of the 2019 elections.

Moghalu said he had read about the plan by the All Progressives Congress, APC, to field the Vice President Prof Yemi Osinbajo for the presidential debate, describing such move as fraudulent.

He said Buhari should stop hiding and come out for a debate, not speaking to Nigerians from London, China and other foreign countries.

YPP presidential candidate, while speaking with Vanguard, also advised Osinbajo to debate with his fellow vice presidential candidates not with aspiring presidents.

He said, “I am using this forum to challenge President Buhari to a debate. And when I say President Buhari, I mean President Buhari.

“I do not mean Vice President Osinbajo. Osinbajo should debate with vice presidential candidates.

“President Buhari cannot continue to hide from the Nigerian public.

“It has become the track record of his governance that he is not able to face Nigerians and explain to them his government and its policies.

“We only hear President Buhari talking to Nigerians from London or China or from Germany.

“This is leadership failure. This is one clear demonstration of leadership failure when a leader cannot communicate with his citizens.

“I have read and seen that the APC has appointed Osinbajo to represent President Muhammadu Buhari at the presidential debate.

“This is fraudulent. I want it to be on record that it is a political fraud and Nigerian citizens should not accept it.

“We must hold President Buhari accountable. We elected him as President. We did not elect Osinbajo as President.

“Osinbajo cannot represent Buhari in a debate about the performance of Buhari’s government. Buhari is not incapacitated, if he is incapacitated, he should tell us.

“Where in the civilized world does a President send his Vice President to represent him in debates? Where in the civilized world does it happen?

“Only in Nigeria and Nigerians are accepting this type of thing? People should rise up and demand Buhari to come out and face me and other presidential candidates in a debate.” - Daily Post

Cele cleric warns Buhari over ‘ethnic cleansing’ in Plateau, Benue, others

The Head of Celestial Church of Christ, North Central Province, Superior Evangelist John Babalola, has challenged President Muhammadu Buhari to halt the ongoing alleged ethnic cleansing by suspected herdsmen in Plateau, Benue, Taraba and other parts of the country.

Babalola said Celestial Church of Christ and other churches have been destroyed, leaving the worshippers languishing in IDP camps, Churches and in different parts of Plateau State.

The Clergy, who took over the Celestial Church of Christ, North Central, said President Buhari should protect all citizens without bias and shouldn’t allow Nigerians continue with the perception that his government is presiding over ethnic cleansing in the country.

He said, “I want to task our President to do more to protect all Nigerians. When a section of this country is been killed, I believe as a President he will not be happy because a community will not forget easily a king that reigns and people rejoice; likewise it will have a negative perception of a king that torments and terrorizes citizens.

“President Buhari needs to be proactive; he should not let people see him as being in favour of one religion against another. He must protect all citizens and should not allow people to see him as if he is presiding over ethnic cleansing in the country”, he maintained.

According to him, “The killings in the country, particularly in Plateau, Benue, Taraba, Zamfara and other parts of the country have scared foreign and local investors from coming into the country. We must pray collectively to God to help us restore peace.”

Babalola further stated that Nigerians have lived peacefully in the past where there were no religious, ethnic and political differences that front line political parties had Muslim/Muslim ticket with the back up of Nigerians.

“What we need now is for people to embrace each other and forget ethnic, religious and political differences. Fighting and using arms to kill each other will not benefit us and is not in the interest of God.”

He decried the manner in which a Pastor of COCIN Church, Abonong, Rev. Adamu Gyang, his wife and three children were recently roasted like chickens and the church destroyed in Barkin-Ladi Local Government Area of the state.

He, therefore, called for protection of the helpless, armless and the hopeless people in the society. - Daily Post

EFCC finally replies Fayose’s letter, tells him when to report for questioning

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), has responded to a letter by Governor of Ekiti State, Ayodele Fayose on why he is unavailable for questioning at the moment.

The anti-graft agency in a statement on Friday asked Fayose to make himself available for questioning on Thursday, September 20, 2018 instead of waiting till he handover as governor on October 16.

Fayose had in his letter to the EFCC dated September 10, 2018, said he will make himself available to the anti-graft agency on October 16, 2018, to make a clarification on investigations that affect him.

Reacting, EFCC in a letter with reference number, ‘EFCC/EC/GC/31/2173 dated September 1, 2018 and signed by the EFCC’s Director of Operations, Umar Mohammed, the anti-dated September 13, 2018 requested the Governor to turn himself in for interrogation on Thursday, 20th September, 2018, without prejudice to his immunity under section 308 of the constitution.

The anti-graft agency appreciated Fayose’s sense of duty as a law-abiding citizen who wishes to voluntarily submit himself to the due process of the law.

The letter reads in part, “I appreciate your sense of duty and responsibility as a law-abiding citizen who wishes to submit himself voluntarily to the due process of the law, more so as your immunity as a governor shall come to an end.

“In view of the above and your request to make yourself available on Tuesday, October 16, 2018 to make clarifications on ongoing investigations that affect you, we look forward to receiving you even earlier than October 16, 2018.

“In this regard, we shall be willing to receive you on Thursday September 20, 2018 without prejudice to your immunity under Section 308 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999.

