APC National Youth Leader Salutes Sen. Kalu On Resumption Of Duty

The National Vice Chairman(S/E) APC National Youth Caucus (APCNYC) Engr Emma Uche Adimoha has congratulated the Senate Chief Whip, Senator Orji Uzor Kalu on his resumption of duty after six months absence.

Recall that Kalu was convicted on allegations bordering on corruption, a judgement upturned by the Supreme Court which later paved way for his freedom.

Engr. Adimoha also extolled the senator’s leadership style in representing his people.

In a release on Thursday, he expressed gratitude to those who stood by the former Abia governor during his moment of trials.

“I write to felicitate with and congratulate His Excellency the former Governor of Abia State and the Chief Whip of the Nigerian Senate, Sen. Orji Uzor Kalu who is ably representing the good people of Abia North Senatorial District at the 9th Senate on his victory over the unjust and unlawful incarceration he suffered and the triumphant resumption of his duties at the senate.

“I wish to encourage our able senator to remain strong, steadfast and undeterred in his efforts to bring about Quality Leadership, Good Representation, Justice and Rule of Law, Social, Economic and Human Capital Development to our people. And To understand the positive lessons of his recent experience and also to utilize them, because this past predicament is a sign of greater things to come.

“I am also grateful to the Supreme Court for standing on Justice and the Rule of Law and nullifying the judgment of the Federal High Court that erred in convicting the Senate Chief Whip.

“For all that stood by the senator, my appreciations and thanks to you as I also encourage you to continue to support our able senator, his Ideologies and also to Keep Hope Alive for the future is sure brighter.

“A blessed Welcome to you the Sun King, The OUK Of Africa, The Nationalist of our time, a man without segregation, a father, brother and friend to all” he said.

©ABN TV

Four Years Of Illegality: Buhari Govt Repeatedly Violates Nigerian Laws Over Sacked Army Officers

Among Nigeria’s national honourees in 2012 was an army officer, Mohammed Suleiman, then a colonel. He had earlier that year helped foil a Boko Haram terrorist attack on Aso Rock Villa in what is now home to President Muhammadu Buhari, having “discovered and penetrated” the cell tasked to carry out what would have been a major blow to Nigeria. The key planner of that foiled act of terrorism was a police sergeant, identified as Babagana, according to army records seen.

Mr Suleiman was so key to Nigeria’s counter-terrorism efforts that his deployments for services abroad, for instance in Darfur and Washington, were repeatedly cancelled and, in another case, he was recalled from Command and Staff College, Jaji, as directing staff, to help track a globally wanted terrorist, Adam Kambar.
He initiated the creation of the Civilian Joint Task Force (CJTF) and controlled their activities in Borno State, before collaborating with 3rd Division of the Army to have Civilian JTF in Adamawa State. He was key to the “arrest of and appropriate provision of information on the first successfully prosecuted Boko Haram pioneer spokesman, Umar Sanda Kodunga.”

Even before Boko Haram gained notoriety and when they were covertly building a base in Bauchi, he was responsible for “discovering, penetrating and profiling” the group. In 2009, he led the joint army/police team that cleared and arrested “377 terrorists with scores killed with no casualty to own troops.”

All these about Mr Suleiman were documented in his official service records with the Nigerian Army. However, for four years, he has been up in a legal battle with the military after he and 37 other senior officers were forcibly and illegally removed from service.

In separate judgements, Mr Suleiman and five of the affected officers have won the cases they initiated to challenge their forced retirement by the military authorities. In ordering their reinstatement, the National Industrial Court has six times held that the Military acted unlawfully. While the attention of the Buhari government has repeatedly been called to this matter, But authorities have continued to ignore the court and its decisions.

It is one of Nigeria’s worst cases of arbitrariness, disregard for the court and shabby treatment of her heroes.
One of the officers, Ojebo Ochankpa, died in 2017 while awaiting justice. Their statutory appeal for redress to President Muhammadu within 30 days of their sack, and other letters subsequently, have neither been acknowledged nor replied to.

The Industrial Court Complex

THE ILLEGAL COMPULSORY RETIREMENT

On June 9, 2016, each of the 38 officers woke to an army letter by email. They had been compulsorily retired from service.

“It was absolutely unexpected as I had not gone through any disciplinary process,” said Abdulfatai Mohammed, then a Lt. Colonel, and one of the 38 affected officers. “I was never queried, nor was there any indictment.”

