Connect with us
Advertisment

news

‘Nigerians are no longer afraid of Jail’ – President Buhari

Published

on

BUHARI CONGRATULATES FBN ON 40 YEARS OF CROSS-BORDER BANKING IN UK

Advertisment

 

President Buhari on Sunday in Paris, France, called for stringent actions against perpetrators of illicit financial flows, including crackdown on safe heavens, warning that continuous impunity will encourage more pilfering of countries’ resources to the detriment of poor and vulnerable populace.

Advertisment

Speaking at the first edition of the Paris Peace Forum held on the sidelines of the Centenary of Armistice Day, President Buhari said Nigeria has strengthened its laws and institutions to fight corruption, fast-track recovery of stolen assets and punish offenders, urging more commitment from governments and international institutions.

The President delivered his statement on “Illicit Financial Flows (Iffs) and Corruption: The Challenge of Global Governance’’ during the event, attended by about 70 world leaders and governments.

“We must crack down on safe havens for corrupt assets. I also advocate sanctions by professional bodies against transactional middlemen (lawyers, bankers, brokers, public officials, etc.) who facilitate Illicit Financial Flows.

Advertisement

“I would like to reiterate that the Government of Nigeria remains open and is ever willing to continue to identify and share experiences and strategies to give life to the ideas that will lead to winning the fight against corruption,’’ the President said.

He noted that illicit financial flows pose a risk to the realisation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as many countries grapple with the challenge of gathering resources to improve their Human Development Index, while a few privileged individuals continue to explore the weaknesses in financial systems.

“Our experience in Nigeria is that financial crimes, such as corruption and fraudulent activities, generate enormous unlawful profits which often prove so lucrative that the threat of a jail term is not sufficient to deter perpetrators.

“A more powerful deterrent is to ensure that profits and assets generated from illicit financial flows and corruption are recovered and returned to countries of origin.

“This is not to under-estimate the value of strong institutions. It only indicates that asset recovery represents significant deterrence compared to the traditional focus on obtaining conviction by the law enforcement agencies of the countries of origin,’’ President Buhari said.

The President urged world leaders and global institutions to remain resolute on the Global Declaration Against Corruption made in London in 2016, which encapsulates the collective commitment to the principles of Open Government Partnership, especially the National Action Plans to actualize beneficial ownership transparency and enhance the capacity of Financial Intelligence Units (FIUs).

He said the Independent Reporting Mechanisms and support for the activities of the Global Forum on Transparency and Exchange of Information for Tax Purposes should be reinforced.

“As we take stock of the strengths and weaknesses of domestic, regional and international mechanisms against Illicit Financial Flows, I seize this opportunity to recall the Global Declaration Against Corruption made in London in 2016 and our commitment thereto,’’ he added.

President Buhari said tremendous progress had been achieved through the enactment of global instruments, noting that some fundamental technical issues remain unresolved.

“These revolve around the formulation of policy and regulatory frameworks that cut across different jurisdictions. We must not lose sight of the role played by secret companies, banks and law firms, all too often based in developed economies and their related offshore centres.

“Recent studies reveal that flaws in the global financial system enable corrupt individuals to hide details of their financial dealings under the noses of governments and law enforcement agencies. This underscores the need to urgently address the issue of Mutual Legal Assistance, as well as continental legal frameworks, in the context of safe havens for illicit transfers,’’ he said.

He disclosed that the Whistle-Blowing policy had facilitated recovery of billions of naira from corrupt persons, which had been redirected to the development of critical infrastructure and programmes that will benefit all Nigerians and realisation of the SDGs.

At the continental level, the President said the African Union had bestowed on him the honour to champion the fight against corruption, which would be focused on strengthening international cooperation on asset tracing, recovery and repatriation, and enhancing cooperation between the African Union and the United Nations’ anti-corruption monitoring mechanisms.

Advertisment
Continue Reading
Advertisement
Click to comment

You must be logged in to post a comment Login

Leave a Reply

news

Nigerian Prophet, Tomi Arayomi Heals Man Who Has Been Deaf For 47 Years (VIDEO)

Published

on

 

Advertisment

 

Popular Nigerian prophet and founder of Rig Nation, Tomi Arayomi has healed an ex-naval officer who has been deaf for 47 years.

Advertisment

In a video shared on the prophet’s social media page, the ex-naval officer was seen jubilating after he was miraculously healed by God through the hands of Prophet Tomi Arayomi.

The Ex-naval officer confirmed that he had been deaf during his navy days in 1977 and couldn’t hear with one of his ears until God healed him through the ministry of Prophet Tomi Arayomi.

In the video, he was asked to cover the good ear with his finger to further confirm that he could properly hear with the previously bad one and once again, he heard everything that was said clearly.

