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APC Ogun governorship Aspirant, Jimi Lawal Petitions IGP Over Primaries Result
The frontline aspirant of the All Progressive Congress,APC in Ogun State, Jimi Adebisi Lawal has petitioned the inspector general of police, Malam Ibrahim Kpotun Idris over the electoral offences committed by Prince Dapo Abiodun in collaboration with 7 members of National Working Committee assigned to conduct gubernatorial primary in Ogun State.
Below is the excerpt of the letter:
DRAFT ONLY
6th October, 2018.
Mallam Ibrahim Kpotun Idris,
The Inspector General of Police,
Force Headquarters,
F.CT, Abuja,
Nigeria.
Dear Sir,
ELECTORAL OFFENCES PERPETRATED BY PRINCE DAPO ABIODUN, MEMBERS OF THE ELECTORAL COMMITTEE FOR THE 2019 GUBERNATORIAL PRIMARY IN OGUN STATE AND THEIR COLLABORATORS:
DEMAND FOR DISCREET INVESTIGATION AND PROSECUTION
1.0 INTRODUCTION:
1.1 My name is Jimi Adebisi Lawal and I am one of the six (6) gubernatorial aspirants certified fit by the All Progressive Congress (APC) to contest the gubernatorial primaries that was scheduled to hold in all the 236 Local Government Wards in Ogun State on 3rd October, 2018.
1.2 On Friday 5th October 2018, I submitted a letter of protest dated 3rd October, 2018 against the return of Prince Dapo Abiodun as the Candidate of APC to Governor Adams Oshiomhole, the National Chairman of our great party and I expect the National Working Committee to empanel an Appeal Committee to consider the submissions and nullify the false results, same having been fabricated by some of the Committee members to favour the candidate returned.
2.0. MATRIX OF FACTS:
2.1 The National Working Committee of APC set up an Eight (8) man committee led by Muhammad Indabawa as Chairman and Senator Gbenga Aluko as Secretary to conduct the above primary election. The operational rules and/or guidelines of the primary election in all the 236 Local Government Wards in Ogun State, were tabled by the committee for discussions with the aspirants in a couple of meetings between October 1st and 2nd. Stakeholders agreed to adhere to the direct primary and secret ballots system of voting prescribed by the National Working Committee. It was also agreed that the agents and/or representatives of the aspirants would be given full and unhindered rights to monitor the distribution of election materials and conduct the actual elections in all the Wards. Logistics plans were also agreed at the meeting because of the vastness of the size of the state. The meeting of 2nd October, 2018 came to an end with the resolution that each aspirant would submit a list of Ward electoral officer, Agents, Local Government and State Returning Officers (the said list to contain names, Wards, LGAs and phone number of nominees) not later than 8:00am the following morning to ensure that the primary election is conducted on 3rd October, 2018 unfailingly. A member of the Committee – Ms Esheza Oshogwe subsequently forwarded an allocation list of five returning officers for each Local Government (from the list submitted by the aspirants) as per attached, marked Annex I.
2.3. In order to assist with logistics, it was also resolved that the Committee would not use vehicles or any other resources from the State Government as a result of which an appeal was made by Sen. Aluko for any of the aspirants who could make a vehicle or two available. I volunteered to make as many vans as were needed available and also assisted in mapping out the routes that would ensure effective and timely delivery of the materials to the 20 Local Government offices of INEC. The vehicles were required to be delivered to the Committee by 8:00pm that evening so the delivery could commence as early as 6:00am the next day, upon arrival of police and other necessary security escorts.
2.4 As agreed, five vans were delivered that evening only for me to learn from one of the drivers at about 10:00am the following day that none of them had left Abeokuta. I promptly called Sen. Gbenga Aluko to enquire about the reason for the delay as we had been mobilizing the voters who had started arriving since 7:00am that morning. Sen. Aluko expressed frustration on account of Governor Amosun having directed the State Commissioner of Police not to make requisite police officers available for the exercise. He however assured me that the Committee Chairman was working with the National Chairman and the Inspector General to secure police officers from another State.