In the letters to the affected officers, their compulsory retirement was hinged on “provisions of Paragraph 09.02c (4) of the Harmonised Terms and Conditions of Service for Officers 2012 (Revised)”.

The referenced section – 09.02c (4) – of the Harmonised Terms and Conditions of Service for Officers 2012 (Revised), shows the officers were laid off “on disciplinary grounds i.e. serious offence(s)”.

Emphasizing “service exigencies” and that the “military must remain apolitical and professional at all times,” then army spokesperson, Sani Usman, now a retired brigadier-general, on June 10, 2016, released a statement, disclosing what could have constituted the “serious offences” which warranted the 38 officers to be compulsorily retired.

“It should be recalled that not too long ago some officers were investigated for being partisan during the 2015 general elections,” the statement then read. “Similarly, the investigation by the Presidential Committee investigating Defence Contracts revealed a lot. Some officers have already been arraigned in court by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).”

However, contrary to the claim by the army, our investigations showed that only a few of the affected officers were queried, tried and indicted.
Others, like Mr Suleiman and Mr Mohammed, had their careers abruptly cut short for reasons that smacked of high-level arbitrariness, pettiness, witch-hunting and partisanship by authorities of the Army.

While officers cleared by either arms procurement panel or election panel were retired, others who were not questioned at all were also sent away.

Highly placed sources in the army told PREMIUM TIMES that of the major generals affected, only one – E.D. Atewe (N/7674) – faced a panel and was indicted. Mr Atewe was indicted by the presidential arms probe panel, and he is currently being prosecuted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.
Although S.D. Aliyu (N/7711); M.Y. Aliyu (N/8114) GOC 7 Division; Fatai Alli, (N/7914) a former Director of Operations in the Army, also faced the presidential arms panel, they were cleared. Yet they were laid off for “serious offence”, the army claimed.

National Industrial Court, Abuja
Five other Major Generals – L. Wiwa (N/7665), who is the late Ken Saro-Wiwa’s brother; Nwokoro Ijeoma (N/8304) whose reinstatement was ordered by the industrial court last year; T.C Ude (N/7866); L.C. Ilo (N/8320); O. Ejemau (N/8340) were neither queried nor indicted by any panel.
Brigadier Generals sacked because of suspected loyalties

The cases of the affected brigadier generals were not different; only one of them – A.I Onibasa (N/9072), was indicted by the presidential panel on arms procurement. Sources told PREMIUM TIMES that the remaining 10 brigadiers were simply retired because they were suspected to be have failed to help the Buhari regime to power in 2015.
For instance, two officers were laid off because of their ties to the former National Security Adviser, Sambo Dasuki, our sources said.

The two officers – A.S.H. Sa’ad (N/8392), who was at the Directorate of Military Intelligence; and Mormoni Bashir (N/8396), former principal staff officer to Mr Dasuki – were retired without indictment. Although, Mr. Sa’ad faced a panel, he was not found to have engaged in any wrongdoing.
For his alleged close ties to a former Army Chief, Kenneth Minimah, D. Abdulsalam (N/9169) was sent away.
Koko Essien (N/8794), a former Brigade Commander, 2 Brigade, Port Harcourt, faced the election panel but was cleared. Mr Essien was laid off nonetheless. Just like Bright Fibioinumana (N/8399); L.N. Bello (N/8799), former Brigade Commander, 34 Brigade Owerri; and M.G. Alli Moundhey, former Director, Campaign Planning in the North East Operations, who were even not queried in the first place.

Although the Nigerian Army said the affected officers were retired for either involvement in the 2015 general elections or arms procurement fraud, our investigations showed that officers who were not in Nigeria at the time of the elections were also sacked.
That was the case of I.B. Lawson (N/8812) and G.O. Agachi (N/9363) who were Defence Attaches at Nigeria’s missions in China and Benin Republic respectively.
“They aided PDP to get votes”

Many Colonels and Lieutenant Colonels who were laid off on this day four years ago were merely suspected of failing to cooperate with the All Progressives Congress to garner votes in the 2015 elections. Sources disclosed to Premium Times.

