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You have Seven Days to Retract Defamatory Statement, Adoke Tells Malami

Published

4 years ago

July 30, 2020

Eric

A former Nigerian attorney-general and Minister of Justice, Bello Adoke, has given the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, seven days ultimatum to retract alleged defamatory statements made against him.

Mr Adoke issued the ultimatum on Wednesday through his lawyers led by Paul Erokoro, aSenior Advocate of Nigeria.

The alleged defamatory statements were made at the ongoing hearing of the Process and Industrial Development (P&ID) arbitration case in England.

Mr Adoke also asked Mr Malami to tender a public apology for making statements which he knew to be untrue and defamatory against his person.

Mr Erokoro said Mr Malami’s statements were not true and have negatively affected Mr Adoke’s image because the court proceedings were on live television in Nigeria and on social media around the world.

In the statement, Mr Malami had accused Mr Adoke of having a hand in the failed P&ID agreement, receiving kickback from the deal through former petroleum minister, Dan Etete, and also single-handedly selecting a legal team to represent Nigeria at the arbitration.

“Our client is astounded by your failure to inform the English court that under Nigerian law, any person charged with or accused of a crime MUST be presumed innocent until proven guilty,” the letter said.

“Rather, you pronounced our client guilty, even when you were fully aware that his trial had not even commenced. The Attorney-General’s oath of office includes an undertaking to protect and defend the Nigerian Constitution.

“The constitutional right to fair trial is severely breached when the Attorney-General of the Federal Republic of Nigeria urges the court of a foreign jurisdiction to regard and even pronounce a Nigerian guilty of an offence without a trial. It was your unfortunate and wrongful pronouncement of guilt on our client that emboldened the FRN’s counsel in England to tell the whole world that our client is corrupt.

“This has done incalculable harm to our client’s name, reputation and standing in society. Our client will suffer even more harm if the English Court, misled by your evidence, makes an adverse finding against our client. It is for this, among other reasons that the first duty of the Attorney-General and indeed all counsel, is to the Court,” the letter read in part.

Mr Adoke noted that he became Attorney-General of the Federation on April 6, 2010, while the negotiations for the gas project had been on from 2009, adding that he only became aware of the P&ID matter when the Ministry of Petroleum Resources requested in 2013 that he appoint an arbitrator as well as counsel.

The letter reads in part: “Our client finds it remarkable that you found no fault in the appointment of the arbitrator but found fault with the appointment of counsel, even though the two appointments followed the same process. For this reason, our client is forced to conclude that your vilification of his name is merely a case of giving the dog a bad name in order to hang it.

“Our client asserts that even though he appointed Mr. Shasore as counsel, Mr. Shasore’s legal fees were paid by the administration of President Buhari, long after our client had left office, a fact well known to you.

“It is also on record that our client was not involved in any of the negotiations with P&ID for settlement, which all took place under your watch. The initial proposal for settlement was delivered to President Jonathan. The President referred the matter to our client for his advice. Our client advised the President to leave the matter to the in-coming administration, since the President’s tenure was ending in 8 days.

“You also conceal these facts from the court even though the records have been in your office all along. If our client had been part of any corrupt scheme with P&ID as you claimed in your evidence, surely our client would have jumped at the chance to give P&ID a favourable settlement.”

Mr Adoke argued that the final award was issued in July 2015, months after he had left office.

“Your evidence was therefore unfair and uncharitable to our client because you are aware that all the attempts at settlement with P&ID took place under your tenure as Attorney-General, a fact you freely admitted in your witness statements,” he added.

Mr Adoke argued further that when the government requested information from some banks in the United States Government on all bank accounts owned by former President Goodluck Jonathan and others, it was discovered that he has no foreign account.

He, therefore, called on the minister within the next seven days on receipt of his letter to take necessary steps to correct the misleading and false statements against him.

“Our client demands that you retract the false evidence that you gave to the English Court, regarding him and apologise for the harm done to his name,” he said.

Premium Times

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Tinubu Presents N47.9trn 2025 Appropriation Bill to NASS

Published

5 days ago

December 18, 2024

Eric

President Bola Tinubu, on Wednesday, presented the proposed 2025 federal budget to a joint session of the National Assembly.

The N47.9 trillion budget saw a whopping N3.5 trillion allocated to the education sector.

Other sectors that got higher allocations include defence and security – N4.91tn, infrastructure – N4.06tn and health – N2.4tn.

