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Certificate Forgery: Buhari’s CoS, Abba Kyari in Hot Soup
By Eric Elezuo
The Chief of Staff to President Muhammadu Buhari, and one his closest confidants, Mr. Abba Kyari, may be in for the greatest test of his career as a lawyer, Mr. Kalu Kalu Agu of Kalu and Kalu Associates has petitioned the Metropolitan Police, London, alleging that the President’s right hand presented a forged document and lied on oath while testifying on behalf of the President and the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) at the just concluded Presidential Election Tribunal.
The man, who is regarded as the brain box of the Buhari administration, found himself on the other side of the law, when on July 30, 2019, while standing as a prime witness for Buhari and the APC, declared that he personally took delivery of a Cambridge Assessment International Education document issued in the name of Mohammed Buhari.
In the petition titled PETITION AGAINST MR. ABBA KYARI FOR FORGING CAMBRIDGE ASSESSMENT INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION DOCUMENT, and addressed to the Metropolitan Police Commissioner, Mr. Agu requested the outfit to conduct an official investigation to determine the circumstance behind the procurement of the said document in the terms of source of procurement and other sundry matters.
In its opening paragraph, the petition noted thus;
“On the 30th of July, 2019, one Mr. Abba Kyari claimed to have procured from CAMBRIDGE ASSESSMENT INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION in London and within the jurisdiction of the United Kingdom a certifying statement , a ddocument of controversy, if not dubious origin for the sole purpose of deceiving the general public in the United Kingdom and Nigeria”
Faulting the process under which the document was procured, which the petitioner claimed nullified its authenticity, he further highlighted seven basic tips that supported his motion under which a third party can be issued the document. These, he said were revealed from the website of the Cambridge Assessment International Education. Among them is “that the CAMBRIDGE ASSESSMENT INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION only delivers the said ‘CERTIFYING STATEMENT’ either by email or by post and not by personal collection”.
Consequently, Mr. Agu called for the investigation of the said misrepresentation taking into consideration the following:
- Where did Mr. Kyari get the certificate which he enclosed alongside his application form for the issuance of the said “CERTIFYING STATEMENT” which he claimed he procured from CAMBRIDGE ASSESSMENT INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION among five other demands.
- Whether Mr Abba Kyari as an individual can apply for the said “CERTIFYING STATEMENT” not being an ACADEMIC INSTITUTION or an EMPLOYER of the candidate?
- Whether the said “CERTIFYING STATEMENT” can be delivered to Mr. Abba Kyari by hand as he claimed he signed and personally collected same by hand in UK?
- Evidence of the said application by Mr. Abba Kyari to the CAMBRIDGE ASSESSMENT INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION
- Evidence of the mandatory payment of the fee for the issuance of the said “CERTIFYING STATEMENT”
- Evidence of the candidate’s AUTHORISATION to the CAMBRIDGE ASSESSMENT INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION for the release of the said “CERTIFYING STATEMENT” to Mr. Abba Kyari
The petitioner concluded by praying thus:
“With the greatest respect, sir, in the circumstance the said “CERTIFYING STATEMENT” claimed to have been procured by Mr. Abba Kyari is found to be forged, it will be of great service to United Kingdom, Nigeria and the International Community that Mr. Abba Kyari is arrested and arraigned in a court of competent jurisdiction in the UNITED KINGDOM for FORGERY.
Mr. Kyari, a prominent member of the President Buhari cabinet, has been in the news mostly for the wrong reasons ever since he joined the administration took root on August 27, 2015. He has been accused in many quarters as being the ‘head of the cabal’ Nigerians have speculated as leading the government. He is also a close relative of President Buhari.
A product of three prominent England based institutions of higher learning, Abba Kyari worked for the law firm Fani-Kayode and Sowemimo for some time after his return to Nigeria. He also served as Editor with the New Africa Holdings Limited Kaduna. In 1990 he served as Commissioner for Forestry and Animal Resources in Borno State. From 1990 to 1995, Kyari was Secretary to the Board of African International Bank Limited. Abba Kyari was Executive Director, Management Services, United Bank for Africa Plc. (UBA) and was later appointed Managing Director and Chief Executive of the Bank. He was appointed a Director of Unilever Nigeria Plc in 2002 and is a Director of Exxon Mobil Nigeria. He is a recipient of the Nigerian Honor Award of Officer of the Order of the Niger (O.O.N).
Mr. Agu, on his part, has remained an albatross on the neck of President Buhari and his administration, moving from one court to another and seeking one injunction after another against the incumbent.
In January 2019, Agu joined the duo of Labaran Ismail and Hassy El-Kuris, to stop President Buhari from contesting the 2019 Presidential Election, alleging that the President lied in his form CF 001 submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission regarding his educational qualifications and certificates. However, the case was struck out in July by a three-member panel of justices, which unanimously held that the matter lacks merit, having been filed outside the time provided by Section 285 of the Nigerian Constitution.
If the Metropolitan Police heeds the petition, and conducts an investigation, it may just boost the chances of Alhaji Atiku Abubakar and his party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as the tussle to snatch Buhari’s presidency gets tougher.
The Senate has granted approval to the ₦1.77 trillion ($2.2b) loan request of President Bola Tinubu after a voice vote in favor of the request.