In one instance, T.A Williams (N/11469) a Major; and Abdulfatai Mohammed (N/10659), a Lieutenant Colonel, both attached to the 195 Battalion, Agenebode, Edo State, with the latter as Commanding Officer, were said to have been flushed out because of complaint of not cooperating with Mr Buhari’s APC, brought against them.
But according to documents seen by this newspaper, Mr Mohammed was in the North East fighting Boko Haram, not Agenebode. But somehow his name was among those listed for alleged partisanship.

Similarly, in Rivers State, army insiders said, APC officials accused four officers attached to the 332 Air Defence Regiment (Ojebo Ochanpa – N/10417 who died while awaiting justice in 2017) and; 5 Battalion Commander, Elele (A.S. Mohammed -N10662); 2 Brigade Garrison Commander, Port Harcourt (K.O. Adimoha – N/10421); 29 Battalion Commander Port Harcourt (T.O. Oladuntoye (N/10338) of aiding the PDP in the state.

Our findings revealed that these officers, accused of partisanship, were not queried or investigated before they were forced out of the army. The former Commanding Officer, 93 Battalion, Takum, O.C. Egemole (N/10423), who was also compulsorily retired, was also accused of “not doing enough” to avert APC loss in Taraba State. He was also neither queried nor investigated.

Seven colonels, including Mr Suleiman (who had helped foiled Boko Haram attack on President Buhari’s Aso Rock home) who were compulsorily retired, had no query issued to them nor were they made to face any panel before they were fired.

For instance O.U. Nwankwo (N/9678) was studying at the University of Ibadan at the time of his ouster.
Also, without probe or indictment for any offence, T. Minimah (N/10185), brother to former Army Chief, Kenneth Minimah, was also removed from his post in Benin and retired.

Chief of Defense Staff

Lawless army

Checks indicate the army violated its own rules in the ways the officers were disengaged.

The Harmonized Terms and Conditions of Service for Officers whose paragraph 09.02c (4) was relied upon to remove the officers, originates from the Armed Forces Act. The section cited by the Army provides that an officer may be compulsorily retired “on disciplinary grounds i.e. serious offence(s)” without defining what constitutes “serious offences”.

But the principal law – the Armed Forces Act – establishes all actions that constitute offences in the Military. The Act prescribes steps to be taken in punishing offences, and a review shows no section empowers the Army Council to arbitrarily punish or compulsorily retire officers for any offence. In fact, the Army Council, in Section 11(a-f) of the Act, has no power to retire any officer on disciplinary ground without compliance with the steps prescribed by law.
Petitions to President Buhari

In line with Paragraph 09.02(e) of the Harmonised Terms and Conditions of Service for Officers, many of the affected officers, including Mr Mohammed and Mr Suleiman, petitioned Mr Buhari within 30 days of their sack for administrative review.
“I want to respectfully state that I was not in any way involved in any of the two issues stated as reasons for compulsory retirement of 38 officers of which I was among,” Mr Mohammed, wrote in his appeal.” I was never investigated at any time and have not committed any serious offence.”This was the ground of appeal of his colleagues, who also petitioned Mr Buhari.

They also subsequently separately wrote the president and once asked him to prove his integrity. None of the letters was acknowledged or replied to by the president. But it is alleged that the Chief of Defence Staff, Gabriel Olonisakin, who has the lawful responsibility to transmit the officers’ petitions to the president is blocking the appeals. He has refused to show evidence of transmitting the petitions to the industrial court and he now risks a jail term for that.
Military continues to lose in court; Buhari won’t act

Apart from petitioning Mr Buhari as required by law, many of the officers also approached the industrial court for justice. Six of them have now gotten favourable judgements with judges faulting the military.

“The compulsory retirement of the claimant is wrongful, unconstitutional, null and void,” Justice Rakiya Haastrup of the industrial court said in her January 14 judgement in the case initiated by Mr Mohammed at the headquarters of the industrial court in Abuja, adding: “the defendants failed to act with respect to the law.”

Apart from Mr Mohammed and Mr Suleiman, four others, namely Mr Ijeoma, a Maj. General; Danladi Hassan, a colonel; Thomas Arigbe, a Colonel; and DB Danzang have also got judgements ordering the army to reinstate them. There has not been compliance, nor have the authorities appealed yet.

Both the defence spokesperson, John Enenche, a Maj. General, and army spokesperson, Sagir Musa, Colonel, did not reply messages seeking comments for this report. They also did not answer calls to their telephones.

But in the wake of the defeat the army suffered in the case of Mr Mohammed in January, Mr Musa had said, “It is a legal matter,” and declined further comment when contacted by PREMIUM TIMES.

