Connect with us

Business

‘You are the son of Satan, shameless old fool, a gangster minister’- FFK Blasts Lai Mohammed

Published

on

  

 

 

 

In an article shared on social media this morning, former Minister of Aviation, Femi Fani-Kayode, blasted  Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed for granting an interview to Channels TV where he gave reasons why the Federal government cannot release former National Security Adviser Sambo Dasuki and leader of the Islamic Movement of Nigeria, Ibrahim El-Zakzaky. Read the article below…

I watched the Minister Information and Culture Lai (aka Lie) Mohammed’s ‘Politics Today’ interview with Seun Okinbaloye of Channels Television a few days ago and I felt sorry for Nigeria.

I couldn’t help wondering why Channels Television keeps offering its respected platform to this shameless old fool to beam, broadcast and perpetuate unadulterated falsehood to the Nigerian people and to tell specious lies. The whole thing is simply incredulous.

During the course of that interview he told one big lie after the other with such ease and without batting an eyelid. I really do wonder how this man sleeps at night. I guess such things come naturally to him.

I look at his face and all I see is an unconsciable and relentless shit projector and sewage propeller.

He reminds me of one of those filth-ridden open gutters in India’s City of Mumbai: all manner of unprintable and disgusting things flow in and through it for all to smell and see.

Everything about him, including how he looks, what he says, what he wears and how he talks stinks to high heavens.

Like Donald Trump once said about a notorious Mexican drug lord, “this dude is a bad hombre!”

He is the kind of person that would pass a lie detector test with flying colours over and over again simply because lying is his nature. He is posessed by what the bible graphically and aptly describes as a “lying spirit”.

The first salvo of lies that he told us during the course of the interview was that Sheik El Zak Zaky, the leader of the Shiite Muslim community in Nigeria, was being kept in a guest house with his family and that he was not in government custody.

He went on to contradict himself by saying that the Federal Government was keeping him in custody only because they were building him a brand new house that he would move into later and that the difficulty that they had was that no-one wanted to be his neighbour!

Finally he said that the courts had said that the Sheik must not be released until that brand new house had been built for him.

Needless to say, all three assertions are false. They are nothing but dirty and desperate lies, cooked up to justify the governments disgraceful and indefensible behaviour towards El Zak Zaky, his family and the Shiite Muslims of Nigeria.

The truth is that firstly El Zak Zaky and his family are NOT being kept in a private guest house and both he and his wife most certainly are in government custody.

They have both been badly wounded, they are in the custody of the DSS and, for just under the last two years, they have been held at the DSS Headquarters in Abuja.

Their lawyers and doctors have little access to them but once in a while they are shipped to a secret government safe house for a short impromptu meeting with a handful of family members.

Secondly the Federal Government is NOT building a house for El Zak Zaky and even if they were this should not be a reason to keep him in indefinate and illegal custody and detention.

Thirdly the courts gave El Zak Zaky and his wife an order for unconditional release from the custody of the security agencies and his release order was not conditional on the government first building him a new house as Lie has suggested.

The truth is that the man and his wife have both been kept in illegal detention for almost two years, against their will and in total violation of all court orders.

Worst still throughout that period they have not been brought physically or produced by the intelligence agencies before any court of law.

El Zak Zaky was shot and blinded in one eye by the military whilst his wife was shot four times in the stomach at the time that his home was attacked and they were both abducted.

Over one thousand of his Shiite Muslim supporters were murdered that day and their homes were shelled, bombed and burnt to the ground. Since then both the man and his wife have been locked up in dingy underground cells and have been subjected to the most inhuman and barbarous form of pyschological and mental torture.

These are facts that Lie refused to acknowledge in his interview and that the government that he serves seek to hide from both the Nigerian public and the international community.

Lie also lied about Col. Sambo Dasuki the former National Security Advisor to President Goodluck Jonathan. He said that Dasuki was being detained indefinately because he would pose a threat to the Federal Government and to national security if he was released.

He went further to say that Dasuki had stolen 1.3 billion USD and that the government would not release him until that money was returned despite court orders to the contrary.

He did not tell us where the 1.3 billion USD was stolen from, he did not tell us whether it was stolen in cash, by cheque, by bank drart or by transfer and he did not tell us how he stole it. All he did was pick a figure from the sky and drop it.

He also said that as far as the government was concerned national security considerations were more important than court orders and that even though the courts had ordered Dasuki’s relese on several occassions the government would continue to ignore such orders because they believe that he poses a threat to national security.

