Nigerians Decry Attempt To Free Ibori - PM News, Lagos

Nigerians have condemned the planned attempt to free the former Delta State governor, James Ibori through prisoners’ transfer between the Nigerian government and the United Kingdom. Ibori is currently serving a jail term in the UK.
The two countries have signed an agreement that would enable Nigerian prisoners in the UK come back to the nation to complete their prison terms while UK prisoners in Nigeria would be taken back to complete their sentence in their country.
Lagos lawyer, Festus Keyamo condemned the idea, saying he would want Nigeria and the UK to exchange ideas in other areas that would be beneficial to the country rather than shipping lots of prisoners back to complete their jail terms in Nigeria.
“I don’t subscribe to this agreement. Anybody convicted in a jurisdiction should serve out the jail term in that jurisdiction. The person should serve in the system that found him or her guilty. This agreement is strange to me,” he said.
Mr. Yinka Odumakin, National Publicity Secretary, Afenifere said this situation of returning criminals to their base was improper and uncalled for, saying that “we need them to exchange better things with us and not this.”
He stated that since the two countries have different laws, it was improper to serve a jail term in another jurisdiction, adding that the idea was nothing cheery.
Barrister Chris Akiri stated that the UK had sentenced lots of Nigerians to prison for flimsy reasons and that they were now finding it difficult to spend tax payers’ money to cater for the Nigerian prisoners.
“How many UK prisoners do we have in Nigeria? It is like in the ratio of 1:100. When you have about 100 Nigerian prisoners in the UK, you have about one UK prisoner in Nigeria, that is if there is any.
“This exchange means what? They have sentenced our people for little offences and use tax payers’ money to take care of them. It is a stupid exchange idea,” he said.
Mr. Joe Igbokwe, Publicity Secretary, Lagos State All Progressive Congress, APC, said: “I am looking at this issue of exchange of prisoners between UK and Nigeria with suspicion. I believe the target is to set former Governor James Ibori who is currently serving a jail term for corruption in the UK free.
“I am saying this because no ordinary Nigerian serving a jail term in UK will want to come to Nigeria to finish his term. Nigeria is among the countries in the world that have the worst prison condition. While UK citizens may want to return home, Nigerian prisoners may not want to return back to serve their terms here.” A human rights lawyer, Barrister Supo Osewa said it is a game plan towards 2015 election.
According to him, once Ibori is transferred back to Nigeria, the support of Niger Delta people will be secured for Jonathan..
In addition, he said the former Delta State Governor may be pardoned even if it is not pardoned, he can dictate  political matters from prison, after all some Nigerian politicians won elections in the prison in the past.
In his own reaction, Barrister Ebun Adegboruwa said once Ibori is transferred back to Nigeria, he will be a threat to the opposition.
He  said Nigeria is not capable of keeping high profile prisoners behind bars and some high profile criminals who were convicted in the past spent their jail terms in conducive environment.
Barrister Paul Ogundele, a Lagos-based lawyer said once Ibori is relocated back to Nigeria, he will be pardoned and it will not augur well for the country because his conviction is to serve as deterrent to other offenders.
The former secretary of Nigeria Bar Association, Lagos branch, Mr. E.K Uko said it is a way of releasing Ibori from Prison.
According to Rasak Olookoba, Secretary General of Coalition of Odua, “If it is part of President Goodluck Jonathan’s desperation to come back to power, it is a condemnable act. If it is goodwill, let all Nigerians languishing in prisons abroad be brought back home, not only in UK alone but in Malaysia, India, all over the world. That is when it will be a welcome development. What aroused our curiosity is the fact that  it is limited to UK alone.
“Why is it that the pact is signed only with UK government, a country where his kinsman, who came from the same region with him, James Ibori is serving a jail term? Another coincidence is the fact that why is it now that Mr president is desperate to survive all political opposition and agitation against him.
“We are watching him. The image of Nigeria has been shattered already, he should not add to it. If it is for political gain. We will rise against it,” he said.
Britain’s Justice Minister Jeremy Wright had said Thursday that the eligibility of  Ibori to complete his prison term in Nigeria would be determined by Nigeria and UK governments.
Wright gave the clarification in Abuja when he visited the Acting Minister of Foreign Affairs, Professor Viola Onwuliri, shortly before he signed a Prisoners’ Transfer Agreement (PTA) between both countries.
Responding to questions from journalists on the fate of high profile Nigerians currently serving in UK jails, including Ibori, under the new agreement, Wright said the consent of a prisoner was not required before repatriation.
“In relation to individual prisoners, there has to be a good deal of discussion between our two countries about individual prisoners and the agreement of both countries to be secured before individual transfers.
“The compulsory nature of this prisoner transfer agreement is that the prisoners’ themselves do not have to choose where they go or not but the respective countries do still have an opportunity to discuss whether a transfer should be made,” he said.
In April 2012, a British court sentenced Ibori to jail for 13 years for money laundering and associated crimes.
Ibori’s wife, sister, mistress and London solicitor are also in a UK jail having been convicted of related crime.
Earlier, Onwuliri, who described the PTA as “historic,” said experts from both countries would work out modalities for implementation before its ratification.
“We have been on the prisoners agreement for a long time and we are happy that we are beginning the year on a happy note by signing this agreement,” she said.
The minister expressed delight that the agreement would improve the condition of Nigeria prisons based on earlier agreements reached before the signing.
She pledged that the Nigerian government would continue to improve the condition of prisons around the country, which had received a boost with a one million pounds commitment from the UK Government.
Also speaking, Mr. Abdulazeez Dankano, the Director of Consular and Immigration Services in the Ministry, noted that both countries were signatories to the Scheme for the Transfer of Convicted Offenders within the Commonwealth.
Dankano stated that the scheme allowed for transfer of prisoners between Nigeria and the UK where the consent of both states and the prisoner was obtained.
He said that under the Commonwealth Scheme, only one Nigerian had been repatriated from the UK since inception.
There are 521 Nigerians currently serving jail terms in the UK and only one British national in Nigeria prison. According to ministry officials, about 60 percent of Nigerian nationals in UK jails can qualify for the compulsory prison transfer agreement signed by Nigeria’s Minister of Justice and Attorney-General of the Federation, Mohammed Adoke and Wright.

