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PHOTOS: Protesters demand arrest of Tinubu over 2019 election eve ‘bullion vans’

Some protesters took to the streets of Abuja on Tuesday to demand the arrest of Bola Tinubu, national leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), over two bullion vans believed to be conveying cash seen at his residence on the eve of the 2019 general election.

In February, 2019, viral pictures on social media showed the two bullion vans being driven into Tinubu’s residence, as many people looked on outside the premises.

In response to the controversy generated by the incident, Tinubu said the bullion vans contained money belonging to him and not for the government.

Here are some photos from the protest:

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Dr. Muhammad Murtala Aminu Appointed Law Reform Commission Secretary

Dr. Muhammad Murtala Aminu, a Trademarks and Intellectual Property Expert cum Law Lecturer at Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto, has been appointed by President Muhammadu Buhari, as secretary to the Nigerian Law Reform Commission.

The Nigerian Law Reform Commission is an institution saddled with the responsibility to harmonise national legislation and also among the four parastatals under the Federal Ministry of Justice.

The Secretary of the Commission is to be the accounting officer while also supporting the chairman in ensuring that all the rules and regulations relating to the management of the human, material and financial resources of the Commission are adhered to in accordance with the objectives of the Federal Government.

Early this year, Dr Aminu was also appointed by the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) to serve as a panelist to assess entries for this year‘s maiden edition of the WIPO National Intellectual Property Essay Competition for students of all tertiary institutions.

He expressed gladness over his appointment and showed gratitude to Almighty Allah.

“I am very happy and grateful to Almighty Allah for this appointment given to me,” he said.

The new secretary, however, vowed to adhere to the rules of the Nigerian Constitution and the Nigerian Law Reform Commission Act. He also pledged to work tirelessly in making sure that laws in the country are up to date and in accordance with international best practices.

He urged law students to be hardworking, devoted and focused to achieve their aims and objectives.

“ If you have any ambition of achieving greatness in your life, you should be hardworking, dedicated and concentrate on your target to achieve your aims and objectives,” he advised.

Before his appointment, he was the coordinator of the Diploma programme in UDUS and a member of different committees in the faculty. He has taught numerous courses in the institution which include; Commercial Law, Conflict Law, Intellectual Property Law, among others.

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Gov. Bello Swears In Acting Chief Judge, Customary Court Of Appeal President

Against the backdrop of the death of Chief of both Chief Judge, Justice Nasir Ajana and President of the Customary Court of Appeal Justice Ibrahim Shaibu Atadoga, the Kogi state governor Governor Yahaya Bello of on Wednesday swore in Justice Henry Olusuyi and Justice Bayo Olowosegun as Acting Chief Judge and President Customary Court Appeal of the state respectively.

In an elaborate ceremony held in the government House Lokoja, the governor told the Judges to execute their duties with the fear of God.

The governor also urged them to emulate the late Ajanah and Atadoga; who he said served the state and the judiciary with the best of their ability.

The Governor said, “I welcome everyone to this sober but momentous event. It is only proper that we continue to recognise and pay tribute to two extraordinary gentlemen who inspired us in their lives and left us severely diminished by their deaths. It is their passing which has necessitated these proceedings.

“We lost the Honourable Justice Nasir Ajanah, the former Chief Judge of Kogi State and the Honourable Justice Ibrahim Shaibu Atadoga, the former President of the Kogi State Customary Court of Appeal within one week of each other. The shock has been profound, both for the state and for those left to mourn them.

“Justice Nasir Ajanah was the longest serving Chief Judge in the history of Kogi State. He served during the tenures of three Governors. He was a brilliant legal mind distinguished by a massive wealth of experience. He piloted the Kogi State Judiciary with a firm hand, and defended the independence of the Judiciary and the doctrine of Separation of Powers as he saw fit, irrespective of any differences of opinion.

“Justice Shuaibu Atadoga was on his part a workaholic judge who set stellar standards of excellence in the practice of his profession. He inspired reforms, including amendments to the enabling law which greatly expanded the roles of the Customary Court. It is no wonder that he was so effective as President of the Kogi State Customary Court of Appeal.

“In tribute, I am proud to say that the late Justice Ajanah and the late Justice Atadoga both teach us that selfless service to society is how to become immortal in the hearts of your fellow men. They achieved a legacy that will long outlive them. May the good works of their lordships speak for them in eternity and may their gentle souls continue to rest in peace.