©PREMIUM TIMES.

Triumph of Profligacy Over Prudence…By ALEX OTTI

“The ability to extract maximum value from resources while creating minimum waste is a profitable skill to have.”

― Hendrith Vanlon Smith Jr, The Wealth Reference Guide: An American Classic

“The former administrations wantonly wasted the state’s resources. Just to go to Abuja, they spent N50m. It is there on record….. If you take N50m times four, that is N200m. You can’t do any project” Bala Mohammed, Bauchi State Governor, May 30, 2020.

Before going into the main issue of the day, permit me to delve into a story that will serve as its backdrop. The story has to do with the trials and triumphs of a very well-known Nigerian public figure, Peter Gregory Obi. Love him or hate him, many people agree that Peter Obi is one of the few leaders of the country that has his head properly screwed on his neck. He and I may not belong to the same political party, but then political parties in Nigeria do not operate on the basis of ideology, thus making it difficult to really differentiate one from the other. As different as the political parties are, one factor that knows no political party is truth. On Peter Obi, the truth is that he is a true example of excellent leadership and accountability in today’s world where such attributes are in very short supply. He may not be the most politically-correct public figure and this had led him into fighting several political battles even till today. He stood for election in Anambra State under the then nascent political party, All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA) in 2003 and won. His victory was however, stolen by the rival PDP and he went to court where he battled for three years before reclaiming his mandate. Not too long after he assumed office, he was ‘impeached’ and that made him return to court where he won yet again and returned to his seat on February 9, 2007. He was to return to the court for the third time when an election was conducted in 2007 terminating his tenure, which in fact began just a year earlier. That election was declared null and void and he returned to complete his first four-year tenure on June 14, 2007. At the expiration of his first term, he was returned for a second tenure which started from March 17, 2010 and ended with an elaborate ceremony on March 17, 2014.

Peter Obi came into governance well prepared. He was coming with several certifications from some of the best schools in the world and had under his belt, cognate experience in the private sector. He was once the Chairman of Fidelity Bank Plc, amongst other positions including Chairman Nigerian Securities and Exchange Commission. He was therefore not one of the “chartered politicians” who had no alternate address. Despite all the land mines laid for him, he was able to navigate them and left the state, a lot better than he met it. He had no godfather and truth be told, he could not have had one as he had all the ingredients to be a godfather himself and therefore could not have beholden to anyone. That may as well be one of his major problems. Most godfathers have something in common. They would only support those who are dependent on and inferior to them so that when they asked such a stooge to jump, the inevitable response would be, ‘how high?’

As Obi took over from his predecessor, he was determined to chart a new course for the then badly managed state. This column must at this point also quickly acknowledge the excellent work done by Dr. Chris Ngige, the current minister of Labour and Productivity, who in spite of the ferocious onslaught by the self-assumed godfathers in the state, was able to massively attack the major problem of the state at that time which was access roads. He built a lot of roads within the period he was Governor and indeed set the stage for Peter Obi to open up even the interiors of the state and make transportation within the state a relatively easy and affordable undertaking.

Peter Obi fully understood that one cannot have one’s cake and eat it. He was therefore deliberate about what was important and what was not to his people. He focused on cutting drastically, the cost of governance. Amidst dwindling resources, many of our leaders do not realise that the cost of governance can be reduced quite significantly. This realisation and the resolve to implement it, set Peter Obi apart from his peers. The history of governance in Nigeria shows that most of our leaders tend to continue to live a life of profligacy and extravagance, when, their states are insolvent and wallow in debt.

The question then is how did Peter Obi achieve that feat in a state that was reputed to have been owing civil servants and pensioners? How did he manage to clear all debts and leave funds for his successor ? He had put on record the fact that he left a whopping N75 billion for the future generation of the state. Like yours truly had done in the past, one can attest to the fact that some $155million was invested in the tier two capital of three Nigerian banks with maturities of about 5 years at interest rates of up to 9% per annum to the credit of the State. As at the time the investments were made, the Naira equivalent of the funds was about N25b. If those funds were rolled over at maturity in 2019, they would be worth about N62b today. If interest is assumed to remain at 9% for the past 6 years, an additional N33.5b would have accrued to bring the present value of the investments to over N95b. This is one of the advantages of prudence and financial literacy.

