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$6b Mambilla project: Ex-Minister Agunloye re-arraigned on amended charge

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A former Minister of Power, Dr. Olu Agunloye, was yesterday re-arraigned before a High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) in Apo on a seven-count amended charge the amendment made by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) filed against him.

Agunloye pleaded not guilty when the charge bordering on forgery, disobedience of a presidential order and corruption on the 3,960 megawatts (MW) Mambilla Hydroelectric Power Station in Taraba State, was read to him by a court official.

The prosecution alleged, among others, that the former minister received N5.212 million from Sunrise Power and Transmission Company Limited (SPTCL) and Leno Adesanya through Jide Abiodun Sotinrin.

The money was allegedly paid into Agunloye’s Guaranty Trust Bank account for conveying the Federal Government’s approval for the construction of the power station in favour of SPTCL while serving as minister.

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Testifying yesterday, the second prosecution witness (PW2), Adewale Agunbiade, a Compliance Officer with Jaiz Bank Plc (formerly with GTBank), said he neither knew the defendant personally nor had any special interest in the case.

Agunbiade said despite having left GTBank, he was not surprised when the EFCC invited him in May 2023 to write a statement on the case.

The witness, who was cross-examined by defence lawyer Aseola Adedipe (SAN), said when he informed the EFCC that he had left GTBank, he was told that it did not matter since he prepared the documents on the court’s proceedings.

He confirmed the bank statement of Jide Abiodun Sotinrin, who paid money into Agunloye’s account on August 10, 2019, October 22, 2019, and November 13, 2019.

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Agunbiade said the transactions were about individuals’ transfers, explaining that the transfer of money was from one individual customer of GTBank to another individual customer of the same bank.

The witness explained that the transfer of N3.6 million by Sotinrin to Agunloye’s account did not reference that it was made on behalf of either Leno Adesanya or Sunrise Power and Transmission Limited.

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First set of deportees from US will be convicted Nigerians – Envoy

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…arrival point is Lagos

The United States envoy to Nigeria, Ambassador to Nigeria, Richard Mills Jr. has said first set of deportees from US will be convicted Nigerians.

He also revealed that Nigerian deportees would be dropped in Lagos.

Mills Jr. also explained that convicted prisoners would be among the first set of Nigerian deportees.

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He spoke during an audience with Nigeria Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu.

The envoy said: “Those to be repatriated would be dropped in Lagos.

There wouldn’t be room for whether it should be in Port Harcourt or Abuja.

“The first group will be convicted prisoners. Those who committed crimes and are in US prisons. Some of them are those who have clearly violated US immigration laws. They appealed but were denied yet they are still in the US. They have committed immigration crime, people who have been ordered to leave.”

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He also spoke on AGOA which ends September this year but noted that it is left for the parliamentary group to push for its renewal.

I think this administration will concentrate more on trade and commerce. This relationship is strong and we want it sustained,” he stated.

Meanwhile, Odumegwu-Ojukwu has called on the US government to follow laid down conventions on deportation of persons in repatriating immigrants in their country.

Odumegwu-Ojukwu stressed that Nigerians in the US deserved dignified repatriation.

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Odumegwu-Ojukwu asked the US Government to find a way of ameliorating the trauma of those to be deported including allowing them ample opportunity to retrieve their assets in America.

Nigeria also expressed concerns over the likely suspension of the Drop Box Visa System of the US Government.

Amb.Odumegwu-Ojukwu bemoaned the emotional and financial pains that many Nigerians in the United States were already experiencing since the new administration of the country indicated its resolve to repatriate some categories of people from the US.

She explained that the effect was far-reaching even to the hinterlands of Nigeria where for instance, several families including children relied on remittances from the US for their survival and education.

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“With the new administration in the US, we want a situation where there will be commitments. If there will be repatriation, we want a dignified return.

“At the moment, we’re told that about 201 Nigerian nationals are in US immigration camps, and about 85 have been cleared for deportation.

Will there be any way of ameliorating their pains? This has been of great concern to not just Nigerian nationals in the US but family members in Nigeria who depend on them for survival, children whose school fees are paid for by these diasporans.

“We are asking as a country whether they will be given ample time to handle their assets or will they just be bundled into planes and repatriated? It will really be traumatic especially for those who had not committed any violent crime,” Amb. Odumegwu-Ojukwu said.

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The minister also urged Washington DC to reconsider its possible suspension of the Drop Box Visa Policy such that Nigerians who had been travelling to the US for genuine reasons would not have to suffer unduly in procuring US Visa.

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Why FG must probe heavy claim USAID funded Boko Haram -Senator Ndume

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Senator Ali Ndume, who represents Borno South Senatorial District has asked the Federal Government to probe a claim by US Congressman Scott Perry that aborted United States Agency for International Development (USAID) funded terrorist organisations, including Boko Haram.

You can’t say it’s just an allegation; it’s more than that,” the former Chairman of the Senate Committee on Army said on Channels Television’s Sunday Politics programme.

“That’s why the Nigerian government and the National Assembly, especially, need to look into it to investigate and verify the veracity of such a very weighty allegation.”

The lawmaker, who has been in the National Assembly for more than 20 unbroken years, said the Nigerian government should be interested in the US congressman’s revelation, considering that there had been suspicions that foreign humanitarian agencies operating in Nigeria’s insurgent-ridded North-East zone sponsored terrorist activities.

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Ndume said, “This development is very worrisome, especially because one of the terrorist organisations mentioned by Scott Perry is Boko Haram, and Boko Haram has ravaged not only the North-East but even (other parts of) Nigeria.

“You can remember Boko Haram bombed the police headquarters and the UN office in Abuja, and the casualties were enormous. So, the Nigerian government must be interested.

“I’m worried, but the Nigerian security agencies have raised this indirectly several times. Even the Borno State government was wary of the operations of the NGOs.

“I remember during the period of (Lieutenant General Tukur) Buratai, the Nigerian Army got intelligence and even raided the office of USAID or United Nations in Maiduguri. There was also a time when the governor got intelligence and security agencies raided one NGO that was providing training to some of their staff on how to use guns.

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Abducted Catholic priest, others regain freedom after 4 days in captivity

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After four days in captivity following his abduction by gunmen on the Elele-Isiokpo road in the Ikwerre Local Government Area of Rivers State, Rev. Father Livinus Maurice and two others have been liberated.

Father Maurice, who is the parish priest at St. Patrick’s Catholic Church in Isiokpo, was taken while returning from a hospital visit last Wednesday, alongside two individuals whose identities have not been confirmed.

In the wake of the abduction, the Catholic Diocese of Port Harcourt, representing Bishop Bernadine Anaele, issued a statement urging for the immediate and unconditional release of the priest.

The spokesperson for the State Police Command, Grace Iringe-Koko, confirmed their release in a statement issued in Port Harcourt on Sunday.

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Iringe-Koko said a police manhunt led to the successful release of the priest and the two others.

She stated that they were freed at about 6:30 am on Sunday due to pressure from a combined security team, including police officers, soldiers from the Joint Task Force, and local vigilantes.

The statement read: “Please be informed that today, February 16, 2025, at about 06:30 hrs, information was received that the kidnapped victims, Rev. Father Livinus Maurice and others, have been released by their captors.

“Their release followed pressure from a combined security team comprising police officers, soldiers from the Joint Task Force in Isiokpo, and local vigilantes.

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“The victims have been reunited with their families for medical attention, while efforts are ongoing to arrest the culprits.”

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