Nigerian oil sector being probed

Members of Nigeria's parliament have launched an investigation into the country's oil and gas business.

The probe aims to shed light on the impenetrable corruption that dogs the industry in the country.

It follows a similar probe into the power sector which revealed corrupt deals that have left Nigeria without reliable electricity supply.

Nigeria is currently the eighth biggest exporter of oil in the world, but most of its population remain poor.

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This article addresses the recent probing of Nigeria's oil sector in an attempt to discover any corruption that has manifested itself. This search is designed to reveal anyone that has made corrupt deals in Nigeria's oil industry, and if they are found out Nigeria's legitimacy will most likely be lowered considering most government officials are involved in the oil sector. If they are found to be corrupt, the citizens of Nigeria may question whether or not they have a right to lead their country.

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N300m Scam: Why I won't Submit to EFCC — Iyabo

Chairman of the Senate Committee on Health, Senator Iyabo Obasanjo-Bello, explained yesterday why she would not submit herself new to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for arrest and prosecution in connection with the N10 million received by the Committee from the Federal Ministry of Health.

She said her decision did not mean that she was above the law. She said the EFCC should let her be since she was already challenging the competence of the two-count charge slammed against her in court.

She said from all indications, EFCC was not really interested in prosecuting her over whatever offence she was alleged to have committed but simply interested in disgracing her.

It was also gathered yesterday that the Presidency might have frustrated EFCC’s initial moves to detain the Senator.

Speaking to newsmen in Abuja through her counsel, Mr Bankole Akomolafe of Chief Afe Babalola (SAN) Chambers, Senator Obasanjo-Bello said: “The Ministry of Health paid N10 millionto the Senate and not to Iyabo Obasanjo-Bello. The sum of N10 million was paid to the Senate Committee on Health by the Senate to cover the retreat for the study of a bill. Apparently the EFCC utilizes the same sort of funding for similar retreats, so Obasanjo-Bella is confused as to why they are accusing her of stealing money.

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Senator Obasanjo-Bella has been accused of embezzling ten million naira and is being convicted by the EFCC. She feels that she is being unjustly accused and denies the claim; she says that the money went towards a retreat the the Senate took to discuss a new bill. She is convinced that she is being singled out amongst all of the other senators because the EFCC is trying to disgrace her.

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I’m Afraid for My Life, Says Iyabo Obasanjo

Senator Iyabo Obasanjo-Bello, daughter of ex-president Olusegun Obasanjo, has said she fears for her life. Obasanjo-Bello is implicated in the N300 million Health Ministry scam and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) now wants her to be prosecuted for the alleged offence.

Her comments came after the anti-corruption agents raided her home in Abuja in an attempt to bring her to face prosecution. She told the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) yesterday that EFCC agents slapped her personal assistant during their visit to her house two days ago. "I am afraid of the EFCC... they slapped my PA when they got to the house," she said "I'm not on the run but I feel as if I'm a victim of harassment... I'm afraid for my life," she added.

Obasanjo-Bello, who chairs the Senate's Health Committee, was charged along with ten other top officials of the Health Ministry, including two former Ministers – Prof. Adenike Grange and Gabriel Aduku - for sharing the proceeds of corruption. After charges against Obasanjo-Bello were read in court last week, the EFCC said she had to turn herself in as soon as possible.

She was said to have bolted out of the house through the back door when the men of EFCC came to her house uninvited on Tuesday. She told the BBC she could not understand why her home was raided when she had visited the EFCC offices twice in the past week and made herself available through her lawyer.

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Senator Iyabo Obasanjo, daughter of the former president, fears for her life after the EFCC ransacked her house on Tuesday. There are rumors that she benefitted financially from her father's less than moral practices while in office. She feels the the EFCC crossed a few lines by actually slapping one of her employees in the face while they tore apart her house. If the EFCC really wants to put an end to corruption in Nigeria, they are going to have to do a better job of proving to citizens that they are a legitimate government agency that wants what is best for the country.

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Contractors May Refund Government's Money with Interest

Contractors who handled the controversial power plants initiated by the former President Olusegun Obasanjo's but failed to perform satisfactorily may be forced to refund the money and pay interest on them.

This is among punitive measures the House of Representatives Committee on Power and Steel probing the alleged $16 billion spent on the energy sector between 1999 and 2007 may recommend to the Federal Government.

Aside the representatives' probe, the Federal Government has intensified its efforts to bail out the energy sector from its near moribund state.

Its current focus is on the controversial National Integrated Power Projects (NIPP), where a global firm hired by the government to assess seven of the power plants and recommend ways to make functional has submitted its report.