Advertisement

WATCH VIDEO BELOW

Advertisment
Continue Reading

news

World Malaria Day 2024: Moment of Excitements and Gratitude as Shalina Gives Back to the Society

Published

on

Advertisment

It was a moment of great excitement and gratitude, as a leading multinational pharmaceutical company in Nigeria, Shalina Healthcare marked this year’s World Malaria Day with a variety of events to create awareness about the deadly disease and at the same time use the opportunity to give back to the people. The WMD activities powered by Shal’Artem, (a brand of Antimalaria from Shalina Healthcare) Commenced at Campos Mini Stadium, Lagos Island on April 21st and ended at Ayangburen Market, Sabo, Ikorodu; Lagos on Thursday 25th 2024.

Advertisment

Speaking on the main concept of the activities, Mr Chiuba Nwaosu, the Marketing Manager, Shalina Healthcare said; “the brands effort was to accelerate the fight against Malaria to a new level via infusing Sport, entertainment, Sanitation, Free test & treatment exercise to raise awareness about malaria.

The football match,  titled “Join the Cast”  with Shal’Artem as official antimalarial, and Rear Admiral Anakwe as the Special Guest of Honor, also had active participation of some top Nigerian celebrities and entertainers like Frank Idoho, Ali Baba, I Go Save, Akpororo amongst others.”

This was followed by a wide scale Free Clean up exercise across 3 Markets in Ikorodu Lagos (Sabo, Alison & Ladega) to emphasis the importance of a clean environment to prevent the breeding of Mosquitoes.

Advertisement

The exercise ended with free malaria testing & prompt treatment of positive cases with Shal’Artem. Over 300 ecstatic market men, Women, Children & Artisans received free gifts at the end of the screening exercise.

The brand gesture is a commitment to ensuring that every Nigerian has a right to quality, affordable & accessible healthcare.

Appreciating the company, the Iyaloja of Ayangburen Market, Sabo, Ikorodu, Alhaja Mutiat Abeni Ojulari said, “Shalina has done greatly with this gesture. The free drugs and medical tests are very necessary in this time. We are very grateful to them for thinking about us. I pray that God will bless the company and everyone involved.”

 

Advertisment
Continue Reading

news

The Many Lies Of EFCC Against Kogi Ex-Governor, Yahaya Bello Exposed

Published

on

 

Advertisment

 

The Economic and Financial Crime Commission (EFCC) under the leadership of Olanipekun Olukoyede has taken a different dimension that can be best described as the ‘lowest low’ since the commission came into existence.

Advertisment

 

Under the leadership of Olanipekun Olukoyode, EFCC, a commission that should serve the interest of every Nigerian has been turned to a weapon of destruction probably under the influence of some individuals who want to get back at their opponents.

 

Advertisement

The emergence of EFCC was to basically go after economic and financial crimes within the provision of the law but nowadays, what we see the commission do is totally against the law.

 

In the case of the former governor of Kogi state, EFCC has turned itself to a ‘court of law’ by making unfounded allegations against His Excellency, Yahaya Bello who has served the people of Kogi state wholeheartedly in the last eight years.

 

The commission alleged that the former governor mismanaged about N80 Billion meant for the state in 2016 but according to figures obtained from BudgIT, the state only got N31.98bn allocation all through the year so how on earth did the EFCC arrive at N80 Billion?

 

It’s either the EFCC is intentionally lying against Yahaya Bello or staffers of the commission saddled with the responsibility of getting facts and figures is doing a shabby job and in addition, there was never a year throughout his tenure that Yahaya Bello didn’t commission projects equivalent to the allocation received.

 

As if that wasn’t enough, the EFCC boss alleged that Yahaya Bello paid the school fees of his children from the coffers of the Kogi state government in advance because he was leaving office. This is not just ridiculous but embarrassing because Yahaya Bello that we know is one who was well to do before he become governor of Kogi state.

 

Yahaha Bello has been paying the school fees of his children, they have always attended the school in question so what would it cost him to continue paying even after government? The commission should be aware that the former Kogi state governor is not one of those politicians who don’t have a life beyond politics therefore making an assertion that he paid some money because he was leaving government is null and void.

 

As a lawyer that Olukoyode is, he should know too well that such statement is defamatory and as long as it hasn’t been confirmed by the court, making such a defamatory statement isn’t acceptable and he is culpable in all of these.

 

At the moment, the EFCC boss has been charged to court for contempt and he will most likely be jailed if he is found guilty; this could have been avoided if he chose to work within the provision of the law but for reasons best known to him, he decided to take it personal and now, he may need to pay with his freedom.

 

However, the EFCC as a commission has a history of making unfounded allegations against personalities only to backtrack after discovering the truth. A similar situation happened during the commission’s scuffle for Otunba Gbenga Daniel when he was accused of N60 billion misappropriations but in the end, they changed it to N200 million.

 

This is also a reason the commission always loses court cases because there isn’t always enough proof to substantiate claims against victims.

 

We can only hope the EFCC turns a new leaf because if the commission continues on this trajectory, the federal government will be making more enemies than friends.

Advertisment
Continue Reading

Cover Of The Week

Trending