“It now remains to enjoin the head of the Kogi State Judiciary and the President of the Customary Court of Appeal of Kogi State, both of whom we have just sworn in, to bring their considerable history as experienced jurists to bear in the administration of justice in this state. We have no doubt that they will provide excellent leadership for our Judiciary and the state in general. We therefore charge them to execute all the functions of their respective offices with erudition and the fear of Almighty God.

“Let me conclude by reiterating something I have said over and over again since the Covid-19 situation was thrust upon the world.

“Nothing is altogether new under the sun. Whether the coronavirus or CoviD-19 or SARS-COV2 is natural or artificial and whether it came out of China or elsewhere, and whether by happenstance or hostile action, we need an evolving synergy between Science and common sense to defeat the pandemic,” he advised.

Credit: https://thenigerialawyer.com/gov-bello-swears-in-acting-chief-judge-customary-court-of-appeal-president/

Again, FIRS Extends Waiver on Penalties, Interest Payment to August 31

The Executive Chairman, Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Mr. Muhammad Nami, has announced further extension for the closing date of its waiver of penalty and interest window on tax debts owned by individuals and businesses from June 30 to August 31, 2020.

Earlier last month, the service had extended the deadline set to waive interests accruals to debts as well as the related penalties for defaulting taxpayers if they fully settle their indebtedness on or before May 31 till June 30.

However, Nami, in a statement issued Wednesday by the Director, Communications and Liaison Department, FIRS, Dr. Abdullahi Ismaila Ahmad, said the latest extension was a follow up to a number of palliative measures devised by the FIRS to cushion the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic on the Nigerian economy in order to support tax-paying individuals and business entities in the country.

However, he noted that the extension applies to “tax audit, tax investigation and desk review assessments, approved instalment payment plans under Voluntary Assets and Income Declaration Scheme (VAIDS) yet to be fully liquidated”.

He further reminded taxpayers there will be no further extension of the current palliative measure, adding that “tax debtors are therefore enjoined to liquidate their outstanding tax liabilities on or before 31st August, 2020 in order to enjoy waiver of accumulated penalties and interests”.

He also advised all concerned individuals and businesses to contact their respective tax controller or the nearest FIRS regional debt management office in case of further enquiries.

Nami had said the moves are part of FIRS’ efforts to mobilise resources for the federal government whose fiscal power has been badly impaired by the drastic fall in global oil prices occasioned by the outbreak and spread of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The service had announced the resumption of audit, investigations and monitoring exercises, earlier suspended as part of measures to cushion the impact of the pandemic.

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NCAA Lifts Suspension on Airline

The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has lifted the suspension, which it placed on the services of Jet Support Services (JSS). The order voiding the suspension was communicated through a memo NCAA/DG/AIR/11/16/152 , dated July 4, 2020.

The memo was entitled, “Re: Suspension of the G-Airport Leasing Operation of Your Organisation’s Operation Specifications”.

Signed by the Direction General/Chief Executive Officer of the NCAA, Captain Musa S. Nuhu, the memo promised that Nuhu will personally ensure investigation of the lapse, which led to the error, while putting in place measures to prevent recurrence.

Lifting the suspension, Nuhu wrote, “After careful review of documents attached to your response, the authority would like to apologise to you for the erroneous grounding of your Challenger 604 aircraft with registration number G-FABO. The suspension is hereby lifted with immediate effect and all appropriate authorities will be notified to lift any restriction that might have been placed on the aircraft.”

Also sighted copy of a memo from the Aeronautical/Telecommunication Service Department of the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA) directing compliance with the NCAA directive.

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Senate To Disregard Buhari’s Request On Confirmation Of 11 FCT High Court Judges, Says Request Superfluous

Chairman of the Senate Committee on Judiciary and Legal Matters, Senator Opeyemi Bamidele, has stated that it was constitutionally wrong for President Muhammadu Buhari to have sought Senate confirmation of 11 nominees as High Court judges of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

The president had in a letter read at Senate plenary last Tuesday sought the approval of the Senate for the confirmation of 11 judges for FCT courts.

Rather, Bamidele stated that the president did not need the approval of the Senate to approve such judges once they are recommended to him by the National Judicial Council.

He, therefore, asked the upper chamber to regard the letter from the president as mere notification and information about the appointment of the judges.

