Headlines

Graft War: Buhari’s Secret Pact With Jonathan

Published

10 years ago

January 25, 2016

How Ex-President Exposed Rot Under His Stewardship
Top Military Officers’ Accounts Frozen, Assets Under Watch

buhari Former President, Goodluck Ebele Jonathan may have given his successor, President Muhammadu Buhari a lead on how the nation’s treasury was massively looted by some of his men, including the squander of treasury votes by former National security Adviser, Sambo Dasuki, which is being mistaken as arms purchase money.
nationalTRAIL gathered that, part of what President Buhari was discussing with his predecessor, during the latter’s frequent visits to the presidential villa, include how they can work together in saving Nigeria from people who seem to have hijacked the nation’s economy, and avenge themselves on those who worked against them, before, during and after the elections.
Goodluck Jonathan, apparently angered by the manner top officers of his Government who connived and collected billions of naira, only to sit back and watch the opposition defeat him so cheaply in an election he has no business losing, decided to reveal the identities of looters of the treasury and provided incriminating details of how each of them partook in the plunder of the country’s resources.
Sources in the presidency confirmed to us that,a greater part of the documents being relied upon in the investigations and prosecution of Sambo Dasuki, and others came from Goodluck Jonathan himself, while others were retrieved by a Presidential directive to the Central bank Of Nigeira, CBN, through which most of the funds were diverted, being the custodian of the country’s funds.
Former President Jonathan may have agreed to assist in identifying and providing proofs of how top Government officials, as well as PDP stalwarts aided the squander of the nation’s resources, as a pre condition for his own sins to be over looked, even as part of the synergy between him and the President may have been to work together against their common enemies.
Findings reveal that, the President and his predecessor had agreed that their common enemies include those who worked against Buhari in the build up to the elections, especially the embarrassing certificate saga and other public ridicules, on one hand, and those who betrayed Jonathan in his own election, after collecting money to prosecute his political programmes but failed.
nationalTRAIL gathered that, Jonathan seems to have realized rather belatedly that, most of his trusted aides actually worked towards his downfall, while the hundreds of billions of naira the central bank was churning out daily for his political campaigns and that of the Peoples democratic Party, PDP, were actually being diverted into private vaults of his aides and allies.
So far, President Muhammadu Buhari seems to over look the obvious indictments of former president Goodluck Jonathan, given the fact that, Sambo Dasuki could not have carried out the activities he was alleged to have embarked upon without the knowledge of or express approval of the former President, as his National Security Adviser.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, has variously extricated Goodluck Jonathan from blames in the scandalous activities of his aides, ostensibly on the instructions of the Presidency, to the effect that, the former President may as well be the prosecution witness, the Government seeks to protect in the prosecution of Sambo Dasuki and his cohorts.
According to our sources, the cases against some of Jonathan’s aides are water tight, and the EFCC has at its disposal sufficient proofs, mostly provided by the former President, to secure convictions, even as people who may have been penciled down for the next round of crack down on corrupt acts are begining to panic, ahead of their formal invitations by the EFCC.
Investigations from the Presidency reveals that, the United Arab Emirates, UAE, in particular, where some of the stolen funds are stashed away, may have disclosed to President Muhammadu Buhari the quantum of lodgments and assets by Nigerian Government Officials, during the President’s recent visit to Dubai.
President Buhari, who signed a bilateral agreement with the Emirate may have discovered that, while attention was being paid to Switzerland, the United States and the United Kingdom, greater part of Nigeria’s stolen funds may have either been invested or stashed away in foreign accounts in the United arab Emirate and other middle east countries.
Already, the President has secured the commitment of the leadership of the emirate on the confiscation and possible repatriation of stolen funds hidden there, and the deportation of fugitives who may be seeking refuge in UAE, following the latest crackdown on corrupt officials by the new government in Nigeria.
Findings reveal that, a curious angle to some of the illegal assets were that, they were acquired by proxies, while some were gotten in the names of spouses or children of the actual culprits, making the processes of confiscation a little cumbersome, an international law practitioner said.
Meanwhile, investigations in dubai reveal that, in their panic, some officials, both former and serving, including state Governors were said to be desperately struggling to dispose of such properties or change their ownership or even abandon their ill gotten funds, to evade possible detection and subsequent embarrassment by President Muhammadu Buhari.
At the home front, following the recommendations and subsequent investigation of Nigerian Airforce officers, allegedly involved in the unwholesome procurement processes, their counterparts in the Nigerian Army are in confusion ahead of their own possible indictment.
Our correspondent reports that top Army Officers, one of whom has since been recalled from retirement and under investigations by the EFCC, have been running from pillar to pole in a bid to cover up their alleged involvements or at least secure soft landings

