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Galadima Reacts As AMCON Takes Over His Abuja Residence, Company
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The Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) on Tuesday took over the business premises and assets of Bedko Nigeria Limited belonging to Buba Galadima, a strong critic of President Muhammadu Buhari.
Mr Galadima, a former political ally of the president, has for years been one of the most vociferous critics of the administration.
A one-time Director-General of the Nigeria Maritime Agency (NMA) (1996 – 1998), Mr Galadima was appointed the National Secretary of the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) formed in the run-up to the 2011 national elections.
He was one of the nine signatories that signed the merger agreement between some political parties that came together to form the ruling All Progressive Congress (APC), which President Buhari used as a platform for his election in 2015.
The political parties in the merger deal were the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA); Congress for Progressive Change (CPC); All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) and Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN).
However, since the president’s election, his relationship with Mr Galadima appeared to have gone sour, with the latter emerging as the leading opposition voice against the administration’s policies and programmes.
On Tuesday, AMCON in a statement in Abuja said the Federal High Court in Abuja issued an order for it to take over Mr Gladima’s properties, including his private residence and company, over alleged N900 million indebtedness.
The order followed a ruling in suit No. FHC/ABJ/CS/1136/2019 against Bedko Nigeria Limited and Mr Galadima, AMCON said.
The spokesperson of AMCON, Jude Nwauzor, said the loan was sourced from Unity Bank Plc in 2011 during the first phase of Eligible Bank Assets acquisition.
“Since then, AMCON has offered the obligor a good measure of olive branches and explored all avenues to resolve the matter amicably. But the obligor, and his company, Bedko Nigeria Limited, have remained recalcitrant and unwilling to repay the huge debt to the Corporation,” Mr Nwauzor said.
AMCON listed the properties to include House No. 15, Addis Ababa Crescent, Wuse Zone 4, Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja and House No. 4, Bangui Street, Wuse 2 also in the high-brow area of Abuja.
AMCON said the enforcement of the order on the properties of Bedko Nigeria Limited and Mr Galadima is one of the many it would be undertaking this year since receiving additional powers from the president late last year.
An Inter-agency Committee on the recovery of AMCON debts was constituted by the President Buhari last year following the signing into law of the 2019 Amended AMCON Act.
The amendment gave AMCON additional powers to go after all obligors of the corporation no matter how highly placed in society.
Mr Nwauzor said AMCON would take all necessary actions, including asset take-over, liquidation, winding-up and garnishee proceedings against Bedko Nigeria Limited and its directors in line with the court judgment and relevant sections of the AMCON Act as amended.
Meanwhile, Mr Galadima has denied knowledge of the allegations of indebtedness against him and his company.
Meanwhile, Mr Galadima has said he and his company are not indebted to AMCON.
“I went to a bank in 2003 to sign for a loan. A letter of credit was opened for me to import fertilizer at that time. But the goods never came. The head office of the bank in America refused to honour the invitation because the Bank in question was under investigation by the FBI (Federal Bureau of Intelligence). I didn’t take one kobo from them. They didn’t even credit my own account,” he said.
Mr Galadima said the collateral was agreed to take effect two or three years after importation of the fertilizer began.
However, he said when AMCON took him to a high court over the money, he protested that he was not satisfied with the judgment and appealed.
He said he won the appeal and the court freed him.
“All this is an attempt to disgrace and break me down. But I am unbreakable and they can never silence me,” Mr Galadima said, blaming his travails to his political opponents.
“This is injustice and attempt to humiliate me. But, God will not let them. They sacked me and over 50 people that sleep in this apartment. We don’t know where to go. We will remain on the streets. We will remain on the streets until God provides another place for us.
“They will surely pay for disgracing and humiliating me publicly. I am going back to court,” Mr Galadima said.
Premium Times
A United States-based policy advisory and lobbying firm, Von Batten-Montague-York, has alleged that Nigeria’s President, Bola Tinubu, spent millions of dollars to prevent the release of records of his alleged drug trafficking case.
Von Batten-Montague-York made this allegation in a post on its verified X handle late Tuesday.
According to the firm, Tinubu’s claim that he was not attempting to block the release of the records is contradictory to the action of his own legal team in the ongoing Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) case.
It accused Tinubu of having petitioned the court and consulted with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Drug Enforcement Administration, DEA, as part of efforts to prevent the records from being released.
“Despite claiming innocence, Tinubu has spent millions of dollars to ensure that his drug trafficking records are never released.
“The description of the underlying matter is merely a civil case. The involvement of US law-enforcement agencies in the records dispute demonstrated that the matter involved sensitive investigative material,” the firm said.
The latest allegation from the firm came against the backdrop of the ongoing legal battle over the release of records held by the US Department of Justice, DOJ, FBI and DEA, concerning historical investigations involving Tinubu.
United States District judge, Beryl Howell, had granted Donald Trump-appointed attorney, Jeanine Pirro, additional days to release the alleged drug-trafficking records.
