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WEMA BANK, DANA AIRLINE IN ALLEGED MONEY LAUNDERING SCANDAL

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One of the nation’s topflight banking institutions, Wema Bank and Dana Air, owners of Sri Sai Vandana Foundation, a Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) have been fingered in a money laundering crime and may be prosecuted by the anti-graft agency. According to a source, the airline’s inflight donation collected between 2014 and 2018 without following due process is the bane of contention. “The EFCC will take it up. We will investigate and prosecute the crime element once prima facie is established,” the acting spokesperson of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Tony Orilade said.

Dana started Nigeria’s Sri Sai Vandana Foundation in 1995 and commenced the inflight donation in partnership with the Sickle Cell Foundation of Nigeria. But after the airline suffered a major crash in Lagos in 2012 in which 153 persons died, it ceased the collaboration, ‘re-strategised’, and solely ran the inflight donations. Reports also reveal how Dana through Sri Sai Vandana Foundation, got the inflight donations between January 2014 and October 2018, raking in millions of naira deposited into the Wema Bank account number 0121291839 without due registration with the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), a prerequisite for complying with the Special Control Unit against Money Laundering (SCUML) regulations.

The EFCC official stated that the company will be sanctioned and that when there is a vacuum that is when we will lift the veil. He further explained that by ‘lifting the veil’ he simply means “The company cannot run without humans. So, it is when everyone denies being members of the company that we go after the individuals.” In line with the Money Laundering Prohibition Act, it is mandatory every Designated Non – Financial Institution, DNFI, to register with SCUML in order to legally operate in Nigeria. Contravening the SCUML guidelines have some specific penalties, including “suspension or revocation of license, fines or imprisonment or both,” according to Sections 15 to 17 of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act 2011 (as amended).

It stipulates a maximum of 14 years jail term for an individual but, in the case of a corporate organisation, the law says such organisation would pay “a fine of not less than 100 percent of the funds and properties acquired as a result of the offense committed” and would also have its license withdrawn. Precisely, the law defines the unlawful act listed in subsection (2) of the Act to include “corruption, bribery, fraud, counterfeiting, and piracy of products…or any other criminal act specified in this Act or any other law in Nigeria.” As such, Wema Bank officials involved in Dana’s account opening process may as well be prosecuted by the anti-graft agency, as soon as SCUML forwards its findings to the EFCC.

Source: ICIR

Society

Just In: Court Grants Ex-Taraba Governor Darius Ishaku ₦150m Bail

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The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court has granted former Taraba State Governor, Darius Ishaku, bail to the tune of ₦150 million with two sureties in the same amount.

 

 

Ishaku, who governed Taraba State from May 2015 to May 2023 under the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), was arraigned by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on a 15-count charge of criminal breach of trust, conspiracy, and misappropriation of public funds totaling ₦27 billion.

 

 

 

Justice Sylvanus Oriji imposed strict conditions on Ishaku’s bail including two sureties, each resident in Abuja, with verified house addresses; one surety must be a director in the Federal Civil Service; ₦150 million bail bond.

 

 

 

Ishaku and co-defendant, Bello Hero, have also been barred from leaving the country without court permission.

 

 

The EFCC, represented by Rotimi Jacobs, did not oppose Ishaku’s bail request, citing his previous compliance with administrative bail.

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Amen Estate Saga: Babatunde Gbadamosi Drags Ex wife To The Cleaners!! …… Revealed how her four marriages to different men hit the rock.

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Amen Estate Saga: Babatunde Gbadamosi Drags Ex wife To The Cleaners!! .

The politician escalates his media feud with ex-wife Sade Balogun, accusing her of marital misconduct in a cryptic post on X.

 

 

The ongoing media feud between Babatunde Gbadamosi and his ex-wife, Sade Balogun, shows no sign of slowing down as the former Lagos gubernatorial candidate aired personal grievances via a cryptic message on his X (formerly Twitter) account.

 

In the post, Gbadamosi detailed aspects of Sade’s past marriages, questioning her role in the breakdown of her relationships with four different husbands, including himself.

In the now viral post, Gbadamosi referenced her previous marriages, claiming that her first husband was abandoned at Heathrow Airport following a quarrel before she left Nigeria.

He also alleged that she carried another man’s pregnancy into her second marriage, and that her third husband ended up in a mental institution after discovering her with a pastor.

Gbadamosi, who was her fourth husband, expressed frustration over what he described as “21 years of constant strife,” which ultimately led him to marry another woman in search of peace.

 

He further accused her of sitting on a “globally known brand” that he created, through what he described as “diabolical means.”

See below:

Babatunde Gbadamosi ex-wife media feud

Babatunde Gbadamosi ex-wife media feud

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Nigeria @64: Oando Boss, Wale Tinubu Urges Nigerians to work together 

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As Nigeria celebrates her 64th Independence anniversary, the Group Chief Executive of Oando group, Mr. Wale Tinubu, has enjoined the citizens to work together for the growth of the country.

 

In a statement posted on his social media handles, Mr. Tinubu wrote:

 

 

‘’Stitch by Stitch, We Weave Our Nation’s Tapestry.

 

 

 

 

As we celebrate Nigeria’s 64th Independence Day, we reflect on the journey that has brought us this far. Like a tapestry woven with care and precision, our nation is a beautiful blend of diverse cultures, resilient spirits, and bold aspirations.

 

 

 

Today, we honour the past, celebrate the present, and look forward to a future filled with promise. Let us continue to work together, stitch by stitch, building a nation that is vibrant, inclusive, and unafraid to dream big.

 

 

 

Happy Independence Day, Nigeria!

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