Peter Obi realised from day one that running a large government was undesirable. The first thing he did was to rationalise the size of government and therefore, expenditure. He also lived a frugal life. All the extravagance of leadership had no place in his government. Some people would argue that he overdid it, but it worked. You would always find him in the economy cabin of planes, he would travel alone most of the time, carrying his bags, he would refuse to stay in high-brow and expensive hotels, preferring to stay in cheaper hotels where he would negotiate the rates to the bare bones, he would not be seen in a long convoy, he would refuse to do lavish entertainments at the Governor’s lodge and elsewhere, and most importantly, he would refuse to give the proverbial “blood tonic” a euphemism for sharing government money to people who are mere parasites and contribute nothing positive to the development of the state.

Saving money is important but delivering value to the populace is even more important. Peter Obi understood this. He improved the quality of education in the state to the extent that it came into strong reckoning as it ranked Number One both at NECO and WAEC for several years during his tenor. He returned missionary schools to their original owners and gave them financial support to run those schools. He built a University at Igbo Ariam and built and equipped several hospitals. The state became “smaller” in terms of travel time as he connected most communities by building very good roads. He also understood that the only way to sustain the growth of the state was to support the private sector. He supported the establishment of one of the few if not the only vehicle manufacturing company in Nigeria, Innoson Motors and patronised the company. He promoted “Made in Anambra” by patronising products manufactured in Nnewi, Onitsha and Awka. Interestingly, with all these feats, Anambra was the only non-indebted state as at the time he left office in 2014.

As stated above, the governor of Bauchi State revealed that on the average, his predecessors spent N50m on every trip to Abuja. These trips, we all know, could happen once every week or even more frequently. This situation is obviously not limited to Bauchi State and it is clearly one of the ways through which state treasuries are looted. According to the concerned Governor, he has now reduced that cost to between N3m and N5m per trip. In Peter Obi’s governance model, such an amount is still too much. We must commend Governor Bala Mohammed for the courage not only to depart from the past, but to expose it. Gov. Hope Uzodinma of Imo State has just signed a bill abrogating payment of “pensions” to former Governors, Deputy Governors and Speakers of the state. This very ridiculous practice was put in place by self-serving former governors in states for no other reason except looting the states’ treasury even after their tenor. It is surprising that someone does a job for 4 or 8 years and allocates to himself, humongous payments in perpetuity while salaries and pensions of people who genuinely worked for 35 years in the civil service may remain unpaid for several months.

The only reason Profligacy seems to have triumphed over prudence in Nigeria is that the citizens condone and accept it. The saying that every society gets the kind of leadership it deserves, cannot be truer. We can at least demand accountability from our leaders. But to do this, we must first begin to show interest in the issues. We must also pay attention to how leadership emerges in our little corners. When you do not show interest, you are then asking for the wrong leaders. Elsewhere, before one aspires to an office a few issues must be resolved, and an agenda set out for the electorate and the aspirants to engage in a public discourse. A situation where a few individuals sit down and decide who they want to impose hardly brings the right kind of leadership. After all, everything succeeds and fails on the altar of leadership. Like it is said, the fish gets rotten from the head. It therefore behooves on all of us to consider the following six critical issues and ask important questions before we allow anyone to lead us.

In considering the critical elements in leadership, the first issue is Character. Character is indeed everything. We must be sure of where the prospective leader is coming from in terms of his upbringing, his past experiences and his morals. It is our opinion that a verbal agreement with a man of character is more enforceable than a written contract with a thief. In banking, the most important factor to consider in lending is character. Ability to pay is not as important as the willingness to pay.

The second issue is Capacity. A popular Latin dictum has it that ‘nemo dat quod non habet’, which means that one cannot give what one does not have. We have situations where we choose leaders who do not have the mental capacity to understand what is expected of them. So, for those kinds of leaders, they miss the plot from Day One. For them, it is all about what they can grab and not what legacy they can leave behind. In a society like ours that hardly holds leadership to account, it is easy for them to get away with it. Posterity does not seem to matter much to people today even though it will judge all of us in the final analysis.

The third issue is that of Culture. Simply defined, we are talking of how we do our things and what our expectations are. This is important because what we sow is what we reap. If we accept a situation where someone pays for everything including our votes, it becomes difficult for us to have the moral basis to hold them to account when they do not perform. After all, they have paid upfront and must recoup their money. Little do many realise that the pittance they received to vote for the wrong leader is the reason why our roads are never built, why hospitals and schools are not equipped and why salaries remain unpaid.