After inspecting the Papalanto Power Plant in Ogun State yesterday, the panel's chairman, Mr. Godwin Ndudi Elumelu, said the contractors who performed poorly would be made to refund the money and pay interest on them.

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After many problems, much payment, and little results, the power sector of Nigeria did not do very well last year. Hopefully, the contracters will follow through and refund money, which might mitigate some of the damage and lack of progress in the power sector.

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Johnson, Omoyeni Give Conflicting Figures in Aso Rock Bribery Scandal

THE $200,000 bribery scandal over which a presidential aide and a former managing director of WEMA Bank are being questioned continued its reverberations through Aso Rock yesterday with both men reportedly confessing to conflicting sums.

While Femi Johnson, the presidential aide now under arrest for receiving the bribe has reportedly confessed to collecting only $100,000, the alleged giver, Adebisi Omoyeni, former chief executive of WEMA Bank, is said to have insisted that he gave $200,000.

The arrest of Femi Johnson, who works in the office of the President, was occasioned by his alleged collection of the bribe in return for leaking a document on the lingering Wema Bank crisis to its suspended managing director Mr. Adebisi Omoyeni.

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This article addresses the recent bribery scandal that was made public in Nigeria. The two men accussed in this case have given officers different figures as to how much money was involved. This scandal has caused many "calls for the sack of many staff holdovers from the Olusegun Obasanjo administration in the Villa." This shows that Nigerian citizens are aware of the corrupt nature of past administrations, but many still question the exact nature of the current administration revolving around President Yar'Adua.

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Bribery At Tribunals

In a season of scandals, the judiciary appears unwilling to be exempted from the rot that has hit the system. The Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Idris Legbo Kutigi says there are allegations of corruption against some judges at the election tribunals. This again brings to the fore the apprehensions about the rulings of these tribunals, as well as their ability to serve their purpose - dispensation of justice.

These allegations are not new. The House of Representatives Committee on Justice gave vent to them following petitions it got, in which there were allegations that as much as N2.1 billion has been spent in bribing judges at tribunals.

Some things are new about the latest allegations.

They are capable of pitting the judiciary against the legislature. The House of Representatives Committee on Justice is asking for the rulings of the tribunals. Its intentions are not clear.

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This article typifies the constant allegations that are always present in Nigeria and the current popular trend of news about tribunals. Even long after the tribunals are over, people are still disputing the results with the most popular form of accusations in Nigeria: Bribery, because even if the allegations are false, the stink of it stays, forever tarnishing the accused party's reputation. 

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N300m scam: How we shared N10m – Iyabo Obasanjo

Embattled Senator Iyabo Obasanjo-Bello has said that N500,000 was disbursed to each member of the Senate Committee on Health from the controversial N300m scam in the Federal Ministry of Health.

The Senator, who the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission claimed on Tuesday was at large because of her alleged involvement in the scam, said the money was given to the senators to cover parts of their expenses during a four-day seminar and retreat in Ghana.

She said in a statement to EFCC that the retreat and seminar was to facilitate the passage of the Health Policy Bill.

In the statement obtained by the News Agency of Nigeria in Abuja on Thursday, Obasanjo-Bello, who is the chairman of the Senate Committee on Health, said it was not unusual for a ministry to sponsor an executive bill.

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This thinly veiled, terrible excuse for the corrupt use of the health department's use of its greatly needed money is a poor reflection of the justice system in Nigeria. Just because she is the daughter of the former president, this criminal is still free to give excuses.

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N300m Scam - Grange, Aduku, 11 Others Charged

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) yesterday arraigned former Health Minister, Prof Adenike Grange; former Minister of State for Health, Gabriel Yakubu Aduku, an architect; and 11 others on a 56-count charge of graft involving about N300 million.

But the name of the daughter of former President Olusegun Obasanjo, Iyabo, which was mentioned as having partaken in the graft, was missing on the list of the accused persons charged to court yesterday.

The EFCC told the court that Iyabo was currently at large and could not be arrested for prosecution but would be arrested and brought to justice once found.

Iyabo, according to count 56 of the charges between December 2007 and March 2008 in Abuja while serving as chairperson of the Senate Committee on Health, dishonestly received the sum of N10 million belonging to the Federal Government having reason to believe that same was stolen. Her action is said to have constituted an offence punishable under Section 317 of the Penal Code Act Cap 352, Laws of the Federal Republic of Nigeria) Abuja.

