N69bn alleged fraud: Chief Judge transfers Fayose’s trial to another judge

NEWS

N69bn alleged fraud: Chief Judge transfers Fayose’s trial to another judge

 

The Chief Judge (CJ) of the Federal High Court on Friday transferred the trial of the former Governor of Ekiti State, Ayodele Fayose, charged with alleged N6.9 billion fraud, to a new judge.

The CJ, Justice Adamu Abdu-Kafarati, transferred the case from the former judge, Justice Mojisola Olatoregun, to Justice Chukwujekwu Aneke.

The action, followed a petition by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), seeking a transfer of the case.

Fayose was arraigned on Oct. 22, 2018, by the EFCC, alongside a company, Spotless Investment Ltd, on 11 counts bordering on fraud and money laundering offence.

He had pleaded not guilty to the charge and was granted bail on Oct. 24, 2018, in the sum of N50 million with sureties in like sum, while the prosecution opened trial on Nov. 19, and had so far called 13 witnesses out of 15 listed.

On March 20, a drama ensued in court midway into the trial, between the trial judge, and EFCC counsel, Mr Rotimi Jacobs, SAN.

The judge raised concerns on the manner of prosecution by counsel, and had noted that the prosecutor was not doing a good job, adding that he was not competent to evaluate the court’s ruling.

On his part, the prosecutor expressed his displeasure on the grounds that he had always dispensed his duties diligently and had never been derogated by any court.

Meanwhile, at the last proceedings on May 10, the 13th prosecution witness, Mr Adewale Aladegbola, a former driver of a bullion van, had given evidences which the prosecutor described as being contrary to his extrajudicial statement to the commission.

On this premise, the prosecutor informed the court that his witness appeared “hostile” and urged the court to adjourn the case to enable him make necessary application on the situation.

Continuation of trial was billed to resume on June 10.

However, the CJ conveyed the transfer of the case from Justice Olatoregun to Justice Aneke, by a letter dated May 23, a copy of which was obtained by newsmen,NAN reports.

The CJ said: “I refer to the petition of EFCC on this case and your Lordship’s comments thereto.

“It is apparent that the prosecution has lost confidence in the judge trying this case and justice must not only be done but must be seen to have been done, I hereby transfer this case to Hon. Justice C. J. Aneke for hearing.”

A new date for the case before Aneke has however not been confirmed.

The matter will consequently begin afresh before the new judge, as the defendant will take his plea again.

During the trial before Olatoregun, the prosecution had called witnesses, from Zenith Bank, Diamond Bank, as well as a former Minister of State for Defence, Sen. Musiliu Obanikoro.

According to the charge, on June 17, 2014, Fayose and Agbele were said to have taken possession of the sum of N1.2 billion, for purposes of funding his gubernatorial election campaign in Ekiti State, which sum they reasonably ought to have known formed part of crime proceeds.

Fayose was alleged to have received a cash payment of five million dollars, (about N1.8 billion) from the then Minister of State for Defence, Sen. Musiliu Obanikoro, without going through any financial institution and which sum exceeded the amount allowed by law.

He was also alleged to have retained the sum of N300 million in his Zenith Bank account and took control of the aggregate sums of about N622 million which sum he ought to have known formed part of crime proceeds.

Fayose was alleged to have procured De Privateer Ltd and Still Earth Ltd, to retain in their Zenith and FCMB accounts, the aggregate sums of N851 million which they reasonably ought to have known formed part of crime proceeds.

Besides, the accused was alleged to have used about N1.6 billion to acquire properties in Lagos and Abuja, which he reasonably ought to have known formed part of crime proceeds.

The accused was also alleged to have used the sum of N200 million, to acquire a property in Abuja, in the name of his elder sister, Moji Oladeji, which sum he ought to know also forms crime proceeds.

The offence contravened the provisions of sections 15(1), 15 (2), 15 (3), 16(2)(b), 16 (d), and 18 (c) of the Money Laundering Prohibition Act 2011.

