NEWS
EFCC says it will arrest votes’ buyers at elections
*Commends CBN over new Naira notes
By John Danjuma
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, has warned Nigerian politicians to desist from vote buying as it would not spare any one caught selling or buying votes during the 2023 general elections.
The chairman of the anti graft agency Abdulrasheed Bawa gave the indication at the National Assembly while fielding questions from newsmen after defending the commissions 2023 budget proposal, Bawa said, “We will continue to arrest those who specialise in votes’ buying we will work hands in gloves with INEC to achieve that.
“We will ensure that illegitimate funds do not find their way into our elections.
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“The cases of those arrested during the Ekiti and Osun elections are in court, I don’t know the stages they are.
When asked about politicians waiting to get funding from foreign countries to prosecute their elections he said,
“There is an electoral act defining how election funds should be managed and who should finance election
I think that is the law of the land and Nigerians are law abiding and the EFCC is working to ensure compliance of politicians and we are working hand in gloves with INEC and other stakeholders to ensure that the laws are obeyed.”
On the new policy of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)to redesign the Naira he said it is a welcome development as it will help his commission to effectively monitor.
“How can you have an effective monitoring policy when you don’t have control over 85% of your currency, people are hoarding it, using it to speculate on foreign exchange and all of that.
“By this policy the government is trying to ensure that those people that are bringing back what they hoarded whether legitimately or illegitimately we will be able to monitor and the law will take its course.
On the threats by Yahoo boysto protest nationwide against the commission, he said, “These are Nigerians from my own constituency, the youthful constituency, they should join me in fighting cyber crimes. You know you are doing some things you should not do ordinarily
“We are working, it is part of our mandate to fight cyber crimes, advance fee fraud and that is what we have been doing. We are working in conformity with the law.
“As at the 22nd October this year we had succeeded in securing 2800 convictions and over 70% from cyber crimes.
He said the case of these cyber criminals is tarnishing the image of the country by the day adding that across the Atlantic people see Nigeria as Cyber crime infested country which is not.
“We are working we are not deterred, I plead with them especially this time of the election, they should stop those things as government is making effort to bring the economy back on track.
NATO air defence systems have intercepted a third ballistic missile believed to have been launched from Iran after it entered Turkish airspace, Turkey’s Defence Ministry confirmed on Friday, raising fresh concerns about the growing tensions in the Middle East.
In a statement, the ministry said the missile was neutralised by NATO air and missile defence assets deployed in the eastern Mediterranean after it crossed into Turkish territory.
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The latest interception triggered security alerts across parts of southern Turkey.
Air raid sirens reportedly sounded at the strategic Incirlik Air Base, a key NATO military facility that hosts United States troops and other allied personnel.
Residents in the nearby city of Adana were awakened around 3:25 a.m. by the warning alarms. Some locals reportedly captured footage showing what appeared to be a fast-moving object on fire streaking across the sky.
Similar sirens were also heard in the eastern Turkish city of Batman around 4:00 a.m., with reports indicating the alarm may have been linked to a nearby military drone base located close to the city’s airport.
The incident marks the third time NATO defence systems have intercepted missiles linked to Iran in recent weeks. The first missile was shot down on March 4, while a second was intercepted earlier this week.
Following Monday’s incident, the United States temporarily shut down its consulate in Adana and urged American citizens to leave southeastern Turkey due to security concerns.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, however, reportedly denied that the missile had been launched from Iran during a telephone conversation with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
The rising tensions come amid the ongoing conflict that erupted on February 28 involving the United States, Israel and Iran. Since the outbreak of hostilities, Tehran has reportedly carried out retaliatory strikes across several locations in the Middle East.
Incirlik Air Base remains one of NATO’s most important strategic military facilities in the region. The base has hosted US troops for decades and also accommodates military personnel from other NATO member states including Spain and Poland.
Another key NATO installation is located in Kurecik, in Turkey’s Malatya province, where US troops operate an early-warning radar system capable of detecting missile launches from Iran. The radar facility forms part of NATO’s broader ballistic missile defence shield.
Although Turkish authorities have consistently denied that radar data from the base has been shared with Israel, its presence has reportedly raised concerns in Tehran.
Earlier this week, Turkey also confirmed the deployment of a Patriot missile defence system in Malatya as NATO strengthens its regional missile defence posture amid the escalating conflict.