It’s not my fault I’ve big hips–Nollywood actress Crystal Okoye

Crystal Okoye, a 300-level student of Business Administration at the Nnamdi Azikiwe University, is a fast-rising Nollywood actress. The Nnewi, Anambra State-born movie star, in this interview with GBENGA KUTELU, talks about her passion for acting, challenges and more. 

WHEN precisely did you join the movie industry?

It was two years ago when I went to see a friend at a movie location in Asaba, Delta State. The cast members were just getting ready for the shoot. They waited for an artiste who, unfortunately, did not show up. So, they decided to feature me in the movie: Though I had wanted to be an actress before I got on that location that day, I didn’t know how to go about it.

What does it feel like being a movie star?

I feel like a star already. You can’t imagine what I go through in the public. There was a time I went to a shop, where prices were fixed to all the items. I paid for all the stuff I bought; but to my surprise, the owner said that as a movie star, I should pay a different price. She said, ‘You actors have money, so you should be able to afford whatever I price I give you.” I was speechless at that moment. Also, most of the time, people stop me on the road and request for photographs with me. At times, I feel shy, but that is the prices of stardom.

How did your parents react initially when you were coming into the industry?

Yes, I had the support of my parents until they passed on in 2010. It was a painful moment for me when that happened.

Who are your role models in the industry?

My role model is Pete Edochie. He plays a fatherly role in my life. He was one of first set of people I met when I joined the movie industry. My other role model is Stephanie Okereke.

Do you get sexually harassed by men in the movie industry?

It’s a choice you have to make. If you decide you want to sleep around with men in the industry, it may favour you or turn the other way round. Everyone has his or her own choice to make in the industry. I’ve heard about sexual harassment in the industry. There are also stories about ladies who really go out to have sex with producers just to appear in their movies. My belief is that if God does not want you to be in a movie, you won’t. But if you are fated to be in any movie, you will surely get it. So, I believe that becoming a star is about destiny. If God says that is your destiny, then, it will be.

How do you manage advances from men?

All my life, I get several men who admire me. I’m a beautiful lady and I know it; so, it depends on the way it comes.

What part of your body do you treasure most?

I treasure and protect my whole body. I spend lot of money to maintain my skin, just to keep me sparkling.

What’s your unique selling point?

I know I’m blessed with my shape. Some girls have walked up to me to ask how I gained the figure. They say: “I want to be curvy like you”. And my simple answer is: it is the way that God created me. It’s natural. People admire me for my height, looks and figure. When you talk of Crystal Okoye in the movie industry now, people always describe me as being beautiful and curvy. I know my figure, height and beauty opens the doors for me easily. There’s no way people will walk past me without noticing my waist. It’s a gift from God.

What attracts you most to men?

I go close to people that are intelligent and people that I can learn something from.

Can you talk about the movie that has transformed your life?

It is The Priceless, a Ghanaian movie. The storyline caught my attention. It was the only movie that I have ever made, which made me shed uncontrollable tears.

What was growing up like for you?

It was interesting. My parents were there all along before I lost them few years back.

Could you recall your first experience in the first movie you featured in?

