The Eyewitness Reporter 

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission(EFCC) has denied the widely held claim that it flouted a court order restraining it from arresting or harassing Yahaya Bello, the former Governor of Kogi State.

The EFCC said this clarification became necessary against the backdrop of arguments and counter-arguments on whether the anti-graft agency has disobeyed a court order concerning the botched arrest of the former governor of Kogi State.

In a Press Statement signed by the EFCC’s Acting Director of Public Affairs, Mr. Wilson Uwujaren, the Commission clearly pointed out that though Bello sought refuge in a fundamental rights enforcement action through an order granted by  Justice Isa Jamil Abdulallahi of the Kogi State High Court, the order did not vitiate or nullify an order made by the Federal High Court for the arrest of the former governor for the purpose of his arraignment.“The enrolled Order of the Kogi State High Court only granted an order to enforce Bello’s right to personal liberty and freedom of movement, it didn’t preclude the Federal High Court ‘to make any Order as it may deem just in the determination of the rights of the Applicant and the Respondent as may be submitted to her for consideration and determination”,  he said.

He further stressed that “The Order made by the Federal  High Court for the arrest of Mr. Yahaya Bello for the purpose of his arraignment is not in conflict with the Order of the Kogi State High Court.

“The case before the Federal High Court is a criminal charge which is different from the fundamental rights enforcement action that is the subject of an appeal”.

Uwujaren pointed out that the EFCC had a shining track record in the prosecution of politically exposed persons and would continue to exercise its mandate in the overall interest of the nation.

” He admonished Bello to turn himself in and answer to the charges preferred against him by the Commission.

He called on all patriotic Nigerians to lend their voices in support of the Commission stressing that ” the EFCC will not relent in its quest to wrestle corruption to the ground”

In its ongoing effort to ensure liquidity in the foreign exchange market which is expected to ease the pressure on the naira, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on Monday disbursed the sum of $15,830,000m to 1,583 licensed Bureau De Change Operators at $10, 000 each.

In a letter dated April 22nd, 2024 and addressed to the President of the Association of Bureau De Change Operators of Nigeria and signed by Dr Hassan Mahmud, the Director, Trade and Exchange Department of the CBN, the beneficiaries are mandated to sell allocated forex to eligible end users ” at a spread of not more than 1.5 percent above the purchase price.

The CBN said the sale of forex to the BDCs will meet market demand (retail-end) for invisible transactions.

The apex bank however advised all the BDCs to continue to abide by the rules and conditions as stipulated in the operational guidelines.

The beneficiary BDCs have trading locations at Lagos, Abuja, Akwa and Kano.

The Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) has finally secured a loan of $700 million from Citibank to be funded by the UK Export  Finance (UKEF) , an export credit agency, to rehabilitate the Apapa and Tin-Can Island ports, Lagos.

The Ports Authority has also opened a discussion with another funding agency to secure financing for upgrading the Eastern Ports including Calabar, Warri,  Onne and Rivers Ports as well as the reconstruction of the Escravos breakwater.

Speaking in Lagos on Wednesday during the signing of the mandate letter with Citibank Nigeria, Managing Director of the NPA,  Mohammed Bello-Koko, said the mandate letter will be sent to the Debt Management Office for final review and approval.

He said the funds are ready and the reconstruction of the Lagos Ports will start soonest even as the NPA perfects plans to sign another mandate letter for the upgrading of the Eastern Ports in about a month.

“In the last two years, NPA has realised the need for us to rehabilitate and reconstruct the ports all over the country.

” We have been having discussions with multilateral funding agencies who have sent various proposals that we have reviewed.

“What we did is to further discussion with interested parties and we realised is better is to separate the ports in Lagos from the ports in the East, and we are in discussion with other funding agencies to fund the construction of ports outside Lagos,” he said.

According to him, the Citibank facility is the cheapest for the Ports Authority because it comes with affordable interest rates.

“Port efficiency is not about automation which we have already begun, it’s also about the physical infrastructure, which must be in place and that’s why we are automating. Automation will naturally bring efficiency, increase revenue and plug leakages, ” he said.

Bello-Koko said that the NPA putting the Port Community System in place, which is a platform that will improve trade facilitation.

“Currently in Nigeria, importers or exporters fill up to 30 to 40 forms for one transaction but the Port Community System will reduce the numbers of forms, human interference and ensure speedy clearance process in or out of the country,” he added

Earlier, the Managing Director of Citibank Nigeria Limited, Ireti Samuel-Ogbu, said the bank is committed to supporting NPA and the federal government in bridging the infrastructure gap.

“We are absolutely delighted to be partnering with NPA especially being the collection bank for foreign and local currency port levies.

“Now, supporting this strategic initiative through export credit financing to upgrade port infrastructure in Tin-Can and Lagos Ports is commendable. However, we are committed in supporting NPA and the Nigerian Government in all its endeavours, especially in the infrastructure space.

According to her, Citibank was opportune to have met with Wale Edun, Minister of Finance, a few weeks ago where the port upgrading project was mentioned and he was very delighted about the project.

“Since NPA generates its own foreign revenue, we will be able to support foreign facility from our resources because this project is very strategic and an important project for NPA and the country at large.

“We are looking forward to this project and we thank NPA for giving us this opportunity and hope to bring this to fruition as soon as possible,” Samuel-Ogbu said.

In 2023, Bello Koko said the NPA was sourcing about $1.1b in loans to rehabilitate the dilapidated infrastructure at the nation’s ports.