The Senate presided by Deputy Senate President, Barau Jibrin, approved the loan after the Senate Committee on Local and Foreign Debts chaired by Senator Wammako Magatarkada (APC, Sokoto North) presented the report of the committee.
The request which was submitted by the President on Tuesday is part of a fresh external borrowing plan to partially finance the N9.7 trillion budget deficit for the 2024 fiscal year.
Tinubu had on Tuesday written to the National Assembly, seeking approval of a fresh N1.767 trillion, the equivalent of $2.209 billion as a new external borrowing plan in the 2024 Appropriation Act.
The fresh loan is expected to stretch the amount spent on debt servicing by the Federal Government. The Central Bank of Nigeria recently said that it cost the Federal Government $3.58 billion to service foreign debt in the first nine months of 2024.
The CBN report on international payment statistics showed that the amount represents a 39.77 per cent increase from the $2.56bn spent during the same period in 2023.
According to the report, while the highest monthly debt servicing payment in 2024 occurred in May, amounting to $854.37m, the highest monthly expenditure in 2023 was $641.70m, recorded in July.
The trend in foreign debt servicing by the CBN highlights the rising cost of debt obligations by Nigeria.
Further breakdown of international debt figures showed that in January 2024, debt servicing costs surged by 398.89 per cent, rising to $560.52m from $112.35m in January 2023. February, however, saw a slight decline of 1.84 per cent, with payments reducing from $288.54m in 2023 to $283.22m in 2024.
March recorded a 31.04 per cent drop in payments, falling to $276.17m from $400.47m in the same period last year. April saw a significant rise of 131.77 per cent, with $215.20m paid in 2024 compared to $92.85m in 2023.
The highest debt servicing payment occurred in May 2024, when $854.37m was spent, reflecting a 286.52 per cent increase compared to $221.05m in May 2023. June, on the other hand, saw a 6.51 per cent decline, with $50.82m paid in 2024, down from $54.36m in 2023.
July 2024 recorded a 15.48 per cent reduction, with payments dropping to $542.50m from $641.70m in July 2023. In August, there was another decline of 9.69 per cent, as $279.95m was paid compared to $309.96m in 2023. However, September 2024 saw a 17.49 per cent increase, with payments rising to $515.81m from $439.06m in the same month last year.
Given rising exchange rates, the data raises concerns about the growing pressure of Nigeria’s foreign debt obligations.
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Self acclaimed leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Simon Ekpa, has been arrested by law enforcement in Finland.
The BBC reports that Ekpa was subsequently sent to prison by the district court of Päijät-Häme for “spreading terrorist propaganda on social media”.
Ekpa was said to have committed the crime in 2021 in Lahti municipality.
The Finnish National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) also arrested four other men over alleged terrorist offences.
A citizen of Finland and Nigeria, Ekpa has described himself as leader of the separatist IPOB group since Nnamdi Kanu’s incarceration.
Finnish police say Ekpa’s activities and social media rhetoric may have fanned the flames of violence in the south-east of Nigeria.
“He carries out these activities from his social media channels, for example,” said Otto Hiltunen, detective chief inspector of the NBI.
In February 2023, Ekpa was arrested by police at his residence in Lahti but was released after hours of questioning.
Using his social media channels, Ekpa had directed Igbos not to participate in Nigeria’s 2023 general election.
In September 2021, the Biafra agitator and secessionist denounced Nigeria and vowed to return the medal he won for the country at the 2003 African Junior Athletics Championships.
The Court of Appeal has sacked Musiliu Akinsanya aka MC Oluomo as the National President of the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW).
In a ruling that upheld the earlier judgment of the National Industrial Court, the appellate court sacked MC Oluomo and reaffirmed Tajudeen Baruwa as the legitimate leader of the union.
Baruwa had assumed office after a properly conducted election held at the union’s headquarters in Abuja.
The three-member panel of the Appeal Court dismissed the appeal filed by MC Oluomo’s faction, declaring it devoid of merit.
In addition, the court imposed a fine of N100,000 on the appellants, further solidifying Baruwa’s leadership position.
Reports quoting court documents said to have been released on Friday detailed the ruling, which effectively countered any attempts to displace Baruwa from his role as the NURTW president.
The judgment read: “This is an appeal against the judgment/decision of the National Industrial Court Sitting in Abuja, in Suit No. NICN/ABJ/263/2023, delivered on the 11th March, 2024, by Justice O. O. Oyewumi.
“Upon reading the Record of Appeal compiled and transmitted before this court, together with the respective briefs of argument, and after hearing the counsels for the appellants and respondents, it is hereby ordered that:
“This Appeal is devoid of merit, and the same is hereby dismissed.”
The ruling reinforces the legitimacy of Baruwa’s presidency, concluding the legal dispute over the union’s leadership.
Meanwhile, MC Oluomo’s son Idowu Akinsanya (King West) had bragged about his feat of emerging the NURTW president, saying: “We are now in charge of Nigeria, not only Lagos,” a comment that attracted public opprobrium.
MC Oluomo, a diehard supporter of President Bola Tinubu and a prominent figure in Lagos politics, was the sole candidate in the election, which took place at the union’s zonal secretariat in Osogbo. His perceived victory was deemed to carry significant implications for the future of the NURTW and the political landscape of Nigeria.
