Headlines

NIMASA, lawmakers disagree over audited accounts —-as House of Reps invites EFCC to probe agency —-we are up-to-date on our audited accounts—-NIMASA

Eyewitness reporter

The management of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) and the House of Representatives seems to be on a coalition course over the disputed audited accounts of the agency.

There appears to be a sharp disagreement over the true status of the accounts of NIMASA which the lawmakers claimed have not been audited in the last five years.

In its report to the members of the House, the House Committee on Public Accounts accused the management of NIMASA of not submitting the accounts of the agency for public scrutiny by the office of the Auditor-General.

According to the committee, which carried out an inquest into the allegations of deliberate refusal by non-treasury funded Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) to remit audited accounts covering 2014 – 2018 to the Auditor General for the Federation, NIMASA’S management has deliberately and blatantly refused to tender its financial accounts in the last five years.

The committee has further alleged that NIMASA had only rendered the 2014 audited accounts to the Auditor General and was yet to remit its 2015 to 2018 audited accounts.

The committee, therefore, recommended the probe and prosecution of the agency over its consistent refusal to subject its books to public scrutiny.

While adopting the recommendations of the committee, the House frowned at what it described as “despicable action of the management of NIMASA which is in clear violation of Section 85(3) (b) of the 1999 Constitution”

Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila, Speaker House of Reps

The House also condemned what it called “the recklessness of the agency’s management” stating that in spite of the huge revenue being generated by it from the coastlines, it refused to be audited.

The House Committee, in the course of its investigative hearing, stated that it invited the Minister of State for Transportation, Senator Gbemisola Saraki, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Transportation, and some Directors of NIMASA to give reasons for the non-rendition of the accounts by the Director-General to the Auditor General’s Office in compliance with Section 20 of the Procurement Act, 2007, and FR. No. 3129.

The House stated, “The reckless refusal by the management of the agency to render accounts for their stewardship for the past five years now is despicable and is a violation of Section 85(3) (b) of the 1999 Nigeria Constitution.

“All those in office that were responsible should be disciplined and referred to the EFCC to refund all monies received by them from the government for the period 2015 – 2019 to the Treasury in line with FR 3129 of 2009.”

However, the management of NIMASA has faulted the claims and allegations of the lawmakers which it described as “fundamentally incorrect”

According to Ubong Essien, the Senior Assistant on Communications and Strategy to Dr Bashir Jamoh, the Director-General, the agency has updated its financial records up to 2018 which had been forwarded to the Auditor-General.

He further stated that the agency is currently working on its 2019 and 2020 accounts that would be forwarded to the Auditor-General ahead of the September 30th, 2021 window for submission.

“The allegation is fundamentally incorrect as the agency has updated its financial records up to 2018 and forwarded them to the Auditor-General which can easily and readily be verified.

” The 2019 and 2020 accounts are currently being prepared ahead of the September 30th 2021 statutory window for submission,” the agency said through its official information channel.

Osagie Edward, the Assistant Director, Public Relations of NIMASA, corroborated the position of Mr Essie.

He told our correspondent that the audited accounts of the agency are there for the public to see.

“No responsible public agency like NIMASA will fail to comply with the statutory provisions of the public accounting system by submitting its books for auditing” Osagie declared with a tinge of confidence.

Headlines

Lagos princess congratulates Tinubu, Sanwo-Olu

… tasks them on development of maritime economy

The eyewitness reporter

The President-elect, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, and the Governor of Lagos State, Mr. Babajide Olushola Sanwo-Olu have been tasked with paying attention to the maritime economy for its development for the overall benefit of Nigeria and her citizenry.

Giving the task with congratulatory messages, a Lagos princess, Princess Ronke Kosoko, noted that developing the maritime economy would instigate the economic development of the nation.

Princess Kosoko who is the CEO of Employment Clinic and Coordinator, Project One Million Jobs,

congratulated Asiwaju Tinubu and Governor Sanwo-Olu on their well-deserved victories at the polls.

She was confident that the Nigerian maritime economy will gain immensely from the Tinubu administration even as she enjoined the President-elect to focus on the industry.

Kosoko noted that skilled maritime personnel is aging and there is a need to transfer their wealth of experience to the younger generation who needs to be prepared to take over from the retiring generation.

She disclosed that the Federal Ministry of Transportation had approved the request for Project One Million Jobs to interface with agencies under the ministry for a seamless flow of talks and synergy that will positively impact and lead to a new frontier in the industry.

Ronke Kosoko unveiled her pet project, Maritime Conversion Programme (MCP), which she explained was designed to introduce Nigerian graduates to the maritime sector and improve career prospects.

Kosoko said that the MCP, which has gotten the backing of the government, would give support and connect not less than 5000 Nigerian graduates with the right employers in the industry who can engage them in non-technical aspects of shipping.

She noted that women will be given an adequate percentage under MCP, stating that the MCP is not creating jobs but providing a fertile ground for the transfer of knowledge from old Nigerians in the industry to young ones.