The fact that it is unlawful to disregard court orders in Nigeria had no bearing on Lie. The fact that there is no law and no constitutional basis or justification to keep Dasuki in detention against court orders is immaterial to him and to the government that he serves.

The fact that the allegation that he stole 1.3 billion USD is not only utterly absurd but also has no basis in truth or reality is neither here nor there to this wicked man and to those he represents.

The fact that Dasuki poses no threat whatsover to anyone, least of all the Federal Government, matters less to this strange, conflicted and inexplicable creature that calls himself the Minister of Information and Culture.

The fact that locking up a man illegally and indefinately, depriving him of his constitutional rights and freedom, denying his lawyers and doctors full access to him, traumatising his family and friends, putting his stunningly beautiful and deeply courageous wife Bintu through hell, refusing to allow him to attend his aged father’s burial and denying him the right to be in a position to prepare a proper legal defence for himself against his detractors and accusers in court means absolutely nothing to this pernicious liar.

No matter how low the government goes and no matter how barbaric, illegal and heartless their actions are in terms of the violation of civil liberties and human rights, Lie has proved over and over again that he is prepared to go on Channels television or anywhere else to defend them.

I am convinced that if Buhari ordered for the gassing to death or burning alive of every single opposition figure and their family members together with all his other perceived enemies, Lie would gladly attempt to justify and defend it and Channels television would be only too happy to accomodate him and grant him the platform to do so.

Worse still he is prepared to defend the consistently aberrant, cruel, wicked, deviant and ungodly behaviour of the government that he serves with nothing less than the most bombastic and obvious lies, wholesale mendacities, false accusations, malicious fabrications and notorious and skewered half truths.

He has no conscience, no feeling, no empathy for his victims, no compassion, no mercy and no milk of human kindness.

One wonders if a man that is prepared to treat others so unjustly and defend it publicly can ever make it to heaven? One wonders whether they believe in God and if so whether they have any fear of Him.

It is clear to me that somewhere in the equation madness has crept into Lie’s confused and irreverant physche. He deserves to be pitied and, more importantly, he needs a lot of help and prayer. The sleazy job that he has been doing for the last two years has taken its toll and has got the better of him.

27 years ago when I first met Lie he used to be an absolute gentleman. Always wearing a smart suit and a crisp bow tie and always making concise and meaningful contributions to our many intense, contentious and oftentimes acrimonious discussions and public debates at the old September Club in Lagos, he was quite a sight to see.

He was a delight in those days. He was a man of his word, he always spoke the truth and it was a pleasure to be his friend. Sadly all that has changed.

In those days he was the affable and dependable “Lai” but today he is the truculent and cantankerous “Lie”.

In those days he was a man of unimpeachable honor and character who valued his integrity and reputation above all else but today he is a mere shadow and caricature of his former self.

He cuts a tragic figure that, over the years, found himself in bad company and that has degenerated very badly in terms of his virtues, his moral authority and his ability to stand for truth.

Simply put, he has sold his soul to the devil and he can now be righly and accurately described as one of those that the Bible refers to as a “son of perdition”.

A Minister of Information and Culture that everyone hates, that no-one trusts, that no-one believes and that looks like a cross between an ageing chimpanzee and washed-up and weathered old scarecrow.

At least Shehu Garbage and Femi Adesina are a little bit more presentable and they try to be a little more refined, subtle and polished with their distortions of truth. Not so with Lie.

He is just a plain old-fashioned, crude, vulgar Goebellian propagandist and pernicious liar. Like his father Satan, there is no truth in him. He was a liar from the start and the father of lies.

The truth is that he should have been the spokesman for the  Italian or Russian Mafia, the Turkish or Greek underworld, the Japanese Yakuza, the Chinese Kuomintang or one of the numerous Colombian and Mexican drug cartels and not the Minister of Information of Nigeria.

That is the sort of thing he was born do.  I say this because deep down Lie is nothing but a cheap hood and a gangster.

He is a ghetto and gangster Minister who speaks for and represents a ghetto and gangster Government.

 

Continue Reading
Advertisement
Click to comment

You must be logged in to post a comment Login

Leave a Reply

Business

Zacch Adedeji: And The Revenue Keeps Increasing By Rabiu Usman By Rabiu Usman

Published

on

Zacch Adedeji: And The Revenue Keeps Increasing By Rabiu Usman By Rabiu Usman

Zacch Adedeji: And The Revenue Keeps Increasing By Rabiu Usman

By Rabiu Usman

 

It was President Bola Tinubu that declared that in the first half of this year, the revenue of Nigeria soared to over N9.1 trillion, compared to the first half of 2023.

