News
Nigerian Elites Beware As Illicit Overseas Assets Take Centre Stage in Russia/Ukraine War
By Joel Popoola
No Nigerian can fail to have been moved by the scenes of carnage coming out of Ukraine following the cruel and cowardly Russian invasion.
But there are lessons our nation must learn from this horrific situation too.
The international response to Russian aggression has by and large not been military, but economic.
Russia has been hit by severe sanctions designed not to attack her army, but hobble her economy – an indication future wars may be fought not on the battlefields but on the international finance markets.
And while Russia seemingly holds a military advantage over Ukraine – despite the heroism of the Ukrainian people – it is getting destroyed economically.
An international alliance has cut off some Russian banks from the SWIFT messaging system, used to facilitate trillions of dollars’ worth of international financial transactions every day, in what has been called “the nuclear option” of sanctioning.
They also promised to prevent Russia from accessing some of its foreign reserves. To put that in layman’s terms, Russian has gone to the bank and found its saving account empty.
When the stock market opened for the first time after the penalties were imposed, the value of Russia’s major banks halved almost instantly and the Rouble lost 30% of its value, making it much more expensive for Russian to trade – if indeed they can find anyone to trade with.
To combat inflation, the Russian Central Bank doubled its key interest rate to 20%. That’s higher than America’s equivalent rate has been in all of its history.
But what does this have to do with Nigeria?
A British parliamentary inquiry reported in 2018 that “despite the strong rhetoric, President Putin and his allies have been able to continue ‘business as usual’ by hiding and laundering their corrupt assets in London”
Hiding illicit assets overseas you say?
This may sound very familiar to Nigerians.
As part of the international response to Russia’s aggression, Russian elites have seen their overseas assets targeted too – which may be why Roman Abramovich suddenly seems so keen to sell Chelsea.
The message is clear. If you try to hide dishonestly or illegally gained money overseas, there is no place to hide. And if your country finds itself in embroiled in an international dispute, you may find yourself a target.
Russian is far from alone in seeing its very wealthy hide their wealth as far from home as possible.
In recent days, leaks from the Credit Suisse Bank have shown how comfortable the Swiss Bank was in having Eduard Seidel as a client.
The German was convicted of bribery in 2008 after overseeing a campaign of industrial-scale bribery to secure lucrative clients for his employer by shovelling cash to corrupt Nigerian politicians.
That leak follows last-year’s so called Pandora Papers leak, which pointed the finger at a number of high profile Nigerians – including current and former state governors, past and present lawmakers, and even a senior judge –for setting up shadowy shell companies in notorious tax havens to hide their wealth. That leak suggested that powerful Nigerians have bought UK property valued at £350m using 166 offshore companies.
The Ukraine situation has highlighted this issue. Soon there may be no hiding place for those who hide their wealth overseas. And if not in the national interest, our elites need to consider acting in their own self-interest when it comes to transparency and accountability.
But politicians need to take the same steps towards transparency and accountability too.
At the digital democracy campaign I lead, we have been trying to give them the tools to build back the trust and both their reputations and that of our entire political system, and to make all their financial interests publically accessible
We have created an free mobile app called Rate Your Leader, which was designed to reconnect electors and the elected, opening direct channels of communication between people and to their elected officials – giving local people the kind of access previously only enjoyed by funders.
Rate Your Leader encourages politicians to explain the decisions they have made and the reasons for making them directly to the people they affect. If the voters don’t like the answer they get, they can rate their politicians badly.
In the UK, a new Economic Crime Bill developed in response to Russian’s invasion of Ukraine will include a new register that will mean foreign owners of UK property must declare and verify their identities with the state.
That register will include Nigerians too.
This week the UK also signed another agreement relating to compensation for corruption in the Nigerian Energy sector.
The net is closing in on international corruption, and current international events are just making that net tighter. We now need to do our bit at home.
Joel Popoola is a Nigerian tech entrepreneur, digital democracy campaigner and creator of the Rate Your Leader app.
Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, has ordered the Heads of Local Government Administration to immediately take over the administration of the 23 local government areas pending the conduct of fresh elections by the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission.
The governor also directed the outgoing local government chairmen to formally hand over to the Heads of Local Government Administration by Monday, March 3, 2025.
Fubara gave the directive in a statewide broadcast in Government House, Port Harcourt, on Sunday evening, in response to the Supreme Court judgment.
This is the first time the governor will be speaking since last Friday’s Supreme Court judgment which nullified the state LG elections conducted by RSIEC, as well as recognised of the Martin Amaewhule-led 27 lawmakers at the authentic Rivers State House of Assembly.
The governor explained that the measure became imperative as a result of the outlawing of caretaker arrangements in the local government system in Nigeria.
