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CBN under Emefiele awarded contracts to his wife, her relative, says EFCC witness

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Agboro Omowera, an investigator with the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), says 10 officials of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), including Godwin Emefiele, former governor of the bank, minuted on documents approving the award of multi-million naira contracts to two companies.

Omowera spoke on Monday when he appeared as a witness for the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) before a federal capital territory (FCT) high court in Maitama, Abuja.

Emefiele is facing a 20-count amended charge bordering on alleged criminal breach of trust, forgery, conspiracy to commit forgery, procurement fraud and conspiracy to commit a felony.

The EFCC accused Emefiele of using his position to confer a corrupt advantage on April 1616 Investment Limited, a company owned by Saadatu Yaro, a staff of the CBN and another company, Architekon Nigeria Limited.

The former CBN governor was also alleged to have conferred a corrupt advantage on his wife, Margaret, and brother-in-law by approving payments in favour of Architekon Nigeria Ltd, where both of them are directors.

Giving evidence as the seventh prosecution witness at the court session on Monday, Omowera said 10 persons acted on the documents with which the contracts were awarded.

He told the court that Yaro’s company got the contract to supply over 45 Toyota Hilux Vehicles to the CBN, with the prices ranging from N854,700,000, to N99,900,000.

Though the witness admitted that Emefiele did not award any contract to himself, he said his team discovered that the company where his wife owned majority shares started enjoying the patronage of the CBN after the defendant became its governor in 2014.

Asked why only Emefiele was singled out for trial since other officials of the apex bank approved the contracts, the witness said it was probably because he was the head of CBN at the time and the buck stopped at his table.

“There are 10 minutes and one approval, so one person takes the responsibility,” he said.

“He (Emefiele) is the head of the CBN and the buck stops on his table.”

Speaking further about the contracts, the witness stated that April 1616 Investment Limited was incorporated a few days after Yaro’s employment with the CBN.

He noted that she was posted to the CBN Lagos office.

“In 2018, the company started to enjoy the patronage of the CBN in the procurement of particular vehicles, Toyota branded motors,” he said.

“During the period, this company was awarded about 45 different contracts.

“My lord, we were curious as investigators, how it was possible for a company that has no track record to continually win bids against Toyota-accredited bids.

“We tried to confirm whether this company was accredited by Toyota and to our surprise, it was not among the accredited bidders.”

Under cross-examination by Mathew Burkaa, counsel to Emefiele, the witness said the former CBN governor did not confer corrupt advantage on himself.

Asked if his team interviewed other persons at the CBN to determine whether the contracts were executed, the witness said they did, but that he could not remember if the execution of the contracts was part of what was contained in their investigative report.

The witness further admitted that he did not visit the CBN governor’s residence in Lagos during the investigation to determine whether the contract that was awarded to Architecom Nigeria Ltd was executed or not.

He equally admitted that Emefiele was not a shareholder, director or signatory to the bank accounts belonging to either April 1616 or Architecom.

The trial has been adjourned to April 25 for continuation.

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Enugu government account not hacked — reports on missing N1.09bn baseless, says Police

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The Nigeria Police Force (NPF) has denied claims that the account of the Enugu state government was hacked.

There were reports that Osita Onuma, a suspected cyber criminal, infiltrated the financial system of the Enugu state government and stole about N1,097,700,300 from the account.

In a statement on Friday, Olumuyiwa Adejobi, force public relations officer, said the report is false and “completely unfounded”.

“There has been no hacking of the Enugu State Government’s account, and the allegations of a theft amounting to N1.09 billion are entirely baseless,” the statement reads.

“The case, which was investigated by the NPF-National Cyber Crime Centre (NCCC), was a case of procurement fraud, not a cyber-breach. The suspect has been arrested in connection with this fraud, and the funds have already been recovered.

“The Enugu State Government and other ministries, departments, and agencies of government and corporate firms are in partnership with the NCCC and have established comprehensive and fortified security protocols to safeguard their financial systems.

“Citizens are hereby encouraged to refrain from engaging in misinformation and to always verify the credibility of news sources.”

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DSS arrests blogger for cloning agency’s website, advertising fake recruitment

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The Department of State Services has arrested a 32-year-old blogger, identified as Augustus, for cloning its official website and posting a fake recruitment notice.

The suspect, from Akwa Ibom State, was apprehended on Thursday at his residence on Akpan Eno Lane in Abak.

According to DSS sources, Augustus, a graduate of the University of Uyo and a content creator, cloned the agency’s website to deceive unsuspecting Nigerians into believing the DSS was conducting a recruitment exercise.

“Augustus, a native of Abak Local Government Area in Akwa Ibom State, was tracked and arrested by our operatives on Thursday at his residence.

“He claimed to be a graduate of the University of Uyo, a blogger, and a content creator. Augustus had cloned the DSS website, where he created a fake online recruitment notice, seemingly with the intent to defraud unsuspecting members of the public,” the source stated.

An anonymous source commented, “One Augustus was arrested on Thursday at his residence. His actions were aimed at defrauding the public.”

The fake notice was flagged as false by the DSS, which quickly issued a warning to Nigerians not to fall victim to such fraudulent activities.

Augustus is expected to be arraigned in court soon to face charges related to his alleged activities.

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Lagos state government demolishes structures blocking drainages in Langbasa, Orchid Road

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The Lagos State Government has demolished structures obstructing drainage systems along the Langbasa-Jehovah Witness-Ramota drainage alignment in Langbasa and on Orchid Road, both in Eti-Osa Local Government Area.

The demolition exercise was carried out by the Drainage Enforcement and Compliance Department of the Lagos State Ministry of Environment and Water Resources.

This operation is part of the state’s ongoing efforts to ensure the free flow of rainwater and reduce flooding risks in Eti-Osa and other parts of Lagos.

The update was announced by Tokunbo Wahab, Lagos State Commissioner for Environment and Water Resources, through a post on his official X (formerly Twitter) account on Thursday.

“Earlier today, the operatives of the Drainage Enforce and Compliance Department of the Ministry commenced removal of contraventions along Langbasa-Jehovah witness-Ramot Giwa drainage alignment, Langbasa, Eti-Osa LGA, and also contraventions along Orchid road,” Wahab’s post read in part.

The commissioner’s post was accompanied by two video clips showing a bulldozer tearing down structures, including perimeter fences, a standalone column, and a small building. Additionally, pictures shared in the post highlighted the aftermath of the demolition, revealing cleared areas where the contravening structures once stood.

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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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