NEWS
Dangote: EFCC raid could hurt economy, scare investors – Reps member, Ikenga
A member of the House of Representatives, representing Ideato North/South Federal Constituency, Hon. Ikenga Ugochinyere Ikeagwuonu has expressed concerns over the raid of the headquarters of the Dangote Group by operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC.
The EFCC had on Thursday raided the headquarters of the Dangote Group in connection with ongoing investigation into forex allocations in the country.
It was reported that on arrival at the headquarters of the Dangote group in Lagos, the EFCC operatives demanded documents relating to allocation of foreign exchange to the group in the last ten years.
They then scrutinised the documents provided by officials of the Group for hours, carting some of them away.
Reacting to the development, Ugochinyere, who is the Chairman, House Committee on Petroleum Resources, Downstream, said the raid was capable of worsening the economic situation in the country and scaring investors.
In a statement made available to World Wide Gist on Friday, the lawmaker said raiding one of the largest conglomerates in Africa at a time when the nation was grappling to save its fragile economy, was a wrong move which would further erode efforts to stabilise the economy.
Ugochinyere said, “I read about the raid of the headquarters of the Dangote Group in connection with ongoing investigation into forex allocations in the country.
“The EFCC was reported to be investigating forex allocations to some companies during the tenure of Godwin Emefiele as Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
“I’m of the view that the timing of the raid on Dangote Group is not only very suspicious, but most importantly capable of worsening the economic situation and scaring investors.
“In the last few months, our nation has lost so many foreign investors. While some of the foreign companies operating in the country are leaving, potential investors are also sidelining us.
“Now you have the EFCC raiding the headquarters of the largest industrial conglomerates in West Africa.
“This is not good for us internationally. What will the international community think of Nigeria when they read about news like this? Dangote Group’s impact for decades has been felt through various facets of Nigeria’s economy.
“And given our current fragile economic situation, I believe this move by the EFCC will worsen things.
“Now is not the time for this; it’s time for the nation to focus on integration of African economies and expansion of trade and investments across the continent to stimulate growth and create employment opportunities.”
The Chairman of Abia State Judicial Panel of Inquiry on the recovery of Government Property and Funds, Justice Florence Doruoha-Igwe (Rtd) has issued a Bench Warrant on Anthony Agbazuere and Don Ubani, who served as Chief of Staff and Deputy Chief of Staff, respectively, to former Governor Okezie Ikpeazu.
This is even as Don Ubani has said that he never received any invitation from the panel.
The Bench Warrant on Agbazuere according to Justice Duruoha-Igwe was because of his alleged failure to appear before the Panel to give evidence in respect to a Toyota Hilux Land Cruiser alleged to be in his possession since he left office.
Justice Doruoha-Igwe (Rtd) who adjourned the matter to January 24, 2024, directed that Agbazuere should be arrested and produced for further cross examination.
The Panel said that the Bench warrant on the former Deputy Chief of Staff to former Governor Okezie Ikpeazu, Don Ubani, was because of his alleged failure to appear before the Panel and his inability to file a response to a notice served him on 30th of November, 2023.
Speaking before adjourning the matter to 24th of this month, the Chairman Justice Doruoha-Igwe (Rtd) directed that Ubani should be arrested and produced on January 24, 2024, to defend himself.
But reacting to the development, the former Deputy Chief of Staff to former Governor Okezie Ikpeazu, Don Ubani said he was shocked to read that a Bench Warrant had been issued on him, saying that he was never invited by the Panel.
“I am shocked to read that a Bench Warrant could be issued on me without ever being invited to a Panel either by writing or even through a telephone call,” said Ubani who also described the arrest order as ‘false propaganda and political witch-hunt’.
But the former Deputy Chief of Staff also promised to appear before the Panel of Enquiry if he received an invitation.
The National Judicial Council, NJC, has clarified that no date has yet been fixed for the swearing-in of the newly appointed eleven Justices of the Supreme Court.
The Council said that the purported news by an Abuja based media organization suggesting Monday January 16 for the inauguration of the Justices did not emanate from it.
A statement by the NJC’s Director of Information, Barrister Soji Oye clarified that neither the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Hon Justice Olukayode Ariwoola, who is the NJC Chairman, nor the Council itself authored or endorsed the purported date.
While asking members of the public to disregard the news, the NJC said that the date for the swearing-in of the Justices would be made public at the appropriate time.
NJC’s statement read in part, “The attention of the National Judicial Council has been drawn to a trending story purportedly informing the public that the newly appointed 11 Supreme Court Justices would be sworn in on Monday 16 January 2023.
“The Council by this medium expressly denies the news as it did not emanate from the Council or the Office of the Chief Justice of Nigeria and Chairman of the National Judicial Council, Hon. Justice Olukayode Ariwoola.
“The date for the swearing-in of the Justices will be made public at the appropriate time. Members of the public should please disregard the trending news.”
The Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria, MACBAN, Kaduna State, has demanded a probe of alleged extra-judicial killing of their members.
WORLD WIDE GIST recalls that an online report alleged that 11 decomposing corpses of Fulani natives, from Tulde Fulbe, Ladduga Grazing Reserve in Kachia Local Government Area of Kaduna State, were on Monday discovered in a forest.
They were alleged to have been killed by the Nigerian Army.
But the Headquarters, 1 Division of the Nigerian Army, in a statement on Thursday night, by Lt. Col Musa Yahaya, Acting Deputy Director, Army Public Relations, denied involvement of the Army in the said killing.
However, in a statement by MACBAN Kaduna chairman, Haruna Usman Tugga, he insisted that the organisation as an umbrella body of Fulbe in Nigeria received with serious concern the information.
The statement condemned what they described as “extra-judicial killing of law-abiding Fulbe youths of Tilde Fulbe community and other areas of Ladduga Grazing Reserve in Kachia Local Government Area of the state by military personnel at Kachia, headquarters of Kachia Local Government Area of Kaduna State.”
He said they called an emergency executive meeting of the association to get to the root of the matter and find out the remote causes, perpetrators and names of the victims.
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