Former ministers in Nigeria charged with laundering 4.9 billion naira

Two former Nigerian ministers have been charged with theft of over 4.9 billion naira (£13 million) of government funds and money laundering, the financial crimes agency said on Tuesday.

Nenadi Usman and Femi Fani-Kayode served as finance and aviation ministers in the People's Democratic Party (PDP) administration led by former president Olusegun Obasanjo, whose tenure ended in 2007.

The defendants, who appeared before a federal high court in the commercial capital, Lagos, pleaded not guilty.

The PDP was in power for 16 years prior to President Muhammadu Buhari taking office last year. Buhari won an election mainly on his vow to crackdown on corruption.

Usman was in charge of the PDP's finances during the election campaign and Kayode was the party's head of publicity.

The EFCC said the pair, along with a company, faced a "17-count charge" in which they were accused of conspiracy, stealing and corruption.

"The accused were alleged to have stolen and illegally disbursed about 4.9 billion naira belonging to the Federal Government of Nigeria for political and personal uses," said EFCC spokesman Wilson Uwujaren.

An EFCC source said the defendants were accused of using defence money, that would have been used in the fight against militant group Boko Haram, to help fund the election campaign of the then president Goodluck Jonathan.

The source, who did not want to be named, also said they were accused of diverting a large part of the money into personal bank accounts.

The offences were allegedly carried out in January last year, two months before the election.

A number of former government officials have faced criminal charges, which they have all denied. The PDP has previously accused Buhari, a 73-year-old former military ruler, of mounting a witch-hunt against its members.

Usman and Fani-Kayode were remanded in custody and the case was adjourned until Friday.

Reuters

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Nigerian pastor jailed for 9 years in UK over fraud

A Nigerian, who works as a school accountant in the United Kingdom, was on Friday given a 9-year jail term by a Woolwich Court after he was convicted of stealing about Ј4.1 million of school funds.

Dailymail reports that the vast sum of money was missing from the Haberdashers’ Aske’s Federation Trust in South London.

Identified as Sam Kayode, the 59-year old was also said to be a part-time pastor.

Kayode was said to have spent the money on his late wife, Grace, a “second wife”, Olubunmi Halima, 33, and two other female “partners”, names given as Toyin Lawal, 50 years old and Yetunde Turtak.

The court sentenced Kayode, who gets Ј57,000 a year wage, after he was found guilty of obtaining Ј150,000 by theft and Ј3.95 million by fraud.

He constantly looted the school account for 7 years until he was apprehended in 2012, after a school cleaner came across his paper work and made an anonymous call to the Chief Financial Officer.

He claimed to have moved the money to Nigeria where he has a Ј1 million empire with Halima but the Trust could not recover any asset from Nigeria.

They were, however, able to recover only Ј800,000 from the total money he stole.

Apart from spending money on his real wife Grace’s private health care until her death in 2013, he also signed documents showing he was making investments with Halima, and renting flats in Kent for ‘partners’, Toyin and Yetunde.

During trial, Kayode tried to blame the theft on his late wife Grace and an office junior, saying that they conspired to smear him by transferring the money to his joint account in revenge for his adultery.

He denied having affairs with the other women, and said that he lied about marrying Halima.

However, Toyin also denied they were lovers, saying that as her pastor, he paid for her rent for one month when she was short of cash.

Daily Post

Senate leader Bukola Saraki denies forgery charges

The leader of Nigeria's senate, Bukola Saraki, and his deputy have pleaded not guilty to forgery and criminal conspiracy charges.

Mr Saraki and Ike Ekweremadu are accused of trying to forge the senate rules in order to help them secure their positions.

If found guilty they face up to 14 years in prison.

President Muhammadu Buhari has been at loggerheads with Mr Saraki as his party did not want him as senate leader.

Mr Buhari's preferred candidate was not present when the senate elected its president last year.

Mr Saraki's opponents say that that election was not valid and was conducted under rules which they allege were forged.

The case could have widespread political ramifications, correspondents say.

The accused arrived at court in the Nigerian capital, Abuja, in bus accompanied by senate colleagues, the BBC's Chris Ewokor reports.

Mr Saraki is also involved in another court case in which he is accused of false asset declaration, a charge he denies.

BBC

Africa's richest man Aliko Dangote aiming for 50% of Nigeria's crude refined internally by 2021

“Our target is that in the next five years or so from now, we hope and we believe that half of Nigeria’s crude will be refined and exported rather than just exporting crude to go and create jobs elsewhere.”

The words of Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote during a press briefing after touring the construction site of his refinery expected to begin operations in 2019.

He was accompanied on the tour by Nigeria’s vice president Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, and Akinwunmi Ambode, governor of Lagos State, where the refinery is being built and a number of key federal level ministers.

Governor Ambode, said that the Dangote Lekki Refinery, Petrochemical Projects will boost Nigeria’s economy, because it would be a major strategic asset not for Lagos alone but for Nigeria’s wobbly power supply system.

Africa’s richest man disclosed in an interview with Reuters News Agency on Friday (June 24) plans to open Nigeria’s first private oil refinery estimated at a cost of $12 million dollars with the funds to be pooled from multiple sources.

The refinery, which would be complemented by petrochemical, gas & fertilizer projects by Aliko Dangote at Lekki Free Zone (LFZ) in Lagos is expected to be completed in 2018 but start operations the next year.

The Governor of Nigeria’s commercial hub said “Firstly, there is a refinery project that is ongoing, second there is a petrochemical project that is also ongoing. There is pipeline transfer project that brings gas from Bonny down to Olokonla and down to Lekki and then the fourth one is the fertilizer project all in one location.”

The Petrochemical project that is coming on stream by December 2017, whiles the refinery comes on stream by the first quarter of 2019, in between both the Gas project will come on stream by 2018.

The Vice President refinery’s on his part said the Gas Project upon completion has the capacity to produce about three billion cubic feet of gas daily, which would permanently address the two billion cubic feet daily gas required to power the country.

Some of the ministers that were on the trip included Minister for Finance, Kemi Adeosun; Minister for Solid Minerals, Kayode Fayemi; Power, Works and Housing minister, Babatunde Fashola and Industry, Trade and Investment minister Okechukwu Enelamah.

Africa News

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