Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN) Tanko Muhammad has tested positive for coronavirus (COVID-19).

Justice Ibrahim Saulawa, a member of the Supreme Court, disclosed this at the unveiling of the national headquarters of Muslim Lawyers’ Association of Nigeria (MULAN) on Tuesday in Abuja.

Muhammad is receiving treatment in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

The CJN was absent at the swearing-in of 72 new senior advocates of Nigeria on Monday.

Justice Olabode Rhodes-Vivour, the next most senior justice of the Supreme Court, administered oaths to the new SANs.

Thepleade

Jihadist group Boko Haram on Tuesday claimed responsibility for the abduction of hundreds of school students in northwest Nigeria.

“I am Abubakar Shekau and our brothers are behind the kidnapping in Katsina,” said the leader of the group that was also behind the 2014 abduction of hundreds of schoolgirls in Chibok, in a voice message.

At least 333 students are still missing since the attack late Friday on the all-boys Government Science Secondary School in northwestern Katsina state.

The attack was initially blamed on armed groups locally known as “bandits”, who are active in the unstable region where kidnappings for ransom are common.

The army said Monday it had located the hideout of the men, and that a military operation was under way.

More than 100 gunmen on motorcycles stormed the rural school north of Kankara town, forcing students to flee and hide in the surrounding bush. (AFP)

The Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) and the Bank of Agriculture (BOA) will on Tuesday start receiving applications from small businesses for N1.2 million to N5million loans.

A press statement issued by the Corporate Affairs Unit of the Agency in Abuja, quoted the Director General and Chief Executive Officer of SMEDAN, Dr. Dikko Umaru Radda, saying that the loans would be funded from the SMEDAN-BOA Matching Fund Programme for small businesses.

Dr. Radda said the opening of the programme portal would be a promotional intervention meant to deliver credit to the small businesses to enhance enterprise output, competitiveness and jobs creation.

He also stated that the disbursing entity, under the programme, shall be the Bank of Agriculture (BOA).

“Target beneficiaries for this programme shall be labour-intensive micro or small enterprises (MSEs), operating in the real sector. These shall ideally be innovative value-added products that are establishing footprint in the Nigerian market, and require additional funds to increase output,” the Director General said.

He therefore called for applications from all suitably qualified micro, small enterprises located in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Kaduna and Oyo states to apply for the programme.

Dr.Radda also said that prospective beneficiaries, who must be registered with SMEDAN, will get the loans on business-friendly terms, including waiver of collaterals.

Dailytrust

Using his company Bulet International Nigeria Limited, a small-scale construction firm out of Kaduna, Mr. Funtua received N840 million in four transactions between March and June 2019 — as Mr. Buhari was securing another four-year term, documents said.

funds to Isa Funtua, a long-time political associate of President Muhammadu Buhari’s, financial records obtained by Peoples Gazette showed.

Using his company Bulet International Nigeria Limited, a small-scale construction firm out of Kaduna, Mr. Funtua received N840 million in four transactions between March and June 2019 — as Mr. Buhari was securing another four-year term, documents said.

Mr. Funtua died in July 2020 at 78, but he spent his last days palling around with the president as a top gun in the so-called cabal of administration associates.

The transfers were approved by Tunde Fowler, the former head of FIRS who has been facing corruption charges stemming from his suspicious use of public funds while in office.

Mr. Buhari’s critics said Mr. Fowler was one of top appointees of the president who diverted public funds to help deliver his reelection. He denies all charges for which the anti-graft EFCC is investigating him.

Mr. Fowler did not deny issuing approval or state his reasons for the suspicious transactions to the president’s friend when reached by the Gazette last week. Instead, he directed all enquiries relating to his questionable activities while in the office to the FIRS.

FIRS spokesman Abdullahi Ahmad told the Gazette the transactions were approved as a tax refund to Bulet International, but the timeline of the transfers and his failure to respond to follow-up questions exposed his explanation as an afterthought and strengthened insiders’ claim that the N840 million was a political payout.

The revenue official also failed to explain why Bulet paid nearly N87 million to the FIRS in tax penalties in February 2019, which also reflected in the bank statement obtained by the Gazette.