2.5 I called Sen. Aluko again at about 1:00pm, only to be informed that alternative arrangements had been made and that the vans could not be used because they were marked and that thugs might follow them. I immediately pointed out that the materials should not have been dispatched without armed police escort, just as they should have been accompanied by some of the aspirants’ representatives as agreed the previous night. He assured me that it was an oversight and that our returning officers and agents should go to INEC’s offices in the various Local Government Areas to receive the materials and ensure that the elections were held as required. We acted promptly by ensuring that all our Local Government returning officers were present in their respective INEC offices by about 1:30pm.
2.6 Given that Abeokuta North and South were only a few minutes away from the location of the materials, I called Senator Gbenga Aluko again at 2:00pm when none of the INEC offices throughout the State had received any of the materials. He again assured me that some of the materials had been delivered and I asked him to be specific; to which he mentioned Abeokuta North and Ado-Odo/Ota amongst others. I again double-checked with our Returning Officers in those locations and called Sen. Aluko back to make it clear that the materials had not been received. I called him yet again at 3:00pm, but he did not respond to my calls; at which point it became clear to me that after 2:00 hours of departure, which was more than sufficient time for 75-80% of the Local Government Area headquarters to have been reached from Abeokuta, that the materials must have been diverted since none had been received.
2.7 Since Sen. Aluko was no longer answering my calls, I sent him a message at 3:03pm as follows “My Brother Distinguished, I must put it on record after our telephone conversation a short while ago that I did not receive any message from you since yesterday and none of our local government returning officers had seen any of the materials in all the INEC’s offices so far! Please investigate and revert ASAP. With best wishes always. JAL” to which he responded “Noted. Will do” at 5:11pm. I then personally visited Ijebu-Ode INEC office being my Local Government and was categorically informed that no such materials had been received.
2.8 It is worth mentioning that a critical requirement for the primary election is not only for the materials to arrive safely in the Local Government Areas ahead of distribution to the Wards but for the process to also be monitored by INEC with a view to ensuring it is free, fair and credible. It is submitted that this requirement is indispensable for the outcome of any election of this nature to be upheld as credible. I therefore addressed a letter, on the spot to the Executive Officer in INEC’s office; who responded by confirming that the materials were not received and that no election was monitored by INEC in any and all of the 11 Wards in Ijebu-Ode Local Government Area. Copies of my letter and his response are attached to the enclosed Petition and marked Annex 2A & 2B respectively.
2.9 I then directed that our Returning Officers who were still waiting in their respective INEC offices to do the same. A couple of the responses from Ado-Odo/Ota and Ogun Waterside are attached to the enclosed Petition and marked Annex 3A and 3B and respectively.
2.10 Apart from not directly witnessing any primary election in my Local Government, all my agents and returning officers also confirmed to me that elections did not hold in their Wards and Local Government. Alas, the members of the committee colluded with Prince ‘Dapo Abiodun by diverting the electoral materials to unknown locations and forging results of elections that never. Furthermore, it came as a rude shock that in the circumstance, the Committee’s Chairman announced the so-called results of the non-existent direct primary election. More so that none of the Committee Members left Abeokuta to visit any of the Local Government Areas and none of the Returning Officers for all the 20 Local Government Areas attested to any collated results whatsoever. The electoral officers at the ward level also did not participate in any declaration of results. To this effect, all our 20 Local Government Returning Officers me to be false Or which is at variance with the signed certificate of return commits an offence and is liable on conviction to 36 months imprisonment.
Without doubt, the members of electoral committee knew that the results declared were false and must be prosecuted for subverting the will of the people by declaring bogus results for an election that did not hold.
3.0. ELECTORAL OFFENCES:
3.1 IGP Sir, I wish to submit with respect that the above acts of subversion of the will of the people implicate electoral offences under the Electoral Act 2010 (As Amended). From the forgoing matrix of facts, I wish to submit that the results declared by the Electoral Committee was false to all intents and purposes. Section 123 (4) of the Electoral Act clearly criminilises this act as follows:
123(4) Any person who announces or publishes an election result knowing same to be false Or which is at variance with the signed certificate of return commits an offence and is liable on conviction to 36 months imprisonment.
Without doubt, the members of electoral committee knew that the results declared were false and must be prosecuted for subverting our electoral democracy by declaring a result of an election that did not hold.
