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NGF’S RESPONSE TO NED MUNIR NWOKO’S PRESS STATEMENT DATED 20TH AUGUST, 2022
NGF’S RESPONSE TO NED MUNIR NWOKO’S PRESS STATEMENT DATED 20TH AUGUST, 2022
Not surprisingly, the desperate, spurious and futile advocacy mounted and coordinated by the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) on behalf of the so-called Paris Club Consultants to justify the plundering of the humongous sum of USD418.9m from the public treasury of the States and Local Governments continued on Saturday 20th August 2022, when Ned Nwoko, in a press statement attempted to blur and obfuscate the real facts and legal issues in controversy by dishing out blatant lies and half-truths.
The facts are and will always remain: whether the claims of the consultants are lawful and justified under our constitution and whether any Judgment which is a subject of a pending appeal can be enforced or executed as the consultants now attempt to do? If both questions are answered in the negative, it does not matter if the contracts leading to the claims were entered into by any public official, past or present. No person or persons can agree to blatantly circumvent our Constitution and get away with it. Neither is the period when Judgments were obtained of consequence in this case.
Undoubtedly, the salient facts on the fraud associated with the Paris Club refunds can never be changed by a thousand Press Statements by the AGF or any of the Consultants. As the Judgments of the appellate courts, particularly that of the Supreme Court have begun to expose the creepiness and unlawful nature of the consultants claims; it is not surprising that they are now afflicted by dizzy spells, seriously discomforted and are now driven by desperation to ensure that the plundering and fleecing of the State is quickly completed before the determination of the pending proceedings in the appellate and other courts in order to foist a situation of frustration and helplessness on the States. This is apparent as the consultants are not in a position to restore the funds to the States if they lose on appeal; as it is becoming apparent.
It is therefore needless joining issues with NED NWOKO or indeed any of the consultants. It is however imperative to debunk patent lies dished out in order to disabuse the minds of the undiscerning public. It is curious that in the introduction of himself, Mr. Ned Nwoko said nothing about his current status with the UK Law Society and the widely held belief that he was disbarred for fraudulent activities.
While he strenuously tried to single out and justify his own bogus claim of USD$68 million; the total amount which all the consultants working in concert, collectively seek and claim from the States and Local Governments, albeit unlawfully is USD$418,953,690.59 broken down as follows:
i. NED MUNIR NWOKO ($68,658,192.83)
ii. DR. TED ISIGHOHI EDWARDS ($159,000,000)
iii. PANIC ALERT SECURITY SYSTEMS LTD ($47,831,920)
iv. RIOK NIG. Ltd (USD142,028,941.95)
v. PRINCE ORJI ORIZU (USD1,219,440.45)
vi. BARRISTER OLAITAN BELLO (USD215,195.36)
TOTAL – USD$418,953,690.59
It is instructive to note that all the claims by the consultants are rooted in Suit No FHC/ABJ/CS/130/13 BETWEEN: LINAS INTERNATIONAL LTD & 35 ORS VS FEDERAL GOVERNMENT OF NIGERIA & 3 ORS in which NED NWOKO instituted, and was awarded a bogus 20% of the sum of $3,188,078,505.96 from the States and Local Government Paris Club refunds. The Judgment has been challenged on appeal by the States and NGF in Suit No CA/ABJ/PRE/ROEA/CV/327M1/2022: ATTORNEY GENERAL OF ABIA STATE & 35 ORS VS LINAS INTERNATIONAL LTD & 239 ORS.
The attempt by NED therefore to separate his own claim of $68 million as if it is not related to the claims of other consultants is being clever by half. All the consultants claim to have rendered the same or similar service of helping the States and Local Governments to recover over-deducted Paris Club refunds by the Federal Government performed some contracts to be paid from the Paris club refunds. Their cases therefore rise or fall together. A poison of the part is a poison of the whole. What is unlawful remains unlawful. Its origin is immaterial and the part or role played by all parties separately or collectively at all times is unlawful and cannot be remedied.