Fubara stated, “Furthermore, given the outlawing of caretaker arrangements in the local government system, I hereby direct the Heads of Local Government Administration to immediately take over the administration of the 23 local government councils pending the conduct of fresh elections by the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission.
“I further direct the outgoing local government chairmen to formally hand over the levers of power to the Heads of Local Government Administration by Monday, 3rd March, 2025.”
The governor said that although his administration disagrees with the judgments, it is bound to obey the orders made therein by the court as a law-abiding government.
He further said, “We are all aware of the recent Supreme Court judgments and pronouncements regarding aspects of the lingering political disputes in our dear state.
“Although we disagree with the judgments, we are bound to obey the orders made therein as a law-abiding government.
“Since inception, we have conducted the affairs of government within the framework of our Constitution, due process and the rule of law.
“While we are not above mistakes because we are humans, we believe that we have not, as a government, done anything deliberately to trample on the rule of law or the hallowed principles of constitutional governance.
“Accordingly, I have had a meeting with my team of lawyers, and they have assured me that the certified true copy of the judgements may be available to them by Friday, 7th March, 2025.
“I assure you that upon the receipt of certified judgements, we shall study their ramifications and implement them without reservations to move the state forward.”
The governor regretted that with the pronouncements of the court, the state appears to be back in trying times, but quickly called on the people and residents of the state to remain calm and peacefully go about their legitimate daily activities while the government continues to do everything in its power to advance good governance to the citizens.
He said, “Although our dear state seems to be back in trying times, I urge everyone to remain calm and peacefully go about with their legitimate daily activities as we continue to do everything in our power to advance our responsibilities to the citizens.”
By Henry Ukazu
Dear Destiny Friends,
Happiness is something everyone should strive for. The pleasure and joy that comes with a blissful mind is priceless and unimaginable. There are certain things that keeps the mind in a state of perpetual happiness, and they varies. To some, it entails having money, children, education, job, and fulfilling a vision, while to others, it means singing, getting married to a dream partner, traveling, cooking, among others. The list is endless. And if I may ask, what makes you happy?
Personally, I derive joy when I put smiles on people’s faces. I can confidently say, I can be too kind to a fault. Sometimes, when I have a heavy heart, to decongest my sad state of mind, I may decide to be a blessing to someone who is experiencing misfortune. This act makes me feel happy and whenever I complete the act, I do feel a sense of fulfillment like a heavy burden has left my body. Isn’t it true therefore, that one gets what they want faster when they assist other people to get what they desire.
Being happy is indeed a state of mind. Sometimes, we think other people can make us happy. Sometimes we tend to attach our happiness to our partners and friends instead of ourselves. There’s no doubt the people in our lives have a role to play in making us happy, but the big factor responsible for our happiness is our mindset and perspective to life.
Let me share a practical example. One day, while I was in college, I was having a decent conversation with a friend of mine, and he said to me, ‘Henry, have you ever thought of having a girlfriend’? He touted me saying, you know you are one of the handsome guys in college and ladies love you so much. I was curious to know why he asked such a question so I asked, why do I need a girlfriend? He said they will make me happy. I said, that’s interesting to know. I asked him, so are you telling me, the simple reason you are happy is because you have a girlfriend? He said not really. I said to him, happiness is an inside job. As a matter of fact, I showed him a book by John Powell titled, Happiness is an inside job, which I was reading at the said time.
I further told him that ladies don’t make men happy, rather they complement their happiness, and vice versa. The mistake most people make is focusing their joy on human beings, and when they are disappointed, they begin to lament. True happiness should be vested in causes not material things. Material things are important, no doubt, but they are not as important as causes, especially as it relates to happiness.
Did you know that there’s a spiritual connection between happiness and success? Yes, this is so true because when one is happy, there’s a certain level of joy, satisfaction and energy that comes to them. The energy makes them passionate about a cause, and when one is passionate about a cause, they will be consistent in pushing the brand which will ultimately attract opportunities.
The importance of happiness cannot be overemphasized. When one is genuinely happy, he will not be stressed while working. That explains why it’s always good to love the job you do, and when you love what you do, what you do will ultimately love you, and this will attract opportunities.
Overtime, I have seen that people, who love what they do produce a certain level of results more than those who just do the job they are paid to do. Experience has shown that when people are adequately compensated for the work they do, they tend to do it with joy and when a work is done with a job, the result tends to be different.
Whenever I need a certain level of work, I always look for those who are gifted and talented in that craft before I explore the option of those who are intelligent and skillful. This is because someone who is talented or gifted in a particular craft has a form of blessings or anointing, which can produce a glowing effect on the work. I call such effects the spirituality of success because it has more impact than anyone who has acquired the skill or studied the art in school, or from a form of training.
