Edo State Governor, Senator Monday Okpebholo, has vowed to petition the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission over alleged financial mismanagement during the administration of his predecessor, Godwin Obaseki.

A report by an Administrative Panel of Enquiry claimed that N96bn was misappropriated during Obaseki’s tenure.

Okpebholo made this known on Friday while receiving the panel’s report, which was submitted to him in Benin City.

The findings were disclosed in a statement issued on Sunday by his Chief Press Secretary, Fred Itua.

The panel, constituted on December 18, 2024, investigated the financial dealings of the 18 impeached local government chairmen from September 4, 2023, to November 2024.

The report indicted not only the former chairmen but also alleged that prominent figures within the factional Peoples Democratic Party were complicit in the misappropriation of funds.

Governor Okpebholo commended the panel for its professionalism and emphasised that financial recklessness in public office would no longer be tolerated.

He stressed the need for accountability and transparency, assuring that those found culpable would face prosecution.

“The administration of former Governor Godwin Obaseki took Edo people for granted. They looted resources meant for the people and diverted them for personal gains. We are determined to change this narrative and ensure justice is served,” Okpebholo stated.

“I will personally take this report to the EFCC to ensure those responsible are held accountable. The era of impunity is over.”

The chairman of the panel, Solomon Imohiosen, said forensic investigations uncovered significant financial irregularities, with N95.08bn received from the Joint Allocation Account Committee by the 18 local government councils during the period under review.

However, the report stated that there was little to show in terms of meaningful projects executed with the funds.

The panel further alleged that over N10.43bn was siphoned under the guise of “Security, Environment, and Training,” with the 18 local government chairmen contributing to a fund that was allegedly used as a conduit for misappropriation.

 Funds were also allegedly transferred from this account to individuals and private companies.

The report also implicated former ALGON Chairman, Oghomwen Ugiagbe, and other political figures, alleging that they used personal businesses, including hotels, to funnel public funds.

“The panel’s investigation uncovered significant irregularities in the financial activities of the 18 local governments councils. The recommendations outlined in the report aim to address these issues and promote transparency and accountability in the local governments finances,” the panel chairman said.

But reacting to the allegation, Obaseki’s Chief Press Secretary, Crusoe Osagie, dismissed the report as a politically motivated attempt to justify the unconstitutional removal of elected local government officials.

“Governor Okpebholo has no supervisory power over the local governments and cannot set up an investigation into their financial activities. If he believes there are infractions, he should refer the matter to the appropriate agencies rather than engaging in propaganda,” Osagie said.

He further accused Okpebholo of attempting to drag Obaseki into the controversy, insisting that the former governor never controlled local government funds during his tenure.

“Okpebholo should focus on governance rather than this his witch-hunt drive against his predecessors. Edo people should ignore these baseless allegations.”

He said, “We have read with disdain a statement by Monday Okpebholo alleging that the elected 18 local government chairmen in Edo State mismanaged N96bn, in another of Okpebholo’s frantic efforts to justify his unconstitutional onslaught on the elected leadership of the third tier of government.

“What is most shocking about the statement is that Okpebholo appears to be completely oblivious of the fact that he does not have supervisory responsibility over the local governments and can therefore not set up any investigation of government officials that are elected into office just like him.

“As a matter of fact, these local government chairmen have a better claim to their democratic office than he, whose election stands on a knife edge, with the election petition tribunal preparing to deliver justice in the September 21, 2024 election, widely believed to have been rigged.

“Also advertising Okpebholo’s ignorance is his attempt, as usual, to drag His Excellency, Mr. Godwin Obaseki into his propaganda. Okpebholo should kindly note that Obaseki was never obsessed with control of local government funds during his tenure, as Okpebholo has shown himself to be in the last three months.

“We are forced to, by this statement, inform Okpebholo that there are limits to his powers as governor, and if he believes there are financial infractions in a separate tier of government from his own, he should simply inform the relevant agencies such as the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission to carry out their constitutional responsibilities. Okpebholo needs to be reminded that he is neither the Inspector General of Police nor the Chairman of the EFCC.

“We urge all Edo people and Nigerians to ignore the lies and falsehood propagated by Okpebholo in his statement and to rest assured that Obaseki, who is clearly the target of Okpebholo’s witch-hunt ran the most transparent government in the history of Edo State and had no authority over local government funds at any time during his 8 years in office.”

Prince Lukman Gbadegesin, one of the contenders for the Alaafin of Oyo stool, has filed a lawsuit at the Oyo State High Court challenging the appointment of Prince Akeem Owoade as the new Alaafin.

The suit, filed on February 12, demands the reversal of Owoade’s appointment, arguing that it violates the Chiefs Law of Oyo State, 2000, and the Registered Alaafin Chieftaincy Declaration of 1961.

Gbadegesin is also seeking an injunction to prevent Owoade from assuming the throne or performing any royal duties.

Gbadegesin’s suit lists Governor Seyi Makinde, the Attorney General of Oyo State, and 11 others as defendants, asking the court to compel them to appear within 30 days.

In the suit filed through his lawyer, Kunle Sobaloju (SAN), the aggrieved prince contended that: “The governor’s approval of Owoade’s appointment within five days of its presentation was unlawful, unconstitutional, invalid, null, and void.”

Gbadegesin argued that the Oyomesi (kingmakers) had already selected him as the rightful candidate, and he is demanding a court declaration affirming his nomination as valid.