Adamu Abdullahi Bako, an executive at Bulet International, initially told the Gazette that the N840 million was a tax refund to the company. But when the Gazette sent him follow-up questions to further verify his claim, he lied that he never said the payment was a tax refund — apparently unbothered that he was on the record when he made the initial claim of tax refund.

The apparent political payout to Mr. Funtua was one of many suspicious transfers made to politicians and private individuals from public coffers over several years but are now being exposed by the Gazette.

Since October 2020, the Gazette has exposed suspected fraud by Lagos House Speaker Mudashiru Obasa, how Lagos funds had been moving from tax contractor Alpha-Beta to Bola Tinubu’s businesses, Aliko Dangote’s questionable payout to the head of Nigerian Ports Authority and Ibikunle Amosun’s curious payment to President Buhari’s personal bank account.

Bank documents seen by Peoples Gazette showed that Bulet, which CAC filings showed belonged to Mr. Funtua, received N840 million in four tranches. The first two transactions of N120 million each were paid on March 26, 2019, into the company’s account with Zenith Bank: 1014544715.

On June 2, 2019, Mr. Fowler’s FIRS transferred another N600 million in two tranches of N300 million each to the same Zenith account run by Mr. Funtua’s Bulet International. The transactions carried no clear descriptions in letters.

Mr. Funtua’s company did not secure a contract with the FIRS to warrant such a large volume of transfer from the revenue office. The FIRS also did not claim the transactions were for any contract awards, but told the Gazette in a statement that refunds were made to the company.

“The transaction was a refund made by the FIRS to the Bulet Construction Company as a result of the deduction of withholding tax which is usually done at source for all construction companies,” Mr. Ahmad said. “So there’s no infraction committed thereof.”

“The FIRS usually audits accounts of companies at the end of every financial year,” the official added. “Where a company overpays its statutory tax obligation FIRS refunds the excess to the company.”

But Mr. failed to respond to provide any evidence to substantiate the FIRS’ claim that the N840 million was a tax refund to Bulet International. He also was unable to respond to a series of questions sent to him.

For two weeks, Mr. Ahmad was unable to answer any of our questions. Mr. Bako also ducked a similar set of questions from the Gazette and even lied about his own statement that the payment was for tax refunds.

At least two sources within the FIRS said Mr. Fowler made hundreds of transfers worth billions to political interests from Nigeria’s insufficient revenues — scandalous conduct that lasted until Mr. Buhari fired him in December 2019.

One of our sources said Mr. Fowler was approving the payments to Mr. Buhari’s friends hoping they would help convince the president to keep him in office for a few more years.

“He had this belief that the president’s associates can help him keep his appointment for as long as possible,” an FIRS official who worked closely with Mr. Fowler said. “There were many signs that his days were numbered but he kept looking the other way.”

Funmi Olubanjo, a tax consultant, said the payment to Mr. Funtua’s firm was “highly suspicious” because the FIRS has a longstanding policy of not approving refunds, preferring instead to do deductions where there is evidence of excesses in tax receipts from an organisation.

“I have been a consultant in and out of Nigeria for more than 18 years and I can say comfortably that the FIRS does not process tax refunds in this manner,” Mr. Olubanjo said. “So the N840 million to Bulet International is a fraudulent exception even if it is true.”

Mr. Olubanjo said Bulet International, an obscured business even in the construction sector, could not have generated enough income for it to have N840 million in refunds, saying even larger conglomerates hardly post such refunds.

Also, tax penalties imposed on Bulet for 2006-2012 was merely N87 million, which showed that the company’s gross revenue was not as significant as both FIRS and Bulet implied.
Mr. Olubanjo said FIRS’ claim that the N840 million was a tax refund “a ridiculous afterthought” because neither the revenue office nor Mr. Funtua expected the matter to leak to the public.

“They didn’t expect that their shady deals would leak to the public someday, so they carried them out with impunity rather than finesse,” the tax expert said.

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SaharaReporters

A top source told SaharaReporters on Tuesday that the First Lady has now relocated quietly to the UAE for over three months. No one knows when she would return to the country.

Nigeria’s First Lady, Mrs Aisha Buhari, has been in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, since September after the wedding of her daughter, Hanan, and has therefore not been involved in any government activity, SaharaReporters has gathered.