The question we need to ask is how can one attract opportunities? The first step in attracting opportunities is by being happy. Nobody likes to be associated with an angry mind. There’ a rule of thumb that says, when you smile at someone, they are bound to smile back even if they are into witchcraft. Nobody likes to give a job to an angry person.
The connectivity of happiness and success was aptly captured by Dr. Yomi Garnett. According to him, “Those who attain true success are those who derive joy and happiness as they invest their time and energy in worthwhile pursuits. This is hardly surprising, for true success is not merely a destination, but a journey. If a journey is truly worthwhile, should it not also be pleasurable”?
How true can this statement be? True joy comes when one’s passion, vocation and profession are in alignment. Imagine the joy and fun that one will get when getting paid for having fun. The feeling and experience are, indeed, priceless.
It’s unfortunate that many people don’t understand that there’s a spiritual effect in whatever one does. For example, someone who is called to be a lawyer will do an expectational job as a lawyer, he won’t struggle to read, comprehend or even attract favour from clients, judges and fellow attorneys. In fact, the universe will conspire to work for him because he will attract opportunities due to the happiness he invests in himself. Now contrast that with someone who studied law just because he likes the name or because his parents influenced him to become a lawyer. The same principle is applicable to other professions, vocations and skill related jobs.
In conclusion, if you want to attract opportunities and blessings into your life, consider being happy, don’t attach your happiness to anyone, rather focus on a noble cause which will bring joy and impact in the lives of people. When you do so, you will subconsciously attract blessings into your life.
Henry Ukazu writes from New York. He works with the New York City Department of Correction as the Legal Coordinator. He’s the founder of Gloemi. He’s a Transformative Human Capacity and Mindset coach. He is also a public speaker, youth advocate, creative writer and author of Design Your Destiny Design Your and Unleash Your Destiny . He can be reached via info@gloemi.com
The Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Moshood Jimoh, has explained why security details attached to the Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Mojisola Meranda, were withdrawn, noting that the aides have since been restored.
The Lagos Police boss, while confirming the withdrawal of four policemen attached to Meranda, blamed the withdrawal on the audit of all policemen attached to VIPs in the state.
He also claimed that it was not Meranda’s security aides who were withdrawn and that those of other VIPs were also withdrawn during the audit.
CP Jimoh also insisted that the audit is not peculiar to the Lagos State Police Command, adding that it also happened in other states of the country.
He said, “Lagos with a population of about 20 million persons have 18,000 police personnel. This is grossly inadequate for a state like Lagos which is centre of excellence.
“The audit will help us to know those on illegal duty, those who are where they are not supposed to be. Once the audit is completed, we start to reassign them to Divisions and Post to help in policing the state effectively.”
Continuing, the CP added that the audit is a statutory laid-down procedure of the police, which is not limited to the state command alone.
“Periodic audit of police personnel attached to eminent personalities and groups is a police statutory laid down procedure which is not limited to Lagos State Police Command alone, this is to ensure that the police personnel are accounted for including their firearms and other police crime fighting equipment in their possession.
“To further ensure that they are on their duty posts and the firearms and equipment under their custody is not misused. As we speak, other police state commands in the Country are carrying out similar audits of Police personnel hitch-free and without any problem.
“The exercise will equally avail the Command the opportunity to discover where police personnel are posted without approval and or those that are on illegal duties and unapproved duty posts, so that we can withdraw those on unapproved duty posts, those with invalid approval and those on illegal duty and redeploy them to Police Posts, Stations, Divisions and Area Commands to provide security and safety for all Lagosians.
“It is important to underscore the facts that Lagos State, the Centre of Excellence with more than Twenty million population but with a strength of police personnel of less than 18,000 in total need more personnel to be at the police posts, police stations, divisions for the safety and adequate protection of lives and property of everyone in Lagos State.
“The ongoing police personnel audit in the Lagos State Command is done in absolutely public interest and not with any other considerations, except for the safety of all in the State. As I speak with you, the audit of the police personnel attached to Hon. Mojisola Meranda has been completed and the four armed personnel attached to her from the Lagos State Police Command have been returned back to her for her protection.
“It is pertinent to also state that the ongoing police personnel audit has been on for several days now and prominent personalities and individuals have been complying with the process. The exercise once again is not aimed or targeted at any individual,” the CP added.
“However, for those whose police personnel are still undergoing the audit process with the Command, the outcome of the audit will enable the next line of action to be taken. Let me sound a note of warning that prominent persons/individuals without valid approval, Police deployment to them will be withdrawn throughout the State.
“The Special Protection Units Department at the Force Headquarters have been mandated to provide security coverage for every Nigerian needing police protection in the country, and will henceforth provide deployment of police personnel for guard duties and personnel protection, will be centrally done throughout the country at the Force Headquarters,” the Lagos CP added.