Headlines

Ekweremadu, wife may go to jail as London court finds them guilty of organ tafficking

Ike Ekweremadu; his wife, Beatrice;

The Eyewitness reporter with agency report

A former Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu; his wife Beatrice; and their doctor, Obinna Obeta have been found guilty of organ trafficking in the first verdict of its kind under the Modern Slavery Act.

Ekweremadu, 60; his wife, Beatrice, 56; and Obeta, 51; were found guilty of facilitating the travel of a young man to Britain with a view to his exploitation after a six-week trial at the Old Bailey.

They allegedly criminally conspired to bring the 21-year-old Lagos street trader to London to exploit him for his kidney, the jury found, according to UK Guardian.

Ekweremadu and his wife were charged in the United Kingdom after they allegedly lured a young man from Nigeria to harvest his organ for their ailing daughter, Sonia.
The lawmaker was last year arrested and had been in the custody of UK authorities after they received complaints from the young man about their alleged plans to harvest his organ.

The prosecutor, Hugh Davies KC, told the court on Thursday the Ekweremadus and Obeta had treated the man and other potential donors as “disposable assets – spare parts for reward”.

He said they entered an “emotionally cold commercial transaction” with the man.

The behaviour of Ekweremadu, a successful lawyer and founder of an anti-poverty charity who helped draw up Nigeria’s laws against organ trafficking, showed “entitlement, dishonesty and hypocrisy”, Davies told the jury.

He said Ekweremadu, who owns several properties and had a staff of 80, “agreed to reward someone for a kidney for his daughter – somebody in circumstances of poverty and from whom he distanced himself and made no inquiries, and with whom, for his own political protection, he wanted no direct contact”.

Davies added, “What he agreed to do was not simply expedient in the clinical interests of his daughter, Sonia, it was exploitation, it was criminal.

“It is no defence to say he acted out of love for his daughter. Her clinical needs cannot come at the expense of the exploitation of somebody in poverty.”

Ekweremadu, who denied the charge, told the court he was the victim of a scam.

Obeta, who also denied the charge, claimed the man was not offered a reward for his kidney and was acting altruistically.

Beatrice denied any knowledge of the alleged conspiracy. Sonia did not give evidence.

The judge, Mr Justice Jeremy Johnson, will pass sentence at a later date.

Headlines

EFCC arraigns bank manager, two others for N55m fraud in Makurdi

Owolola Adebola

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, (EFCC,) on Tuesday, March 21, 2023, arraigned one Kichime Gomwalk, a branch manager of First City Monument Bank, (FCMB,) Michael Damkas Buayam of Tan Global Energy Limited, and Abbas Andrew Dayilim of Castlegate International Limited before Justice P. S. Gang of the Plateau State High Court Jos, on a five-count charge bordering on stealing, cheating and obtaining by false pretense to the tune of N55,000.000.00 (Fifty Five Million Naira) fraud.

Kichime Gomwalk, while serving as branch Manager, FCMB Plc, Murtala Mohammed Way Jos, in Plateau State is alleged to have forged COCIN GRATUITY CERTIFICATE OF PLEDGE/LETTER OF SET-OFF dated 30th DECEMBER, 2019, purportedly co-signed by Mrs. Monica Bitrus Tang and Rev (Dr.) Amos Musa Mohzo, Directors, which he used to secure an overdraft facility from FCMB Plc to the tune of N55, 000.000.00 (Fifty-Five Million Naira) with COCIN Gratuity account N0. 100GOMWALK379 domiciled with FCMB Plc

Count one of the charges reads, “That you, Kichime Gomwalk, Michael Damkas Buayam of Tan Global Energy Limited, and you Abbas Andrew Dayilim of Castlegate International Limited, sometime in December 2019 at Jos, in Plateau State within the jurisdiction of this Honorable Court did conspire among yourselves to commit an unlawful act to with without Lawful authority engaged in the acquisition of N55,000.000.00 (Fifty Five Million Naira) overdraft credit facility from FCMB Plc and thereby committed an offense of conspiracy contrary to section 59 (1) of the Plateau State Penal Code Law, (20017) and punishable under Section 59 (2) of the same Law”.

Count two reads, “That you, Kichime Gomwalk, Michael Damkas Buayam of Tan Global Energy Limited, and you Abbas Andrew Dayilim of Castlegate International Limited, sometime in December 2019 in Plateau State within the jurisdiction of this Honorable Court fraudulently used LETTER OF CONSENT to engage in the acquisition of N55,000.000.00 (Fifty Five Million Naira) overdraft credit facility from FCMB Plc knowing that at the time of acquisition of the said money, it was derived from the unlawful activity and thereby committed an offence contrary to section 18 (a) of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (Establishment Act) 2004, and Punishable under section 18 (2) of the same Act”.

The defendants pleaded ‘not guilty’ when the charge was read to them.

The prosecution counsel, Uwaise Yusuf urged the court to remand the defendants and fix a date for trial.

The judge adjourned the case till May 18, 2023, and ordered the remand of the defendants at the Jos Correctional Center pending the hearing of their bail applications.