As it is common with all unholy alliances, it does appear that the romance between the consultants and their determination to fight together under the AGF’s tacit coordination to pull out of the States the sum of USD$418,953,690.59 may have suffered a crack. This must have led NED to address the press alone and single out his unmerited claim of $68 million as justifiable. This is also coming just on the heels of a similar press briefing by the AGF, a few days ago during which he stoutly defended all the consultants and berated the States for opposing or delaying the prompt payment of the sum claimed. It was thought that the AGF had done a good job of defense for all of them; but NED’s decision to go solo to make his own case without reference to others suggest that the union of consultants is gradually falling apart. What however NED did not tell the public is: If all the Local Governments engaged him directly as claimed and if he acted for the States through his lawyers and the NGF requested that he extends the services to all the States as also claimed, what different service did TED ISEGHOHI-EDWARDS, his collaborator and conspirator (indicted by the EFCC) rendered for which he is being paid the whooping sum of $159,000,000 also from the Paris Club refund?
In his desperation to justify his claim, NED peddled untruths that his team was a member of the Federal Government Committee constituted to reconcile figures under the Paris Club refunds to the States and Local Governments. That is patently false. The report of that committee dated May, 2007 shows that only the FMF, OAGF, CBN, DMO and RMFC (secretariat) were members. Private persons who were not privy could not have been included in a committee that was meant to examine purely public financial records. It was this Committee that did all the work now claimed by NED and the other consultants.
While it is possible that the unlawful scheme hatched by the consultants to feast on public funds may have over the years been executed with the cooperation of enemies of the State without anyone raising an eye brow; the bubble has now burst and the time to account has come. It is an irony that NED and other consultants who flaunt Judgments of courts as justification for payment are now uncomfortable and jittery when the same Judgments are tested on appeal. An appeal is not a circumvention of a Judgment as NED may want the public to believe. It is a constitutional right. The consultants have no choice but to pursue the various appeals. While NED has vowed to fully enforce the Judgment in FHC/ABJ/CS/130/2013; may we remind him that the law does not permit the enforcement of a Judgment that is on appeal. Let him reserve all his vituperations against the NGF Chairman and canvass them on appeal as the law may permit him.
Understandably, the SC has in its Judgment dated 3rd June, 2022 sent a clear signal in SUIT NO 337/2018: RIOK NIG LIMITED VS NGF 7 ORS that the claims of the consultants are unequivocally unconstitutional as funds of States and Local Governments cannot be attached in the Federation account in the manner approved and pushed by the AGF. Let the consultants therefore have their day in court with the NGF and upon victory; they can seek to be paid. It is absurd to pursue payment in the face of all pending cases. While the consultants are strangely emboldened by those who should ordinarily oppose the payment and protect public trust; the law is not silent. It upholds the truth at all times no matter how long it takes.
No professional advocacy or media campaign to hoodwink the public can change the law. We are not unmindful of the ridiculous claim by one of consultants that it was his media campaign that swayed a Federal High Court Judgment in favour of the NGF. Interestingly, the public which is the greatest victim in the mismanagement of scare public resources has since been well informed and is on red alert to avert and stop what is apparently an attempt by some ravenous rent seekers masquerading as consultants to further exacerbate the economic woes of citizens under the prevailing dire economic situation. The use of libelous language on the person of the Chairman of NGF who has refused to be compromised and has firmly stood his ground on the unconstitutional and unlawful nature of the consultants’ claims is not helpful to their case either.
The NGF is an apolitical organization that operates under defined principles targeted at good governance. Its role in the whole of this Paris Club refund debacle to consultants is to ensure that Nigeria citizens are not unlawfully deprived of resources meant for their development. NGF will not therefore waste its valuable time to defend unsubstantiated allegations against individuals or persons who are in a position to defend themselves. If NED is sure of his facts, he is at liberty to approach the necessary authorities to bring to justice any person or persons and all conspirators (including himself) who were allegedly involved in misappropriating public resources for campaign financing. The NGF hereby states unequivocally that it has not at any time been involved in or been in receipt of USD$100m or any other funds from NED Nwoko to finance elections in any State.
Perhaps, confirming our fears and that of the public that the AGF has abdicated his role as public defender and trustee and became the strongest advocate to the consultants is now evident in NED NWOKO’s press statement wherein he praised the role played by the AGF describing it as inevitable. NED cannot say that the consultants have no official Platform to canvass their case, when the AGF has, in spite of public protestation, provided the strongest and most virulent platform to campaign for the expeditious payment of the sums claimed. The AGF has addressed and issued over half a dozen press statements justifying why the consultants should be immediately paid. Not even NED’S solicitors could have done any better.
