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Battle for Okorocha’s Job Intensifies……

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In this piece, S.A takes a look at the political developments in Imo State as the 2015 governorship race gathers momentum
As activities for the 2015 elections gradually gather momentum, the quest for the political soul of Imo State continues to witness an increase in the number of contestants.

According to political observers, governorship elections elicit in Imo State uncommon interest due to the unique nature of its politics. The state has a fair representation of the three dominant parties – the ruling All Progressives Congress, the All Progressives Grand Alliance and the Peoples Democratic Party.
Before now, Imo had remained a core PDP state but the inability of the party to produce a governorship candidate in 2007 changed the equation as the state fell into the hands of the little known Progressive Peoples Alliance, whose candidate, Ikedi Ohakim, emerged winner. But midway into his tenure, Ohakim defected to the PDP, following complaints of overbearing influence by the founder of the PPA, ex-Governor Orji Uzor Kalu of Abia State.
In 2011, Ohakim’s second term ambition was halted when his re-election bid suffered a loss. There were allegations of maladministration, highhandedness and disrespect for the clergy. He lost to the incumbent Governor, Rochas Okorocha, who came in on the platform of APGA but later defected to the APC.
APGA, which felt betrayed has been aiming at reclaiming its mandate come 2015. On the other hand, the incumbent, who had before now promised to be in office for only one term, changed his mind and is now desirous of a second term on the platform of his new party, the APC. But the PDP has vowed to reclaim the state at all cost. Imo parades a good number of PDP chiefs such as Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, Senator Arthur Nzeribe, Nze Ozichikwu Chukwu, to mention a few. Thus, all the three parties are leaving nothing to chance in their quest to occupy the Imo Government House in 2015 but the quality and credibility of their candidates in the make-or-mar exercise will play a major role in determining the winner of the race.

Based on the foregoing, a brief perusal of the profiles and chances of the various aspirants jostling for the exalted position has separated the contenders from the pretenders.

Okorocha

Okorocha came in as the people’s darling in 2011. His popularity at the beginning of his tenure was at its peak as he was generally seen as the best option to wrest power from Ohakim whose popularity had dwindling drastically. Okorocha hails from Orlu zone which also produced ex-Governor Achike Udenwa who was in power for eight years (1999-2007). He rode to power on the goodwill of APGA and also enjoyed the support of the people at the beginning of his tenure. His decision to slash his security vote and plough back same for the development of education endeared him to many even as he was tipped for the prestigious position of Igbo leader at the demise of Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu. His oratory and outspokenness on national issues – especially those concerning Igbo interests – added an impetus to his growing popularity across the South-East. His massive developmental projects also counted in his favour.

But his rising political profile nosedived when he joined the APC; a step many political analysts believe was miscalculated. Despite the fact that Okorocha for now seems to be the only known governorship aspirant of the APC in the state, political observers say he has very slim chances of winning re-election for a number of reasons. One of the reasons is the consideration that if Okorocha is re-elected, his Orlu senatorial zone would have unfairly dominated the governance of the state, a development political forces in other zones, particularly Okigwe zone, have vowed to resist.

Okorocha’s critics also accuse him of working against the Igbo interest by distancing himself from governors from other South-East states. His opposition to the Presidency is also believed to have denied the state some federal interventions and goodwill, particularly, ecological funds. They say his fraternity with the North and the South-West over his rumoured vice-presidential ambition is not in the interest of the Igbo.

His free education policy is also believed to be neither here nor there. There is serious grumbling among ‘Imolites’ that the tertiary education policy of the governor, which makes indigenes pay less than non-indigenes, is rather injurious to the state as more admission slots are given to non-indigenes in a bid to generate more funds. These notwithstanding, the massive structures in Owerri, the state capital, as well as the transformation in Orlu are all to Okorocha’s credit. His supporters also believe he will coast to victory because of his transformations in the health sector. Time will tell whether or not the governor would be able to scale the hurdles before him.