Zacch Adedeji: And The Revenue Keeps Increasing By Rabiu Usman

By Rabiu Usman

For instance, N5.2 Trillion accrued into the Federation Account for the period January to June 2023, while a total of N7.3 Trillion accrued into the account for the period July to December, 2023.

However, for June this year, accruals into the Federation Account rose to N2.483 trillion in June 2024. It was N2.324.792 trillion in May, meaning for the two months of May and June this year alone, about N4.8 trillion accrued into the Federation Account while N5.2 trillion accrued into the account for the first six months of last year.

The President attributed the revenue increase to the government’s efforts in blocking leakages, introducing automation, and mobilizing funding creatively, all without placing an additional burden on the people.

A few days after the President spoke glowingly of the considerable increase in the revenue of the country, a process being powered by the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), under the Chairmanship of Dr Zacch Adedeji, the Nigeria’s Zaccheus the Tax Collector, the World Bank also confirmed the progress being made in the area of revenue generation.

The World Bank projected that following the recent increase in government revenue, Nigeria’s revenue-to-GDP ratio could rise to over 10.5 percent by the end of 2024.

Ndiamé Diop, World Bank country director for Nigeria shared the forecast during an interactive session on ‘Fiscal Reforms for a More Secure Future’ at the 30th Nigerian Economic Summit, held in Abuja last month.

Also, according to data released in September by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), Nigeria’s Value Added Tax (VAT) revenue increased by 99.82% year-over-year in the second quarter of 2024.
During this period, total VAT revenue reached N1.56 trillion, a 9.11% increase compared to the previous quarter.

 

The NBS report highlighted that the revenue growth was driven primarily by local payments, which brought in about $484 million, while foreign payments contributed $242 million. VAT on imports generated $228 million.

However, despite the level of progress already made, the FIRS under Dr Zacch Adedeji is not done yet.

Various innovations are daily being introduced to ensure seamless payment of taxes by Nigerians.

Last week, the Taxpayer Services Department of the FIRS launched the new USSD code *829#, aimed at revolutionizing taxpayer engagement and access to essential tax services.

According to the FIRS, the initiative was aimed at “simplifying tax processes and providing a seamless, efficient service experience.”

With the *829# USSD code, taxpayers can now effortlessly access a range of services, including TIN retrieval, Tax Clearance Certificate (TCC) verification, and general inquiries all from the convenience of their mobile phones and with no need for internet access.

Also, Zacch Adedeji is everywhere, explaining the four tax bills currently before the National Assembly, assuring that it will not reduce the funding or operational efficiency of government agencies.
Last week Wednesday, Adedeji addressed the heads of the National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI), the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), and the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFUND) at the Revenue House in Abuja. He allayed concerns surrounding the proposal to rename the FIRS as the Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS), clarifying that the change is intended to streamline and improve agency efficiency.

He said the main goal was to align government revenue practices with current fiscal demands to ensure all agencies are well-funded and effective.

Adedeji further highlighted that the proposed legislation would enable government agencies to concentrate on their core responsibilities without the added task of revenue collection.

“The bills, once enacted, will allow agencies to focus on their primary functions instead of managing tax collection duties,” he explained.

Adedeji, who appears to have taken up the job of an Explainer concerning the new tax bills, further pointed out that the bills were the aftermath of President Tinubu’s administration recognition of the need for a unified tax code to reduce complexity and stimulate economic growth.

Perhaps, by the time this is being read, Dr Zacch Adedeji, will be standing before another audience to explain the ideas behind the new tax bills and their capability to further sore up the revenue base of the country, because for him, the revenue must keep increasing.

Usman, a public affairs commentator lives in Abuja.

Continue Reading

Business

Wema Bank Announces Grand Finale of Hackaholics 5.0: Set to Reward Winners With ₦75 Million Worth of Prizes

Published

on

*Wema Bank Announces Grand Finale of Hackaholics 5.0: Set to Reward Winners With ₦75 Million Worth of Prizes

 

 

Wema Bank, Nigeria’s foremost innovative financial institution and pioneer of Africa’s first fully digital bank, ALAT, has announced the grand finale of the 5th edition of its flagship youth and startup-focused tech competition, Hackaholics.