The next issue to focus on is Construct. This refers to the structure and the frame of the leadership we expect. Some people come into governance without promising anything. They hardly have an idea of what they have come to do in governance. If you are not promised anything, then do not expect anything. If you do receive anything at all, then it is a bonus.

Editors Seek FG’s Bailout for Media
The fifth issue is Conscientiousness, also known as Diligence. This is one of the most important factors in the leadership selection exercise. A leader must be someone who desires to serve not one intent on looting his people. Collecting humongous security votes and travel allowances when your constituents are going to bed hungry and sick can only happen when such a person lacks conscience. Owing workers who have put in equal day’s work for months does not show leadership. Not equipping hospitals where the people would go for medical attention is an example of the kind of people not to be found around leadership. And there are a lot of other examples to give here. It is sad that some of our leaders will squander state resources on hedonistic pursuits, when what such endeavours cost them in a year is enough to set up at least one hospital that will provide much needed service to even themselves and their families.

The last one is Competence. To aspire to leadership, it is expected that one should have distinguished oneself in an area of human endeavour. One of the problems we have is that we have become so lethargic that jobless people who call themselves career politicians have invaded the political scene and we seem to have condoned it. Elsewhere, you must have credentials before presenting yourself for leadership at any level. In so doing, our focus should be on merit rather than primordial considerations like ethnicity, religion, or gender.

It is because of the wrong choices we had made in the past that we are in this unfortunate situation where the entire country appears helpless in just a few months of lockdown. Covid -19 once again provides us an opportunity to re-examine ourselves and our choices. As we battle the pandemic, leaders who have refused to invest in infrastructure and public health are stuck with the populace and there is nowhere to go. Somehow, the old natural law holds true, ‘You cannot cheat Nature’.

Deputy Speaker Ahmed Idris Wase, House leadership storm Kalu’s House

Deputy Speaker House of Representatives Hon. Ahmed Idris Wase on Monday morning led House leadership to the residence of former Governor of Abia state and Chief Whip of the Nigeria Senate, Senator Orji Uzor Kalu

The Deputy Speaker and his team arrived Kalu’s residence at 11: 50 am .

Hon. Nkiru Onyejeocha Deputy Chief Whip, Hon. Benajmin Kalu Spokesman of the House, Hon. Alhasan Doguwa Majority Leader House of Representatives were also part of the team .

The visit is suspected to be in solidarity to Kalu who was recently released from prison following the order from the Federal High Court,Lagos.

Details soon .

Ex-Gov Orji Kalu Reaps The Fruits Of Patience and Persistence

Without recourse to exaggeration, politician and businessman, Senator Orji Uzoh Kalu , is fast proving to his detractors that he is indeed a cat with nine lives.

The more they try to bury him, the more he sprouts like a seed in a well fertile land.

The billionaire, who sits atop many businesses across the country in the past, has faced many challenges that would ordinarily consume a lily-livered. But the Senator representing Abia North Senatorial District has proved beyond any reasonable doubt that he is indeed a warrior and a master of the game.

Even though he is a lone fighter, many of his enemies are never his match

So, It was a denouement of sorts to the seemingly unending drama involving the former governor of Abia State, when a Federal High Court sitting in Ikoyi, Lagos, on June 2, 2020, ordered that he be released from the Nigerian Correctional Service, Kuje , Abuja.

Prior to that momentous moment in the life of the member of the National Assembly, he had been arraigned alongside his company, Slok Nigeria Limited and Udeh Udeogu, his Director of Finance and Accounts at the Abia State Government House, over an amended 39-count charge bordering on conspiring and diverting the sum of N7.65bn from the coffers of the state.

He had pleaded not guilty to the charges, thereby leading to his trial, which suffered a lot of twists and turns for 12 years.

In the end, the trial Judge, Justice Muhammed Idris, on December 5, 2019, slammed a 12-year imprisonment on him and also ordered that Kalu’s company, Slok Nigeria Limited, be wound up and all assets forfeited to the Federal Government.

Following the order, the EFCC had, on Saturday, December 14, 2019, marked the properties belonging to Kalu to ensure that they were not dissipated, following the December 5, 2019 order of Justice Muhammed.

Meanwhile, dissatisfied with the judgment, Kalu, through his counsel, had first approached the Appeal Court and later the Supreme Court to set aside the judgment of the lower court.