3.2 In the same vein, I also wish to submit that the beneficiary of the crime – Prince Dapo Abiodun and other conspirators should be investigated for conspiracies with the electoral committee members and prosecuted accordingly. Section 124 (5) and (6) empower the court to impose the same quantum of punishment on co-conspirators as follows:
124(5) Any person who conspires, aids or abets any other person to commit any of the offences under this part of this Act shall be guilty of the same offence and punishment thereto.
(6) For the purposes of this Act, a candidate shall be deemed to have committed an offence if it was committed with his knowledge and consent or the knowledge and consent of a person who is acting under the general or special authority of the candidate with reference to the election.
3.3 Finally, by departing fully from the agreed operational guidelines and logistics plans put in place by the aspirants at meetings held for that purpose, diverting electoral materials to destinations unknown to stakeholders, I submit that the electoral committee members, Prince Dapo Abiodun and their co-conspirators committed a crime under Section 128 of the Electoral Act which provides as follows:
‘’Any person who at an election acts or incites others to act in a disorderly manner commits an offence and is liable on conviction to a maximum fine ofN500,000. oo
3.4 Finally, by departing fully from the agreed operational guidelines and logistics plans put in place by the aspirants at meetings held for that purpose, diverting electoral materials to destinations unknown to stakeholders, I submit that some of the electoral committee members, Prince Dapo Abiodun and their co-conspirators committed a crime under Section 128 of the Electoral Act which provides as follows:
‘’Any person who at an election acts or incites others to act in a disorderly manner commits an offence and is liable on conviction to a maximum fine ofN500,000 or imprisonment for a term of 12 months or both.’’
4.0 CONCLUSION:
4.1 Although we have an iron cast civil case for the nullification of the election, I wish to urge the Inspector General of Police to work with the Honourable Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice to direct a discreet investigation and prosecution of the electoral offences committed as explained above. Your decision to act in this regard will send the right signal that we are indeed ready to accommodate more descent people in politics and democratic governance. It is submitted that the diligent prosecution of cases of this nature would vividly demonstrate that President Buhari’s Administration is serious in combating corruption and instituting good governance as an integral part of the Change Agenda. Also attached, please see below a video from one of the Committee members who was dismissed under controversial circumstances.
4.2 Please accept the assurances of my highest regards and best wishes always always.
Yours faithfully,
Jimi Lawal
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Ogun Central 2027: The Competence Question and APC’s Senatorial Choice
LAs the 2027 elections draw closer in Ogun State, discussions about who should represent Ogun Central in the Senate are gradually gaining momentum. Across Abeokuta South, Abeokuta North, Odeda, Obafemi-Owode, Ifo, and Ewekoro, the mood among the people appears largely the same. The people have made their preference clear. Not in anger or protest but in the quiet and wilful way that voters do when they still believe you can do better. The unifying thing in the people’s agitation is the call for credible, competent, and accessible representation.
This is not a new demand from the people of the district. The demand for a paradigm shift has been growing in recent times. Residents across the district are showing a preference for leaders who can demonstrate measurable capacity in healthcare, infrastructure, education, youth empowerment and constituency development. The calls for palpable development, responsive engagement, and effective legislative outcomes have become too obvious to dismiss.
We can all recall that in the last elections in 2023, the All Progressives Congress rallied behind Senator Shuaibu Salisu with considerable optimism. Party leaders and stakeholders presented his candidacy to the people as the strongest path to meaningful progress for the district. That mandate carried real expectations, and it is fair to say that, in several communities, those expectations have not been fully met.
Concerns have been raised across town hall meetings, community forums, and on social media about the speed of infrastructural projects, the reach of scholarship and empowerment programmes, and the overall visibility of senatorial intervention in major sectors. Whether one attributes these gaps to constraints of the Senate’s systems or individual legislative capacity, the perception of underdelivery is widespread enough to warrant serious attention from party leaders.
For now, this dissatisfaction has not translated into rejection of the APC. Instead, it has taken the form of an expectation to do better next time. Voters in Ogun Central are not asking for a fundamental change in the party structure or traditions. They are asking for the incorporation of wider grassroots inputs and candidates’ worthiness in the process.