Tinubu had joined the request of the US Department of Justice for a 10-day extension to respond to a motion seeking the release of records relating to allegations of drug trafficking.
Born on December 24, 1971, in the Mbeya Region, Dr Emmanuel John Nchimbi grew up in a family rooted in public service. His father, Mzee John Nchimbi, hailing from Songea District, served as an Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) and Regional Police Commander for Mtwara.
Beyond his law enforcement career, the elder Nchimbi was actively involved in politics, serving two terms as a National Executive Committee (NEC) member for Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) through the armed forces wing and later as a CCM regional secretary.
Dr Nchimbi began his primary education at Oysterbay Primary School in Dar es Salaam from 1980 to 1986. He pursued his O-Level studies at Uru Secondary School (Form I to III) from 1987 to 1989 before transferring to Sangu Secondary School, where he completed Form IV in 1990.
He then moved to Forest Hill Secondary School in Mbeya for his A-Level education between 1991 and 1993.
Advancing to higher education, Dr Nchimbi earned an Advanced Diploma in Administration from the Institute of Development Management (IDM) Mzumbe in Morogoro between 1994 and 1997.
Upon graduating, his political trajectory accelerated rapidly: he was elected as a member of CCM’s National Executive Committee (NEC), and by 1998, he was elected Chairman of the CCM Youth Wing (Umoja wa Vijana wa Chama cha Mapinduzi – UVCCM).
Alongside his rising political responsibilities, Dr Nchimbi built a professional background in public service and academia. He worked at the National Environment Management Council (NEMC) from 1998 to 2003.
During this period, he pursued further studies, obtaining a Master of Business Administration (MBA) specialising in Banking and Finance from Mzumbe University between 2001 and 2003. He was later appointed District Commissioner for Bunda (2003–2005) and went on to complete a Doctorate (PhD) at Mzumbe University between 2008 and 2011.
He served in that capacity until October 2006, when he was reshuffled to serve as Deputy Minister for Labour, Employment, and Youth Development until February 2008. He subsequently served as Deputy Minister for Defence and National Service until November 2010.
Source: The Star
Headlines
Tinubu Orders Arrest, Suspension of Three Perm Secs As ICPC Uncovers Another Fake Govt Agency
President Bola Tinubu on Friday ordered the immediate arrest and suspension of three federal Permanent Secretaries over their alleged involvement in the operation of another fake agency uncovered by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC).
ICPC Chairman, Dr Musa Adamu Aliyu, who disclosed this to newsmen after briefing President Tinubu on the latest findings from the commission’s ongoing investigation into fictitious agencies and weaknesses in public sector processes named the affected Permanent Secretaries to include M S Danjuma, Engr Nadungu Gagare, and Richard Pheelangwah.
The Commision’s latest discovery is coming barely few weeks after exposing the fictitious Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC).
According to Aliyu, the newly uncovered entity, operating as National Brands Development and Made-in-Nigeria Special Project Office, had allegedly secured office accommodation within the premises of the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (OSGF) without authorisation from the President.
The discovery, he said, was made during the broader investigation into the PFIPC, which President Tinubu had directed the ICPC to undertake.
The fake agency, according to ICPC boss, was promoted by Prince George Buchi Nwabueze, who allegedly operated under several variations of his name, including George Nathan Nwabueze, Honourable George Buchi Nwabueze, Prince George Buchi Nwabueze and George Buchi Nwabueze.
Aliyu disclosed that the commission was engaging relevant officials in the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation to establish how the purported agency came to operate from government premises and to obtain other vital information required for the investigation.
“I have briefed Mr President comprehensively on these new developments. ICPC will continue with its investigation,” he said.
Following the fresh findings, Aliyu said President Tinubu had directed the immediate arrest of Prince George Buchi Nwabueze, as well as the immediate suspension of the three named permanent secretaries.
The commission is expected to establish the roles played by the suspended officials and other individuals in the emergence and operation of the purported agency.
Aliyu said the latest discovery underscored the need for tighter controls and greater scrutiny of government institutions and internal administrative processes.
He commended President Tinubu for ordering a wider policy audit of federal agencies and government processes, describing the initiative as a proactive measure to strengthen the governance system.
His said: “President Bola Tinubu must be commended for the proactive step of directing the policy audit of MDAs and internal government processes towards strengthening government governance system.”
The latest development has widened the scope of the ICPC’s investigation into the proliferation of fictitious government entities and alleged exploitation of official structures by individuals seeking to create the impression of government authority.
The commission’s investigation into the PFIPC was initiated after the purported agency came under scrutiny, with the President subsequently directing the ICPC to unravel those behind its operations and determine whether public officials facilitated its activities.
With the discovery of another purported agency operating from government premises, the ICPC probe is now expected to examine broader institutional weaknesses that may have enabled unauthorised entities to gain access to federal government facilities and present themselves as legitimate government bodies.