While he awaited his fate in the apex court, many of his critics had foreclosed the possibility of victory for him.

Indeed, the rain of cynicisms from several quarters had poured on him almost ceaselessly.

But in the face of all, it was obvious that he put his absolute trust in God, believing that that he would soon be left off the hook to go back to the National Assembly to give quality representation to his constituents.

For him, it was a prayer answered when the apex court , on May 8, 2020, voided his conviction on the grounds that the trial Judge who had been elevated to the Appeal Court could not return to the High Court to give a judgment in the case.

In his reaction, the prosecution had described the judgment of the apex court as “technical ambush”.

Though he must have felt greatly relieved that God had intervened in his matter, he was still being held in the correctional service.

Typical of a fighter, his legal team again filed a motion at the Federal High Court in Lagos seeking his release from the Kuje correctional service.

Ruling on the matter, Justice M. Liman, last Tuesday, ordered the Nigerian Correctional Service to immediately release him.

Once again, he has proved that he holds the ace and is having the last laugh.

Sources close to Kalu, also a publisher and philanthropist of note, hinted that since his eventual release, his spirits had been buoyed, and is ready to go back to the business of bettering the lives of his constituents at the National Assembly.

©Thisday Newspaper

Okezie Ikpeazu’s Coronavirus Status: Matter Arising… By Dodoh Okafor

1. Let me sincerely wish the Abia state governor – Mr Okezie Ikpeazu – whose coronavirus status was only made public yesterday a quick recovery.

2. That is the least I can do. However my sympathy does not obliterate a few realities. A number of questions are already flying and if you follow my next set of posts- #OkezieIkpazuCoronavirusUpdates you will get the diverse reactions of Nigerians on Twitter.

3. Truth is- from Umuahia to Abuja, very few are genuinely sympathetic to the governor’s plight. Questions are being asked: what is the status of of the health infrastructure in Abia state?

4. When were health workers paid last in the state? Those in HMB, ABSUTH and others? How many months salary arrears does the governor owe them? 16 months? 20 months, above 24 months?

5. Why was the governor reportedly moved to Abuja? Thought he built an isolation centre in the state? Are they not good enough for him?

6. When really did the governor test positive? Many believe that the report of a second test is a lie. The government is being insincere.

7. The governor is currently running to save his life. Aren’t Abia pensioners and civil servants entitled to the same pursuit? Why did he deny them the necessary support system (their entitlements) to keep body and soul together ?

8. Do you know the number of civil servants and pensioners that have died in Abia in the last five years for reasons of financial constraints? Does their lives mean nothing to the man who ought to pay them by the 25th of every month? Why were they allowed to die of starvation?

9. How about those whose business have stalled in these five years owing to harassment from tax officials, low patronage or flooding – especially in Aba? Many of them also had health complications because of the inefficiency of the government. Could this have been avoided?

10. There are lots of questions we can go on asking. However if there be any lessons we can pick from this, it is the fact that Abia has been badly run in the last five years and this is most manifest in the health sector.

11. Sadly, the governor who had the responsibility of fixing the health system has become one of its biggest victims.

12. I wish Mr Ikpeazu well- especially so- since coronavirus is not a death sentence and we have seen several of his colleagues in Oyo and other places recovering after the initial scar.

13. However the lesson must never be lost on him when he recovers. Propagandists cannot always control the narratives.

Senate President, Ministers, 40 Senators , Others Visit Sen. Orji Kalu in Aso Villa

Senate President Ahmad Lawan on Thursday night led a delegation of Senate leadership to visit the Senate Chief Whip , Senator Orji Uzor Kalu in his Aso Villa residence , Abuja.

‘The Minister of Foreign Affairs , Geoffrey Onyeama ; Minister of Science and Technology, Dr Ogbonna Onu; Hon. Nkiru Onyeojecha , Chief George Muoghalu we’re part of the early callers .

Ahmed Lawan and senate principal officers arrived the Aso-Villa residence at about 7 pm after which they proceeded for a private meeting with Kalu.

Kalu who was Lawan’s classmate in the University of Maiduguri was released yesterday from Kuje Correctional Centre following the judgement of a Federal High Court sitting in Lagos on Tuesday which granted a motion seeking his release from the Kuje correctional custody.

