Thrift saving, commonly known as Ajoo in Nigeria, is deeply ingrained in the country's informal community culture. Participants contribute a fixed amount every month. The entire sum is then handed to one member until the cycle completes, empowering them to pursue their financial aspirations without going through the bank.
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The special investigator appointed by President Bola Tinubu has requested the International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol) to add three suspects to its watchlist for their alleged involvement in a $6,230,000 fraud.
The individuals in question are Adamu Abubakar, Imam Abubakar, and Odoh Eric Ocheme.
The federal government has filed extradition charges against the trio for allegedly forging the signature of former President Muhammadu Buhari and documents attributed to Boss Mustapha, the former Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF).
These documents were purportedly used to facilitate the payment of $6,230,000 from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), ostensibly intended for foreign election observers, The Cable reported.
On February 12, 2024, the special investigator wrote a letter requesting Interpol to issue a red notice for the three suspects.
The letter reads:
“In the course of the Special Investigator’s assignment, Mr. Odoh Eric Ocheme, (a staff of the CBN) now at large and the other two accomplices, also now at large, were discovered to have conspired and forged documents in the name of the President, Federal Republic of Nigeria with which they stole about US$6,230,000 (Six Million, Two Hundred and Thirty Thousand Dollars, in cash, from the coffers of the CBN.”
On January 18, 2024, Judge Inyang Ekwo of the Federal High Court in Abuja issued a warrant of arrest against the three suspects.
Former CBN Governor Godwin Emefiele is also implicated in the alleged fraudulent payment of $6,230,000.
Mustapha stated on Tuesday that neither he nor former President Muhammadu Buhari authorized the disbursement of $6,230,000 to international election observers.
Mustapha testified as the second prosecution witness in the trial of Emefiele.
By Adekunle Agbetiloye, Business Insider Africa
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The police chief in the Federal Capital Territory said officers conducted their latest raid in Gidan Dambe. More than 300 people were arrested.
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Armed men killed four people, including two policemen, and kidnapped at least 40 others in an attack on Kaura Namoda, in Nigeria's northwest Zamfara state, police and residents said on Tuesday.
Africa's largest economy is grappling with a multifaceted security crisis, including kidnappings for ransom in the northwest, which has reached alarming proportions.
Zamfara police spokesperson Yazid Abubakar confirmed the attack and said reinforcements have been deployed to the Kasuwar Daji district of the town where the incident took place.
Residents, including some of the victims, told Reuters by phone about their ordeal which began with an attack on the local police station.
"Sporadic gunshots woke me up around 0100 GMT. They started with the uniformed men before they moved into our houses," Hussaini Mohammed said.
"They took more than 40 women and children, including some elderly men," added Mohammed, who managed to escape.
Hamisu Kasuwa Daji, who heads the town's transport union, told Reuters his son and two grandchildren were taken by the attackers.
"My house is adjacent to the police station. The bandits started attacking the police station, which they engaged for several minutes until they killed two policemen and two other civilians.
"Then they proceeded to my house, by which time I had already fled. After I returned home later, I realised they had taken my son and two grandsons," he said.
Gangs of heavily armed men referred to as bandits by locals have wreaked havoc across Nigeria's northwest in the past three years, kidnapping thousands of people, killing hundreds and making it unsafe to travel by road or to farm in some areas.
Widespread insecurity is exacerbating a cost-of-living crisis caused by the reforms of President Bola Tinubu who has not yet said how he plans to tackle the mounting problems.
By Ahmed Kingimi, Reuters
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