Lt.-Gen. Jeremiah Useni (Rtd), the former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja, is dead.

Gov. Caleb Mutfwang of Plateau, confirmed this in a statement by his Director of Press and Public Affairs (DOPPA), Dr Gyang Bere, on Thursday in Jos.

Mutfwang said that Useni, who also represented Plateau South Senatorial District between 2015 and 2019, died at the age of 82.

The governor also confirmed that the former FCT minister under Gen. Sa i Abacha’s government, died on Thursday after a protracted illness.

Mutfwang, who described Useni’s demise as a huge loss to Plateau, urged his immediate family and residents of the state in general to take solace in God.

“On behalf of my family, the government, and the peace-loving people of Plateau, I wish to extend my deepest sympathy to the President, the Armed Forces and Tarok nation over the loss of this distinguished elder statesman.

“I wish to also extend my condolences to his immediate family and relations; I call on them to take solace in God in this trying time ,”Bere quoted Mutfwang as saying.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), reports that the deceased also served as Minister of Transport and Quarter-Master General of the Nigerian Army, among many other appointments during his military career.

After retirement, Useni ventured into politics where he served as Deputy Chairman of the defunct All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP), and senator.

He was also the governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Plateau during the 2019 General Elections.

(NAN)

On Wednesday, a bureau de change (BDC) operator told an Abuja Federal High Court how he converted N22 billion to dollars for the Ministry of Power under Saleh Mamman, a former minister on trial for alleged money laundering.

Abdullahi Suleiman, the BDC operator, who is the eighth witness in the case, said that the money was exchanged for US dollars through his various business accounts.

During the proceedings, Suleiman said that up to 12 of his business accounts were used to receive funds from the Ministry of Power without carrying out any project, service or contract for the ministry.

Some of the businesses include: Prymint Investment Limited, Strong Field International Projects Limited, Mintedge Nigeria Limited, First Class Construction and Project, Silverline Ocean Ventures, Golden Bond Nigeria Limited, Sipikin Global Enterprise, Spinhiills Biz International Limited, Fullest Utility Concepts Limited, Platinum Touch Enterprises, Breathable Investment Limited and another business owned by Suleiman’s brother named Gurupche Business Enterprises

Suleiman mentioned that he established contact with the Ministry through Maina Goje, a fellow BDC operator, who asked him to provide some of his account numbers for some transactions.

“I know Alhaji Maina Goje, we are in the same business. Sometime in 2019, Maina Goje met me [and said] that he had transactions; that I should give him some of my account numbers. The first account I gave him was Fullest. He will send money and I will give him dollars. He started asking for more accounts. He will tell me what to do with the transactions, I will get the dollar and give him and sometimes I will do a transfer to other accounts,” Suleiman recounted.

“We have been working together since then till 2024. From my rough calculations, the amount I have received through the transactions will be more than N22 billion. Also, Maina used to send someone called Musbhu anytime he was not available, he would send him and give me instructions on what to do with him, we do call him Yaro Minister because he is from Saleh Mamman.

“I also know Mr Mustapha Muhammed, Goje told me that he is his oga. I didn’t know him before until Maina Goje introduced him to me, then I learnt he works with Federal Ministry of Housing and instructed that anytime they can’t reach him, I should give him the amount of dollars he requested.”

When Suleiman was shown exhibits which contained bank statements of the funds sent into his Strong Field International Projects Limited, Mintedge Nigeria Limited and Prymint Investment Limited accounts, he confirmed that those were the accounts he gave to Goje.

Some of the transactions include: N285,983,285 received on May 24 2021, N278,248.611 on May 26, 2021, N320m on January 1, 2021, 184m on June 18, 2021, N178,300,285 sent on July 14, 2021, N75,420,000 received on August 5, 2021, N75,120,000 he got on December 1, 2021, N68,150,620 and N70,650 on December 15, 2021, N90,247,395 on January 12, 2022, and N64,747,627 on February 16 2022.

In July, Abubakar Kweido, an EFCC operative, narrated how investigations showed that multiple funds were transferred from the account meant for the Mambilla hydroelectric power project into various company accounts through BDC operators and converted to foreign currencies.

“Our investigation revealed that huge amounts of money from the project account of Mambilla were sent to different entities that were not authorised on the project, we then wrote letters of investigation activities to Central Bank of Nigeria and Office of the Accountant General of the Federation for Mambila and Zungeru Hydroelectric Power Plant Projects,” Kweido narrated.

“When we analysed the responses, we saw that over N33.8 billion from the project account were sent to over 13 entities that are not the authorised contact.

“We also requested the bank record of the accounts from Corporate Affairs and other commercial banks which revealed that persons behind the operation of these entities were mainly one Maina Goje, Abdulahi Suleiman and Abdulahi Garba.

“We invited them to account for the funds they received from the Mambila project account. They reported to our office where they informed us that they have never applied for any contract with the Federal Ministry of Power or the Federal Government. They said they were bureau de change operatives. They also mentioned that all the monies received were disbursed based on the instructions of one Mustapha Abubakar Dida. The disbursements were usually in foreign currencies, naira cash and sometimes via bank transfers.”