Launched in 2019, Wema Hackaholics is a groundbreaking initiative designed to harness the creativity and entrepreneurial spirit of Nigeria’s youth, providing them with a platform to turn their tech-driven ideas into reality. The highly anticipated Hackaholics 5.0 grand finale will take place on November 27th, 2024, under the theme, “Meta Idea: Capitalizing Africa’s Growth Through Innovation.” This year’s theme aims to showcase how tech-driven solutions can fuel Africa’s development by tapping into the continent’s growth potential through innovation and digital transformation.

The grand finale will bring together the brightest innovators from universities and tech communities across the country. These innovators will pitch their Digi-Tech solutions designed to solve real-world problems and contribute to Africa’s economic and social progress. The event promises to be the culmination of months of intensive competition, collaboration, and mentorship, providing a platform for youth-led tech ideas to reach new heights.

Announcing the date of the grand finale, Moruf Oseni, MD/CEO of Wema Bank, highlighted the bank’s vision for Hackaholics. “Hackaholics is more than a competition; it is a movement to equip Nigeria’s youth with the skills, networks, and resources needed to drive Africa’s digital transformation. The Meta Idea theme for this year is a call to action for young innovators to think beyond the present and design solutions that will capitalize on Africa’s growth. We are excited to see how our participants envision and build the Africa of tomorrow.”

Speaking on the prizes, the MD/CEO said “At the grand finale, participants will compete for exciting cash prizes, grants, and access to Wema Bank’s extensive network of investors, mentors, and industry experts. The total worth of prizes for this year is ₦75,000,000. The winning team will receive ₦30,000,000, the first runner-up will receive ₦20,000,000 and the second runner-up will receive ₦15,000,000 worth of prizes. Additionally, we will be awarding a special grant of ₦10,000,000 worth of prizes to the female-led team to encourage gender diversity in tech innovation.” He concluded.

Wema Bank’s Hackaholics is a testament to the Bank’s commitment to shaping Africa’s future through innovation and entrepreneurship. Hackaholics 5.0 began with a nationwide call for entries earlier in the year and has engaged over 10,000 aspiring tech innovators and entrepreneurs across Nigeria. With 2,297 applications across 8 physical pitch centers and 1 virtual pitch center, 34 innovators across all locations are set to pitch their ideas at the pre-pitch stage ahead of the grand finale scheduled to hold in Lagos.

Through Hackaholics, Wema Bank has provided a platform for youth to channel their creativity and entrepreneurial spirit into actionable tech solutions that address Africa’s most pressing challenges. Over the years, Hackaholics has grown into one of the largest and most influential tech competitions in Nigeria, impacting thousands of young minds.

The competition not only offers winners cash prizes and grants, but also access to mentorship, industry networks, and resources to help scale their innovations globally. This initiative is a key part of Wema Bank’s broader strategy to harness technology as a driver of socio-economic growth in Africa.
Interested individuals can register to attend the grand finale via https://hackaholics.wemabank.com/grandfinale

Continue Reading

Business

ATMs empty as banks ration withdrawals

Published

on

ATMs empty as banks ration withdrawals

ATMs empty as banks ration withdrawals

 

The Automated Teller Machines of Deposit Money Banks have consistently remained empty in recent months as banks grapple with a sustained low cash supply.

It was also gathered on Wednesday that some DMBs, particularly in the Federal Capital Territory, have begun another round of cash rationing, restricting maximum over-the-counter withdrawals to a daily limit between N5,000 and N20,000.

While banks struggle to get cash, Point-of-Sales operators have been fulfilling the cash needs of customers.

Speaking at the Facts Behind the Rights Issue Presentation of FBN Holdings at the Nigerian Exchange Limited recently, the Executive Director/Chief Financial Officer of First Bank, Patrick Iyamabo, said that the matter was an industry-wide one and not peculiar to a specific bank.

He said, “It is an industry problem. Most customers after exhausting the options available in other banks, tend to settle at FirstBank to address their cash needs. The challenge differs by location but we know it is a challenge that the regulator is looking into to address. But as we speak of physical cash, we must appreciate that the direction of the industry is to go digital.

“A lot of our customers do most of their transactions digitally, and you heard the GMD speak to this, very often people don’t want to transact in cash. In terms of this new order, your bank, FirstBank is very well positioned so if you look at the statistics and I’m speaking to independent statistics, just pick up your NIBSS report, the bank with the most stable platform meaning availability to always transact digitally is FirstBank. So, all our customers have the benefits of having their cash in First Bank and having access to this cash anytime anywhere and as necessary. It’s a huge advantage.”

