Headlines
NRC conducts public tender for 1,100 bidders over 2021 capital projects

Eyewitness reporter
The Managing Director, Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) Mr Fidet Okhiria has said the Corporation had begun the processing of Expression of Interest (EOI) by the 1,100 bidders for 2021 capital projects.
Okhiria revealed this Thursday during the exercise at the Railway Headquarters in Lagos.
Okhiria, who was represented at the event by Director, Operations of NRC, Mr Niyi Alli, said the processing was conducted publicly for transparency, in line with the Procurement Act.
Okhiria stated that after the technical evaluation of the proposals by the bidders, the qualified bidders would be selected for specific projects.
The NRC boss added that the agency adhered to COVID-19 protocols by allowing 150 bidders at a time during the processing of their documents.
He said the corporation would move to the next stage of the project in two weeks’ time, after processing all the expression of interest documents.
While speaking, the Director of Procurement of NRC, Mr Benjamin Iloanusi, said the corporation advertised the available projects in daily newspapers, Federal Tenders journals and on its website.
Iloanusi said over 1,100 documents were received, and that due to the Convid-19 pandemic, the NRC decided to restrict the processing of the bidders to 150 per session.
“At the close of the seven weeks advert notice, we now opened their documents in the public and in the presence of some Non-Governmental Organisation (NGOs) and the bidders.
“We are checking the eligibility of presented documents such as Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), Industrial Training Fund Certificate (ITF) among others,” Oloanusi said.
Some of the bidders expressed satisfaction with the open bidding.
One of the bidders, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO), High Destiny Security Ltd., Mr Daniel Tishene, submitted that the opening of the project tender was highly transparent.
Tishene said he was able to use the processing to submit additional documents such as a medical retainer, professional indemnity, insurance policy and other required documents by the NRC.
The Manager Director, RightWay Insurance Nigeria Ltd., Miss Williams Damilola, also testified that the processing was transparent.
Headlines
P&ID fraud : Court convicts, winds up Marqott Nigeria Limited.

Owolola Adebola
Justice D.U Okorowo of the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has convicted and wound up Marqott Nigeria Limited, one of the 30 companies associated with the Process and Industrial Development Limited, P & ID, for money laundering.
The company was convicted on Thursday, June 16, 2022, after being found guilty of four-count charges bordering on money laundering preferred against it by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC.
Count one of the charges read: “That you, Marqott Nigeria Limited, being a designated Non-financial Institution; and Giovanni Beccarelli, Valentina Fantoli, and Dimitri Duca, being directors of and signatories to the bank account of Marqott Nigeria Limited, sometime in September 2014, in Abuja, within the Abuja Judicial Division of the Federal High Court, failed to comply with the requirements of submitting to the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, a declaration of activities of Marqott Nigeria Limited contrary to Section 16(1) (f) read together with Section 5(1)(a)(ii) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2011(as amended and you thereby committed an offence punishable under section 16(2)(b) of the same Act.”
Count two read: “That you, Marqott Nigeria Limited, being a designated Non-financial Institution; and Giovanni Beccarelli, Valentina Fantoli, and Dimitri Duca, being directors of and signatories to the bank account of Marqott Nigeria Limited, sometime in September 2014, in Abuja, within the Abuja Judicial Division of the Federal High Court, failed to develop programs to combat money laundering and other illegal acts, to wit: failure to designate at management level a compliance officer within any strata of Marqott Nigeria Limited, contrary to Section 16(1)(f) read together with Section 9(1)(a) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2011 (as amended) and you thereby committed an offence punishable under Section 16 (2)(b) of the same Act”.
At the point of the first arraignment on February 7, 2022, the defendant pleaded “not guilty” to the charges, setting the stage for a full trial.
In the course of the trial, the EFCC presented many witnesses and tendered many documents as exhibits.
In his judgment, Justice Okorowo found Marqott Nigeria Limited guilty of all the four-count charges and convicted it accordingly. He also ordered that the company be wound up and its entire assets forfeited to the Federal Government of Nigeria.
Marqott was first arraigned on Monday, February 7, 2022, for being an accomplice in the $9.6bn Gas Supply and Processing Agreement between the Ministry of Petroleum Resources and P&ID.
Headlines
N25.7bn fraud: Appeal Court affirms conviction of ex-Bank PHB MD, Atuche, others

Owolola Adebola
A three-man panel of the Court of Appeal, Lagos Division, on Thursday, June 23, 2022, upheld the conviction of a former Managing Director of the defunct Bank PHB Plc, Francis Atuche, as well as the bank’s former Chief Financial Officer, Ugo Anyanwu.
Atuche and his co-convict, Anyanwu, had approached the appellate court to set aside their conviction by Justice Lateefa Okunnu of the Lagos State High Court sitting in Ikeja, Lagos on June 16, 2021, over a N25.7 billion fraud.
The panel, comprising Justices Sadiq Umar, Adebukola Banjoko and Kayode Bada, while resolving all the issues in the appeal in favour of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, (EFCC) except the sentencing, also clarified that Atuche’s jail term was 12 years concurrently, rather than 120 years, handed down by the lower court, if calculated consecutively.
Also, the panel reduced Anyanwu’s jail term from 10 years to eight years and affirmed the discharge and acquittal of Atuche’s wife, Elizabeth.
In an abridged ruling read by Justice Umar, the three-man panel upheld the EFCC’s arguments and unanimously dismissed the appeal.
It would be recalled that, in 2021, Justice Okunnu, while sentencing Atuche and Anyanwu, had upheld the arguments of the prosecution counsel, Kemi Pinheiro, SAN.
Headlines
Jamoh raises hope on removal of war risk insurance on Nigeria- bound cargo


The Honorable Minister expressed delight at the equipment and assets of NIMASA, stating that it underscores the importance the Federal Government attaches to combating maritime crimes and ensuring zero tolerance for illegal activities on the nation’s territorial waters.
While commending the synergy and collaboration amongst agencies of Government in the maritime sector, the Honorable Minister expressed delight at the fact that Nigeria has witnessed piracy-free waters since 2022.
Accordingly, she said; “for over 28 years, we have been in the press for the wrong reasons, over the piracy issues at the Gulf of Guinea (GoG).
Furthermore, Senator Saraki noted the need to sustain the momentum to ensure Nigeria remains attractive to investors, adding that the Ministry is delighted at the steps NIMASA is taking to address the issue of War Risk Insurance premium on Nigerian Bound Cargoes.

“The most important thing now is that we don’t rest on our oars. The Free Trade Agreement and how it affects Nigeria is our focus.
However, the Director-General of NIMASA, Dr Bashir Jamoh disclosed that the focus of the agency is sustaining the achievements in recent times, adding that the plans are in three categories of short medium and long term.
“Our focus now is to sustain the tempo
“Though Nigeria was removed from the red list of piracy nations on the 3rd of March this year, it is natural that the international community will desire sustainability.
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