News

Court Jails INEC Officials Seven Years over Diezani Cash

Published

7 years ago

January 25, 2019

Eric

The Federal High Court in Lagos has sentenced a former Administrative Secretary with Independent National Electoral Commission, Mr Christian Nwosu, and his colleague, Mr. Tijani Bashir, to seven years’ imprisonment for laundering a sum of N264.8m in the build-up to the 2015 general elections.

Justice Mohammed Idris handed down the sentence on Friday following his Thursday judgment convicting the two INEC officials.

The judge had in his judgment affirmed the allegation by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission that Nwosu and Bashir benefited from a sum of $115.01m which a former Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs Diezani Alison-Madueke, doled out to influence the 2015 elections.

While Nwosu was convicted of collecting N30m of the Diezani’s cash and laundering same, Bashir was said to have handled taken possession of N164,880,000 of the funds, which he handled in violation of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act.

Nwosu and Bashir were charged alongside their colleague, Yisa Adedoyin, who admitted the offence and entered into a plea bargain with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.

Nwosu too had earlier entered into a plea bargain with the EFCC and returned N5m cash as well as a landed property worth N25m.

He, however, changed his mind after he was told by the judge that despite making the refund, he would pay a fine of N10m and still serve a prison term.

In the course of the trial, Nwosu admitted going to Fidelity Bank to sign for and collect N264.8m, adding that he got N30m out of the funds for election “logistics.”

In his judgment on Thursday, Justice Idris held that the EFCC proved beyond reasonable doubts the charges of conspiracy and money laundering against Nwosu and Bashir.

The judge held, “The defendants admitted that they did not receive cheques from anyone, including the PDP or INEC before going to Fidelity Bank. Why did they have to collect such huge amount of money in cash? INEC is not a customer of Fidelity Bank.

“There was no instruction directing the bank to disburse the said N264,880,000 to the intending beneficiaries. The defendants admitted receiving the money.

“The evidence on record shows that this money did not come from any political party or any other known legitimate source other than the source revealed by the prosecution.”

The Punch

News

Appeal Court Affirms Ruling Barring VIO from Impounding Vehicles, Fining Motorists

Published

3 days ago

December 4, 2025

Eric

The Court of Appeal in Abuja on Thursday upheld the judgment that stopped the Directorate of Road Traffic Services and Vehicle Inspection Officers (VIO) from seizing vehicles or imposing fines on motorists.

In a unanimous decision by a three-member panel, the appellate court found no basis to set aside the Federal High Court’s ruling of October 16, 2024, which restrained the VIO from harassing motorists.

The appeal filed by the VIO was dismissed for lacking merit. Justice Oyejoju Oyewumi delivered in the lead judgment.

The high court had earlier ruled, in a judgment by Justice Nkeonye Maha, that no law authorizes the VIO to stop motorists, impound vehicles, or impose penalties for alleged traffic offences.

The case arose from a fundamental rights suit (FHC/ABJ/CS/1695/2023) filed by lawyer Abubakar Marshal.

Marshal informed the court that VIO officials stopped him at Jabi in Abuja on December 12, 2023, and seized his vehicle without lawful reason. He asked the court to determine whether their actions violated his rights.

Justice Maha agreed and ordered the VIO and its agents not to impound vehicles or impose fines on motorists, describing the actions as unlawful. She held that only a court can impose fines or sanctions.

She ruled that the VIO’s conduct breached the applicant’s constitutional right to property under Section 42 of the 1999 Constitution and Article 14 of the African Charter. She further held that the VIO has no legal authority to seize vehicles or penalize motorists, as doing so infringes on rights to fair hearing, movement and presumption of innocence.

Although Marshal, represented by Femi Falana, SAN, requested ₦500 million in damages and a public apology, the court awarded ₦2.5 million.

The Directorate of Road Traffic Services, its Director, its Abuja Area Commander at the time (identified as Mr. Leo), team leader Solomon Onoja, and the FCT Minister were listed as respondents.

They appealed the decision, but the Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal.

News

Tinubu Nominates Ibas, Dambazau, Enang, Ohakim As Ambassadors

Published

4 days ago

December 4, 2025

Eric

President Bola Tinubu has nominated Ibok-Ete Ekwe Ibas, the immediate past sole administrator of Rivers State and a former Chief of Naval Staff, as a non-career ambassador.

Tinubu also nominated Ita Enang, a former senator; Chioma Ohakim, former First Lady of Imo State; and Abdulrahman Dambazau, former Minister of Interior and ex-Chief of Army Staff, as non-career ambassadors.

News

Senate Confirms Chris Musa As New Defence Minister

Published

4 days ago

December 3, 2025

Eric

The Nigerian Senate has confirmed General Christopher Musa, the former Chief of Defence Staff, as the country’s new Minister of Defence.

The announcement was contained in a statement by Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser on Information and Strategy to President Bola Tinubu.

Musa, who retired from the military just 40 days ago, was nominated by President Tinubu on Tuesday to succeed former Defence Minister Mohammed Badaru Abubakar, who stepped down on health grounds.

According to Onanuga’s statement, the Senate approved Musa’s appointment on Wednesday through a voice vote, following a thorough screening session during which lawmakers posed numerous questions.

“Senate confirms Gen. Christopher Musa as Minister of Defence The Senate has confirmed the former Chief of Defence Staff, Gen. Christopher Musa, as the Minister of Defence. The Senate confirmed Musa on Wednesday via a voice vote after a rigorous screening session in which lawmakers asked him many questions,” the statement read in part.