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Corruption remains rampant in Nigeria, as 300 million Naira have been swindled from the government. What is somewhat different is the exclusion of the president's daughter from an accused list, despite proof of her involvement. Officials do assure that even these ties do not exclude Iyabo Obasanjo from justice, which is hopefully true.

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Security Experts from Britain, U.S, and Nigeria Meet Today

The Niger Delta oil fields, a major point of conflict in Africa

Top American intelligence and military officers as well as their British counterparts will, today, in Abuja, engage top Nigerian security chiefs under the Gulf of Guinea Energy Security Strategy (GGESS) to explore fresh initiatives towards ending militancy in the Niger Delta region, in particular, and a secured business environment in the entire Gulf of Guinea.

GGESS was initiated by the Federal Government in 2005 as a collaborative effort with key foreign governments to find a lasting solution to the security of oil and gas supply from the Niger Delta. It is also to promote sustainable development of the region in a climate of peace.

If successfully implemented, the GGESS initiative is expected to be replicated in other countries in the sub-region. The strategy seeks to build strong partnerships between the Nigerian Government and foreign governments interesteds in the co-ordinated effort to stamp out oil theft, illegal small arms dealings and money laundering with particular emphasis on the Niger Delta.

At inception, the US Government collaborated with Nigeria in establishing the GGESS. The United Kingdom which initially attended meetings as an observer eventually joined the group as a full member. Nigerian representation to the GGESS is drawn from the NNPC, the Nigerian military and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

The GGESS has four work groups to facilitate the achievement of set objective: the Small Arms Control, Maritime Security, Money Laundering and Sustainable Development.

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Another sign of attempts to improve stability and security in Nigeria, this article shows that some officials are trying to battle the seemingly endless flow of corruption and violence. Although this step forward will be met with almost as much movement backwards, hopefully the overall trend in Nigeria is progressive.

Government Introduces New Rural Development Plan

The Federal Government yesterday presented to stakeholders for inputs a three-year draft rural development plan for the country called the, "Community Economic Empowerment and Development Strategy (CEEDS)".

Minister and Deputy Chairman of the National Planning Commission (NPC), Senator Sanusi Dagash, who presented the documents to the stakeholders in Abuja yesterday, said CEEDS is estimated to cost about N248.64 billion.

"CEEDS conceptual framework is premised on the dire need for restoration of the human dignity and hope for poor communities in rural areas.

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Although some may say the US has a poverty problem, it is nothing compared to that of Nigeria. To say that even N248.64 billion could make a dent in the poverty situation of Nigeria is absurd. Even if the money was used without corruption or other problems, the amount of people below any poverty line in Nigeria is to enormous for billions of Naira to alleviate.

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Yar'Adua Insists on Refund Clause in Contracts

President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua has directed the Ministry of Justice not to approve any federal contract agreement which does not have an indemnity clause to refund to the government any amount spent if the contractor fails to fulfil his or her contractual obligations.

This is one of the ways the government is pursuing its quest to halt the problem of contractors collecting mobilisation fees and absconding without executing jobs according to signed agreements.

Government, a source told The Guardian yesterday, wants to end the abandoned projects syndrome and the collection of mobilisation fees without execution as a way of siphoning funds from government's coffers.

Under the new policy, any contractor that collects mobilisation fees and fails to execute the contract would be prosecuted for the recovery of the fund paid.

The source stated that Yar'Adua was shocked that until now, government contracts have no indemnity clause, which protects funds paid to contractors.

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The president is cracking down on a major source of corruption within the country. Many government officials and contractors were receiving government money for various projects, but then never completing the task that they were paid to do. This is one of the more creative ways that people have been stealing money from their government. When Yar'Adua found out about this embezzlement scheme, he was outraged. It is now government policy to prosecute anyone who is allotted government money for a project and does not complete it. This is an example of how the Nigerian government is cracking down on corruption within the country.

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How Obasanjo Spent $13bn on Power

Clearer picture of how the Obasanjo administration spent $13 billion on the power sector emerged yesterday with the Minister of State for Energy (Power), Mrs. Fatima Ibrahim, giving a breakdown of the expenditure over a period of eight years.

And following the failure of the National Integrated Power Project (NIPP) to materialise, the 36 states and the 774 councils are now demanding the refund of the $3.2 billion they contributed for its implementation, according to Governor Gabriel Suswam of Benue State.

She said the sum of N235 billion; $6.5 billion and 330 million Euro were used to finance the National Integrated Power Projects (NIPP).

She said another $4.6 billion sourced from the international creditors and $1.6 billion from Joint Venture Calls (JVCs) were also used to finance the sector during the period.