SaharaReporters gathered that the First Lady is not in a hurry to return, despite spending over three months, as she reportedly stated that the Aso Rock Villa was not secure for her family.

This concern was triggered by a shooting incident which occurred in June and caused some panic among occupants of the Aso Villa.

SaharaReporters had reported that there was a crisis in Aso Villa after security details of the President’s wife removed Buhari’s Personal Assistant, Sabiu ‘Tunde’ Yusuf, from the place after he refused to embark on a 14-day isolation period upon returning from a trip to Lagos.

Shortly afterwards, the First Lady’s ADC, Usman Shugaba, in an attempt to apprehend Yusuf, reportedly fired gunshots but the President’s aide escaped to the residence of Mamman Daura where he spent the night.

Yusuf soon ordered the arrest of Aisha’s ADC and other security details in connivance with Buhari’s chief security officer. Buhari had ordered a probe into the alleged security breach inside the Presidential Villa. 

It will be recalled that on September 4, Aisha Buhari held a flamboyant wedding for President Muhammadu Buhari’s daughter, Hanan, and Mohammed Turad.

Apart from the opulence on display, event planners for the wedding were flown in from Dubai, United Arab Emirates, to add colour and spice to the ceremony.

File Photo: Aisha Buhari

Earlier in August, the First Lady had also flown to Dubai in a private jet owned by billionaire Mohammed Indimi under the guise of a medical emergency to shop for luxury items ahead of the wedding.

Most of the items, including souvenirs used for the wedding occasion, were brought in from the Arabian country.

A top source told SaharaReporters on Tuesday that the First Lady has now relocated quietly to the UAE for over three months. No one knows when she would return to the country.

The Presidency source said, “Aisha Buhari has relocated quietly to Dubai. She has been going to the UAE even before the daughter’s wedding.

“Before the wedding, she also stayed there for months during lockdown, shopping and relaxing. But since the end of the wedding, she has been away owing to security concerns in the villa.”

Some Nigerians have noticed her disappearance from the public space for the past three months. Checks on her Twitter page shows she last tweeted in October. SaharaReporters Media

SaharaReporters gathered that occasionally, she issued statements announcing the distribution of palliatives but has never been seen at any official functions.

The September wedding, which had security personnel prohibiting guests from taking photographs, saw the event planners and other vendors flown in from Dubai pocketing huge amounts in United States dollars for their services.

SaharaReporters

These five suspected members of a dreaded cult group based in Lagos were on a revenge mission on Monday 14th December, 2020.

But, strange enough, they had in their possession, inside a tricycle, the corpse of a young man, also suspected to be a cult member.

The tricycle was heading towards Sango-Ota in Ogun State, when operatives of the state police Command, accosted them.

These young men who are mostly teenagers were seen brandishing dangerous weapons like cutlasses, cudgels and sticks as,at the time they were apprehended by the Police, even as they reportedly went berserk, vandalizing anything in sight.

The suspects included; Babatunde Shittu, Ayobami Morenikeji, Fidelis John, Abdullahi Adegbenro, and Oyeyemi Bakare.

Their arrest followed a distress call received at Sango Area Command headquarters that a group of boys were seen with a male corpse in a tricycle and welding dangerous weapons.

Upon the distress call, the Area Commander, Sango ota, ACP Monday Agbonnika, quickly mobilised patrol team to the area, where the hoodlums were met on rampage destroying people’s property and stealing from innocent members of the public along Ilo-Awela Road.

The police team engaged and subdued them, and the five culprits were subsequently arrested.

On interrogation, the suspects informed the police that they went to party at Mushin in Lagos and on their way coming, fight ensued among them and in the process, one of them was overran by a fast moving vehicle and he died on the spot. 

They stated further that they were taking the corpse to the families of their attackers namely; omo ekun, Lampad and Anko purposely for revenge mission.

Before the arrival of policemen, the miscreants have allegedly damaged one Highlander jeep with registration number KJA 275GD belonging to one Emmanuel Adekoya, they have also snatched an infinix phone from one Falola olushola and a cash sum of N50,000 from one Emmanuel Agbaje.

