FORMER CBN GOVERNOR, EMEFIELE, OWNS 753 DUPLEXES RECOVERED BY EFCC – SOWORE

download 13

FORMER CBN GOVERNOR, EMEFIELE, OWNS 753 DUPLEXES RECOVERED BY EFCC – SOWORE

A former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Godwin Emefiele, owns the large estate in Abuja with 753 duplexes forfeited to the Nigerian government through the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), in a court ruling on Monday.

Human rights activist and convener of #RevolutionNow Movement, Omoyele Sowore, confirmed the development in a post on his Twitter.

Emefiele is standing trial on several charges bordering on corruption, including in the new naira redesign before the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, High Court in Maitama, Abuja.

Justice Maryann Anenih had adjourned the matter till December 4, 2024, and January 21, 2025 for continuation of trial.

Sowore had earlier blasted the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), for refusing to name the former Nigerian “top brass” who owned the large estate in Abuja with 753 duplexes.

Sowore, former presidential candidate for the African Action Congress (AAC) in the 2023 general elections, had noted on Monday that the EFFC is now afraid of big thieves and has become their public relations officer.

In an update, the human rights activist said, “I just heard from the grapevine that the 753 duplexes forfeited by an FCT court in Apo belong to Muhammadu Buhari’s CBN gov, Godwin Emefiele.”

Justice Jude Onwuegbuzie, on Monday, ordered the final forfeiture of an estate in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, measuring 150,500 square metres and containing 753 Units of duplexes and other apartments.

The EFCC said in a release that this was the single largest asset recovery by the Commission since its inception in 2003.

The estate rests on Plot 109 Cadastral Zone C09, Lokogoma District, Abuja.

According to Sowore, the same EFCC which deliberately refused to name the seized 753 duplexes Abuja estate boldly and without commencement of court trial, published names and photos of yahoo boys with proud display of laptops and small Nokia phones.

Sowore, who said this in a post on his verified social media account wrote, “What is the name of the “former top brass” with 753 duplexes seized by the EFCC in Abuja?

“The @officialEFCC is now doing PR for thieves. They seized this large estate with 753 duplexes from a single individual in Abuja but can’t mention his or her name.

“If it is Yahoo boys, they will line laptops and Nokia phones in front of them and send their photos globally even before their trial is commenced. The same EFCC is now AFRAID of BIG Thieves!”

In another post, Sowore wrote, “They have told you every day since the days of the Structural Adjustment Program of IBB and Co. that the government has no business building houses for citizens, but a “TOP Brass” stole from citizens and built 753 duplexes for himself.”

“The forfeiture of the property to the federal government by a former top brass of the government was pursuant to EFCC’s mandate and policy directive of ensuring that the corrupt and fraudulent do not enjoy the proceeds of their unlawful activities.

“In this instance, the Commission relied on Section 17 of the Advance Fee Fraud And Other Fraud Related Offences Act No 14, 2006 and Section 44 (2) B of the Constitution of the 199 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to push its case,” the EFCC had said.

Ruling on the Commission’s application for the final forfeiture of the property, Justice Onwuegbuzie held that the respondent have not shown cause as to why he should not lose the property, “which has been reasonably suspected to have been acquired with proceeds of unlawful activities, the property is hereby finally forfeited to the federal government.”

  • Dons Eze

    DONS EZE, PhD, Political Philosopher and Journalist of over four decades standing, worked in several newspaper houses across the country, and rose to the positions of Editor and General Manager. A UNESCO Fellow in Journalism, Dr. Dons Eze, a prolific writer and author of many books, attended several courses on Journalism and Communication in both Nigeria and overseas, including a Postgraduate Course on Journalism at Warsaw, Poland; Strategic Communication and Practical Communication Approach at RIPA International, London, the United Kingdom, among others.