The senator had at plenary yesterday raised Order 42 of Senate Standing Rules which deals with personal explanation, saying: “It has to do with a correspondence from the president which has gone beyond administrative issues, and having been read on the floor of the Senate, I believe we have to take position on it in a noncontroversial manner, and that is why I am coming under Order 42.

“Section 256 of the 1999 Constitution as amended talked about the appointment of chief judge and judges of the high court of the FCT.

“Section 256(1) reads: ‘The appointment of a person to the office of a Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, FCT, shall be made by the president on the recommendation of the National Judicial Council subject to confirmation of such appointment by the same.

“So I invite distinguished colleagues to note this with respect to the next subsection 2 the appointment of the person to the office of the judge of the FCT shall be made by the president on the recommendation of the NJC

“Simply put, I am inviting the distinguished senator to merely take note of the letter that was sent to this Senate by the president which was read yesterday on its floor. Take it merely as information that the president was appointing judges for the FCT high court.

“Of course it does not require the confirmation of the Senate as section 256(1) only invite Senate to be a part of it if a chief judge is to be appointed, but with respect to FCT judges, the president has the constitutional powers to do so.”

Ivory Coast PM Amadou Gon Coulibaly Dies

Ivory Coast’s prime minister and the ruling party’s candidate for the October presidential election, Amadou Gon Coulibaly, has died just days after returning from two months of medical treatment in France.

The 61-year-old Gon Coulibaly, who had heart surgery in 2012, became unwell during a weekly cabinet meeting and was taken to a hospital where he passed away on Wednesday, President Alassane Ouattara said in a statement read on national television.

“Fellow compatriots, Ivory Coast is mourning. It is with deep pain that I announce to you that Prime Minister Amadou Gon Coulibaly has left us,” Ouattara said in a statement read by the presidency’s secretary-general.

Gon Coulibaly had returned to Ivory Coast last Thursday after two months in France to undergo a heart exam and rest.

Gon Coulibaly’s death is likely to set off a scramble within the ruling RHDP party to replace him as its candidate in an election that is considered a key test of stability for the world’s top cocoa producer.

Ouattara’s first win in 2010 over incumbent Laurent Gbagbo sparked a brief civil war in which about 3,000 people died, and political tensions have been rising ahead of October’s poll.

Ouattara designated Gon Coulibaly as the RHDP candidate in March after announcing that he would not seek a third term.

The 61-year-old Coulibaly sought medical care in France in May, saying it was only for a checkup. He was allowed to travel abroad despite Ivory Coast’s airports being closed due to the coronavirus pandemic.

SOURCE: REUTERS NEWS AGENCY

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Online Procedure (Step By Step) For Letters Of Administration In Lagos State

By Bennybonny Eucharia

It is always a difficult and disappointing moment for beneficiaries and dependents of the deceased when they are asked to get Letters of Administration before they can claim the monies or assets the deceased left behind in the bank or with the Pension Fund Administrators.

Some may even want to sell off the property of the deceased in order to temporarily sustain themselves but only to find it difficult to get a serious buyer because they cannot pass a valid title to the buyer without the Letters of Administration or Grant of Probate as the case may be.

It can take years before they obtain the Letters of Administration and receive the said death benefits or monies in bank if they choose to do it themselves and not seek expert advice. It is even getting tougher now that this demonic COVID-19 has ushered in social distancing, restricted movements, restricted working hours (9am to 3pm), and long-waiting and standing hours at the Probate and other stakeholders involved in the whole process.

It is however, not an insurmountable challenge since you can engage expert services from the comfort of your homes and offices.

Before I tell you the Procedure, let me give you a checklist of all the documents, information and requirements you need to get this work done.

1. Application Letter addressed to the Probate Registrar (either in Ikeja or Lagos) and containing the following
– Full names and address of the deceased
– Date of death of the deceased
– Place of residence of the deceased shortly before his death
– Full names and addresses of the proposed administrators

2. The Application Letter shall be accompanied with the
– Death Certificate of the deceased
– Passport photo of the deceased
– Passport photos of all the proposed administrators
– ID Cards of all the proposed administrators
– Phone numbers of the administrators, beneficiaries and close relation of the deceased (which may be either father, mother, brother or sister)

3. Upon uploading all the above documents and information, you will download and print the following Forms, together with the Payment Invoice:
1. Application for A Grant of Letters of Administration (Without Will).
2. Oath for Administration (Without Will)
3. Administration Bond (Without Will)
4. Inventory
5. Particulars of Freehold/Leasehold Property Left by Deceased
6. Declarations as To Next-Of-Kin
7. Schedule of Debts Due by The Deceased

4. The Bank Certificate will be given to you after you have paid for the Form Fees.

5. Gather all the assets of the deceased (both movable and immovable), get the balance standing to the credit of the deceased stamped on the Bank Certificate and resubmit for assessment.