The NGF and its leadership remain focused and determined to diligently pursue all appeals on the Judgments on the Paris Club refunds. All that it request of the AGF and the consultants is to allow the appeal processes to run and be exhausted. It may be that the consultants will successfully defend the appeals after which they will be paid. However, if they lose as RIOK NIGERIA LTD has lost; which is the most likely verdict that shall befall all the other consultants; let the public funds in issue remain protected. We urge NED and the other consultants to end the media war and direct all energies towards defending the appeals.
Abdulrazaque Bello-Barkindo
Director, Media and Public Affairs
Nigeria Governors’ Forum Secretariat
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President Tinubu in Turkey: Guard of Honor and Strategic Agreements Signal New Era in Bilateral Relations
By Prince Adeyemi Shonibare
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, was accorded a full guard of honor during his official state visit to Turkey, a ceremonial reception reserved for world leaders and a strong signal of the respect Nigeria commands on the global stage.
The ceremony, held at the Turkish Presidential Complex in Ankara, featured military pageantry, national anthems, and formal protocol before high-level bilateral talks commenced.
The Presidency confirmed that President Tinubu briefly stumbled due to a camera cable while proceeding to the presidential lodge but stood up immediately and continued his engagements without interruption, stressing that the incident had no impact on the visit or his health.
More importantly, the visit delivered substantive diplomatic and economic outcomes. During talks with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on January 27, 2026, Nigeria and Turkey signed nine cooperation agreements and memoranda of understanding, covering military cooperation, higher education, diaspora policy, media and communication, halal accreditation, diplomatic training, and the establishment of a Joint Economic and Trade Committee (JETCO).
At a joint press conference, President Tinubu emphasized the need to deepen cooperation in security, trade, and economic development, while President Erdoğan reaffirmed Turkey’s support for Nigeria’s fight against terrorism and commitment to strengthening strategic ties.
With Turkey’s strengths in defense technology, intelligence, education, and industrial capacity, the agreements open new opportunities for technology transfer, security collaboration, trade expansion, and human capital development.
In essence, the Turkey visit stands as a diplomatic success, defined not by a fleeting moment, but by honor, respect, and concrete agreements that advance Nigeria’s security, economy, and international standing.
By Prince Adeyemi Shonibare
Preface: The Necessity of Historical Context
Every generation seeks its heroes. In music, this instinct often manifests through comparison—an exercise that frequently reveals more about contemporary taste than historical contribution. In recent years, public discourse, amplified by social media, has juxtaposed Fela Aníkúlápó Kuti with global Afrobeats icons, most notably Wizkid, provoking the recurring question of “greatness” in Nigerian music.
This essay does not diminish the accomplishments of Nigeria’s contemporary stars, whose global visibility is unprecedented. Rather, it offers a scholarly contextualization—one that distinguishes between musical origination and musical succession, and between cultural architecture and commercial dominance—while situating Fela Aníkúlápó Kuti firmly within the category of historical inevitability.
The Problem with Simplistic Comparison
Comparing Fela Aníkúlápó Kuti with contemporary Afrobeats performers is, by scholarly standards, inherently flawed.
Fela’s work transcended performance. He engineered an entire musical and ideological system, fused political philosophy with sound, and permanently altered the trajectory of African popular music. His output represents cultural authorship, not entertainment calibrated to market demand. Fela’s music is timeless precisely because it was never designed to be fashionable.
A Yoruba proverb captures this distinction with enduring clarity:
“Ọmọ kì í ní aṣọ púpọ̀ bí àgbà, kó ní akísà bí àgbà.”
A child may own many clothes, but he cannot possess the rags of an elder.
The proverb is not dismissive. It is instructive. It speaks to accumulated depth—experience earned, systems built, and legacies forged through time rather than trend.
Musicians and Artistes: A Necessary Distinction
A rigorous analysis requires conceptual precision. Fela Aníkúlápó Kuti was a musician in the classical and intellectual sense: a composer, arranger, bandleader, employer of musicians, multi-instrumentalist, theorist, and cultural philosopher. His work demanded mastery of form, orchestration, ideology, and discipline.
Fela composed extended works, trained orchestras, performed entirely live, and embedded African political consciousness into rhythm, harmony, and structure.