    Related Posts

    IF YOU CONTINUE THIS WAY YOU WILL MILK NIGERIA TO DEATH – OBI OF ONITSHA TO POLITICIANS

    IF YOU CONTINUE THIS WAY, YOU WILL MILK NIGERIA TO DEATH – OBI OF ONITSHA TO POLITICIANS The Obi of Onitsha, His Royal Majesty Nnaemeka Achebe has warned the political class over the increasing level of corruption in the country. The monarch urged those in leadership to put public interest above personal and individualistic desires, insisting that this is the only way Nigeria will grow. He shared his concerns over the economic situation in the country in Abuja at the public presentation of a book,’Bold Leap’ authored by Senator Chris Anyanwu. His Royal Majesty warned that with the increasing level of corruption in the country which is akin to milking a cow, the cow would soon die if incorruptible milking was not stopped. He condemned the attitude of the political class towards accountability and good governance, likening it to the ignoble attitude to milking the cow continuously without replenishing and sustaining it. The Obi of Onitsha said: “Should we continue milking the cow, it will die. In this country, since independence, we’ve been talking and talking and talking and talking and talking. I think it’s time we begin to think about doing something because we have two alternatives. Keep milking the cow until it dies, because of our sectional interests, which we tend to protect, and our personal interests. People go into public service, not to serve the public, but to serve their interests. “Either we keep doing that and milk the cow to death, or we do the opposite and place Nigeria above everything else. “And I would like to add that time is not too much in our favour. It’s either we milk the cow to death very, very fast, or we can turn around the country very, very fast.” Bold Leap, which had a gathering of Nigerians made up of former Presidents, ex- Presidents of the Senate, past and present senators, and former governors is an autobiography of Senator Anyanwu with 600 pages, three parts, and 19 chapters. President Bola Tinubu was represented by the Minister of Special Duties and Inter-Governmental Affairs, Zaphaniah Jisalo, the Chairman of the event and former President Olusegun Obasanjo was represented by former President of the Senate, Senator David Mark; former President Goodluck Jonathan was represented by ex-President of the Senate, Senator Anyim Pius Anyim, the Emir of Kano, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, Jaja of Okpobo, former Senators, former Anambra State governors, Chris Ngige and Peter Obi, Pan Niger Delta Forum, PANDEF’s spokesperson, Dr. Obiuwevbi Ominimini, Senators, Captains of Industry, among others were present at the event.

    UK TO DEPORT NIGERIAN PASTOR OVER ALLEGED FRAUD

    UK TO DEPORT NIGERIAN PASTOR OVER ALLEGED FRAUD A Nigerian pastor whose church was shut down over an alleged £1.87 million fraud has lost his fight against deportation, despite claiming it would breach his human rights, News360 Nigeria reports. An immigration tribunal has ruled that Tobi Adegboyega, 44, the cousin of John Boyega, the Star Wars actor, should be deported back to his native Nigeria after investigations, including by The Telegraph, exposed misuse of funds by his church. Mr Adegboyega was head of SPAC Nation, a controversial church shut down after failing to properly account for more than £1.87 million of outgoings and operating with a lack of transparency. He claimed deportation would breach his right under the European Convention of Human Rights (ECHR) to a family life – having married a British woman. He also said the attempt to remove him by the Home Office failed to take account of his community work with SPAC. Describing a “charismatic” community leader of a large, well-organised church, his legal team claimed that he had “intervened in the lives of many hundreds of young people, predominantly from the black communities in London, to lead them away from trouble”. He claimed his work had been “lauded” by politicians including Boris Johnson and senior figures within the Metropolitan Police, although no testimony by them was submitted to the court. He said that without his personal presence in London, projects that he had masterminded would fall apart or reduce in size. However, the tribunal was told the Home Office contended “all is not as it seems”. “Various manifestations of [Mr Adegboyega’s] church have been closed down, by either the Charity Commission or the High Court, because of concerns over its finances and lack of transparency,” according to the judgment. ‘Selling their own blood’ “Former members of the church have alleged that it is a cult, in which impoverished young people are encouraged to do anything they can to donate money, including taking out large loans, committing benefit fraud and even selling their own blood. “It is alleged that the church leadership lead lavish lifestyles and there have, it is said, been instances of abuse. The [Home Office’s] case before us was that all of this needs to be taken into account when evaluating whether [Mr Adegboyega] is in fact of real value to the UK.” Mr Adegboyega has lived in the UK unlawfully since overstaying on a visitor’s visa that allowed him to enter Britain in 2005. In 2019, he applied for leave to remain under ECHR’s right to a family life. His application was initially dismissed by a first-tier immigration tribunal before he appealed. In the tribunal, he maintained no one had ever faced criminal charges over his church’s finances, that many of the attacks on him and SPAC Nation were politically motivated and that claims it was a cult were unfounded. However, the tribunal was told the Charity Commission concluded “there had been serious misconduct and/or mismanagement in the administration of the charity which was sustained over a substantial period of time”. The tribunal also found Mr Adegboyega’s evidence to be “hyperbolic in many instances” and had “sought to grossly inflate his influence”. “We find it to be implausible that he has the time to undertake all of this work personally,” it said. The tribunal concluded: “We are not satisfied that the good work that SPAC Nation undertakes generally would collapse or even significantly suffer should the Appellant be required to leave the UK. “Weighing all of the foregoing in the balance we conclude that the decision to refuse leave to remain was wholly proportionate. “[Mr Adegboyega] seeks to rely on family and private life relationships, all of which have been established whilst he was in…

    Leave a Reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    You Missed

    IF YOU CONTINUE THIS WAY YOU WILL MILK NIGERIA TO DEATH – OBI OF ONITSHA TO POLITICIANS

    UK TO DEPORT NIGERIAN PASTOR OVER ALLEGED FRAUD

    NORTHERN SENATORS DEMAND SUSPENSION OF ACTION ON TAX REFORM BILLS

    BISHOP KUKAH TUTORS TINUBU’S SPOKESPERSONS ON COMMUNICATION STRATEGIES: IT’S NOT ABOUT INSULTING PEOPLE

    FIRE DESTROYS INEC OFFICE IN DELTA

    TAX REFORM BILLS DIVIDE STATE GOVTS