6. Pay all the Estate Fees.

7. Book for an interview at the Probate Registry to confirm that the information you provided the Court and the Probate is true.

8. Publication would be made in the Newspaper or the Gazette in order to allow the public or any interested person the opportunity to object and file a caveat to the Grant of Letters of Administration to the applicants.

9. If after 21 days no objection is raised, the file will go for Minute and Order at the Probate Judge’s office.

10. Then if every information in the file is okay and there are no complications attached to the file, then the Letters of Administration will be granted and issued to you within one month.

BENNYBONNY EUCHARIA (SCN084650) is a Lagos-Based Lawyer , with over 8 years’ experience and proficiency in Probate matters, Property Management, Estate Planning, Group Legal Protection and other Legal Services. 08066053162, [email protected]

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Veteran Journalists Assess Media Sector Beyond COVID-19

The TwitterChat to deliberate on the teething survival  problems, current challenges and preparations for the post-COVID-19 period in   Nigeria’s media sector, brought a nagging situation into focus and paved way for sundry perspectives on the way forward.  

The hashtag was  #MediaNGCovid 19 and the  TwitterChat which held on Thursday, July 2 2020 was   packaged by Media Rights Agenda and BONews Service with the theme: Ensuring the survival of the media in the face of a global pandemic (the role of governments).

Edetaen Ojo, Executive Director, Media Rights Agenda (MRA)  moderated the session which had seasoned journalists including Dapo Olorunyomi, Publisher of Premium TIMES; Toun Okewale, MD/CEO of Women Radio and Ted Iwere, MD of SME Media as panellists.

The panellists  and participants shared   robust ideas shared after assessing the despairing situation of the media sector before the devastating advent of the COVID-`19  pandemic and proffered business models in a concerted effort to revive and rebuild the media sector, in line with global standards.

Panellists shared their experiences and insights on the vulnerability of the media sector, the reservations and likely negative influence/ interference  of government in the sector.
 It was surmised that the media (print, broadcast and online) which costs a fortune to set up and run, has over the years suffered reversals with massive job losses and a crippling professional vulnerability, thereby becoming a pale shadow of the vibrant dream of a free, fair entity.

It was therefore not surprising that panellists came up with a stark message to the effect that  the media sector (print, broadcast and online) must overcome its travails,  and be circumspect in relating with government, in terms of funding and influence.  

 It was the consensus that the media sector was already vulnerable  before the pandemic . Charting the way forward means that the throwing up of  new business models for media managers.

Dapo Olorunyomi  expressed reservations  about the nagging situation stressing that  ‘the  future of democracy is the core of this conversation. Without a virile and independent media there can be no democracy’.

Olorunyomi regretted that the advent of COVID-19 also  affected the capacity of journalists in the performance of their duties.  “It has affected the capacity to do good storytelling because the access to sources are more problematic, it has raised human rights challenges especially with regards to the privacy rights of patients . It is fair to say it has given law enforcement agencies (the) discretion to abuse journalists and certainly it has tightened the screw in the ability of the media to generate revenue through events, circulation and advertising among other things,” Olorunyomi said.”

 ‘’I hope as Nigerians we can appreciate the challenges faced by broadcasters and journalists to get news to the people. Nigerian media practitioners are vulnerable,’’, a panellist, Toun Okewale Sonaiya, tweeted while responding to the question about the economic environment in the media sector before COVID-19.

According to her, ‘’it was an already struggling media space in Nigeria. Pre-COVID-19 some print media were struggling with limited advert placement. The gestation period to break even as a media outfit was becoming longer and fluid. Some radio and TV stations and even the new media were barely surviving. Nigeria’s large infrastructure deficit reflects more negatively  on private media viz provision of electricity, water, road, security etc’’.

She exemplified the situation with the explanation that her media outfit,  Women Radio@wfm917 reduced its transmission hours and ran skeletal services while some of her staff had to work from home . However, she was emphatic that   Post-COVID media business will not be business as usual. ‘’You either adapt or die. These trying times call for a global solidarity for the media. We must begin to leverage’’, she surmised.

