Headline

Not All Bandits Are Criminals, Says Zamfara Gov

Published

5 years ago

February 18, 2021

Eric

The governor of Zamfara State, Bello Matawalle, has said not all bandits who terrorise parts of the state and other neighbouring states are criminals.

The governor stated this on Thursday after meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

He explained that most of the bandits take up arms due to the injustice meted on them by some members of the society.

Hundreds of persons have been killed or kidnapped by the bandits in Zamfara, Katsina, Sokoto, Niger, Kaduna and Nasarawa States in recent years.

Contrary to the claims by the governor, there have been suspicions that the criminality is a fallout of the artisanal mining of gold, lead and other mineral resources in those areas.

Despite the attacks on innocent citizens, Mr Matawalle has repeatedly called on the federal government to grant amnesty to repentant bandits.

Injustice on bandits

While explaining the reasons for the attacks, Mr Matawalle said those saddled with the responsibility of protecting the community sometimes rustle their cattle and destroy their livelihood.

He said since they have nobody to speak to, they resort to violence.

“Not all of them are criminals. If you investigate what is happening, and what made them to take the laws into their hands, some of them, sometimes were cheated by so-called the vigilante group.

“They normally go to their settlements and destroy property and take their animals. They did not have anyone to speak with, so sometimes, they go for revenge. When the vigilante group attacks them, they go for reprisals. That is exactly what happened,” the governor said.

He also indicted the military, whom he said contribute to the problems in the villages.

“Some of them are living in settlements close to villages or towns. When there are military operations, the military will go and destroy their property and animals. They are angry with such actions sometimes. If you are talking to them, you can understand where they are coming from and their problems,” Mr Matawalle said.

“It is important for us as leaders to sit down with them and understand what is the genesis. You can’t just conclude that this person is a criminal. You have to listen to him. What led him to go into such activities?

“It is not all Fulanis that are criminals. Some are good citizens, but due to some circumstances, they subscribed to such criminality but when we had the information, we called their leaders and sat with them, they told us their grudges and we sorted out the way the communities and the Fulanis can resolve their issues without any serious crisis.”

He said he believes the problem will be put to an end if governors can follow in his footsteps.

“In my state, I am constructing RUGA for them, like a settlement that can contain some of them because sincerely speaking, if we allow them going around from one place to another, we cannot find a solution to this issue.

“So the only thing the governors should do and we are discussing that is to contain them in one place. Like a Fulani from Zamfara should not migrate to another neighbouring state. How are we going to do that? This is something that needs a lot of resources because you will have to create something that can engage them.

Premium Times

Headline

Corruption Allegations: NMDPRA Boss Farouk Ahmed Meets Tinubu, Resigns

Published

3 hours ago

December 17, 2025

Eric

The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), Farouk Ahmed, has resigned following a meeting with President Bola Tinubu amid corruption allegations.

Tinubu, on Wednesday, summoned Ahmed to the Presidential Villa in Abuja, following allegations of economic sabotage and corruption.

Also caught in the web of resignation was the CEO of the Nigeria Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), Gbenga Komolafe, according to a statement on Wednesday by Bayo Onanuga, special adviser to the president on information and strategy.

Tinubu was said to have nominated successors to the senate for approval.

“Tinubu has asked the Senate to approve the nominations of two new chief executives for the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) and the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC),” the statement reads.

“The requests followed the resignation of Engineer Farouk Ahmed of the NMDPRA and Gbenga Komolafe of the NUPRC.

“Both officials were appointed in 2021 by former President Buhari to lead the two regulatory agencies created by the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA).

“To fill these positions, President Tinubu has written to the Senate, requesting expedited confirmation of Oritsemeyiwa Amanorisewo Eyesan as CEO of NUPRC and Engineer Saidu Aliyu Mohammed as CEO of NMDPRA.”

Onanuga said the two nominees are seasoned professionals in the oil and gas industry.

Headline

Alleged Corrupt Practices: Dangote Petitions ICPC Against NMDPRA MD Farouk

Published

1 day ago

December 16, 2025

Eric

Chairman, Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, has formally submitted a petition to the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) against the Managing Director of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), Engr. Ahmed Farouk, over alleged corruption and financial impropriety.

The petition, dated December 16, 2025, was submitted through Dangote’s lawyer, Dr. Ogwu James Onoja, SAN, and received at the office of the ICPC Chairman, Dr. Musa Adamu Aliyu, SAN.

In the petition, Dangote called for the arrest, investigation and prosecution of the NMDPRA boss, alleging that Farouk has been living far above his legitimate means as a public servant.

Dangote specifically accused Ahmed Farouk of allegedly spending over seven million United States dollars on the education of his four children in Switzerland, paid upfront for a six-year period, without any lawful explanation for the source of the funds.

According to the petition, the four children and their respective schools in Switzerland were clearly identified, along with the amounts paid on their behalf, to enable the ICPC verify the allegations.

The industrialist further alleged that Farouk Ahmed had been using his position at the NMDPRA to embezzle and divert public funds for personal gain and private interests, actions which he claimed had recently triggered public protests and widespread criticism of the agency.

Dangote maintained that Ahmed Farouk has spent his adult life working in Nigeria’s public sector, adding that his cumulative earnings over the years could not reasonably account for the alleged seven million dollars reportedly spent on the overseas education of his children.

“It is without doubt that the above facts in relation to abuse of office, breach of the Code of Conduct for public officers, corrupt enrichment and embezzlement constitute gross acts of corruption, for which your Commission is statutorily empowered under Section 19 of the ICPC Act to investigate and prosecute,” the petition stated.

It further noted that under the same section of the ICPC Act, any person found guilty of such offences is liable to imprisonment for a term of five years without an option of fine.

Dangote urged the commission to act decisively, stressing that the ICPC, alongside other anti-graft agencies, is strategically positioned to investigate and prosecute corruption-related offences.

“In view of the foregoing, we call on the Commission under your leadership to investigate the complaint of abuse of office and corruption against Engr. Farouk Ahmed and to accordingly prosecute him if found wanting,” the petition added.

The Dangote Group Chairman also expressed confidence that the matter, being in the public domain, would not be ignored, urging the ICPC to act in the interest of justice and to protect the image of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration.

Dangote further pledged his readiness to provide additional evidence to substantiate his allegations of corrupt enrichment, abuse of office and impunity against the NMDPRA Managing Director.

Headline

Tinubu Didn’t Win 2023 Election, Will Lose in 2027 – Abaribe

Published

2 days ago

December 16, 2025

Eric

The lawmaker representing Abia South Senatorial District, Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe, has predicted that it would be impossible for President Bola Tinubu to win second termn in the 2027 presidential election.

Abaribe, who claimed that the President never won the 2023 election, said the level of hardship Nigerians are currently facing has made them more determined to ensure that Tinubu does not return as president after 2027.

Reacting to suggestions that Tinubu has never lost an election, Abaribe, who appeared as a guest on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Monday, said, “I do not think so. Everybody loses elections, and you will see when the time comes. He will lose in 2027 because I know what Nigerians are feeling outside.”

He added: “Tinubu never won the 2023 election, and everybody knows it. But we said fine, he has been declared the winner, no problem. We acknowledge him as president, but we are going to meet him in the field, and I will see how he is going to cobble together what will make him win again.

“It won’t work, because this time everybody will be ready. It will no longer be an announcement at 3am before people wake up in the morning. This time, people are ready; we are ready, and the masses are even more ready.”

The senator, who said the economy has collapsed under Tinubu and that the president has yet to solve the problem of insecurity, wondered where he would get the votes to win in 2027.

On the defection of some opposition leaders to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Abaribe vowed never to join the wave, saying he would be the last person to do so.

He said that rather than strengthening the APC as a party, the defections would deepen internal divisions and fuel leadership tussles.

“If there is anybody who is going to defect to the APC, I think I should be the very, very last one. By the time I defect, it would mean there are no parties left in Nigeria, including the APC,” he said.

“I have a very simple theory about defections. I think it is very good for us in the opposition that these defections are happening. All the APC is doing is absorbing all the problems it is going to face; they are right inside the party now. Ask yourself, in all the states where there are defections, what is going on there now?”

The lawmaker described the APC as a giant with feet of clay, saying the opposition would target its weak points during the election, leading to its collapse.

Abaribe, who reaffirmed his membership of the opposition coalition, said there is a consensus among opposition leaders to unite in order to dislodge the APC from power.

The coalition has adopted the African Democratic Congress (ADC) as the platform for the 2027 elections, but many have claimed the move is a strategy to enthrone Atiku Abubakar and compel all opposition members to support him.

However, Abaribe disagreed, saying the party has yet to release its guidelines and other arrangements ahead of the 2027 elections.