Chevron Nigeria Limited (CNL), operator of the joint venture between the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd) and CNL has reiterated commitment to socio-economic development in the Niger Delta.
CNL has demonstrated interest in stakeholder discussions in respect of the proposed Escravos to Warri Road Project and continues to partner with the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) and Delta State Government to understand the proposal.
During a visit of CNL and NDDC to the Delta State government on March 12, 2026, in Asaba, Segun Kuteyi, Director & Chief Operating Officer, Chevron Nigeria and Mid-Africa Region, highlighted CNL’s belief that the construction of the road will potentially improve connectivity and foster economic development in the region. He also recognized the critical importance of building the required synergy with the Delta State government through the project lifecycle.
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According to him, CNL believes that a collaborative approach with various stakeholders including government agencies, local communities, and private sector partners will deliver best value and the NDDC, being the initiator of the project, is a critical stakeholder in the project.
He said: “Nigeria’s Road Infrastructure Development and Refurbishment Investment Tax Credit Scheme (RITCS) provides a framework that may incentivize eligible private sector participation,” he stated, adding that CNL will continue to collaborate with the Nigerian government and other stakeholders to support the development of the Nigerian oil and gas industry and the Nigerian economy.”
Allegations that about N210tn is missing from the accounts of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd) has been faulted by a coalition of professionals under the Ajiyya Solidarity Forum (AJF).
Addressing journalists on Thursday, ASF National Coordinator, Usman Hamza, described the claim as “mathematically impossible” and politically motivated.
The group’s position is in response to a recent claim by the Chairman of the Senate Public Accounts Committee, Ahmed Wadada, that the NNPC Limited could not account for about N210tn.
According to Hamza, such a figure was misleading.
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“Senator Wadada’s claim of N210tn ‘unaccounted for’ funds is a mathematical impossibility designed to shock the public,” Hamza said.
He argued that the claim did not align with Nigeria’s fiscal reality, noting that the country’s entire 2024 national budget stood at about N28.7tn.
“To suggest that a single entity ‘lost’ nearly eight times the national budget is an insult to the intelligence of Nigerians,” he added.
The forum also condemned threats of arrest warrants against former officials of NNPC Ltd, including former Chief Financial Officer, Umar Ajiya, describing the move as part of a coordinated campaign of political blackmail.
According to the group, the Senate committee may have misinterpreted financial figures by combining accrued expenses and receivables in a way that falsely suggests missing funds.
“We consider that the committee has erroneously ‘netted’ N103tn in accrued expenses, largely joint venture liabilities, with N107tn in receivables owed to NNPCL. Labelling money owed to a company as ‘missing funds’ is a professional travesty,” Hamza stated.
During the ongoing review of the financial records of NNPC Ltd, the Senate Public Accounts Committee, chaired by Wadada, raised concerns over alleged discrepancies running into trillions of naira.
The ASF maintained that the allegations ignored the broader financial and structural reforms undertaken by the national oil company in recent years.
Furthermore, Hamza mentioned that the tenure of former CFO Ajiya coincided with the transition of the national oil firm into a commercial entity under the Petroleum Industry Act, a reform that ended decades of opaque financial reporting.
“Mr Ajiya’s tenure saw the transition of NNPC into a commercially driven entity and the publication of the first audited financial statements in 43 years,” the forum stated.
ASF defended the N5.9bn cost incurred during the transition process of NNPC to NNPC Limited, saying it covered complex legal and structural reforms required to transform the former state corporation into a limited liability company.
The forum warned that politicising the Senate’s oversight role could damage Nigeria’s credibility in the eyes of international investors.
“Using the Senate’s hallowed chambers to pursue personal vendettas damages Nigeria’s reputation with international investors,” Hamza said.
The forum further called on the leadership of the Senate to institute an independent ethics investigation into what it described as an alleged demand for bribes linked to the ongoing oversight process.
“We call on the Senate leadership and its Ethics Committee to investigate the alleged bribe demand connected to this oversight exercise,” he said.
He urged lawmakers to stop what he described as the harassment of officials who have already submitted several technical responses to the committee.
“Public accountability should be pursued through a sober forensic review of facts, not through sensational claims and phantom numbers,” he added.
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