Agbaso

Chief Martin Agbaso is one of the backbones of APGA in Imo State. But for some political opponents, Agbaso would have won the 2007 governorship election in the state. The Owerri-born businessman has since then maintained close ties with the APGA national leadership just as he did maintain a close relationship with the late Ojukwu. His political structure was very instrumental to Okorocha’s victory in 2011 when his younger brother, Jude, was elected the deputy governor but was later impeached when he fell out with his principal. Since then, the elder Agbaso, who felt disappointed in Okorocha, wants to unseat the governor come 2015. He is widely seen a strong leader of APGA in Imo State today. But the recent defection of an ex- Minister, Captain Emmanuel Iheanacho (retd.), from the PDP to APGA, poses a serious threat to Agbaso’s governorship ambition as both stalwarts hail from the same political bloc in Owerri zone.

Iheanacho

The defection of the Emekuku-born politician to APGA is already causing ripples within the party. The financial capacity and educational background of the oil magnate have put him in good stead in the race. Another factor which seems to be counting in his favour is his perceived cordial relationship with the Presidency. He is believed to have maximised his opportunity as Minister of Interior to empower a lot of Imo indigenes and this has endeared him to many Igbo youths.

But analysts believe it would be difficult for Iheanacho, who is considered a newcomer in APGA, to hijack the party’s structures. Some believe his apparent popularity is because of his financial capacity.

Be that as it may, the people of Owerri zone are strongly gunning for the number one seat using two formidable platforms – APGA and PDP. They believe that should both Agbaso and Iheanacho fail to clinch the APGA governorship ticket the zone will press its governorship quest through PDP.

Ihedioha

The Deputy Speaker, House of Representatives, Emeka Ihedioha, is one of the prominent PDP governorship aspirants from Owerri zone that is generally believed would make a serious impact in the race. He is a three-term member of the House of Representative with vast political experience. The Aboh Mbaise/Ngor Okpala federal lawmaker is also believed to have the needed resources and political clout to match Okorocha’s power of incumbency. His closeness with the Presidency is also a plus to his ambition. He also enjoys the overwhelming support of notable PDP heavy weights in Owerri zone.

But the odds against him include the growing animosity that he allied with House of Representatives Speaker, Aminu Tambuwal, to negate the zoning arrangement of the PDP, which ceded the position of Speaker to South- West. His critics say he should not be allowed to be a beneficiary of zoning in his state because he worked against it at the national level.

Apart from the anti-zoning slogan against the deputy speaker which political pundits believe will soon fizzle out as the election draws nearer, Ihedioha appears set for the race to occupy the Imo Government House come 2015.

Anyanwu

Senator Chris Anyanwu, who has represented Owerri zone for two consecutive tenures, has not hidden her ambition to be the first female governor of the state. She is one of the most charismatic senators in the National Assembly. Her numerous empowerment programmes as well as her stance on national issues have endeared her to many. Her recent defection from APGA to the PDP seen by many as a strategic political calculation has further brightened her chances of realising her ambition.

But her major hurdle remains the fact that in the political circles many do not think the state is ripe for a female governor. Imo still parades a large army of political lords that may prove too tough for a woman to control.

Ararume

Senator Ifeanyi Ararume from Mbano in Okigwe senatorial zone is no debutant in the Imo governorship race. But for the stiff opposition of ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo in 2007, when the former President openly campaigned against him despite being in the same party, there is a strong possibility that Ararume would have been Imo governor. Even when he took the PDP to court to reclaim his denied victory at the party primaries, Obasanjo, bent on stopping the multi-billionaire politician declared at a rally in Owerri that the PDP had no candidate for the election, thus paving the way for Ohakim to sweep the polls. In protest, Ararume defected to the Action Congress of Nigeria (now APC) on whose platform he almost realised his ambition in 2011.

Some of the things that may work in his favour are his contributions in the restoration of Imo and Abia states to the Niger Delta Development Commission when both states were unjustly removed from the commission.

Ohakim

The former governor, whose second term ambition in 2011 was shattered by Okorocha, has vowed to reclaim his mandate in 2015. His loyalty to the national leadership of the PDP seems to be working in his favour. He is also believed to have learned from his mistakes. But his public rating doesn’t seem to have improved.