“Please accept the assurances of the acting chairman’s highest regards.” - Daily Post

Billionaire kidnapper : ‘Evans shot me, pretended to be a doctor’

A prosecution witness, Chief James Uduji, on Friday told a Lagos High Court in Igbosere that suspected ‘billionaire’ kidnap kingpin, Chukwudumeme Onwuamadike, a.k.a Evans, shot him during his kidnap and afterwards pretended to be a doctor.

Uduji told Justice Adedayo Akintoye that Evans was the driver of the Lexus 470 SUV which he and three other members of his gang used during the operation.

The witness testified at the commencement of the prosecution’s case against Evans and his co-defendants; Joseph Emeka, Linus Okpara and Victor Aduba.

The four were arraigned on June 26 following the dismissal of Evans’ objection to a five-count charge of conspiracy, kidnapping and attempted murder, preferred against them by the Lagos State Government.

The defendants and others at large allegedly committed the offences on September 7, 2015, at Seventh Avenue, Festac Town, Lagos.

The allegedly conspired and kidnapped Uduji, obtained a ransom of $1.2 million dollars and shot him on the shoulder while trying to kill him.

They pleaded not guilty.

Evans is also facing another charge of conspiracy to kidnap, kidnapping and attempted murder, before the same judge.

In this charge, he is standing trial alongside Joseph Emeka, Ugochukwu Nwachukwu and Victor Aduba.

Led in Examination-in-Chief by prosecution counsel Adebayo Haroun, Uduji narrated yesterday how he was kidnapped on September 7, 2015, by four armed men on his way home from his factory at Agbara in Ogun State.

He said the incident took place very close to his house at 7th Avenue area of Festac Town, Lagos.
Uduji said the alleged kidnappers drove a Lexus 470 SUV and fired several gun shots during the kidnap operation.

The witness said he was surprised to see the men shooting towards his vehicle, adding that he thought they were the police.

Uduji said: “I was inside my Hilux van with my two drivers when the men came and pulled me out of my vehicle and dragged me inside their own vehicle.

“I was not blindfolded at this point, so I saw the men clearly and the man at the steering wheel with a gun was Evans; he is the only one I can recognise among the four,” Uduji said.

The witness testified that it was when he was dragged out of his vehicle, that he noticed that he was stained with blood.

“I then realised I had sustained a bullet wounds,” he explained.

Uduji said the kidnappers called a doctor on phone who treated his bullet wound at their destination.

The witness said he was given two tetanus injections for seven days, adding that Evans was the so called doctor who treated him.

He said that he stayed for 45 days in captivity and a ransom of 1.2 million dollars was paid before he was released by the alleged kidnappers.

Uduji told the court that the ransom was paid in three instalments by his brothers, adding that he was released eight days after the ransom was paid.

The witness was cross-examined by all the defendants’ counsel, Mr Olarewaju Ajanaku who represented Evans, Mr Ogedi Ogu who represented the second defenant and Mr Emmanuel Ochai for the fourth defendant.

Ajanaku observed that the specific date when Uduji was released from the kidnappers was not mentioned in the statement he made at the police station.

He also stated that the date which the witness told the court that he made the statement at the police station was different from the date contained in the statement.

According to the charge, the defendants also allegedly fired shots at Mr Donatus Nwoye which hit him on the hand.
The court heard that they also shot Jereome Okezie, Uduji’s driver, on the hand and head.

At the conclusion of Uduji’s testimony, the prosecution called Jerome Okezie, as its second witness.
Okezie testified that he sustained bullet wounds from the kidnappers’ gun shots, adding that he pretended to be dead after he was shot.

He said he was taken to the hospital by some people after the kidnappers took his boss away.

The offences, according to the prosecution, contravened Sections 230 (a) and 411 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015.

Justice Akintoye adjourned further proceedings till September 17. - The Nation

Nigeria, other West African countries fail to meet criteria for single currency

Nigeria and five other West African countries have been unable to meet the criteria for the proposed single currency for countries in the zone.

Ngozi Egbuna, West African Monetary Institute (WAMI) director general made this known on Thursday in Abuja at the 37th meeting of the Committee of Governors of the Central Banks of the West African Monetary Zone.

The West African Monetary Zone (WAMZ) consists of The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria and Sierra Leone.

The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) had approved the reduction of the convergence criteria from 11 to six.

At present, the three primary criteria are a budget deficit of not more than three per cent; average annual inflation of less than 10 per cent with a long-term goal of not more than five per cent by 2019; and gross reserves that could finance at least three months of imports.

The three secondary criteria are public debt/gross domestic product of not more than 70 percent; central bank financing of budget deficit should not be more than 10 percent of previous year’s tax revenue; and nominal exchange rate variation of plus or minus 10 percent.

Egbuna said a lot of work needs to be done if the 2020 deadline will be met.

She said three countries, The Gambia, Guinea and Nigeria, attained three criteria; while Ghana and Liberia achieved two criteria, and Sierra Leone met one criterion.

Godwin Emefiele, governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, was elected chairman of WAMZ at the meeting.

Addressing delegates, Emefiele said member countries should not be blinded by the desire of a common currency to the adverse factors associated with a unified monetary environment. - TheCble