As the Lagos State local government elections get underway, a low turnout is being recorded in Alimosho and Agege Local Government Areas.
A visit to some polling units also revealed the late arrival of voting materials.
Lagos State is conducting its local government elections to pick chairmen and councillors for the 20 Local Government Areas (LGAs) of the coastal state.
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A 73-year-old man Sanusi Akande cast his vote was one of many voters that cast their votes at polling unit 007, Adeniyi/Adele Lagos Island Ward in the ongoing Lagos State local government elections.
Lagos State is conducting its local government elections to pick chairmen and councillors for the 20 Local Government Areas (LGAs) of the coastal state.
Toyin Davids, a physically challenged woman, is one of several voters who cast their votes in the Small London area of Surulere during the ongoing local government election in Lagos State.
She expressed satisfaction with the whole process and urged other persons living with disabilities to exercise their franchise.
According to her, no challenge should prevent Lagosians from choosing their representatives.
READ ALSO: Voting Begins At Gbajabiamila Polling Unit In Surulere LGA
At PU 17 with over 1,000 registered voters, in the same area, scores of voters, mostly women, were seated under a canopy as they take turns to cast their ballot.
Amid the voting process, a police surveillance chopper hovered over the PU.
The Sole Administrator of Rivers State, Retired Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas, has ordered the immediate acceleration of work on the Rivers State House of Assembly Complex, following what he described as “grossly abysmal” progress.
Speaking during an inspection visit to the construction site along Moscow Road, Port Harcourt, the Administrator directed the contractor handling the project to step up efforts without further delay, warning that any continued lag in execution would not be tolerated.
“This project is of strategic importance, and we must treat it as such. The people of Rivers State expect results. Any further delays will be unacceptable. All hands must be on deck to meet the agreed timelines,” Ibas stated.
He expressed disappointment with the pace of work, noting that the contractor had fallen short of expectations despite clear timelines and ongoing supervision.
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“From the consultants’ reports and what I have seen here today, the performance is far from satisfactory. The contractor needs to do a lot more. The current pace is unacceptable,” he said.
Ibas disclosed plans to summon the contractor for an emergency meeting to review the challenges and realign efforts toward delivering the project promptly.
In a related development, the Administrator also inspected key sports facilities in the state, including the Yakubu Gowon Stadium, Elekahia, and the Alfred Diete-Spiff Sports Complex, with a view to upgrading them for optimal use.
While commending the outstanding performances of Rivers athletes in recent national and international competitions, Ibas emphasised the urgent need to invest in quality sports infrastructure.
“We have teams representing the state at continental levels, yet we lack facilities that can host such matches. That has to change. We are here to assess and act,” he remarked.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has refuted claims of lack of integrity and transparency levelled against the commission’s boss, Ola Olukoyede, by a columnist Steve Osuji.
In a statement, EFCC spokesman Dele Oyewale said Osuji’s allegations against the EFCC and Olukoyede were worrisome and unjustifiable.
Oyewale said, “More worrisome was his attack on Olukoyede for no justifiable reason. Allegations of lack of transparency, accountability and integrity deficit are wild and clearly off the mark.
“The question is: in what way has Olukoyede fallen short? Is it by insisting that the right things should always be done? By moving the nation’s anti-graft war forward radically and unprecedentedly?
“By bringing forth a preventive framework to tackle corruption and reaping bountiful gains for the nation?
“By recovering the globally-acclaimed 753 duplexes and other apartments, which are proceeds of fraudulent dealings for the nation?
“By launching the EFCC into a global map of accomplished anti-graft agencies? By handling 50,000 case files in one year?
“By embarking on a courageous internal cleansing system and other progressive initiatives to deepen and strengthen the anti-corruption fight?
“It is cowardly and uncharitable for any columnist to hide under vague and opaque cover to splash mud on Ola Olukoyede, arguably one of the finest breed of anti-graft czars around the world.”
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Olukoyede said the EFCC has never failed to submit its annual report to the National Assembly every September as it is statutorily required.
“Equally preposterous are claims of re-looting of assets by officers of the Commission. For the purpose of clarification, the Commission does not recover monetary assets into its covers and the non-monetary assets that are recovered are disposed of following clear pronouncements by court and proceeds paid into the Confiscated and Forfeited Properties Account account in the Central Bank in line with provisions of the Proceeds of Crime ( Recovery and Management) Act, 2022.
The Lagos High Court sitting in Ikeja has sentenced a former director of Afromedia Plc, Alhaji Mohammed Gobir to seven years in prison for orchestrating a sophisticated, multi-million-naira and foreign-currency fraud.
Justice Raliat Adebiyi convicted and sentenced the defendant on all 17 counts brought against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). The charges included stealing, obtaining by false pretence, forgery, and possession of fraudulent documents.
The EFCC initiated prosecution in 2016 following a damning petition from Afromedia Plc, which revealed a complex scheme of deception and financial manipulation that bled the company of hundreds of millions of naira and substantial sums in foreign currency.
According to court documents and EFCC’s presentation, Gobir fraudulently secured a seat on Afromedia’s board by falsely promising to invest N1 billion into the company. Once in a position of influence, he allegedly siphoned off a staggering $3.5 million, $514.4 million, $2.1 million, and £51,000 from company funds under various false pretences.
READ ALSO: EFCC Secures Final Forfeiture Of Assets Tied To Multi-Billion Naira Bank Scam
One of the most audacious claims Gobir made, prosecutors said, was that he needed $250,000 to secure a waiver certificate to retrieve $250 million he claimed was being temporarily held by British anti-money laundering authorities in a UK bank.
Justice Adebiyi, however, dismissed the claims as entirely fictitious and part of a deliberate ploy to mislead and defraud the company.
In another instance, Gobir deceived Afromedia into releasing over $514 million on the pretext that it was required to facilitate the transfer of $70 million from a non-existent London bank account.
His arrest in September 2015 at his upscale Ikoyi residence followed months of investigations by EFCC into what officials described as one of the more elaborate financial frauds within Nigeria’s corporate boardrooms.
In her judgment, Justice Adebiyi condemned Gobir’s actions as a grave breach of trust, stating that his manipulation of corporate structures for personal gain represented “a betrayal of confidence and fiduciary duty.”