Among the federal lawmakers in the delegation were: Ovie Omo-Agege , Senate Deputy President; Abdullahi Yahaya, senate leader; Ajayi Borrofice, deputy senate leader; Sabi Abdullahi, deputy whip; Philip Aduda, minority whip and Sahabi Ya’u, deputy minority whip. Senator Chuka Utazi , Enugu North.

Recall that Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had arraigned Kalu and Ude Jones Udeogu, a former director of finance and account of Abia state on 36 counts of money laundering to the tune of N7.1 billion and they were jailed in December.

On May 8, the supreme court nullified the trial of Kalu’s co-conviction.

The apex court held that Mohammed Idris, the trial judge who had been elevated to the court of appeal at the time of the case, ought not to have presided over the matter while he was an appeal court judge.

See photos from the meeting Exclusively obtained

©The Nigeria Daily

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Abia North: Traders, Artisans, Others Pass Vote Of Confidence On Kalu, Chides Ohuabunwa

Traders, artisans, market women, and farmers from Abia North, Abia state have cautioned former Senator Mao Ohuabunwa and his cohorts to stop insulting the Senator representing Abia North Senatorial District and former Governor of Abia State, Dr. Orji Uzor Kalu.

According to them, Kalu remains their best as a former Governor and now as a Senator. Following the return of Kalu from the wrong incarceration, the people of Abia North Senatorial District, have been jubilating over what they tagged “the good work continues“, adding that Kalu has never relented in representing his people well at all levels.

Speaking after a town hall meeting in Isuochi, Abia State, the representative of the traders, artisans, market women and farmers, Mazi Kelechi Ndubuisi, who commended Kalu for providing free palm seedlings, farming utensils, zero-interest loans and other incentives to his constituents, called on other well-meaning personalities and politicians in the state to support the Senator in his quest to uplift lives and communities.

He explained that the laudable initiatives of the Senate Chief Whip has brought unprecedented development to Abia North Senatorial District, adding that Kalu has been a good representative of the people in the National Assembly. Ndubuisi said “the philanthropic gestures of Senator Orji Kalu knows no bounds.

“Abia North Senatorial District is breathing fresh air with Kalu as its Senator. “

He has always been a source and pillar of support to artisans, farmers, market women, the youth, and indigent.

“The former Governor has boosted the development of his constituency by facilitating developmental projects and social investments. “There is no doubt that Kalu’s achievements in the Senate, has exposed the weakness of the last occupier of the seat, Ohaubunwa.

“However, we call on the Senate Chief Whip to continue his good works for the sake of his constituents and humanity. Ndubuisi while admonishing Ohuabunwa and other politicians to join hands with Kalu in his efforts to rebuild Abia North Senatorial District, praised the Chief Whip of the Senate for his inclusive and responsive leadership style.

©ABN TV

NCS Will Obey Court Order to Release Sen. Uzor Kalu – PRO

The Nigerian Correctional Services (NCS) says it will release former Governor of Abia, Senator Orji Uzor Kalu within the next two days.

“[We’ll release the senator] hopefully within the next two days,” NCS Public Relations Officer, Augustine Njoku, told newsmen Wednesday.

This is coming following yesterday’s order of the Federal High Court sitting in Lagos ordering the immediate release of the Senate Chief Whip.

The NCS said it is only waiting for the court order to be communicated to it formally in form of warrant, to effect the release of the Senator.

According to the PRO, once that is done and acknowledged, all other protocols and procedures would be followed for Kalu’s release.

Justice Mohammed Liman, who ordered Kalu’s release, had set aside the 12-year jail term imposed on him last December 5 by Justice Mohammed Idris.

He also quashed the conviction of Senator Orji Kalu’s firm, Slok Nigeria Ltd.

Justice Idris had ordered the winding up of Slok Nigeria Ltd and ordered that its assets be forfeited to the Federal Government.

The Supreme Court had earlier ordered the release of Sen. Orji Kalu, while quashing the conviction on the ground that the judge who handled the case, Justice Mohammed Idris, had no jurisdiction to do so.

The senator’s counsel, Chief Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), yesterday prayed Justice Mohammed Liman to order Kalu’s release based on the apex court’s earlier pronouncement.

Fagbemi said: “Our application is brought pursuant to Section 159 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act.

“This is fallout of the Supreme Court decision delivered on the 8th of May.”

Ruling, Justice Liman granted Kalu’s application as prayed, saying it had merit.