By contrast, many contemporary stars—though exceptionally gifted and globally successful—operate primarily as artistes: interpreters of sound whose work prioritizes studio production, performance aesthetics, and commercial reach. This is not a hierarchy of worth, but a distinction of function. Fela’s music demanded study and confrontation; contemporary Afrobeats prioritised accessibility, pleasure, and global circulation—often without courting antagonism.
Afrobeat: An Ideological Invention
Afrobeat, as conceived by Fela, was not merely a genre. It was an ideological framework. Jazz, highlife, Yoruba rhythmic systems, call-and-response traditions, and political chant were fused into a resistant, uncompromising form.
Modern Afrobeats—by Wizkid, Burna Boy, and others—are adaptations and descendants, not replicas. They have expanded Africa’s global cultural footprint, but expansion does not erase origination. Fela’s Afrobeat remains the undiluted prototype upon which contemporary success rests.
Enduring Legacy Beyond Mortality
Fela Aníkúlápó Kuti passed in 1997, yet his influence has intensified rather than diminished. His legacy is evidenced by:
– Continuous academic study across global universities.
– International bands, many formed by people not alive at the time of his death, performing his works.
– FELABRATION, now a global annual cultural event.
– Broadway and international stage adaptations inspired by his life and music.
– Lifetime achievement and posthumous recognition by the Grammy Awards.
– Cultural centres, festivals, and scholarly conferences generating lasting intellectual and economic value.
This constitutes cultural permanence, not nostalgia.
Reconsidering Wealth and Sacrifice
Measured monetarily, Fela was not among the wealthiest musicians of his era. His radicalism came at an immense personal cost. He was beaten repeatedly. His mother, Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti, was killed. His home was burned. Original artistic archives were destroyed during state-sanctioned violence by unknown soldiers, even though history records who authorised the actions.
Yet Fela gave voice to generations—from Ojuelegba to Mushin, Ajegunle to Jos, Abuja, and even the privileged enclaves of today’s ọmọ baba olówó. He toured globally with an unusually large band long before satellite television or social media could amplify his reach.
Like Wole Soyinka and Chinua Achebe, Fela’s wealth exists beyond currency. It resides in influence, citation, adaptation, and endurance.
National and Global Recognition
Fela received a state burial in Lagos—an extraordinary acknowledgment from a military government he relentlessly criticised. Nations rarely honour dissenters so formally.
Globally, his stature aligns with figures such as James Brown, Elvis Presley, and the Rolling Stones—artists whose music reshaped identity, politics, and social consciousness.
The Crowned Princes: Wizkid and the Ethics of Reverence
Nigeria’s modern stars—Wizkid, Burna Boy, 2Face Idibia, Davido, Tiwa Savage, Tems, Olamide, among others—have achieved extraordinary global success. They are wealthier, more mobile, and more visible internationally than previous generations, and they deserve their accolades.
Wizkid, in particular, has consistently demonstrated reverence rather than rivalry toward Fela Aníkúlápó Kuti.
Femi Aníkúlápó Kuti has publicly stated:
“Wizkid loves Fela like a father.”
Wizkid has repeatedly supported FELABRATION, never demanding performance fees. The only times he has not appeared were occasions when he was not in the country. He has remixed Fela’s music, bears a Fela tattoo on his arm, and openly acknowledges Fela’s primacy.
A senior associate and long-time friend of Wizkid has affirmed that Wizkid adores Fela, would never equate himself with him—“in this world or the next”—and that recent tensions were reactions to provocation rather than assertions of equivalence.
This distinction matters. Wizkid’s posture is one of inheritance, not competition.
Seun Kuti and the Burden of Legacy
Seun Kuti is a musician of conviction and lineage. Yet relevance is best secured through original contribution rather than reactive comparison. Fela’s legacy does not require defence through controversy; it is already settled by history.
As William Shakespeare observed:
“The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars,
But in ourselves, that we are underlings.”
—Julius Caesar
The weight of inheritance can inspire greatness or provoke restlessness. History rewards those who build upon legacy, not those who contest it.
The Songs That Made Fela Legendary
Among the works that cemented Fela’s immortality are:
– Zombie
– Water No Get Enemy
– Sorrow, Tears and Blood
– Coffin for Head of State
– Expensive Shit
– Shakara
– Gentleman
– Teacher Don’t Teach Me Nonsense
– Roforofo Fight
– Beasts of No Nation
These compositions remain sonic textbooks of resistance.