Source: FIJ

The second coming of Donald Trump as the 47th President of the United States of America might throw a big blow on the naira, an economic expert, Ugodre Obi-Chukwu said.

Obi-Chukwu said Trump’s assumption into office could strengthen the dollar thus weakening currencies across the African continent.

According to him, a stronger dollar translates to an increase in the cost of debt service and heightened inflation.

In an outlook titled “Nigeria’s Macroeconomic Outlook 2025: Nigeria in Transition: Reforms, Global Shifts and Strategic Opportunities”, Obi-Chukwu also said that increased US oil production may suppress prices thereby reducing revenue for oil producers.

In addition, he said that with Trump’s executive order on immigration, travel restrictions are bound to lower FX remittance and further impact on its reverse and consumption.

“Businesses should hedge against a worst-case scenario of N2,200/$1 and take advantage of a best-case scenario of N1,700$1,” Obi-Chukwu advised.

He also stated that US tariffs might put pressure on import costs and thereby worsen Africa’s inflation.

“Global efforts to curb inflation via rate cuts could make frontier markets like Nigeria attractive. For portfolio inflows.

“Higher interest rate creates opportunity for local currency investments in government securities above 25 per cent,” he noted.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on Monday, 20 January, 2025 arraigned a former Managing Director of Assets Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON), Ahmed Kuru and four others for allegedly defrauding Arik Airline N76 billion and $31.5 million, respectively.

Other defendants are former Receiver Manager of Arik Airline Ltd, Kamilu Omokide, Chief Executive Officer of the airline, Captain Roy Ilegbodu, and Super Bravo Ltd and Union Bank PLC.

The defendants were arraigned before Justice Mojisola Dada of the Special Offences Court sitting in Ikeja, Lagos on a six-count charge bordering on theft, abuse of office and stealing by dishonestly taking the property of another.

The defendants, however, pleaded not guilty to all the six-count charges when they were read to them.

Count one reads: “That you, Union Bank Nigeria Plc, sometime in 2011 or thereabouts, in Lagos, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, with the intention of causing and/or inducing unwarranted sale of Arik Air loans and bank guarantees with Union Bank, made false statements to the Assets Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON), regarding Arik Air Limited’s performing loans, following which you transferred a bogus figure of N71,000,000,000.00 (Seventy-One Billion Naira) to AMCON.”

Count two reads: “That you, Ahmed Lawal Kuru, Kamilu Alaba Omokide as Receiver Manager of Arik Air Limited, and Captain Roy Ilegbodu, Chief Executive Officer of Arik Air Limited in Receivership, sometime in 2022 or thereabout, in Lagos, within the jurisdiction of this honourable court, fraudulently converted to the use of NG Eagle Limited the total sum of N4,900,000,000.00 (Four Billion Nine Hundred Million Naira only), property of Arik Air Limited”.

Count five reads: “That you, Kamilu Alaba Omokide, Ahmed Lawal Kuru and Capt. Roy Ilegbodu, on the 12th day of February, 2022 or thereabout, in Lagos, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, being public officers, directed to be done in abuse of the authority of your office and with intention of obtaining undue advantage for yourself and cronies an arbitrary act, to wit: intentionally authorizing the tear down and destruction of 5N-JEA with Serial No. 15058 valued at $31.5million (Thirty One Million, Five Hundred Thousand Dollars), an arbitrary act, which act is prejudicial to the economic stability of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and Arik Air Limited”.

The counsel to the first and third defendants, Prof Taiwo Osipitan, SAN, informed the court of a motion for bail application dated November 28, 2024 and November 29, 2024 for the two defendants.

Osipitan prayed the court that the defendants be granted bail on liberal terms.

According to him, the first defendant had no criminal records and that the EFCC granted him administration bail which he didn’t jump.

“We pray the court grants bail to the two defendants on the same liberal terms given to them by EFCC,” he said.

EFCC Counsel, Wahab Shittu SAN, filed counter-affidavits dated December 2, 2024 against the first defendant and also another counter affidavits dated December 22, 2024 against the third defendant.

Shittu prayed the court to dismiss their bail applications.

According to him, the two defendants are facing serious offences of economic sabotage.

However, he agreed with the second and third defence counsel that they are presumed innocent pending the determination of the court.

Shittu , however, added that the temptation of the defendants leaving the country was very high.

He thereafter prayed that accelerated hearing be granted and the defendants’ international passports be seized by the court.

“But if my lord decides to be magnanimous to grant them bail, we shall be praying for stringent conditions because we are particular about their attendance in court.

“We urge that they should submit their international passports with the court in order to ensure that they come for trial,” he said.

The counsel to the second defendant, Olasupo Shasore, SAN in his motion for bail dated December 6, 2024 and filed on the same day, urged the court to also grant bail to his client on self recognition.

The prosecuting counsel in his counter affidavits dated January 17, 2025, opposed the bail application of the second defendant.

He said the application for bail was incompetent and should be struck out.

Shittu cited relevance laws to buttress his argument.

“My lord, the record of this court is to the effect that the second defendant, at one point, absconded in which your lordship had to issue a bench warrant.