It was in Speak the words. I was very young then. My dad introduced me to his friend, who then referred me to his brother. This was a long time ago. I was much younger then, but my hips were there. My hips have always been a major attraction for me. It’s one of those things that attract men to me. It isn’t my fault that I’m curvy in figure.

What would you have been doing if you were not an actor?

I would have gone into importation of female clothing.

Doesn’t your profession affect your education?

No, it doesn’t in any way. I run a part-time programme (CEP). I go to school only on weekends. When I’m sitting for examination, I don’t accept acting jobs. I have my textbooks, which I study even while I’m not in school.

Would you mind if any of your children go into acting?

I think a child has the right to choose a career for him or herself. You have to give your children the support they need, so you don’t have to impose any profession on them.

Have you won any award?

No, but I know it will happen soon.

Which is your choice: sex or money?

(General laughter) Money is good. With money, I’ll be able to build the houses of my choice and buy the best of cars. Without money, you can’t do anything. Sex is a momentary enjoyment that does not translate into anything. With money, I’ll invest into things that will help and not a few seconds of enjoyment.

What brand of car do you like?

Porsche because I like classic things.

Source: The Nation

Man Loses Bet After John Mikel Obi Scores, Tattoos Mikel’s Name On His Butt

Lee Mitchell, a Chelsea fan has tattooed the name of Chelsea’s Nigerian star John Mikel Obi on his butt after he lost a bet.
Mitchell tweeted before the Derby game saying “If Mikel scores today I’ll get his name or the Chelsea badge tattooed on my Bottom”
Mikel did just that and broke the deadlock with a fine header.

US College Says It Did Not Award MBA To Stella Oduah As It Has No Masters Programme

Stella Oduah, Nigeria’s Minister of Aviation who is embroiled in a scandal of towering proportions in the ministry, faces new integrity questions as her Masters’ degree has been challenged by the United States school which supposedly awarded it.
Her resume, which she presented to the Senate as a ministerial nominee in 2011, indicated she obtained a Master's degree in Business Administration (MBA) from St. Paul’s College Lawrenceville, Virginia, United States.
But SaharaReporters has learned from the President of the college that it has never in its 125-year history had a graduate school or graduate program.
The Provost Vice President of Academic Affairs, and the Vice President of Institutional Development said in response to our inquiries, “We don’t offer any graduate programs here.”
Similarly, the school’s website states: “Saint Paul's College is accredited by the Commission of Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools to award baccalaureate [bachelor’s] degrees.”  There is no mention of graduate degrees.

The Minister’s documentation shows she received an undergraduate degree in accounting from the college in 1982, but Dr. Claud Flythe, St. Paul’s current president, could neither confirm nor deny this during a phone conversation with SaharaReporters.  Further verification with the Office of Alumni Affairs is also currently impossible, the school said, because the college has been closed since June 2013 to loss of its accreditation.
“[Oduah] realized very early in life the indispensability of a sound education in her growth plans in life and therefore pursued her education with all diligence and sense of purpose,” her documents claimed, adding that a determination “to have the best education at the highest level” prompted her stay at the Virginia college in 1983 for the MBA programme.
As her public relations machinery marched on, in December 2012 The Sun newspaper published an article headlined “Stella Oduah: An Amazon of transformation,” which lauded her “MBA from St Paul’s College, Lawrenceville Virginia USA.”  The story also praised her for being an official who brought her “rich educational background to bear on the aviation sector by automating revenue centers in all the agencies and parastatals to boost their revenue profile and enhance transparency and accountability in the system.”
In October, SaharaReporters broke the story that Mrs. Oduah, a former campaign manager for President Goodluck Jonathan, purchased two bulletproof BMW cars worth $ 1.6 Million (N255m) through the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority, for her own use.
Following an investigation, the House of Representatives Committee on Aviation dismissed the Minister’s pleas of innocence and all her rebuttals during her testimony.  The committee’s report, which was subsequently adopted by the House, declared that no budgetary appropriation had been made for the purchase of the cars, and that the NCAA proposal for their purchase was rejected.
President Jonathan also set up a three-member administrative panel to investigate the matter, but he immediately travelled out of the country with Mrs. Oduah and Colonel Dasuki, the National Security Adviser who was to serve as a member of the panel.  Not only did the panel submit its report much later than the two weeks it was given for the assignment, Mr. Jonathan has refused to release its report.
Mrs. Oduah’s new certificate questions are certain to feed into national concern about her credibility as an elected official, but also about Mr. Jonathan’s credibility, and about the nation’s security apparatus which verifies official documents offered to the Senate for official nominations.
If Mrs. Oduah deliberately deceived the Senate, it remains to be seen if the Upper House will be sufficiently motivated to take up the matter with the Executive.
Meanwhile, Nigeria’s aviation industry continues to face a massive challenge, with struggling airports and airlines, as well as financial and administrative pitfalls that hinder expansion and development.
 Source: Sahara reporters