Ted Iwere, another panellist, took it a step further with his tweet that the media took a direct hit with COVID 19  with limited or complete absence of commercial activities in the private and public sectors. ‘’ It was struggling in the best of times. Things just got worse under COVID’’, he tweeted.

Dapo Olorunyomi   tweeted that  any proposed  financial prop or grant by government to the media sector can only work if ‘’it is managed by a fiercely independent body and institution manned by men and women with a transparent  sense of principle and demonstrable commitment to democracy, civil liberties and an alloyed belief in freedom of expression’’.

Zoe Titus, a participant from Southern Africa ,  tweeted that governments  should routinely  provide a conducive environment for media operations (public or private) .’’let’s take a leaf from the Windhoek Declaration,’’ he added.

However, a twist of opinions arose on the issue of government giving grants or other financial assistance to media organisations to ensure their survival or sustainability .

Bankole Adams, a participant noted that the move has the potential to birth ‘a tainted media that will pander  to the paymaster’.’’ We already see the ugliness of the pandering in the media space. Why make it worse?’’,  he said.

Mojirayo Ogunlana-Nkanga said the move could lead to unnecessary influences and manipulation of the media. ‘’It’s better private media houses remain independent from government. And of course, we know politicians, especially the Nigerian kind’’, she said.

Ted Iwere said media houses are more likely to throw their independence into the bargain if they receive free money. He believes that it would result in the loss of editorial independence  unless the concessionary funds are  subject  to standard credit conditions.

 “The government should focus more in providing an enabling environment to allow for professionalism. This is what the media need. Fix power, provide a lifeline to media to guarantee a sizeable chunk of salaries to avoid job loss.  Government can provide support to balance the mental well-being  of journalists as frontliners,” Toun Okewale Sonaiya said.

 “Bailouts in form of grants and soft loans are inevitable in developed climes. I hope Nigerian government understands the need to intervene now more than before without interference, “she added.

Credit: https://www.thenewsturf.com

Magu and the Abuja Power Game

“Steve Manson’s magazine dealt in corruption: he attacked the rich, the powerful and the famous – and he made enemies. In a job like that, you couldn’t afford to have dirty secrets of your own. With the whole town itching for you to make a slip, it was like living in a goldfish bowl…” — Goldfish Have No Hiding Place.

I don’t know if the detained acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Mr Ibrahim Magu, grew up (like some of us) reading the novels of English writer René Brabazon Raymond, who wrote under the pseudonym James Hadley Chase. Even so, I doubt he came across ‘Goldfish Have No Hiding Place’. As a student of power politics, I am not surprised that Magu—who took on far too many battles while leaving his own flanks wide open—is now caught in a dangerous web from which he may never recover.

Former Defence Minister, Lt General Theophilus Yakubu Danjuma (rtd) was recently at the villa to see President Muhammadu Buhari. It was a visit borne out of rage. A billionaire oil tycoon, Danjuma had paid for the purchase of an aircraft. His cheque bounced! The order to withhold payment, he was told by his banker, came from Magu! From what I gathered, it took some time before the president could convince Danjuma that he knew nothing about what was clearly power mongering by a reckless public official. A few weeks before that incident, the Minna residence of former Head of State, General Abdulsalami Abubakar was raided by EFCC operatives who “turned the house upside down”. The president also got to know only after the deed had been done.

While neither Danjuma nor Abdulsalami is above the law, power should never be used to harass and ridicule people, whether high or low. And even where there are justifications, for citizens at that level, these actions should certainly not occur without the president’s knowledge. Besides, a man who would take on the high and mighty in a society like ours, including members of the president’s immediate family, must also live above suspicion. In the past five years, Magu has at different times made claims about the hundreds of billions of Naira recovered from ‘treasury looters’. But subsequent auctions for recovered assets did not follow due process, resulting in choice properties being handed out to suspected cronies. Since Abuja is a city where residents know the dirty secrets of people in power (including who is sleeping with whose spouse), the president was being inundated with petitions that Magu is not above board in his dealings.

Apparently determined to get to the root of these allegations, the president on 22 November 2017 inaugurated a three-member committee to audit all assets recovered by agencies of the federal government from 29th May 2015. Headed by Mr Olufemi Lijadu, who later became the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chairman, the two other members are Mr. Mohammed Nami, the current Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) chairman and Mrs. Gloria Bibigha, a respected accountant in the office of the Auditor General of the Federation who is regarded as a specialist in forensic auditing. “It has become obvious that fundamental gaps still exist in ensuring that the recovered assets are accounted for, and managed in an accurate, transparent and logical manner,” the President told the committee.