The corpse has been recovered from them and deposited at Ifo General Hospital mortuary for autopsy.

Police Public Relations Officer in the state, DSP Abimbola Oyeyemi, confirmed the story.

Meanwhile, the Commissioner of Police, CP Edward Awolowo Ajogun, has ordered the immediate transfer of the suspects to the State Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department for further investigation. 

The police boss also appealed to parents to warn their children from partaking in any act capable of undermining the peace of the state as such act will be met with strict resistance.

It was also gathered that it was the level of dementia and incoherence that made his handlers prevent him from visiting the National Assembly last week after he had promised to do so.

was immediately briefed on Friday evening when attackers abducted over 300 schoolboys from Kankara town in Katsina State, a top presidency source has revealed.

The source added that the President’s dementia affected him once again, and made him visit his livestock farm on Saturday morning instead of visiting the grieving school.

Dementia is a general term for loss of memory, language and thinking abilities – a condition which may be caused by the President’s old age and frequent treatment over an undisclosed medical condition.

“The moment it happened on Friday night, President Buhari was told. But due to dementia, he had forgotten,” a source told SaharaReporters.

It was also gathered that it was the level of dementia and incoherence that made his handlers prevent him from visiting the National Assembly last week after he had promised to do so.

It will be recalled that the House of Representatives led by the Speaker, Femi Gbajabiamila, had invited Buhari over growing concerns on insecurity and the killing of over 43 rice farmers by Boko Haram terrorists in Borno State.

An aide to the President, Lauretta Onochie, had revealed that Buhari would appear before a joint session of the National Assembly on Thursday. However, reports began to filter in on Tuesday that the President had decided not to attend the meeting any longer.

Defending the President’s decision not to address the lawmakers, the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN), said the National Assembly lacked the power to invite the President to speak on security matters.

When the video of the President visiting his farm surfaced on Monday, the President’s spokesperson, Shehu, had argued vehemently that the President was not aware as of Saturday morning when he went to his farm.

“We arrived on Friday evening in Daura. The President went to his farm at 6 am or thereabouts when the report had not broken out. So, for anyone to now say he has chosen to visit his cows, instead of the parents of the students, is mischief.

“Let me tell you; we are careful about one thing. We don’t want politics to divert attention from rescuing these boys. So all this ‘touts’, we will ignore them because the focus is on rescuing these boys. By God’s grace, they will be freed, and when they are back with their families, we will engage in politics,” Shehu had argued.

He did not, however, disclose whether Buhari had plans to visit Kankara or not.

On Sunday, he also claimed that only ten students were with the bandits.

While speaking with the BBC Hausa Service, he had claimed that only ten children were in the captivity of the gunmen, according to their colleagues who escaped from the gunmen.

The number is below figures released by the school authority at the beginning.

Shehu had said his figure was based on the information he got from the school children who escaped from their abductors.

SaharaReporters

ASP Agbo tells Abuja panel–“Edward Leera is dead, body at UPTH mortuary”

By theconclaveng -December 15, 2020043 Share

Alleged enforced disappearance: ASP Agbo tells Abuja panel–“Edward Leera is dead, body at UPTH mortuary”

An Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) of IGP-IRT “D” Division Itam, Uyo, David Ahmed Agbo on Monday told the Independent Investigative Panel on allegations of human rights violations by the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) and other units of the Nigerian Police Force (NPF) that Edward Dumsara Leera whose brother, Confidence Leera, claimed was being held in police custody since November 1, 2019 is dead.

Agbo who made this disclosure when the Chairman of the panel inquired of the whereabouts of the victim (assumed to be in their custody) also added that his body was deposited at the University of PortHacourt Teaching Hospital (UPTH) mortuary in Rivers state.

The public disclosure of the death of Edward Leera visibly shocked and unsettled his elder brother who is also the complainant in the matter as he was upstanding testifying the ordeals of the deceased and efforts he made to free him from police detention.

Wife of the deceased, Peace Leera cried profusely immediately the ASP Agbo broke the news of the death of Edward Leera.

Earlier, Counsel to the complainant, Victor Giwa while adopting his written affidavit containing a series of exhibits, including a copy of the petition and court order directing the production of the victim before the court, regretted that the Police never obeyed the order of the court till date.