Uzodinma

The Omuma-born Senator Hope Uzodinma, who represents Imo-West senatorial district, hails from Orlu senatorial zone that is being accused of dominating Imo governance. The PDP lawmaker’s popularity has been on the increase and many believe he may clinch the party’s ticket if he decides to run especially considering his closeness to Aso Rock. But his major challenge is the zoning formula as the PDP is less likely to try the people’s patience by giving its ticket to an Orlu man in 2015. Already, party stalwarts from Owerri zone have threatened to defect en masse with their structures and followers to APGA should the PDP deny the zone the governorship ticket

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Sunday Igboho, Gani Adams on warpath over assassination allegation…..

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Yoruba Nation agitator, Sunday Adeyemo, alias Sunday Igboho; and the Chief of Staff to Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos State, Mr Tayo Ayinde, have both threatened to drag the Aare Ona Kakanfo, Iba Gani Adams, to court for allegedly accusing them of plotting an assassination.

Igboho and Ayinde, in separate pre-action letters by their lawyers, demanded that Adams should retract the said assassination claim against them or they would drag him to court.

But when contacted by The PUNCH, Adams declined comments on the matter, saying: “No comment on that. No comment.”

In a March 20, 2024 pre-action letter, Ayinde’s lawyer, Adeyinka Olumide-Fusika (SAN), demanded that Adams should retract the allegation “without any need on my client’s part to press you further on the subject.”

Olumide-Fusika said the pre-action letter was informed by the content of a press release issued by Igboho, titled: “I did not take part in killing Chief Bola Ige…”

According to Olumide-Fusika, Igboho said the press release was in reaction to some allegations against him in a viral voice note made by Adams.

Olumide-Fusika said, “In the press release, Chief Sunday Adeyemo claimed to be reacting to ‘issues raised by the voice notes going around on social media released by Aare Gani Adams,’ which ‘attacked his character’.”

The lawyer said his client’s name was mentioned in Igboho’s press release, a situation that had made many people from within and outside Nigeria to inundate him with phone calls, prompting him to go and listen to the said voice note.

According to Olumide-Fusika, the 10th paragraph of Igboho’s press release suggested that Adams claimed that Ayinde hired Igboho to assassinate him (Adams).

According to Olumide-Fusika, Adams, in a viral voice note, was allegedly heard saying in Yoruba language: “I would send you a letter signed and sent by these people to Tinubu, imploring him to stop wasting time and give them the go-ahead to eliminate me (Adams). The letter was signed by them and sent to Tinubu’s Bourdillon address, and it was received there. Those are the characters in the circle of this thoughtless fellow; he covets their association. My enemy’s friend is my enemy. He (Igboho) says we should combine forces to liberate our people, but he is in bed with enemies of our cause.

“So, be careful associating with Igboho. Just last night, he was with Tayo Ayinde, the Lagos State Governor’s Chief of Staff. He was heavily paid. You know that I have an extensive intelligence network as Aare Ona Kakanfo of Yorubaland. Until about 2:45am, he was with Tayo Ayinde, the Lagos State Governor’s Chief of Staff, who Tinubu also uses in Lagos to coordinate the execution of his evil machinations. He has been doing work of that nature for Tinubu since his days in the SSS.

“He resigned from the SSS, Ibadan to concentrate fully on such work for Tinubu, who compensated him with the office of Chief of Staff to the Lagos State Governor. It was at his hotel somewhere in Ikeja, Lagos, that Igboho visited him to collect money for logistics to confront me. Igboho left lbadan at about midnight to attend this meeting which ended at about 2:45am.

“Tayo Ayinde gave N45m in cash to Igboho for the operation, thus shortchanging Igboho to the tune of N5m out of the N50m purse provided by Tinubu. The discovery of this has brewed disenchantment in their midst.”

In the pre-action letter written on Ayinde’s behalf, Olumide-Fusika described the alleged claims by Adams as injurious to the person of his client, asking the Aare Ona Kakanfo to retract the same.

