News
NDDC debunks alleged plan to delay inauguration of board
The Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) says a claim by a group alleging plans by the agency’s management to frustrate the reconstitution of the NDDC board is baseless.
On Wednesday, TheCable had reported how Buhari asked the senate to confirm Lauretta Onochie, his aide on social media, as the substantive chairman of the NDDC board.
Citing a statement by the Niger Delta Alliance for Economic Survival, a group which had accused officials of the NDDC of plans to delay the new board, the commission described the claim as false.
In a statement by Ibitoye Abosede, NDDC’s corporate affairs director, the commission said Emmanuel Audu-Ohwavborua, its acting MD, did not enter into an agreement with lawmakers to delay the board appointment.
“This attempt to feast on an imagined scandal fits into the mold of previous efforts by certain individuals and groups to return the NDDC to the inglorious past of corruption and mismanagement,” the statement reads.
“As the politics and campaigns for 2023 elections heat up, it is possible that these campaigns of calumny, blackmail and subterfuge will become even more urgent and strident.
“These characters, who are working against the interest of the people of the Niger Delta region, would be wishing for the Commission to be reduced to a cash cow.
“Unfortunately, for them, President Buhari will not allow them to put their hands in the till. Rather, he has directed the Attorney-General of the Federation to look into the recommendations of the forensic audit and prepare a White Paper to guide the government on how best to reposition the NDDC before a new board is inaugurated.
“We want to state unequivocally that the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Obong Umana Okon Umana, as the NDDC supervising Minister, has laid out a roadmap for regeneration of the Commission.
“Only recently, the Minister told NDDC management and staff when he visited the Commission, that pending issues such as the absence of a board have been addressed. He stated: ‘Mr. President has transmitted the names of members of the board to the Senate and I do know that on resumption the Senate would act on it.’
“We urge all our stakeholders to disregard the antics of those peddling falsehood in the hope of scuttling the repositioning and transformation taking place in NDDC.”
The Edo State Governor, Monday Okpebholo, has approved free bus services for the people of the state through the Edo City Transport Service.
In a press statement on Tuesday issued by the Chief Press Secretary to the governor, Fred Itua, the initiative is part of the Okpebholo administration’s drive to entrench his policy direction.
The free bus service, according to the statement, will cover Benin metropolis and the three Senatorial Districts of the state (Intra and Intercity routes) and is part of the governor’s commitment to enhance the welfare of all Edo people.
The statement added, “The bus services will ease the transportation stress. Our people who plan to move around within the Benin metropolis and out will be able to do that without any extra financial burdens.
“Edo Central, like Ekpoma, Iruekpen, Irrua, Uromi, and other places, are also part of the routes the free transportation services will cover.
“Edo North is fully captured. Agbede, Auchi, Okpella, Fugar, and other parts of Edo North are covered in the free transportation scheme of Governor Monday Okpebholo.”
The federal capital territory (FCT) high court has remanded Yahaya Bello, former governor of Kogi, in the custody of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
Bello was arraigned on a 16-count charge bordering on alleged money laundering on Wednesday.
He pleaded not guilty to all the charges.
The immediate past Governor of Kogi State, Alhaji Yahaya Bello, on Wednesday, pleaded not guilty to a 16-count charge the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, preferred against him.
Bello was docked before trial Justice Maryann Anenih of a High Court of the Federal Capital Territory sitting at Maitama, alongside two other defendants, Umar Oricha and Abdulsalami Hudu.
The defendants were accused of complicity in a N110billion fraud.
It will be recalled that the erstwhile governor’s whereabouts remained unknown till yesterday when he surrendered himself after a protracted hide-and-seek game between him and the anti-graft agency.
Dressed in white caftan and blue cap, Bello, mounted the dock around 9:45am.
The charge against the defendants, marked: CR/7781, borders on conspiracy, criminal breach of trust and possession of unlawfully obtained property.
Specifically, the EFCC alleged that the former governor misused state funds to acquire properties, including No. 35 Danube Street, Maitama District, Abuja (N950 million), No. 1160 Cadastral Zone C03, Gwarimpa II District, Abuja (N100 million), and No. 2 Justice Chukwudifu Oputa Street, Asokoro, Abuja (N920 million).
Other properties the defendants allegedly acquired with funds stolen from the Kogi state treasury, included Block D Manzini Street, Wuse Zone 4, Abuja (N170 million), Hotel Apartment Community: Burj Khalifa, Dubai (Five Million, Six Hundred and Ninety-Eight Thousand, Eight Hundred and Eighty-Eight Dirhams), Block 18, Gwelo Street, Wuse Zone 4, Abuja (N60 million), and No. 9 Benghazi Street, Wuse Zone 4, Abuja (N310.4 million).
More so, the defendants were accused of transferring $570,330 and $556,265 to TD Bank, USA, and possessing unlawfully obtained property, including N677.8 million from Bespoque Business Solution Limited.
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Yahaya Bello pleads not guilty to N110bn fraud charges
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Bodex F. Hungbo, SPMIIM is a multiple award-winning Nigerian Digital Media Practitioner, Digital Strategist, PR consultant, Brand and Event Expert, Tv Presenter, Tier-A Blogger/Influencer, and a top cobbler in Nigeria.
She has widespread experiences across different professions and skills, which includes experiences in; Marketing, Media, Broadcasting, Brand and Event Management, Administration and Management with prior stints at MTN, NAPIMS-NNPC, GLOBAL FLEET OIL AND GAS, LTV, Silverbird and a host of others
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