This presents both a challenge and an opportunity. The challenge is that the culture of selecting candidates through elite consensus without genuine grassroots consultation is a risk that may worsen the growing disconnect between elected representatives and the communities they serve. Political observers across the nation have questioned this practice repeatedly, and Ogun Central may be feeling its effects most.
The opportunity lies in what the APC does with this feedback. The party’s senatorial selection is not a formality to be managed. It places a decisive moment for public trust at the feet of the party leaders. It is also an opportunity to reposition the district for future outcomes. That means looking beyond the financially powerful or politically connected aspirants and instead evaluating candidates on measurable criteria like competence, work experience, community engagement, and constituency presence.
There is also a broader shift worth noting. The era in which financial muscle alone could determine electoral outcomes is visibly passing. Many voters across southwestern Nigeria, especially our people, are increasingly attentive to antecedents, accountability, and impact. They want representatives who can speak with authority in the Red Chamber, secure federal projects, and translate legislative work into visible improvement in their daily lives.
None of these is to suggest that Senator Salisu’s tenure should be written off. A single term in the Senate, particularly within Nigeria’s complex federal system, does not allow for a complete verdict. But it is sufficient for the electorate to form impressions, and those impressions should shape how the APC approaches 2027.
The path forward does not require the party to bring down the house. It only requires discipline. The leaders of Ogun Central APC would do well to begin inclusive consultations with stakeholders, community leaders, youth groups, women’s organisations, and ordinary party members so that the candidate who eventually emerges carries not just the party’s endorsement but also the people’s confidence.
The 2027 senatorial election will be more than a contest. It will be a test of whether the APC in Ogun State can translate its dominance at the polls into dominance in governance. The people of Ogun Central are watching, and their expectations are high. The party’s consideration or dismissal of the concerns raised above will influence public confidence in Ogun State.
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Alleged $1.5m Fraud: Court Dismisses Preliminary Objections, Bail Application of Intermediate Investment Holdings Boss, Ufoma Joseph Immanuel in Lagos
Justice Mojisola Dada of the Special Offences Court sitting in Ikeja, Lagos, on Thursday, May 7, 2026, dismissed the preliminary objections and bail application filed by the boss of Intermediate Investment Holdings Limited, Ufoma Joseph Immanuel, over an alleged $1.5 million fraud.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, on Wednesday, March 11, 2026, arraigned Immanuel, alongside his company, Intermediate Investment Holdings Ltd., on a two-count charge bordering on obtaining by false pretence and forgery to the tune of $1.5m.
Count one reads: “UFOMA JOSEPH IMMANUEL and INTERMEDIATE INVESTMENT HOLDINGS LIMITED between April 2022 and October 2023 in Lagos, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, with intent to defraud, induced Adebisi Adebut of R28 Holdings Limited to deposit the total sum of S1, 500, 000.00 (One Million, five Hundred Thousand United States Dollars USD) as investment described as to wit: “Cash and or Capital Cost in Chappal Petroleum Development Company Limited; Business Development Cost in Intermediate Investment Holdings Limited: Capital and or Capital Call in Chappal Energies Mauritius Limited” on the understanding that R28 Holdings Limited will be; (a) reimbursed the investment amount (b) paid a Development Capital fee of $2 250,000.00. (Two Million, Two Hundred and Fifty Thousand Dollars) (c) 22.4% worth of shares in Intermediate Investment Holdings Limited which representation you knew to be false.”
Count two reads: “UFOMA JOSEPH IMMANUEL, sometime between April 2022 and April 2025 in Lagos, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, with intent to defraud, forged a document to wit: TERM SHEET and purporting same to have been executed by Sherrif Oluwo and Olaniran Osotuyi in order to facilitate your obtaining money by inducement from Adebisi Adebutu of R28 Holdings Limited.”
The defendant pleaded “not guilty” to the charge preferred against him.
Following the defendant’s “not guilty” plea, the prosecution counsel, Babatunde Sonoiki, asked the court to fix a date for the commencement of trial and also prayed the court to remand the defendant in the custody of the International Criminal Police Organization, INTERPOL, pending the conclusion of its investigation.