“It is with great pleasure that I lay before this distinguished joint session of the National Assembly, the 2025 Budget of the National Assembly of Nigeria titled, ‘The Restoration Budget’ security peace, building prosperity,” Tinubu said as he concluded his 30-minute presentation at 1:10pm.

This budget highlights the government’s focus on improving education, healthcare, and infrastructure, in line with its ‘Renewed Hope Agenda’ aimed at boosting the economy and addressing key national priorities.

The live broadcast of the budget presentation today revealed the government’s plans for the next fiscal year. With a strong emphasis on human capital development, the president highlighted the budget’s commitment to improving the nation’s economic foundation.

Education sector receives major funding

A significant portion of the 2025 budget is dedicated to education, with N3.5 trillion allocated to the sector. President Tinubu stated that part of this funding would be directed toward infrastructure development, including support for Universal Basic Education (UBEC) and the establishment of nine new higher educational institutions.

“We have made provision for N826.90 billion for infrastructural development in the education sector,” Tinubu said.

This allocation aims to improve educational facilities and support ongoing efforts to strengthen Nigeria’s educational system.

Focus on human capital development

During the presentation, the president emphasized the importance of investing in Nigeria’s human capital. “Human capital development, our people are our greatest resource. That is why we are breaking record investment in education, healthcare, our social services,” he remarked.

Tinubu also pointed to the N34 billion already disbursed through the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) to assist over 300,000 students.

The budget includes continued investments in healthcare and social services as part of the broader goal of enhancing the quality of life for Nigerians.

Strengthening the economy and national security

Tinubu highlighted that the 2025 budget is designed to build a robust economy while addressing critical sectors necessary for growth and security.

“This budget reflects the huge commitment to strengthening the foundation of a robust economy, while addressing the critical sectors essential for the growth and development we envision; and secure our nation,” he said.

The budget aims to tackle key challenges and foster long-term economic stability by prioritizing infrastructure and development in key sectors.

Healthcare and social services allocations

In addition to education, Tinubu focused on the allocation for healthcare and social services. The government plans to increase investments in healthcare infrastructure and services to ensure broader access to essential healthcare for Nigerians.

These investments are part of the administration’s strategy to improve overall living conditions and enhance public health across the country.

President Tinubu’s proposed 2025 budget is said to reflect the administration’s commitment to achieving its development objectives, with a focus on economic growth, human capital development, and infrastructure improvement.

As the National Assembly reviews the budget, the president reiterated his administration’s resolve to address the nation’s most pressing needs.

Source: Nairametrics

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Ghana’s President-elect Mahama Visits Tinubu in Abuja

Published

6 days ago

December 17, 2024

Eric

Ghana’s President-Elect, Dr. John Dramani Mahama, a courtesy visit to President Bola Tinubu at his residence, Presidential Villa, State House on Monday.

Mahama won 56 percent of the votes in this month’s presidential election, compared to the ruling party candidate and Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia, who secured 41 percent.

The landslide comeback for former president Mahama ended eight years in power for the New Patriotic Party (NPP) under President Nana Akufo-Addo, whose last term was marked by Ghana’s worst economic turmoil in years, an IMF bailout and a debt default.

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I Stand by What I Said, Kemi Badenoch Replies VP Shettima

Published

2 weeks ago

December 12, 2024

Eric

The leader of the United Kingdom’s Conservative Party, Kemi Badenoch, has lashed back at Vice President Kashim Shettima over the latter’s reaction to her comments about Nigeria.

Badenoch was born in the UK in 1980 to Nigerian Yoruba parents.

Badenoch, who attained age 16 in Nigeria before departing the country for the UK where she was elected Conservative Party’s leader, described Nigeria as a nation brimming with thieving politicians and insecurity.

However, Shettima, while speaking at the 10th Annual Migration Dialogue at the Presidential Villa in Abuja on Monday, December 9, 2024, accused Badenoch of “denigrating her country of origin” with her remarks.

The vice-president listed influential people whose families had migrated to other countries, commending former UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak as a “brilliant young man who never denigrated his nation of ancestry.”

Reacting on Wednesday, Badenoch lashed back at Shettima, saying she doesn’t do “PR for Nigeria”.

Her spokesperson, as the Tory leader, according to UK Express, said: “Kemi is not interested in doing Nigeria’s PR; she is the Leader of the Opposition in the UK.

“She tells the truth; she tells it like it is; she isn’t going to couch her words. She stands by what she said.”