Aviation Minister, Stella Oduah Scrambles To Cover Up Certificate Forgery Scandal

Embattled Minister of Aviation, Stella Oduah, and her associates have spent the last several hours scrambling to clean up the minister’s biographies on the Internet, following allegations that she lied about her academic qualifications, PREMIUM TIMES can report today.
News website, SaharaReporters, had Monday quoted authorities at St. Paul’s College, where Mrs. Oduah claimed she studied for Bachelor and Masters degrees, as saying they did not award her an MBA at anytime as the university does not  even have a graduate school or graduate programme.
The minister is yet to respond to the allegations. Efforts by PREMIUM TIMES to get her to comment for this story were unsuccessful.
Joe Obi, her special assistant on media, did not answer or return calls.
Yakubu Datti, the spokesperson of the aviation agencies, who usually speak for her, said he was not aware of the allegation against the minister, and that he would revert after consulting the minister. He is yet to do so as at the time of publishing this.
However, this  newspaper has observed an attempt by the minister and her aides to revise her profiles on the web with a view to cleaning up any reference to St. Paul’s College in her history.
Already, Mrs. Oduah’s biography on the website of the Ministry of Aviation has been revised, with references to St. Paul’s College now wiped out.

Oduah new bio

Oduah-Ogiemwonyi received her Bachelors and Masters Degree (in Accounting and Business Administration respectively) in the United States,” the new profile said of Mrs. Oduah’s education, without any reference to the university she attended.
The Wikipedia page of the minister has also been hurriedly edited, and it now has no reference to the university Mrs. Oduah attended.
All links and reference materials on the Wikipedia page capable of linking the minister to the university that has disowned her have also been deleted.
Even the minister’s personal website  has been reviewed to remove any reference to St. Paul’s College.
While the links leading to Mrs. Oduah’s foundation and photographs remain active, the other principal link, which should lead to her history page, has been deactivated.
It’s unclear whether it was being edited at the backend when PREMIUM TIMES visited the site.
Mrs. Oduah had in a resume she presented to the Senate as a ministerial nominee in 2011 indicated that she obtained a Master’s degree in Business Administration (MBA) from St. Paul’s College Lawrenceville, Virginia, United States.

Stella Oduah’s new Wikipedia page without a university
But SaharaReporters quoted the President of the college as saying his university had never in its 125-year history had a graduate school or graduate program.
The Provost Vice President of Academic Affairs, and the Vice President of Institutional Development said in response to the website’s inquiries, “We don’t offer any graduate programs here.”
The school’s website also indicates clearly that Saint Paul’s College awards only baccalaureate [bachelor’s] degrees.
It is not clear yet whether the minister received an undergraduate degree from the college as she claimed.  SaharaReporters said Dr. Claud Flythe, the college’s current president was unable to confirm that claim because the college had been closed since June 2013 after it lost accreditation.
Mrs. Oduah had since October being enmeshed in a a N255million armoured cars scandal in which she was accused of compelling an agency under her supervision, the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority, NCAA, to buy her two exotic bullet cars at clearly inflated prices.
The purchase of the cars generated outrage for weeks because its cost was inflated, and it was neither listed in the government-approved budget nor did it comply with the Nigeria’s public procurement law.
The House of Representatives has since asked President Goodluck Jonathan to sack the minister but the president has failed to act.

Source: PREMIUM TIMES

Ekiti’s one-day acting governor dies

The former Speaker of the Ekiti State House of Assembly, Chief Friday Aderemi, is dead.
He was 74 years.
The deceased ruled the state for one day as acting governor after Ayodele Fayose was removed from office in October 2006.
Aderemi, a native of Ayetoro-Ekiti and chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), died at the state University Teaching Hospital, Ado-Ekiti, on Tuesday after a brief illness.
He was elected in 2003 to represent Ido/Osi Constituency 2 at the Ekiti State House of Assembly.
Late Aderemi was a Senior Special Assistant to Governor Kayode Fayemi and played prominent roles during struggles to reclaim the governor’s mandate from Dr. Segun Oni.
He became the Speaker of the state House of Assembly  after the impeachment of his predecessor, Hon. Sola Ajigbolamu, in 2004.

Nollywood Actress Chika Ike,Living Big like a Queen that she is

 2014 seems to be starting well for Nollywood actress Chika Ike as she has been living the life of a queen in Abu Dhabi UAE where she is currently spending her holiday. Of recent she got herself over a million naira worth of hand bags and its being reported that she is lodged in emirate palace hotel which is the most expensive hotel in the world. A room there ranges between $5,000 to $ 17,000 per night depending on the suite.