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Ekiti state University student attempts suicide over his failure in one of his courses (photo)

NEWS

Ekiti state University student attempts suicide over his failure in one of his courses (photo)

 

A final year Accounting student of the Ekiti State University who was involved in the mass failure in one of the courses, attempted suicide yesterday Wednesday June 5th.

According to Lere Olayinka, an aide of former governor of the state Ayo Fayose, the student was rushed to the Ekiti State University Teaching Hospital (EKSUTH), Ado Ekiti where doctors are currently battling to save his life.

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Ekiti: How Fayose caused PDP’s failure in guber election – Officials

POLITICS

Ekiti: How Fayose caused PDP’s failure in guber election – Officials

 

Officials of the Ekiti State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, has blamed the party’s failure in the last governorship election in the state on the immediate past governor, Ayodele Fayose.

The party chieftains said Fayose’s alleged dictatorial tendencies and high handedness in running the affairs of the party without consultation caused the party’s defeat in the last election.

The allegation was contained in a report jointly signed by PDP Ekiti State Repositioning Committee Chairman and Secretary Hon. Kehinde Odebunmi and Hon. Oladipo Ebenezer respectively and presented to concerned Party’s Stakeholders on Thursday at Ifaki-Ekiti area of the state, The Nation reports.

The stakeholders said the State Working Committee of the party was a titular body which was never in control of the party’s affairs but was being teleguided by the former governor.

According to the report: “We submit that imposition of candidate in our party, PDP is inimical to the progress our party. That this has bred indiscipline among members and has caused low morale among the discipline members.

“That the former governor, Ayo Fayose campaigned against the PDP and its candidate in the last election and he has not been checked or sanctioned by the party’s NWC.

“That the stakeholders resolved that the status of the party secretariat which is under construction should be disclosed by the SWC of our party to all party members in Ekiti State.

“That the PDP were all aware is the party to beat in Ekiti State but has to be restructured and allow discipline to remain supreme.”

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Ekiti: PDP group attacks Gov. Fayemi over sack of 2000 workers employed by Fayose

POLITICS

Ekiti: PDP group attacks Gov. Fayemi over sack of 2000 workers employed by Fayose

 

The Ekiti State Chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party National News Media Group, PDP-NNMG, has condemned in strong terms, the retrenchment of about 2000 workers employed into Teaching and Civil Services of the State during the immediate past Peter Ayodele Fayose’s administration.

The group described John Kayode Fayemi’s action as one filled with vile, hate, wickedness and vendetta, adding that the Governor must be reminded about the ephemeral nature of power and authority.

It said that it was only a matter of time before the Governor’s alleged heinous actions are brought under review since nothing lasts forever.

The group said Ekiti State has never been so divided since its creation, stressing that the seed of discord being allegedly sowed among indigenes of the singular most homogeneous state in Nigeria by the governor be stopped forthwith.

It would be recalled that the Ayo Fayose administration recruited about 2000 junior and senior workers to fill vacancies in the state government workforce in an exercise advertised long before the July 21st governorship election.

Governor Fayemi however in a statement signed yesterday by his chief press secretary, Laolu Oyebode, declared the exercise null and void claiming that the recruitment was done to throw his government off balance.

In a statement released on Thursday, Ekiti State Coordinator of the PDP-NNMG, Bola Agboola said the retrenchment is one devilish act too many.

He said, “Governor Fayemi has for the umpteenth time proved his viciousness by pronouncing 2000 breadwinners hapless and helpless!

“Fayemi is known for attempting to undermine and dwarf his predecessors’ achievements, you would recall this was the same way he scrapped University of Science and Technology, Ifaki which was the hallmark of Engr. Segun Oni’s administration.

“Fayemi would have demolished Fayose’s 1.3km flyover if he had had his way. Today, the Oja Oba that was about 95% completed before Fayose left office in 2018 has been abandoned. In 2010, Fayemi sent packing duly elected local government executive members and counsellors across the 16 LGA of the state, he repeated same in 2018 after rigging his way to the government house a second time.