Continuing, he also told the panel that ASP Agbo seized an ATM card belonging to the victim with which various amounts of money were withdrawn from his bank account by agents of Ahmed Agbo.

The complainant through his Counsel tendered documents allegedly evidencing transfer of N20,000 to ASP Agbo, as well as those evidencing the various withdrawals from the bank account of the victim.

It will be recalled that on November 16, 2020, the complainant, Confidence Leera, led in evidence by his lawyer, Giwa Victor, told the panel that Edward was arrested by the police and detained for no just cause, and his car confiscated and converted to personal use by a policeman, identified as the IPO, ASP David Ahmed Agbo.

Confidence claimed that ASP Agbo now drives the car unlawfully seized from his brother.

He alleged the policeman made cash withdrawals from his brother’s bank account between November 2019 to October 2020 using his ATM card.

Confidence informed the panel that his family was asked by the police to pay N3m before Edward could be released.

He added he later instituted a suit, marked: BHC/202/2019 for the enforcement of his fundamental rights, adding “subsequently, on December 17, 2019 the court ordered hearing of the application of Edward Dumisara Leera and delivered judgment in his favour and ordered immediate release of the said Edward.”

He added that the order was served on the police, but they allegedly refused to obey it, and that, instead of complying with the court’s judgment of December 2019, the police filed a seven-count charge against Edward before Justice E.N. Ogbuji in suit No. PHC/287/CR/2020.

Confidence said the police has neither produced Edward in court nor released him in accordance with the earlier court order.

He told the panel that it seems Edward had been killed extra judicially and disposed of.

The 28-year-old wife of the deceased told newsmen that she was barely one year in marriage and that her late husband never saw her pregnancy or their baby till now only for her to be told that her husband had died.

She alleged that ASP Agbo asked her to abort her pregnancy while she was going to plead for the release of her husband.

According to her, ASP Agbo bragged that she would not see her husband again, having not paid N3m he was demanding in order to release her husband.

She added that she could not believe the death of her husband and that the panel should ensure ASP Agbo was arrested and prosecuted so that he would divulge the whereabouts of her husband who she said was a taxi driver and welder as against being an armed robber as ASP Agbo labelled him during a press interview on the premises of the National Human Rights Commission.

The case was adjourned to January 11, 2020 for cross examination and defence by the police.

Given the impact of COVID-19, the federal government has observed that the revenue outlook for 2021 depends on the willingness of state governments to embrace the right tools, technology and strategies to transform, enhance and strengthen revenue growth and sustainability.

Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs Zainab Ahmed made the observation while addressing the 6th Annual Internally Generated Revenue Peer Learning event organised by the Nigeria Governors’ Forum in Abuja on Monday.

The Minister said that the impact of COVID-19 on the economic and fiscal revenue outlook for 2021 presents a significant opportunity for the States to strategise and reposition their fiscal revenue management systems for this era called the ‘new normal’.

Speaking on the impact of COVID-19, Ahmed noted: “These are indeed challenging times for the global and local economy brought on by the unforeseen impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. As with most countries of the world, the Nigerian economy is in a recession. Despite this, global analysts posit that Nigeria remains the fastest growing economy in Africa.

“Furthermore, business and economic indicators anticipate that the country’s path toward economic recovery will commence in the fourth quarter of 2020,” she said.

According to a statement by Special Adviser on Media and Communications, Yunusa Tanko Abdullahi, at the event attended by State Commissioners of Finance and the Executive Chairmen of the State Internal Revenue Services, Ahmed noted that overall, economic analysts have predicted that the global economy will recover in 2021, especially with the positive outcomes of the race toward the discovery of a vaccine.

She also noted that for Nigeria, economic analysts forecast that the economy will experience positive growth in the first or second quarter of 2021.

Alluding to fiscal reforms, the Minister said that fiscal reforms are important, now more than ever, to mitigate against current and future risks, bearing any future pandemics or other global crises.

Her words, “The federal government has embarked on a fundamental strategy that comprises wide-ranging reforms in its tax policies and administration in the last few years. For instance, the Finance Act 2019 and Finance Bill 2020 have brought significant changes and consolidation to tax administration and management in the country.