Ibrahim said although there was no evidence of misappropriation of the funds, some contracts that were paid for were abandoned by the contractors after payment.

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Following up on this story, the government has finally responded to the question of the people and the questions of the state government. The money was reportedly all allocated to certain projects, but that does not rule out the possibility of massive corruption or faulty allocation. The government's explanation was that many contrators who were hired for the job did not complete their tasks. This money that was not returned upon will be sought out from the contractors, and hopefully the government can come closer to their ambitious power supply goals.

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Nigerian Party Picks New Leader

The governing People's Democratic Party (PDP) in Nigeria has elected Vincent Ogbulafor as its new leader at a convention in the capital, Abuja.

Mr Ogbulafor is the party's former general secretary and is considered a compromise candidate, able to unite different factions of the party.

His election is seen as a setback for ex-leader Olusegun Obasanjo who was backing his own candidate.

The PDP won heavily in disputed 2007 polls and dominates national politics.

Read the full story here.

This article addresses the recent election of Vincent Ogbulafor to serve as the People's Democratic Party's leader in Nigeria. Ogbulafor is the former general secretary; he is viewed as a "compromise candidate" because he connects the different groups of the party. This "compromise" shows that the leaders of the dominant party in Nigeria are seeking to do what would be best for the nation which would be to put aside differences and find a common ground. The election of Ogbulafor was seen as a test of former Nigerian president Olusegun Obasanjo's influence on the activities of the nation and its political parties. Obasanjo was backing one of his "allies," Sam Egwu, for this position, but Mr. Edwu was not selected. Many people in the People's Democratic Party are seeking to lower Obasanjo's influence on the goings-on in Nigeria. This shows that many of them are trying to move ahead, rather than staying in the same place they were the entire time Obasanjo was president. Alex Last believes that there was "a lot of backroom dealing before the result was announced" because of the corrupt nature of many of Nigerian leaders.

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Nigeria's Buhari Renews Challenge

Muhammadu Buhari says the tribunal was wrong. A Nigerian opposition candidate is appealing to the Supreme Court over the election of President Umaru Yar'Adua.

Defeated All Nigeria People's Party candidate Muhammadu Buhari wants last year's widely criticised poll annulled.

Last week, the election tribunal said Mr Buhari had failed to prove the result of the election had been affected by rigging.

Mr Buhari's lawyers said the burden of proof should be on the government.

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Buhari was Yar'Adua's competition in the last presidential election. Last week there was a tribunal held to determine whether the presidential election should be annuled due to the recent evidence found that makes it appear that the election was rigged. Though Buhari lost the tribunal last week, he has not given up. He had plenty of evidence proving the Yar'Adua was not the fair winner, including ballots that did not have serial numbers. Buhari has not given up yet, even though Yar'Adua was declared innocent. Considering all of the evidence that Buhari presented, it is surprising that he did not win. Perhaps Yar'Adua had to resort to corrupt practices in order to hide how he won the presidential election.

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Good "Friends"

We have made many posts about the rampant corruption in Nigeria, but this comic adds a little humor to the subject. With all of the corruption in other areas, it seems that the only way to complete this project is by promising more corruption. It is a vicious cycle with no easy end in sight.

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Yar’Adua Moves Against Health Minister

The Health Minister, Prof. Adenike Grange, who was arrested last Thursday on the orders of President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua over the handling of unspent funds in the 2007 budget and award of contracts, has been released.

Grange was released at the weekend by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) after she was interrogated over the allegation.

THISDAY learnt that the health minister claimed she was misadvised by her directors.

Operatives of EFCC are now moving against the directors following the minister’s claim but Grange may be invited again for further interrogation as more details are unveiled.

Read the full story here.

This article addresses the recent release of Nigerian Health Minister Adenike Grange who was arrested on the orders of President Umaru Yar'Adua because of how remaining funds in the federal budget were handled. Grange said that she was "misadvised by her directors." According to the article, Grange was found to distribute funds without following due process; this shows the corruption that has filled the government because the leaders do not necessarily follow the necessary or required procedures to accomplish the things that they desire. The arrest of Grange is expected to reveal more leaders who have done the same or similar things as she. President Yar'Adua has been angry over the inflation of the money that he believes is partially due to the sporadic spending of the governmental ministers. The actions that the government takes, furthering Yar'Adua's vow to stamp out corruption, will show the power and influence the Nigerian government has.

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Yar'Adua Orders Minister's Arrest

President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua has directed the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to arrest a serving Minister for allegedly flouting a presidential directive on returning unspent funds in the last days of 2007 to the public treasury and for partaking in sharing in the proceeds of contracts awarded illegally.


