An advocacy group has filed a suit to compel the Nigerian Drug and Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) to arrest and prosecute Bola Tinubu, presidential candidate of the ruling All Progressives Congress, over allegations of trafficking narcotics and money laundering in the U.S. back in the late 90s.

Specifically, the Registered Trustees of Center for Reform and Public Advocacy group, prayed the Abuja Division of the Federal High Court to issue an order to the anti-narcotics agency to immediately “initiate legal steps for the prosecution of Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu” per the originating summons seen by Peoples Gazette.

The group asserted it was the NDLEA’s statutory duty to prosecute and weed out drug traffickers in the country.

The suit with reference number FHC/ABJ/CS/2237/2022, filed on December 2, named NDLEA, Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami and Bola Tinubu as the first, second and third defendants.

On September 21, 1993, a federal judge for the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois dismissed the drug and money-laundering charges with prejudice after Mr Tinubu chose to accept a plea deal that required him to forfeit $460,000 in alleged drug trafficking proceeds to the American government.

Although the matter occurred in the late 90s, several Nigerians refuse that the matter be swept under the carpet. They insisted that the former Lagos governor should also stand trial in his home country since he is bidding to occupy the nation’s highest office, a seat that should not be tainted by drug barons and other criminals.

Among such protagonists is Kalu Agu, an Abuja-based lawyer with ties to opposition politics, who has relentlessly sought to hold Mr Tinubu to account over the matter.

Mr Agu has already petitioned the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the NDLEA to look into the matter before next year’s election, in which Mr Tinubu is a top contender.

“It is our view that you have a historic duty to ensure that Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu is called to account for his deeds in money laundering arising from his involvement in narcotics trafficking,” Mr Kalu Agu asserted in the November 8 petitions to the anti-drug and anti-graft agencies.

Bayo Onanuga, Mr Tinubu’s campaign aide, did not immediately return calls and messages sent to his mobile phone for comments on the lawsuit.

Datti Baba-Ahmed, the running mate of the presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, has lashed out at the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress, Bola Tinubu, for dismissing Obi and saying he would not mention his name.

Peter Obi

Baba-Ahmed also accused the APC of anchoring its campaign strategy against Obi on spreading false information across the polity.

He said this on Thursday at a Labour Party press conference held in Abuja.

Baba-Ahmed said, “Earlier attempts to discredit the Obi’s candidacy through fabricated allegations of demolition of mosques, internal deportation of northerners, issuance of ID cards to northerners, and ethnic hostilities were all conclusively proven to be false and without basis.

“As if those were not enough, just a few days ago, the presidential candidate of the APC speaking in Delta State, and referring to our presidential candidate, said that it was a disgrace to mention his name. While our candidate is quite comfortable with not being mentioned, it is most unpresidential, indecorous and disrespectful from the candidate who claims (its) his turn at Nigerian Presidency.

“APCs strategy against Peter Obi now appears very clearly centered on promoting falsehood, in addition to empty and derogatory personal attacks, and of course this is because they can find no contentious points of negativity to push.”

Osun Governor Senator Ademola Adeleke has sacked 12,000 workers and ordered the dethronement of three monarchs barely 24 hours after his inauguration.

The Governor also nullified the appointment of 30 Permanent Secretaries and suspended the chairman and members of
Osun State Independent Electoral Commission (OSIEC).

The affected monarchs include Akinrun of Ikinrun Oba Yinusa Akadiri; Aree of Ire Oba Ademola Oluponle and Owa of Igbajo, Oba Gboyega Famodun. He ordered the monarch to vacate the palace, asking security operatives to take over.

A statement by the Chief Press Secretary to Adeleke, Olawale Rasheed on Monday stated that the new Governor signed the Executives orders which covered chieftaincy matters, appointments issues, setting up of review panel, staff audit and employment matters.”

The release reads: “All employments in the service of Osun State Government made in any capacity into any capacity in all the Ministries, Departments, Agencies, Commissions, Boards and Parastatals after July 17th, 2022 be and are hereby nullified.

“Executive Order number five on Chieftaincy Affairs and appointment of traditional rulers. All appointments of traditional rulers made by Osun State Government after 17th July, 2022, are hereby ordered to be reviewed to ensure there was strict compliance with due process of chieftaincy declarations and native law, custom and tradition relating to such chieftaincies. In the case of Ikirun, Iree and Igbajo, to avoid further breakdown of law and order, the appointments of Akinrun of Ikinrun, Aree of Ire and Owa of Igbajo are hereby put on hold pending review. Subsequently, the palaces of Akinrun of Ikirun, Aree of Iree and Owa of Igbajo should remain unoccupied, while security agencies are hereby ordered to take charge.”