“As with the previous version, the Finance Bill 2020 seeks to achieve the promotion of fiscal equity; reform domestic tax laws in alignment with global best practices; introduce tax incentives; support MSMEs and raise revenues for the government.

“Some of the key provisions of the Bill include: Tax relief for companies that donate to a COVID-19 relief fund; a reduction of 50 percent in the minimum tax rate from 0.5 percent to 0.25 percent of gross turnover for financial years ending January 1, 2020 to December 31, 2020; an exemption from tertiary education tax by companies with turnover of less than 25 million Naira; among others.

“Furthermore, in terms of tax policy reforms and consolidation, the Finance Bill 2020 will amend the following laws in order to facilitate and strengthen revenue mobilization and growth in 2021 – the Capital Gains Tax Act, Companies Income Tax Act, Personal Income Tax Act, Tertiary Education Trust Fund (Establishment) Act, Customs and Excise Tariff, Etc. (Consolidated) Act, Value Added Tax (VAT) Act, Federal Inland Revenue Services (Establishment) Act, Nigerian Export Processing Zone Act, Oil and Gas Export Free Zone Act, Fiscal Responsibility Act, Companies and Allied Matters Act 2020, and the Public Procurement Act”.

According to her, some of the other ongoing initiatives of the federal government include the Integrated Revenue Monitoring System; the implementation of the National (Single Window) Project; and the full nationwide adoption of the Joint Tax Board’s tax identification number (TIN).

With these initiatives, she explained, “we seek to chart a new course for the tax system while addressing tax encumbrances for individuals and businesses in Nigeria.

For instance, the Integrated Revenue Monitoring System and the Tax Expenditure Statement are already incorporated, for the first time, in the 2021 – 2023 Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) and Fiscal Strategy Paper.

Both measures, according to the minister, are geared towards improving transparency of revenue generation and accountability for revenue utilisation (including tax forgone) by way of incentives and waivers.

In the area of tax administration, she pointed out that the government is leveraging on technology and digitalisation to drive revenue mobilisation, data management and cost optimisation.

Some of the technologies being deployed she said, include the government integrated financial management information system (GIFMIS), which focuses on the improvement of public expenditure management processes, to enhance greater accountability and transparency across Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs).

“Then there’s Project Lighthouse, which makes use of analytics to mine and analyse data for optimal tax collection. Technology is also being used for the purpose of assessing and collecting stamp duties; as well as for the automation of VAT collections in the retail, banking and telecommunications sectors – with more sectors being explored for onboarding”, she added.

Mrs Ahmed disclosed that all Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) offices are currently running on the Tax Pro platform for e-TCC, e-Receipt and e-WHT, and offices within the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) are currently using the VAT module of the TaxPro.

She further disclosed that other technology modules are being developed, even as more digital tools are being adopted and deployed across the spectrum of the revenue generation agencies of the federal government.

“Indeed, the use of technology have led to significant improvements in revenue generation and cost optimisation in the medium term. The overarching aim of the federal government is to achieve revenue growth and sustainability for the foreseeable future” she stated.

In her words: “It is important for me to intimate you on the Strategic Revenue Growth Initiative (SRGI). The SRGI is a blueprint and mechanism for enhancing fiscal revenues from six percent to 15 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) by 2023.

“The initiative seeks to: Achieve sustainability in revenue generation; identify and enforce new and existing revenue streams, and achieve cohesion through people and tools.

“Through this initiative, we are building and strengthening sustainable revenue generation systems through the application of the right incentives, safeguards, and performance management systems. There are several initiatives under the SRGI with revenue generation and enhancement potential, which are closely monitored using data-driven performance management to achieve the results and set targets.

“With the SRGI, we are partnering with interested State’s Ministries of Finance and State revenue generating agencies in achieving the set target of attaining revenue to GDP of 15 percent by 2023. “We are working on the second phase of the SRGI – having reviewed our strategies, identified the challenges and re-assessed the prospects and opportunities.

“Subsequently, the SRGI 2.0 involves a top-down approach that is driven by enhanced data and technology to complement a bottom-up approach aimed at improving operational efficiencies. We are willing and available to partner with all State governments yet to join us on this transformative journey”.(With more reports from PNO)