Sam ADEGBE and Matthew OMEJE- Abuja

Headlines

2027: THE MANY WARS IN PARTIES

Published

2 days ago

June 1, 2026

Our Reporter

☆ ADC, PDP, NDC, LP Tacle APC Amidst Internal Wranglings.
☆ Party primaries trigger godfather vs godson clashes.
By: Our Special Correspondent.

Election periods always make Nigeria a political melting pot. Tensions, intrigues, violence, manipulations and grandstanding have been the order.
2027 may not be an exception, as already, the polity is heating up and political players are up in arms.
Between political parties, battle lines are being drawn.
It is no longer news that, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu of the APC, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar of the ADC and former Anambra state governor, Peter Obi of the NDC have secured the presidential tickets for their various political parties, ahead of the 2027 elections.
While Nigerians await the outcome of the presidential primaries for the other parties, it is apparent that the leading dramatis personae of the 2023 presidential election debacle, are set to square it out again in 2027.
But, while most, if not all the opposition political parties are emershed in multi-dimenssional crisis, the stage seems set for dirtier political schemings, in the quest to wrestle power from the ruling APC.
With the apparent collapse of the much talked about coalition, frontline candidates may again go into the election as a divided house, as the parties are further polarized by the attendant crisis arising from the just concluded primaries.
The ruling APC, also faced with similar crisis following the primaries. The primaries of all the parties seem to have sparked internal wranglings
across Edo, Delta, Lagos, Oyo, Kano, Rivers and other states. In most states, the primaries for governorship, Senate and House of Representatives seats have triggered deepening crises between governors, former governors, senators and entrenched party blocs.
While one may regard such disagrerments as normal and could be resolved before the main election, the disagreement between President Tinubu and the opposition may linger.

The President is fighting hard to ward of attacks over his failed promises which were made in 2023, as campaign issues.
Similarlly, the issue of insecurity, fuel subsidy, pol8cy summersault, and general cost of living have been brought to the front burner, in political discourse.
Tinubu told Nigerians on Friday that subsidy removal and forex reforms have revived investor confidence, lifted market cap to 250,000 points, and drawn new oil and gas investment. He also said security operations have “intensified” against bandits, separatists and insurgents.
But critics insist that Tinubu’s camp is working to cripple opposition parties reminescent of the Abacha-era dark days.
In apparent move to realign forces and reshape 2027, NDC’s Peter Obi has announced Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso as his running mate.
Obi told a gathering brfore naming Kwankwaso as his running mate, that, the Vice President office under him, will be “an active partner, not ceremonial”. The NDC held a special convention Saturday to affirm Obi as flagbearer where he promised 10,000MW electricity generation. Labour Party has also presented Dr. Chibuzo Okereke as its presidential candidate, a lowly rated personality.
At the sub-national level, political players are pulling the strings from different end. Most governors are being accused of imposing their cronies as governorship, senate, House of Representatives and House of Assembly candidates.
The national leadership of the APC has been struggling hard to adress the widespread crisis occassioned by the primaries. The APC, in Lagos amidst the internal wars, has picked Princess Damilola Sonayon-James as running mate to Lagos governorship candidate Dr. Obafemi Hamzat. Both are seen as stooges of the governor and by extenssion the President.
In Rivers, FCT Minister Nyesom Wike has vowed that, the APC “Rainbow Coalition” will agree on one governorship candidate and that ADC’s Atiku won’t get 10% of Rivers votes. Though the candidate has not yet been named.
Wike also declared “Rivers has no option but to back Tinubu”.
In several states, there have been massive decampments from the APC in particular, because of unfavourable outcomes of the primaries.
All these point to a turbulent outing for the APC, even as the ruling party.
As for the opposition parties, they all have been emasculated, and may not be able to pose much threat to the ruling APC.
While the political wranglings were going on the most serious threat to the APC remains the rising concern over insecurity. The issue seem to have ignited anger across the country, with Federal Workers Forum threatening an indefinite nationwide strike over rising insecurity and unresolved wages. SERAP, has meanwhile urged the UN Secretary-General to invoke Article 99 over Nigeria’s “escalating insecurity—mass abductions, killings, displacements”.