Osun immediate past Governor Adegboyega Oyetola employed over 12,000 workers and appointed 30 permanent secretaries.

A statement by the Secretary to Osun State Government, Tesleem Igbalaye, also announced the suspension of the chairman of the Osun State Independent Electoral Commission (OSIEC), Mr. Segun Oladitan and its members.

Others are: Yusuf Oyeniran, Suibat Adubi, Prince Yinka Ajiboye, Abosede Omibeku, Dosu Gidigbi, and Wahab Adewoyin.

He noted that the suspension was a sequel to several petitions bothering on financial impropriety, dereliction of duty, absenteeism and abuse of office against the said Chairman and members of the Commission.

Godwin Emefiele, the Central Bank of Nigeria’s governor, stated over the weekend that the official foreign exchange receipt from crude oil sales into Nigeria’s official reserves has depleted from over $3.0 billion monthly in 2014 to zero dollar today.

At the 57th annual bankers’ lecture sponsored by the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN) in Lagos on Saturday, Mr Emefiele said there was a significant loss in foreign reserves due to the naira’s struggle and the rise in demand for forex.

Emiefile

He stated that a severe crisis in the Nigerian foreign exchange market is putting pressure on the country’s reserves and suppressing the value of the naira.

“The official foreign exchange receipt from crude oil sales into our official reserves has dried up steadily from above $3.0 billion monthly in 2014 to an absolute zero dollar today,” he said.

The apex bank governor lamented that “increasing instances of crude oil theft have hurt” Nigeria’s ability to export enough crude oil and “consequently, its foreign exchange reserves are falling.”

Mr Emefiele explained that the inflation rate would continue to be high and beyond the 12.5 per cent threshold that supports growth. But he said CBN would maintain the current tight monetary policy stance in the near term amid rising inflation expectations and exchange market pressures.

In the face of a declining supply of foreign currency, market demand for commodities and invisible transactions has continued to rise across various uses.

The CBN governor claimed that the number of student visas granted to Nigerians by the UK alone climbed from an average of approximately 8,000 per year in 2020 to almost 66,000 in 2022, indicating an eight-fold increase to an annual outflow of $2.5 billion in foreign exchange tied to the UK alone.

In the last few days, some loose statements credited to Oby Ezekwesili, former minister of Education and Solid Minerals has circulated . In it she has, as usual, circulated her misconceived and unabated ignorance while casting aspersions at the person of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and the People’s Democratic Party ( PDP). It was another failed attempt to prop herself into relevance having lost integrity and significance arising from her politicisation of the sad incident of the kidnap of Chibok girls, which Oby exploited to herself by engaging in a failed presidential ambition that ended unceremoniously after serious accusations of corruption and under dealings.

It is convenient for the self-styled ‘madam due process’ to castigate Atiku and PDP today, but the fact remains that whatever relevance she gained in Nigeria was made possible by the kindness of the People’s Democratic Party Administration that gave her opportunity to operate at the highest level of governance.

It is the style of Oby to surreptitiously campaign for one candidate and run than another. She did it for APC in 2015. In the current campaign she has already expressed preference for Peter Obi, but rather than join her preference to campaign she has as usual resorted to gorilla tactics to run down Atiku and PDP as a strategy for promoting her interest. This method has failed, and has become as irrelevant as Oby whose voice on national issues has become muffled, attenuated and impotent.

All the accusations about the trumped up financial dealings of Atiku as Vice President have become mere gossip and gutter charters having been eroded over time by unsubstantiated allegations. It is even more ridiculous that Atiku’s University which is striving and waxing stronger is brought into the fray. Wisdom and intelligence should make any discerning person to avoid escallating that an issue, because if the projection was that the survival of the University was tied to Atiku’s presence in public office and Atiku has been out of office for over 15 years and the University is running, where is the relevance of this accusation? It is simply unreasonable. However, it is understandable to still press that line of argument, because to the unreasonable everything is reasonable.

Oby Ezekwesili has lost her moral and social relevance. Her outing in the Ministry of Education and Ministry of Solid Minerals were monumental disasters. With Atiku as Vice President and actively engaged in the economy Nigeria recorded one of its most prosperous periods in Nigeria’s history. It is the same record that Atiku seeks to recreate. Atiku will not be distracted by armchair and nepotic critics like Oby. This is because Atiku as a focused man has long realised that those going somewhere are often distracted by those who are going nowhere.