Fela in the Digital Age
Had Fela lived in the era of social media, his voice would have resonated far beyond Africa. His music would have found kinship among global movements confronting inequality, oppression, and social injustice.
“Music is the weapon.”
—Fela Aníkúlápó Kuti
Weapons, unlike trends, endure.
Placing Greatness Correctly
Fela Aníkúlápó Kuti’s greatness does not require comparison. He is the great-grandfather of Afrobeat—the musical and cultural architect who cleared the roads upon which today’s Afrobeat princes now travel.
Honouring contemporary success does not diminish historical achievement. To understand Nigerian music’s global relevance is to understand Fela. History, when read correctly, is both generous and precise.
Prince Adeyemi Shonibare writes on culture, music history, and African creative industries. He is a media and events consultant based in Nigeria.
Years after a petition alleging abuse of office, intimidation and institutional misconduct was submitted against operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Hajia Mazangari has drawn public attention to the matter once again, expressing concern over what she described as prolonged institutional silence and the absence of any known resolution.
The controversy arose from a bank draft transaction involving a sum running into several millions of naira, reportedly issued in the name of “EFCC Clients Account” and handed over to one Habibu Aliyu.
According to the account contained in the petition, Hajia Mazangari was later contacted by her bank and informed that an EFCC operative allegedly approached the bank, requesting that the draft earlier issued by her be cashed into another personal account.
The bank reportedly declined the request, insisting that the draft could only be re-issued in the name of a new beneficiary in compliance with established banking regulations. Attempts by Hajia Mazangari, through her solicitor, to retrieve the original bank draft allegedly resulted in hostility from Habibu Aliyu and Ruqqaya Ibrahim, with the situation escalating into what the petition described as sustained malice, intimidation and humiliation.
“It is as a result of this unending malice, torture and humiliation that we passionately plead to you, sir, to save our client who has been run aground by people with personal vendetta disguising as public officers,” the petition read.
In a further petition dated 14 January 2020 and addressed to the then Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, through her counsel, Ibrahim Salawu, Esq., Hajia Mazangari alleged that Habibu Aliyu (a former staff of the EFCC), Ruqqaya Ibrahim (a serving EFCC staff), Mohammed Goje (a serving EFCC staff) and one Mustafa Gadanya (a former staff of the EFCC) had, on various occasions, stormed her family residence in Kaduna.
According to the petition, copies of which were obtained by our correspondent in Abuja, the individuals allegedly accused her, her son and his associates of being involved in a pension scam, insisting that they were “neck-deep” in the alleged fraud and would be dealt with and made to face prosecution.
Hajia Mazangari maintained that the accusations were unfounded and that the repeated visits amounted to intimidation and abuse of authority.
In a related development at the time, counsel to Ahmed and Fatima Mazangari, Barrister Ibrahim Salawu, also wrote to the Chief Judge of the FCT High Court seeking the reassignment of their case to another court, following the elevation of the presiding judge to the Court of Appeal and the resultant irregular sittings of the court.
Despite the seriousness of the allegations contained in the petitions, efforts to obtain an official response from the EFCC at the time reportedly proved abortive.
Years later, Hajia Mazangari maintains that the institutional silence that greeted her complaints has persisted. She faulted the former Chairman of the EFCC, Ibrahim Magu, for allegedly failing to address the concerns raised in the petitions.
She further accused the former Attorney-General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, of failing to intervene or cause a review of the matter despite being formally notified.
According to her, the situation has not changed under the current leadership of the EFCC, which she claims has continued in what she described as the same pattern of silence and inaction, leaving the issues raised unresolved several years after the petitions were submitted.
She also raised concerns over the continued service of an officer identified as Mohammed Goje at the EFCC office in Gombe, noting that other officers of similar standing were reportedly dismissed in the past for corrupt practices. She questioned why no publicly known disciplinary or investigative outcome has emerged from her complaints.
Hajia Mazangari stressed that her decision to speak out again is not based on any fresh incident, but on the need to draw public attention to an unresolved matter which, in her view, underscores broader concerns about institutional accountability. She called on relevant authorities and oversight bodies to revisit the petitions and ensure that the issues raised are conclusively addressed in accordance with the law.
When contacted for comments on the allegations and the renewed public attention surrounding the matter, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission had not responded as at the time of filing this report.
However, the Commission is hereby afforded the right of reply and is free to present its position or clarifications on the issues raised.
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