Headlines

“Nigeria Is in a Hurry to Celebrate Victory Over Enemies of the State,” Says Tinubu as He Decorates New Service Chiefs

Published

7 months ago

October 30, 2025

Our Reporter

By: Fabian Apechihin

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has urged the newly appointed service chiefs to discharge their duties with utmost dedication and renewed commitment, declaring that “Nigeria is in a hurry to celebrate victory over enemies of the state.”

The President made this statement on Thursday during the decoration ceremony of the new service chiefs with their ranks at the Aso Rock Presidential Villa in Abuja.

Those decorated were General Olufemi Oluyede as Chief of Defence Staff, Lieutenant-General Wahidi Shaibu as Chief of Army Staff, Air Marshal Kennedy Aneke as Chief of Air Staff, and Vice Admiral Idi Abbas as Chief of Naval Staff.

The ceremony was attended by Vice President Kashim Shettima and the spouses of the newly promoted officers, who joined the President in performing the decorations.

In his address, Tinubu underscored the central role of security in fostering national development and reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to protecting the lives and property of all Nigerians.

“Security is an essential element without which everything else becomes meaningless,” the President stated. “There can be no sustainable development if this fundamental need is not met. Our people and our nation must remain secure to enjoy the dividends of governance.”

The elevation and decoration of the new military chiefs followed their confirmation by the National Assembly on Wednesday, after a closed-door screening session with lawmakers.

It will be recalled that, in a recent overhaul of the nation’s military hierarchy, President Tinubu appointed:

Lieutenant General Olufemi Olatubosun Oluyede as Chief of Defence Staff,
Major General Waidi Shaibu as Chief of Army Staff,
Rear Admiral Idi Abbas as Chief of Naval Staff,
Air Vice Marshal Sunday Aneke as Chief of Air Staff, and
Major General Emmanuel Undiandeye retained as Chief of Defence Intelligence.

The new appointments mark a strategic restructuring of Nigeria’s security leadership aimed at strengthening the fight against insurgency, banditry, and other threats to national stability.

Headlines

FG Dismisses Coup Rumour, Reaffirms Confidence in Nigerian Military

Published

8 months ago

October 20, 2025

Our Reporter

By: Fabian Apechihin

The Federal Government has dismissed widespread rumours of an alleged military coup plot against President Bola Tinubu, declaring its full confidence in the loyalty and professionalism of the Nigerian Armed Forces.

Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, made this known in an interview with The Punch on Sunday, insisting that the administration has “no reason whatsoever” to doubt the assurances given by the Defence Headquarters, which had earlier denied reports linking the detention of 16 military officers to a coup attempt.

“The Federal Government has no reason to doubt the military on what it has said,” Idris stated.
“We believe the Armed Forces of Nigeria remain committed to protecting the nation’s territorial integrity and strengthening the fight against insecurity. The government commends their sacrifice and will continue to support them in safeguarding the country.”

The minister’s remarks came a day after the Director of Defence Information, Brigadier General Tukur Gusau, firmly debunked a report by Sahara Reporters alleging that the detention of 16 officers was connected to a failed coup plot and the cancellation of the 65th Independence Day parade.

Gusau described the publication as “false, mischievous, and deliberately aimed at creating unnecessary tension and public distrust.”

He clarified that the cancellation of the October 1 Independence Day parade was a purely administrative decision — taken to allow President Tinubu attend a key bilateral meeting abroad and to enable military units sustain ongoing counterinsurgency operations nationwide.

On the issue of the detained officers, Gusau said their case was “an internal disciplinary process” and not related to any political matter.

“The investigation involving the 16 officers is routine, aimed at upholding discipline and professionalism within the ranks,” he explained. “An investigative panel has been constituted, and its findings will be made public in due course.”

Reaffirming the military’s constitutional role and unwavering commitment to civilian rule, Gusau stressed emphatically: