Headline

Senate Passes Bill Empowering FG to Seize Illegally-Acquired Assets

Published

3 years ago

January 27, 2022

Eric

The Senate has passed for second reading, a bill seeking to allow the Federal Government to seize assets acquired by corrupt public officers, terrorism financiers, among others.

The legislation is titled, ‘A bill for an Act to Make Comprehensive Provisions For Seizure, Confiscation, Forfeiture and Management of Properties Reasonably Suspected to Have Been Derived From Unlawful Activities.’

The sponsor of the bill, Senator Suleiman Kwari, in his lead debate, said the proposal passed first reading on March 16, 2021, and was also listed among the versions of bills of interest contained in the recent communication from the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), to the National Assembly.

Buhari had last week appealed to the parliament to pass three anti-corruption bills on proceeds of crime, whistle-blower and witness protection.

The Senate had on Tuesday passed the Witness Protection Bill for second reading.

Kwari said the main objective of the bill was to provide for the establishment of a department in the relevant organisations to manage forfeited assets.

According to him, the department would provide for an effective legal and institutional framework for the recovery and management of the proceeds of crime, as well as civil forfeitures in non-conviction based sentencing.

He said, “This bill further makes provisions for restraint, seizure, confiscation and forfeiture of property derived from property unlawful activities; any instrumentality used or intended to be used in the commission of such unlawful activities; and for non-conviction based procedure for the recovery of proceeds of crime.

“The bill’s other objectives are to strengthen the criminal confiscation procedure by ensuring that the total benefit from a person’s criminal activity is calculated and an equivalent amount, where recoverable, is confiscated on behalf of the Federal Government.

In his submission, Senator Smart Adeyemi, stated that it had become expedient for government to go after anyone who cannot account for how they acquired their properties.

“In supporting this bill, Mr. President, I hold the view that the people who have acquired their properties legally and with good funds have no cause to fear,” he said.

The Deputy Majority Whip, Senator Aliyu Sabi-Abdullahi said, “I think it is our duty to support such a law, but it must not be done in a manner that at the end of the day, when you have somebody that does not mean well, you have given him a weapon to go after his perceived enemies. I think that is where caution has to come in.”

Senator Stella Oduah, who is under the radar of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, however, kicked against the bill.

Oduah said, “For very brilliant senators such as us, we cannot be seen to pass a bill which we haven’t thought through and that is not in line with best global practice. We shouldn’t play ostrich with this bill. We are going to create a situation where conflict of interest within establishments will continue to exist. Subjectivity in handling issues will be the subject of the day, and innocent Nigerians will be made to be victims of this law, and laws are not supposed to be like that.

“Laws are supposed to stand the test of time. This bill will not stand the test of time because it will be very subjective.”

President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan, after the second reading, referred the bill to the Joint Committee on Anti-Corruption and Financial Crimes; and Judiciary, Human Rights and Legal Matters.

The joint committee was given four weeks to report back to the Senate in plenary.

Meanwhile, a bill seeking to broaden the functions of the Public Complaints Commission also scaled second reading on Wednesday.

The Punch

Headline

Tinubu’s New Year Message, Proof of Disconnection from Nigerians Frustration – PDP

Published

19 hours ago

January 2, 2025

Eric

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) declared on Wednesday that President Bola Tinubu’s New Year nationwide broadcast has further frustrated Nigerians’ hope for good governance.

It alleged that the speech showed that Tinubu’s administration is grossly disconnected and unconcerned with the hardship Nigerians are going through as a result of ill-implemented policies and gross mismanagement of resources under the President’s watch.

The opposition party, in a statement by its national publicity secretary, Debo Ologunagba, noted that Nigerians are appalled that despite the prodding of well-meaning citizens, President Tinubu’s New Year speech did not articulate any specific direction for the nation or proffer solutions to the myriad of problems caused by APC’s misrule.

“President Tinubu’s speech again underlines APC’s insensitivity to the anguish of Nigerians by failing to present any definite policy roadmap towards reducing the price of petroleum products, addressing the widespread hunger in the land, and revamping our ailing productive sector,” the PDP stated.

It further observed that “the speech did not articulate any solution-based direction for the critical sectors of electricity, oil and gas, road infrastructure, food production, among other areas that are fundamental to the wellbeing of citizens.”

The party said: “It was also pathetically devoid of a precise plan to address unemployment through strategic investment to stimulate multi-sectoral Small and Medium Scale Enterprises in the country.”

According to the PDP, the New Year address should have made definite pronouncements on the price of fuel, especially given that with deft, transparent, and innovative management of resources, economic potentials, comparative advantage, national refining capacity, and effective policing of our borders, Nigerians should not pay more than N350 per liter for petrol within the country.

It alleged that the Tinubu-led APC administration lacks the expected patriotic commitment as well as the required capacity, competence, and skills to effectively harness and manage the resources of the nation for the good of the citizens.

“Moreover, President Tinubu’s claim in the speech that Nigerians placed their confidence in him as their President is ludicrous and shows that he is disconnected from the reality of his abysmal perception among Nigerians.

“Mr. President must realize that Nigerians have lost faith in his administration; they have since moved on and are eagerly waiting for the next round of elections that will mark the end of the nightmare which the APC represents to our nation,” the PDP added.

Headline

Resume Before Trump’s Inauguration, American Schools Advise International Students

Published

6 days ago

December 28, 2024

Eric

Universities in the United States have urged international students to resume before president-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration.

Trump is set to be sworn in on January 20, 2025.

The universities advised international students to return early from winter break amid promises of another travel ban by the incoming president.

Many international students were stranded abroad when Trump imposed a travel ban at the start of his first administration.
The president-elect has been vocal about his hardline immigration stance.

Some of the actions Trump has promised to take include a travel ban on people from predominantly Muslim countries and the revocation of student visas of “radical anti-American and anti-semitic foreigners”.

Headline

Prerogative of Mercy: Osun Gov Pardons 53 Convicts

Published

1 week ago

December 26, 2024

Eric

The Governor of Osun State, Ademola Adeleke, has exercise his powers of prerogative of mercy, pardoning 53 convicted inmates, including a young man sentenced to death for ‘stealing fowl’.

The governor made this known via a tweet on his official X handle with the title, PREROGATIVE OF MERCY EXTENDED TO 53 CONVICTS.

The governor noted as follows:

In line with the recommendations of the State Advisory Council on Prerogative of Mercy and in exercise of the power conferred on me by paragraph (a), (c) and (d) of subsection (i) of section 212 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (As Amended), I am pleased to extend my grace and mercy unto 53 convicts serving various convictions within the Nigerian Correctional Service.

In the case of inmates convicted of simple offences, I have decided in accordance with the said recommendation to remit and forgive the remainder of the said sentences of the following 30 (thirty ) inmates in whole.

1. OLUBO SUNDAY
2. ISAH UMAR BIODUN
3. FAWAS KAREEM
4. OMIRIN TEMITAYO
5. OLARENWAJU AYOMIDE
6. DARE SUNDAY
7. OLADAPO TUNDE
8. GANIYU SAHEED
9. ADEWUMI SODIQ
10. ADEBAYO ADEOYE
KEHINDE
11. LASIS KAZEEM
12. DAUDA OJO (59 YEARS)
13. ISMAILA RAJI
14. OSENI MICHEAL
15. AJAYI KOREDE
16. ABIONA NURUDEEN
17. OSHI SAMUEL
18. SHEU YUSUF OLATUNJI
19. OJO AANU
20. MUSTAPHA KEHINDE
21. LASIS ABEEB
22. ALEXANDRA IORLAHA
23. OJO TAIWO
24. AZEEZ MUJEEB
25. AKINYEMI DAVID
26. ADEOSUN ADEKUNLE
27. OLAOBAJU SAMUEL
28. ADURA ADEFEMI
29. PAUL BASIL
30. KUNLE DAVID

I have also decided in accordance with the said recommendation to grant outright pardon to the following 12 (Twelve) inmates convicted of simple offences.

1. OLABOMIJI NURUDEEN
2. MUSTAPHA ISAH
3. OLALEKAN ABDULLAHI
4. AYOMIDE OLOJEDE
5. AKEEM RAPHAEL
6. ADEYEMI ABIODUN
7. OLADIPUPO SEGUN
8. OMISAKIN SUNDAY
9. ADEMOLA ADIO
10. TUNDE OLAPADE
11. LATE CHIEF WOLE OLA
RUFUS OJO
12. OMOLOYE OLAJIDE
OLAYEMI

In the case of the following 6 (Six) Convicts sentenced to death, I have approved the commutation of their sentence from death to outright release while OJEKUNLE TIMOTHY has his sentence commuted from death sentence to 15 (Fifteen) years imprisonment having spent at least 10 (ten) years in custody.

1 OLUWAFEMI FAGBEMI
2 BEWAJI SUNDAY
3. AMEHIN GEORGE
4. AYOMIDE ARULOGUN
5. TAIWO OLUWATOBI STEPHEN
6. ABUBAKAR ABDULAZEEZ

The following 4 (Four) Convicts also have their sentences commuted from death sentence to outright pardon.

1. SUNDAY MORAKINYO
2. SEGUN OLOWOOKERE
3. TUNDE OLAPADE
4. DEMOLA ODEYEMI