The lawyer said, “You will agree with me that the imputations in the above are as serious and damaging, as those who have listened to the ‘voice notes’ have represented it to my client by their telephone calls and visits. It includes that my client is complicit in a conspiracy to murder you (Adams), and is in fact the coordinator of the phantom operation.

“Given your own experience in life, I am sure you will appreciate how painful it is to be unjustly accused, as you have done in this instance against my client.”

The lawyer added, “My instructions are, therefore, to respectfully demand that you retract the false and wicked allegation, either through another voice note to go round the same social media, or by a press release referencing and recanting the allegation.

“I do believe that this gentlemanly request will be voluntarily heeded by you without any on my client’s part to press you further on the subject.”

On his part, Igboho in a letter by his lawyer, J.A. Sanusi, dated March 18, 2024, addressed to Adams, stated that he had been inundated with several calls “over the unfortunate lies peddled by you (Adams) against him (our client).”

The lawyer, on behalf of Igboho, said the people of Nigeria world over wished to confirm the veracity of the said “malicious interview or phone calls you (Adams) had with a person unknown that has become subject of public embarrassment and caused serious odium against the person of our client.”

The letter, which asked Adams to retract the allegations, also demanded the sum of N500m in compensation.

It partly read, “You (Adams) are aware that there is an audio clip which is presently going viral on all new media platforms where you have alleged the following against our client (Sunday Igboho) viz:

“That our client is an assassin who used to work for His Excellency Bola Ahmed Tinubu, President, Federal Republic of Nigeria.

“That our client is rumoured to be one of the persons that assassinated the late Chief Bola Ige, SAN, together with one Fryo.

“That our client was involved in a series of murder cases but escaped prosecution as a result of his political connection.

“That our client received the sum of Forty-Five Million Naira (N45,000,000.00) sometime in 2022 to carry out some dirty works for His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR; and

“That our client swindled Nigerians in diaspora for a fake self-determination agenda of the Yoruba race.”

Sanusi said Igboho wished to inform Adams “that the malicious lies against our client only exist in the figment of your imagination as our client is a law-abiding citizen, whose only offence at the time was to protect the interest of the Yoruba race, a responsibility which you were ordinarily saddled to discharge but failed to so do.”

He stressed that the false outburst had not only caused embarrassment but also economic losses to Igboho.

He stated further, “It is in the light of the above that we call on you to forthwith retract all the negative comments (highly defamatory too) made against the person of our client which has just been released to the social media, including YouTube platform.”

The lawyer said Igboho would be seeking redress in the court should Adams fail to meet his demands.

 

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Olayemi Cardoso Trudges On

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It was unprecedented, and never before seen, the way the naira to the dollar exchange rate galloped out of control. There was close to a 300% fall in the value of the naira against the dollar. From as low as 450 naira to the dollar, we witnessed an astronomical climb to about 1900 naira to the dollar. It defied all economic theories and indices, as the CBN huffed and puffed to anchor the psuedo-fall of the naira. The dollar remained bullish and defied all the laws known to the nation’s financial regulators, including the ‘laws of gravity’ within those 8 months spell. Ten months after, the dollar that was rearing towards a rate of 2,000 naira to the dollar, has now plummeted to about 1,362 naira to a dollar at the parallel market. The dollar-rate run has finally come to a halt, but not without some very drastic measures put in place by the apex bank.

It was more than evident that the exchange rate was not determined by market forces. The per-second shift in rate was egged on by speculators who had made the naira a commodity, and were making a kill off of the buying and selling of the naira and dollar. They were enabled by online exchange platforms, especially Binance and other cryptocurrency channels. The CBN had to clampdown on these agents. Notably, Binance executives were interrogated by the CBN along with the NSA’s office over fraudulent activities enabled by their platform, that saw to the manipulation of the naira-dollar exchange rate. Binance had just recently been fined over 4 billion dollars for financial impropriety in the US, and it remains to be seen whether the CBN will take such measures, including their demand for the names of subscribers that have been used as proxies for the sponsorship of terrorism.