“The learned silk for the second defendant is not the defendant on trial and it is very unhealthy for a counsel to stand as a surety for a defendant.

“I urge my lord, in exercising his discretion, to take all this into consideration because our concern is the appearance of the second defendant in court so that he does not abscond.”

After listening to the arguments from all the parties, Justice Dada granted bail to the defendants in the sum of N20 million Naira each with two sureties in like sum.

The sureties must be gainfully employed and deposed to means of identification.

She also directed that the defendants must submit their international passports with the registrar of the court.

Justice Dada adjourned the matter till March 17, 18, and 19, 2025 for commencement of trial

Donald Trump has ordered officials to draw up retaliatory measures against countries applying “extraterritorial” levies on US multinationals, in a move that threatens to trigger a global confrontation over tax regimes.

The US president made the move in an executive order on Monday night, withdrawing US support for a global tax pact agreed at the OECD last year that allows other countries to levy top-up taxes on US multinationals.

He added that the “list of options for protective measures” should be drawn up “within 60 days”, putting signatories to the OECD pact — including EU member states, the UK, South Korea, Japan and Canada — on notice that Washington intends far-reaching challenges to global tax rules.

Trump clashed with European leaders during his first term as president over proposed digital taxes that would affect big US technology groups such as Apple and Google’s owner Alphabet, threatening France at one point with tariffs.

His order on Monday includes investigating “whether any foreign countries are not in compliance with any tax treaty with the US or have any tax rules in place, or are likely to put tax rules in place, that are extraterritorial or disproportionately affect American companies”.

Former UK trade department official Allie Renison, now at consultancy SEC Newgate, said the move showed Trump was widening the “economic warfare” net far beyond tariffs in response to what the US sees as discriminatory practices from other countries. “Going after their domestic tax regimes off the back of hitherto global commitments shows Trump is getting creative in his fight to put ‘America First’,” she said.

“The economic warfare net is ever-widening well beyond just tariffs, and as governments start to consider their response, concerns will now pivot to what else might be caught up in retaliatory crosshairs — and the inevitable costs that go with it.”

The global deal agreed at the Paris-based OECD in 2021 and partly introduced by several countries last year was expected to raise the tax take from the world’s biggest multinationals by up to $192bn a year.

Under “pillar two” of the OECD deal, if corporate profits were taxed below 15 per cent in the country where the multinational was headquartered, signatories could potentially charge top-up levies. But one part of the interlocking measures, known as the undertaxed profits rule, has long drawn Republican anger, with the party labelling it “discriminatory”.

Grant Wardell-Johnson, global head of tax policy at accountants KPMG, said US responses could include imposing additional taxes on foreign-owned businesses operating in the US, or withholding taxes on payments to those jurisdictions. 

“Ultimately we are seeing international taxation moving from a multilateral domain to a bilateral one based on strong unilateral assertions. It is a new taxation world,” he added.

Alex Cobham, chief executive of the Tax Justice Network, an international campaign group, said Trump’s move in effect left the OECD pact “dead in the water”.

In the two-part memo to the US Treasury secretary, Trump first ordered that commitments made by Joe Biden’s administration to the OECD pact be rescinded — a move that had been widely anticipated — but then broadened the scope of the attack.

Cobham said the potential scope spanned not just whether the OECD pact violated tax treaties, but at the extraterritorial potential of all tax rules in all countries.

“If you take this statement at face value, there’s every chance they come back in 60 days and say most countries of the world and most OECD member countries should be subject to the countermeasures they’re talking about,” he said.

One senior EU official said Trump’s billionaire technology entrepreneurs were pushing him to act on tax rather than trade. “The conversation on tariffs will be transactional but the real fight will move to where fortunes are at stake and big tech has an interest,” they added.

OECD secretary-general Mathias Cormann said: “There have been concerns raised with us by US representatives about various aspects of our international tax agreement.”

He added the organisation would “keep working with the US and all countries at the table to support international co-operation that promotes certainty, avoids double taxation, and protects tax bases”.

The European Commission said it took note of Trump’s presidential memorandum. “We from our side remain committed to our international obligations . . . and are open to a meaningful dialogue with our international partners,” it said.

www.ft.com

President Bola Tinubu has appointed Princess Zahrah Audu as the new Director-General of the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council in a move aimed at attracting foreign investments and improving Nigeria’s business climate.

This was disclosed in a memo signed by Secretary to the Government of the Federation, George Akume and made available to journalists in Abuja on Monday.

Before her appointment, Audu, an entrepreneur and technology expert, was the technical adviser to the President on Foreign Direct Investment.

She replaced Jumoke Oduwole, who has been named Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment in a recent cabinet reshuffle.

The statement partly read, “In a landmark move poised to bolster Nigeria’s economic growth and business environment, President Bola Tinubu has appointed Princess Zahrah Mustapha Audu as the Director-General of the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council.

“This strategic appointment underscores President Tinubu’s unwavering commitment to empowering visionary leaders and fostering a conducive business ecosystem.

“With her expertise and experience, Princess Zahrah is poised to make a profound impact in her new role, driving transformative change and fostering a more enabling business environment in Nigeria.”