Speaking anonymously with The PUNCH, a banker at a tier-1 bank put the blame on the Central Bank of Nigeria.

“It is what CBN has given us that we are using. We are confined within the limits of what is available to us. Also, because we are a big operation, we have to deal with many other businesses.

“Have you also noticed that there is a boom in the PoS business? Those people don’t take their money to the banks. The money comes out of the banks and it stays within their circle. They warehouse their funds, unlike you and I who would withdraw money and spend it which will eventually find itself back into the formal banking system. It is not the same with them. They warehouse their funds and distribute it among themselves.”

According to data from the CBN, currency outside the banks hit N4.02tn in September from N3.86tn in August. This brings it closer to the value of currency in circulation which stood at N4.31tn in September.

Meanwhile, some PoS operators on Lagos Island have increased their charges from N200 for cash of N10,000 to N300.

This was observed at both the CMS bus stop and at Obalende. However, off Lagos Island, the rates had remained at N200 for cash withdrawal of N10,000.

It was further gathered that banks have begun cash rationing, restricting maximum over-the-counter withdrawals to a daily limit between N5,000 and N20,000.

Findings by The PUNCH showed that the development is gradually leading to cash shortage, as many ATMs were non-functional, leaving customers with no choice but to seek alternative means of withdrawing cash.

As a result, many people have turned to Point-of-Sale operators, who have become the primary channel for cash withdrawals, albeit often at higher transaction fees.

Major commercial banks visited by one of our correspondents on Wednesday claimed not to have sufficient cash allocation hence the ration withdrawals to serve more customers.

The banks visited include Guaranty Trust Bank, Zenith Bank along Airport Road, and EcoBank at Jabi in Abuja.

A bank customer at EcoBank, who spoke without mentioning her name, said she was only allowed to withdraw N5,000 from N20,000 previously allowed.

“I was just informed that I can only withdraw N5,000 from my account. Can you imagine? The amount will can’t even take me home.”

Our correspondent received the same answer when he attempted to obtain cash.

At GTBank and Zenith Bank along the airport road, customers were permitted a maximum withdrawal of N20,000 from N100,000 previously disbursed as a daily limit.

 

A customer, Mr Faith, who visited the bank expressed shock about the new limit. He said the banks didn’t give any cogent reason for reducing the withdrawal limit.

“I just visited these banks, and I was informed that I can only withdraw N20,000 from N100,000, which was the previous limit. They didn’t even give any reason for reducing, now I have to start looking for cash elsewhere. This country is just so annoying,” He vented.

Cash scarcity became a recurring and widespread issue across Nigeria after the Central Bank of Nigeria introduced a controversial policy in January 2023, which significantly reduced the daily and weekly cash withdrawal limits to N100,000 daily, N500,000 weekly for individuals, and N5m for business entities.

This decision, aimed at encouraging a cashless economy, led to long queues at ATMs, increased difficulty in accessing physical cash, and a general disruption of daily financial transactions for millions of Nigerians.

The policy’s impact was felt particularly by those in rural areas and lower-income groups, who rely heavily on cash for their day-to-day needs, exacerbating economic hardships across the country.

Last week, data from the CBN showed that currency in circulation climbed 56.1 per cent year-on-year to reach N4.31tn, up from N2.76tn in September 2023, reflecting an increase of N1.55tn.

This is just as currency outside banks surged by 66.2 per cent in September 2024, reaching N4.02tn compared to N2.42tn in September 2023, a notable rise of N1.60tn in just one year.

This indicates that the volume of currency retained outside the banking sector outpaced the total released for circulation within the past year.

Compared to August 2024, currency in circulation rose by 4.0 per cent month-on-month, adding N166.2bn from the previous figure of N4.14tn.

The CIC is the amount of cash–in the form of paper notes or coins–within a country that is physically used to conduct transactions between consumers and businesses. It represents the money that has been issued by the country’s monetary authority, minus cash that has been removed from the system.

Earlier in September, the CBN announced plans to sanction banks that fail to dispense cash through their automated teller machines, as part of efforts to improve cash availability in circulation.

The CBN also revealed plans to release an additional N1.4tn into circulation over the next three months to ease cash flow within the banking system.

This strategy aims to ensure that ATMs and bank branches have sufficient cash, addressing ongoing challenges faced by customers over cash shortages.

Efforts to get a reaction from the apex bank on the new situation proved abortive as the acting Director, Corporate Communications, Sidi Ali Hakama, did not respond to enquiries sent to her phone number.

 

Continue Reading

Cover Of The Week

Trending