“It is a known fact that Fayemi was behind the case instituted against Ekiti State government under former governor Ayo Fayose by landowners in communities where an airport would have been constructed for the state, Fayemi through his aides castigated the construction of the proposed airport but today he’s setting machinery in motion to build one, that’s Fayemi’s kind of person.

“One would have thought that an electoral robber who does not enjoy the support of majority of the citizenry would thread softly with caution, same is not the case for our kinsman whose innate tendency for crass ungodliness, profanity and profligacy will not allow not to lead a chorus where he is not wanted”.

Agboola further stated that “there is no gainsaying Dr. Kayode Fayemi represents the very worst of Ekiti people. He is full of hatred for the Ekiti people, very vindictive, callous and deadly. Or what offence did those 2000 workers he sacked yesterday commit? Must he wait till they have spent 8 months wasting their money and precious time working without salary for the government before telling them to stop?

“Why didn’t he sack them before the presidential and National Assembly elections? Why didn’t he sack them before the state assembly election? Because he knew the hue and cry won’t allow his rigging the elections sail through without challenge? Fayemi is heartless!”

Ekiti State chapter of the PDP-NNMG hereby call on the 2000 workers not to despair but to be strong and of good courage as the Pharaoh they see today, they will see no more. We urge you to charge this rogue government of the day to court, the lawyers know what to do.

Your sack is temporary, keep your letters of appointment in a very safe place, a responsible government is coming and your case shall be revisited, I assure you your employment will be revalidated as this is never the end of your world, Agboola affirmed.

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Ekiti APC Crisis: Guber Aspirant, Bamidele Reveals Why APC Will Fail In The State

​BREAKING NEWS

Ekiti APC Crisis: Guber Aspirant, Bamidele Reveals Why APC Will Fail In The State

A former member of the House of Representatives, Opeyemi Bamidele, and chieftain of the All Progressives Congress, APC, has identified factors that could cost the party the coming governorship election in Ekiti state.

According to him, the internal crisis within the APC could affect the party’s chances in the governorship poll slated for July 14, this year.

In a statement on Tuesday, Bamidele said the desire of every member of the APC was for the party to reclaim power from the Peoples Democratic Party in the election.

The former lawmaker lamented that the current situation whereby aspirants were making unfavourable comments about one another could shatter such dream.

Bamidele, who is also a governorship aspirant, expressed disappointment over how some of his counterparts had been using the social media and the existing APC platforms to discredit one another.

He said, “I have heard some aspirants branding others as unmarketable. I have heard some describing some notable members and even a national officer as an outsider in the APC.

“All these sinister and deleterious political moves might impede our desire to take over Ekiti, except we begin to see ourselves as one and the time to do that is now.

“Those who still maintain a hard stance after being cautioned by the party’s top hierarchy should be sanctioned. The APC is a party guided by the constitution and it should not trivialise issues that could disunite members, particularly at a time that we are approaching a critical election like this.

“Ekiti and Osun governorship elections are strategic to our party. The polls will determine so many things in our party and it will help in sending a signal that the APC is still very strong, acceptable and remains a movement in the country’s political hemisphere.”

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Lassa Fever Claims 3 Lives In Ekiti

​BREAKING NEWS

Lassa Fever Claims 3 Lives In Ekiti

Three persons have been confirmed dead in a fresh case of Lassa fever in Ekiti.

The Commissioner for Health, Dr Rotimi Ojo, made the disclosure in a statement to NAN, in Ado Ekiti.

He said that five out of the eight new suspected cases in the state tested negative, while one was uncertain, with the last pending as at press time.

Ojo added that the patient that tested positive and two others had passed on.

The commissioner insisted that there was still no cause for alarm in the state as government was taking proactive steps in its surveillance activities.

He gave an assurance that the State Disease Control team had been activated while the process of sensitising the people with jingles and other communication media were ongoing.

Ojo said that similar actions taken during the 2016 outbreak were successful, adding that the epidemic was controlled and the identified patient, who was properly managed, survived.