Sources also told The Guardian that the female Minister might be among those to be shown the way out in the "looming sweeping changes in several areas of the Executive, including top officials of the administration."


The sources also added that the President, buoyed by recent court reprieve, has made it known to some of his aides that many of the Ministers, who emerged through unavoidable political process, "do not have the requisite capacity for their assignments."


The Minister, currently facing interrogation by the EFCC, is accused of awarding contracts without following due process in the last few days of 2007 and sharing in the proceeds of the contracts.

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President Yar'Adua has ordered that the now former minister of the EFCC be arrested for not returning unspent funds back to the treasury at the end of the year. This punishment seems a little hypocritical considering that Yar'Adua allegedly also uses government funds for his own personal use. However, despite Yar'Adua's hypocrisy, this story shows that the government is making an attempt to punish criminals and thereby decrease the corruption that plagues the government. Possibly the most interesting thing about this story is that editors of a competing newspaper were payed earlier this year to not report this story. However, the story leaked out and now the government looks even more corrupt.

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Tribunal Sacks Orji, Orders Ugochukwu In

THE Abia State Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Umuahia yesterday nullified the election of Governor Theodore Orji of the Progressive People's Alliance (PPA) and declared Chief Onyema Ugochukwu of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), winner of the April 14, 2007 governorship election in the state.

The tribunal based its decision on what it called Orji’s membership of the Ogwugwuakpu Secret Cult in Okija and his failure to resign his appointment as a public officer of Abia State before contesting the election. His deputy, Chief Chris Akomo, according to the tribunal also did not resign from public office before contesting the election. The tribunal said consequently, Orji did not qualify to contest the election.

The tribunal in the two judgement which lasted two hours, 45 minutes and read by the Chairman of the panel, Justice Abdullahi Yusuf, held that Orji did not come before the tribunal to refute the claims of the petitioner, the consequences of which were that the election of the first and second defendants ought to be nullified.

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This article addresses the recent overturning of the decision of who would be governor of the Abia state. According to the article, Governor Theodore Orji was not "qualified to contest the election;" therefore, his winning was overturned, and Onyema Ugochukwu was declared the rightful winner. This decision shows the power that the government has to completely overturn the decision of who would be governor of a particular state. Also, this shows the corruption of Nigeria because the leaders are not always properly qualified but will still manage to do whatever it takes to win the election if that is what they want.

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Captors Demand N50m for Odili's Nephew

GUNMEN again struck in the early hours of yesterday in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, killing a man in his car in front of the Federal High Court Complex.

The Guardian learnt that two men stopped the driver of the car while leaving the court premises on a motorcycle, and ordered him to bring out the money in the boot of his car. He allegedly replied that he did not have any money, a response believed to have provoked the gunmen, who shot him twice and sped off.

Also yesterday, the kidnappers of Mr. Eni Odili, the nephew of the former Governor of the state, Peter Odili, demanded N50 million as ransom from the family.

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This article addresses the recent kidnapping of former Governor of state Peter Odili's nephew. The kidnappers have demanded N50m ransom for the release of the boy. According to the article, this is not the first case of kidnapping, and the kidnappings are solely for economic gains. Also according to the article there has been an outrageous number of "hostage-taking, oil theft and militancy." This shows the corruption that has filled Nigeria for so many years. This article also addresses the recent murder of a man who was in his car in front of the Federal High Court Complex. These acts show the violence that consumes many of the Nigerian people. Because of these two incidents, the government is being called upon to make changes that will lower the amount of violence and prevalence of anger in the Nigerian people. The power of the government will be shown through what they can do to ease the tension and violence in Nigeria.

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D-Day for Yar'Adua: Judge Dismisses Muhammadu Buhari's Petition

A Nigerian judge has dismissed one of two opposition petitions asking that President Umaru Yar'Adua's election in April last year be annulled.

Opposition candidate Gen Muhammadu Buhari had said the ballot did not take place in 29 of the 31 states.

A judge is still to rule on former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar's claim that the incumbent People's Democratic Party rigged the vote.

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This article addresses the claims that the recent election that elected Nigerian President Umaru Yar'Adua was flawed because of the corrupt practices it was run. There have been two petitions stating that the election should be annulled because Yar'Adua won through unfair means. The claims of flawed elections show the corruption that have filled the nation since its beginning, and if the elections were rigged it can cause the Nigerian people to lose their trust in the government which can lower the legitimacy of Nigeria.

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