The partners in crime to the cryptocurrency exchange platforms have been the BDCs. They also arbitrarily switched exchange rates along the lines of the rates quoted by the online platforms. The CBN along with the EFCC had to crackdown on some of the manipulative BDC operators across the country. More than 4000 BDCs had their licenses revoked. Some due to irregularities, and some for fraudulent activities. The CBN has in addition, released new guidelines for the operations of the BDCs, including an increase in the capital requirements to bolster the regulation of the BDC operations in the country. Other measures taken includes the decision to allow International Oil Companies repatriate only 50% of their proceeds abroad. There’s also the enforcement of the Net Open Position of commercial banks, as it was seen that the banks were holding far too much foreign exchange than they are supposed to. The aforementioned efforts have in turn made the naira bullish in its climb up the exchange rate capsule, regaining some of its lost glory. The CBN’s understanding with IMOs is also making available an estimated 20 billion dollars into the Nigerian Market from diaspora remittances. Even the Almighty NNPC is today channeling its earnings to the CBN, which is also boosting our FX reserves and building on transparency.

 

2024 is seeing a lot of positives from the CBN’s tough stances and decisions. It has been able to clear FX backlogs of about 7 billion dollars which will no doubt boost investors’ confidence. Its recent offer of 500 billion naira at the OMO auction was over-subscribed, selling N1.053 trillion, with 79% of the total bids (530 million dollars), coming from foreign investors. This is quite impressive and is a sign that foreign investments are queueing into the country. The CBN has also been able to sustain increases in our foreign reserves, thereby sustaining the availability of forex in the exchange market. As the nation’s daily crude output increases, it will also help improve on our forex inflow, along with other FPIs.

A lot of Nigerians insist that Nigeria does not have a money problem but a spending problem. Just recently, there was a lot of buzz around a seminar hosted for State commissioners of finance at a Hilton hotel in the UK. Those kinds of events and other foreign travels that become jamborees, eats up quite an amount of foreign exchange, and if you put the figures together from all government ministries and agencies, it could be nothing short of a few billion dollars per annum. As a measure to that kind of waste, Mr. President issued a directive to the SGF’s office, banning all foreign trips by all government officials, except with the express approval of the Presidency. This move certainly looks like a Cardoso advisory. It would be a waste of effort and policy if the CBN is struggling to rake in foreign exchange, meanwhile government officials are draining the purse on trips that should be avoided in times of austerity like this. During the campaigns, Mr. President told us about the trust he reposes in the Headmaster, Mr Cardoso. From what we have seen so far with the Headmaster, the naira is ‘headed’ for more gains in no time!

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Nigerian Govt sends Interpol after fleeing Binance Director

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Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris on Monday said there is no hiding place for Nadeem Anjarwalla, a Director of Binance who escaped from custody and fled the country after he was detained by the Nigerian Government.

The minister said the International Police (Interpol) were currently on Anjarwalla’s trail.

Idris was reacting to the Binance executive’s escape from Nigeria.

According to Idris, since Binance is an international firm, there is no way the culprit will evade arrest.

His explanation came barely few hours after the Office of the National Security Adviser confirmed that Anjarwalla, a key suspect in the ongoing criminal investigation regarding Binance’s activities in Nigeria, managed to escape lawful custody on Friday, March 22nd, 2024.

In an official statement released by the Head of Strategic Communication for the Office of the National Security Adviser, Zakari Mijinyawa, it was explained that collaborative efforts between the office, relevant security agencies, various government bodies and the international community are already underway to swiftly locate and detain the fugitive.

The statement stressed that security agencies are working with Interpol for an international arrest warrant on the suspect as preliminary investigation shows that Anjarwalla fled Nigeria using a smuggled passport.

The personnel responsible for the custody of the suspect have been arrested, and a thorough investigation is ongoing to unravel the circumstances that led to his escape from lawful detention.

It would be recalled that the Federal Government of Nigeria, like other governments around the world, has been investigating money laundering and terrorism financing transactions perpetrated on the Binance currency exchange platform.

Anjarwalla, who holds British and Kenyan nationalities and serves as Binance’s Africa regional manager, was being tried by Nigerian courts before he escaped while under a 14-day remand order issued by a court.

He was scheduled to appear before the court again on 4 April 2024.

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