He said that the three isolation centres located at the Federal Teaching Hospital, Ido Ekiti, Oba Adejuyigbe General Hospital, Ado Ekiti and Ekiti State University Teaching Hospital, Ado Ekiti, were still operational.

The commissioner urged all stakeholders, including health practitioners, teachers, traditional rulers, religious leaders as well as community and opinion leaders, to collaborate with the state government to prevent the spread of the disease.

Ojo also advised residents of the state to avoid self medication and keeping sick people at home, adding that any unusual increase in temperature or fever must be promptly reported to the nearest health facility.

He further urged residents to embrace environmental sanitation practices and general cleanliness

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2019 Election: Fayose, Wike Are Frustrated Because PDP Is Now A Regional Party - VON DG, Okechukwu

BREAKING NEWS

2019 Election: Fayose, Wike Are Frustrated Because PDP Is Now A Regional Party - VON DG, Okechukwu

 

The Director General of the Voice of Nigeria, VON, and a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Osita Okechukwu, has said that the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, is now a regional party.

The APC chieftain also said his party understands the frustration of the likes of Governors Ayodele Fayose and Nyesom Wike of Ekiti and Rivers States.

Speaking with Sun, Osita said the governors were frustrated because the main opposition party was now confined to the South-south and South east.

He, however, insisted that the PDP will also lose the next election woefully in those regions.

According to him, “Our sister political party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), is now a regional party, confined to the South-south and South-east.

“Forget the sound and furry, it is even losing in the South-east, where a lot of people are coming to the reality that the zoning convention gave Ndigbo the fastest route to the presidency with President Muhammadu Buhari’s victory.

“Ndigbo are saying that constitutionally, Buhari is the only northerner who has only four years left in his tenure, that if another northerner wins, he will naturally clamour for eight good years.

“This is real politick. Yes, our great party, the APC and by extension our government, has made some mistakes and some unforced errors; there is no doubt about that. I can’t come here and say all is roses; that will be arrant nonsense.

“In my 40 years of sojourn in the political arena, I have come to know when an incumbent government has enough firewood to get an election food done.

“I know as well that election is a referendum of the incumbent. The APC-led Federal Government has more upsides than downsides; I have re-echoed this in several fora.

“I understand the propaganda of governors Wike and Fayoses of this world. They are saying what we expect them to say in such political quagmire they found themselves. They are desperate and a desperate man makes unguarded statements.”

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Striking EKSU Workers: NANS Threatens Shutting Down Institution. Warns Governor Fayose

BREAKING NEWS

Striking EKSU Workers: NANS Threatens Shutting Down Institution. Warns Governor Fayose

The National Association of Nigerian Students, NANS, South West Zone D, has called on Governor Ayodele Fayose of Ekiti State to attend to the demands of the striking workers of Ekiti State University, EKSU, Ado Ekiti to enable them return to work.

In a statement, in Ado Ekiti yesterday, the students threatened a complete shut down of the state capital should the governor fail to do the needful.

In the statement by NANS Zone D Coordinator, Lukman Adebisi Adekitan and Treasurer, Ayodeji Ilesanmi Amoran, NANS lamented that the current disruption in the academic calendar of the institution “will automatically become impossible for them to participate in the NYSC mobilisation process.”

The students also demanded reduction in school fees in the state-owned tertiary institutions, namely EKSU, College of Education, Ikere Ekiti and College of Health Technology, Ijero-Ekiti and called for outright stoppage of “acceptance fees” in the institutions.

NANS said: “An acceptance fee is a fraud. We are against N50,000 and N100,000 acceptance fees in EKSU; N50,000 in College of Health Technology, Ijero and N35,000 in College of Education, Ikere-Ekiti.

“Acceptance fee is against the masses. We also demand immediate resumption of academic activities in our striking institutions in Ekiti State.”

NANS vowed not to accept the “nonchalant attitude shown by the state government to the sector particularly the tertiary institutions in the state.”

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