Sonoiki also narrated how the defence counsel, Oluseun Awonuga, SAN, had physically assaulted his colleague, Emenike Mgbemele, at the sitting on March 2, 2026.
According to him, “My lord, the learned silk, physically assaulted my colleague on the staircase on his way to serve the defendant the charge as directed by the court.
“There is a video to that effect and we intend to tender it before the court.”
Though Awonuga did not respond to the allegation made against him by the prosecution counsel, he informed the court of a preliminary objection and a written address dated January 5, 2026, while urging the court to discountenance the counter-affidavit of the prosecution.
The prosecution, in a 21-paragraph counter-affidavit dated February 9, 2026, had urged the court to dismiss the notice of preliminary objections.
According to Awonuga, the Federal High Court, in a ruling, had ordered the EFCC not to arrest the defendant.
“EFCC has flouted the order by arresting the defendant and I hereby urge your lordship to discountenance their counter- affidavit,” he said.
Responding, the prosecution counsel, Babatunde Sonoiki, said that the ruling was part of the motion that had earlier been withdrawn by the defence and should not be before the court.
“ There is nowhere in the ruling that says the defendants cannot be arraigned in a court of competent jurisdiction.
“My lord, the ruling was delivered in a civil case; and according to the Supreme Court, a criminal case and civil case can go on at the same time.
“We urge the court to dismiss the application and order accelerated hearing in this case,” Sonoiki had said.
After listening to both parties, Justice Dada had, consequently, adjourned the case till May 7, 2026 ( today) for ruling.
Ruling on the application , Justice Dada held that: “The preliminary objection is baseless and the entire application is lacking in merit; and it is hereby dismissed.”
Also, Justice Dada, in her ruling on the bail application of the defendant, held that “On the basis of considering the antecedent of the defendant for not honouring the invitation of the applicant after he was granted administrative bail, I agree with the complainant that he is a flight risk; therefore, bail is refused.”
Justice Dada adjourned the case till June 24, 26, 29 and 30, 2026 for the commencement of trial.
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Ogun Central APC Race: ‘I Remain in the Contest’ — Sofela Declares Amid Consensus Speculation
By Solanke Ayomideji Taiwo
ABEOKUTA — A frontline aspirant for the Ogun Central Senatorial seat under the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Emmanuel Adebola Sofela, popularly known as Shoffi, has dismissed widespread speculations that he has withdrawn from the race in favour of another aspirant .
Sofela described the reports making rounds in some political circles as “false, misleading and the handiwork of political detractors,” insisting that he remains fully committed to his ambition of representing Ogun Central Senatorial District at the National Assembly.
In a statement made available to journalists on Friday, the APC stalwart urged his supporters, political associates and loyalists across the six local government areas that make up Ogun Central to disregard the rumours and remain resolute in their support for his aspiration.
According to him, there has never been any agreement or arrangement for him to step down for any aspirant to emerge as a consensus candidate of the party.
“I want to categorically state that I have not stepped down for anyone in the Ogun Central Senatorial race. The rumours flying around are entirely false and should be ignored by all my supporters and members of the public,” he said.
Sofela expressed confidence in his chances of securing the APC ticket, stressing that his popularity, political experience and grassroots connection across the district place him in a strong position ahead of the party primaries.
The senatorial hopeful reiterated his determination to provide quality representation for the people of Abeokuta South, Abeokuta North, Odeda, Obafemi-Owode, Ifo and Ewekoro local government areas if elected into the Senate in 2027.
He noted that his aspiration is driven by a genuine desire to contribute meaningfully to the development of Ogun Central through effective legislation, empowerment programmes and people-oriented policies.
“My ambition is rooted in service to the people. I remain committed to the vision of giving Ogun Central a strong voice in the Senate and facilitating developmental initiatives that will positively impact our people,” Sofela added.
The APC chieftain further appealed to party members to remain united and avoid distractions capable of causing division within the party structure ahead of future political activities.
Political observers in the state believe the race for Ogun Central Senatorial seat is gradually gathering momentum as aspirants continue consultations and grassroots mobilization across the district ahead of the 2027 election cycle.
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