It is noteworthy that exactly six days after the committee began its session, the then Senate President, Dr Bukola Saraki publicly accused anti-graft agencies of looting the recovered proceeds. Saraki spoke at the opening session of a “Strategic Retreat on Tracking the Progress of Anti-Corruption Bills”, on why the National Assembly had become “strident about the opacity shrouding the management of recovered funds, which in many cases get re-looted by the agencies that investigated and recovered them”. An ad hoc committee of the Senate, according to Saraki, had “discovered that many properties recovered from a fugitive from the law have not been accounted for by the investigating agency”.

Meanwhile, the Lijadu committee was working quietly in the background, obtaining information from government agencies and seeking clarification for inconsistencies. Although they had been given four months to complete their assignment, the trio of Lijadu, Nami and Bibigha ended up spending ten months, rummaging through thousands of pages of documents in dozens of files from the various agencies. But even before they submitted their report, the then Finance Minister, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, had already noticed discrepancies from the figures that were emerging from their work. She sent Magu a memo seeking clarification on the recoveries “based on the information available to the Office of Accountant-General of the Federation.” According to Adeosun, the attention of her ministry had been drawn to “recovery figures in media reports by the EFCC that do not reconcile with the records of the ministry”, asking Magu to “clarify where these cash recoveries have been deposited and provide accompanying evidence.”

There is no record to show that Magu responded to Adeosun’s memo. But on 11th September 2018, the president formally received the report of the Lijadu committee that raised several unanswered questions about the recovered fixed and movable assets. The Attorney General of the Federation and Justice Minister, Abubakar Malami, SAN, later addressed the media on salient issues in the report. Although he gave no breakdown, Malami said: “In summary, the recovered funds by the three-man committee is N769 billion cash within the period under review”. What Malami did not disclose that day was that there were discrepancies in the EFCC figures and the disposal of some properties were done without transparency.

From that moment, Magu’s fate was sealed. To compound his problem, the president had also received reports from a number of foreign agencies on the “lack of professionalism” by Magu who was said to be in the habit of leaking to the media information that compromises investigations. At home, critical agencies including the Directorate of State Security (DSS) and National Intelligence Agency (NIA) view Magu as a danger to the system because, as a top presidency official told me, “he doesn’t mind bringing down institutions to get at individuals, sometimes just for media adulation”. But in the mutual game of alliances and counter-alliances (often laced with mutual blackmail) used by members of this administration to checkmate one another, Magu remained in office. But despite concerted efforts by members of his own camp to have his name sent to the Senate for confirmation, the president refused to budge.

Meanwhile, the AGF to whose office Magu should ordinarily report (but doesn’t, out of sheer arrogance of power) bided his time before writing a damning memo to the president regarding the report on recovered assets. At the same time, Magu was basking in a false sense of security because he had just recently received approval from the president to auction more than 400 expensive cars forfeited by internet fraudsters. So secure in the fantasy that his name would soon be sent to the Senate for confirmation was Magu that he had begun planning how to dispose through public auction exotic vehicles including Ferraris, Range Rovers and Mercedes. That was before he was upended on Monday afternoon.

I am not a fan of Magu and I stated the reason why in the past, especially given what my late principal, President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua told me about him. Those who may not have read the piece can do so here. I also do not like the cult of personality he has created in EFCC. The ‘Magu Boys’ who throw themselves around within the commission act as though above the law, despite allegations of unwholesome practices against them. And I have in the past five years rebuffed all entreaties from his media minders to meet with him. But the current tragedy raises higher questions about the integrity of institutions and how the cold calculations of factions of the ruling elite can cause rupture within the polity. Besides, I detest the idea of humiliating people out of office, especially by those who themselves are no paragon of virtue. Whatever might have been the excesses of Magu, his current ordeal appears more the culmination of a sinister plot to exact vengeance than any attempt to promote the public good.

On Monday, a member of the Presidential Advisory Committee Against Corruption (PACAC), Prof Femi Odekunle, released a statement which questions not only the entire process but the integrity of the AGF. Odekunle, who claimed to have consulted with other PACAC members, including its chairman, Prof Itse Sagay, SAN, before making the statement said “Malami has been exploiting his alleged loyalty and closeness to the president for his personal /power bloc agenda.” After highlighting a series of corrupt allegations against the AGF, Odekunle stated: “The alleged originating Malami memo, up to the current ’arrest’ seems an outcome of power-play by power blocs in the corridors of power in which Malami appears to be an arrow-head or major agent of a power bloc that is not really interested in, or in support of, Buhari’s anti-corruption fight.”

Although PACAC has distanced itself from Odekunle’s statement, his position represents the dominant view in a body whose members also belong to another ‘power bloc’ that seems to be losing out in this badly divided government. While it is not uncommon to have diverse tendencies within a government, I have never seen one like this where prominent members openly subvert one another without the president calling anyone to order. A March 2018 Senate “Report of the Ad Hoc committee on investigation of the arrest episodes of Tuesday 21st November 2017 among officers of EFCC, NIA and DSS” is illustrative of this state of affairs. The Senate probe followed the scandal in which personnel of the DSS and EFCC were almost exchanging gunshots on the streets of Abuja.

The open altercation, according to the Senate report, “arose from an attempt by EFCC officials to arrest Mr Ayodele Oke (former Director-General of NIA) and Mr Ita Ekpenyong (former Director-General of DSS) and the consequent resistance of NIA and DSS officers guarding their former principals.” With the heads of these security agencies openly attacking one another at the Senate session held in camera, as disclosed in the report, the then DSS Director General, Lawal Daura (who would later be removed by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo in his capacity as acting president) alleged in his written testimony that “The method (brawn instead of brain) deployed by the current EFCC under Magu is a Gestapo style that belongs to dictatorial regimes. The acting chairman runs the agency based on public rumours, maneouvers, gossips, political interferences from certain quarters and Marabouts.”

Now that the Magu saga has reached a denouement, there are several lessons, starting from the manner in which Daura in 2016 openly wrote to the Senate to question the judgement of the President in nominating him for the job. Even if we concede the mischief in that memo, it was obvious from the beginning that Magu lacked both the intellect and temperament to head the EFCC. And the moment the Senate refused to confirm his appointment, the president should have withdrawn his nomination. But whatever may have been his failings, Magu did record concrete achievements given his success in sending a few fat cats to learn from experience the prison conditions in Nigeria. Magu also revived the EFCC and brought in a needed fear factor before he lost his way. Now that it is obvious that the Magu era is over, the issue is about his replacement.

Going forward, there should be an amendment to the EFCC Act to remove the limitation on the pool from which the president can nominate its chairman. The commission should not have to be headed by a serving or retired police officer, as is now the case. As I warned in the past, a Gotcha approach to fighting corruption, which Magu and some of his predecessors seem to favour, can only provide momentary entertainment. What our situation requires is a thorough, methodical and strategic war, anchored on the rule of law. You need people of a different orientation than police personnel for such assignment. Perhaps the tenure should be reduced to one term of four or five years to encourage occupants to put in their best from day one, instead of playing the game of reappointment. This may also be an opportunity for the president to investigate other people in his government who have been accused of sundry acts at odds with his professed agenda and reputation.

More importantly, the call for the reforms of Anti-Corruption Agencies (ACAs) requires urgent attention. In a statement by its Executive Director, Auwal Ibrahim Musa (Rafsanjani), the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC) yesterday advocated that the current system “is prone to mismanagement, embezzlement and political misuse” since there “is no clear framework on who takes custodian of recovered assets and how they are utilized.” The federal government, according to Rafsanjani, “has claimed recoveries of assets worth billions of dollars without accounting (for) who manages these assets, how these assets are utilized and what prevents the re-looting of looted assets.” He added: “The control of lucrative asset recovery ‘business’, confiscations and repatriations has caused inter-agency rivalry among ACAs saddled with the responsibility of fighting corruption.”

Finally, a well-functioning government requires a certain level of cooperation and collaboration between and among senior officials in critical positions. Sadly, that is not the case with this administration. Where mutual suspicions and recriminations run high, as we have witnessed in recent years, the only person who can call a halt is the president. His seeming unwillingness to doing just that has divided the federal government in a manner that jeopardises efforts to tackle pressing challenges. With only two years to go before the 2023 campaigns begin, the administration needs everyone to pull together, not apart, if the president is to deliver on his mandate and cement his legacy.

I hope President Buhari makes a course correction. Before it is too late!

Credit: https://www.thisdaylive.com