He alleged that Governor Makinde’s decision violated due process in several key areas.

“The selection of the fourth defendant as the Alaafin of Oyo was carried out to the exclusion of rightful kingmakers who were neither suspended nor removed,” he argued.

He is, therefore, seeking “A declaration that the claimant having been validly nominated by Agunloye Ruling House and or selected/appointed and or proclaimed by the kingmakers of the Alaafin of Oyo (known as Oyomesi) as the candidate to fill the vacant stool of the Alaafin of Oyo in accordance with the Chief’s Law of Oyo State, 2000 and the Registered Alaafin Chieftaincy Declaration of 1961, his appointment is valid, lawful and proper.”

Gbadegesin is also seeking an order directing the Governor of Oyo State to “immediately and forthwith approve the appointment of the claimant as validly nominated by Agunloye Ruling House and or selected/appointed and proclaimed by the kingmakers of Alaafin of Oyo as the candidate to fill the vacant stool of the Alaafin of Oyo.”

 Furthermore, the claimant asks for “an order of injunction restraining the first, third, fifth, sixth and ninth to thirteenth defendants, their agents, servants and or privies from recognising or further recognising the fourth defendants as Alaafin of Oyo and or paying him the stipends, allowances, salaries and all the prerequisites of office attached to the position of Alaafin of Oyo.”

Gbadegesin, in the suit, demands an order setting aside the nomination, selection and or appointment, approval or appointment and presentation of staff of office to Owoade as Alaafin of Oyo, insisting that it was done in violation of the provisions of the Chief’s Law of Oyo State, 2000, the Registered Alaafin Chieftaincy Declaration of 1961, unlawful, unconstitutional, invalid, null and void.

The suit comes after pre-action notice filed by Sobaloju, addressed to the Governor of Oyo State, insisting that the governor’s actions run foul of the Oyo State Chief’s Law, 2000.

Gbadegesin, recommended by a faction of the Oyomesi, is appealing that the court set aside the appointment, approval of appointment and presentation of staff of office to a new Alaafin carried out by the governor.

Meanwhile, the Oyo State Government has sent things in motion for the coronation of Owoade as the new Alaafin.

The state government and Owoade have constituted a coronation committee, which held its inaugural meeting last week.

Activist and lawyer, Dele Farotimi, on Sunday, disclosed that he was still faced with four separate suits in different states filed by members of the Aare Afe Babalola law office.

Farotimi disclosed this while speaking during the Toyin Falola Interviews on Sunday.

Farotimi’s disclosure comes after the Founder of Afe Babalola University, Ado Ekiti, Aare Afe Babalola (SAN), on January 27, agreed to withdraw the cases instituted against Farotimi.

Following Afe Babalola’s petition to the police commissioner in Ekiti State that Farotimi defamed him in a book titled ‘Nigeria and its Criminal Justice System,’ the police arrested the activist lawyer and arraigned him before two courts in Ekiti.

Consequently, Farotimi stood trial for alleged criminal defamation before an Ekiti State Magistrate Court, Ado Ekiti District and as well for alleged cyber-bullying before the Ado Ekiti Division of Federal High Court.

Babalola had announced his withdrawal of the case against Farotimi citing the intervention of the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi, and other top traditional rulers.

But featuring on Sunday’s conversation, with the theme: “Politics, Law and Society,” Farotimi disclosed that while the police had withdrawn criminal charges against him following Babalola’s petition withdrawal, he still faced four civil suits across different states, all filed by members of Babalola’s law office.

“My inability to speak to certain aspects of this issue is borne out of the fact that, despite the discontinuation of the criminal proceeding, I still have four suits that I am aware of, in four different states of the federation, filed by members of the same law office, against my person,” he revealed.

Farotimi emphasised that his book was not written in a moment of idle talk or baseless accusations but rather a well-researched work documenting his experiences and observations about the Nigerian judicial system.

“I did not sit down in a beer parlour; I was not at an officers’ mess; I was not gossiping. It was not idle, cheap talk. I wrote a book,” he declared. “Let us deal with veracity. Anybody can go and read and then come back and challenge me with the lie that I have told.”

Dismissing claims that the controversy surrounding his book is a personal battle, Farotimi insisted that what is on trial is not his reputation, but the Nigerian legal system itself.

“This is not a trial of Dele Farotimi. Let nobody make that error. It is a trial of the legal system that we have built as a collective,” he asserted.

He reaffirmed that his controversial book, ‘Nigeria and Its Criminal Justice System’, is not an attack on individuals, particularly legal luminary Chief Afe Babalola, but rather a critique of systemic corruption within the judiciary.

He stressed that his work was written in pursuit of justice, not personal vendettas.

“Chief Afe Babalola is more than old enough to be my father,” Farotimi said. “I did not set out to destroy the man or to tarnish his image. Nothing personal. I was writing about the institution of the judiciary.”

Speaking, Farotimi maintained that his critique aimed at institutional failings rather than individuals.

“Multiple names were mentioned in the book, and offices were mentioned. I did not set out to libel anybody,” he explained. “I simply told the truth of what I saw. All I did was write a book. Maybe we have become too accustomed to lies and allergic to truth, to the point where telling the truth has become a sin.”

According to him, Nigerians must engage with uncomfortable truths if the country is to experience meaningful reform. “We have built a system that rewards deception and punishes truth. I am being sued not because I have lied, but because I have dared to speak the truth.”

Farotimi also criticized those who dismissed his book without reading it, labelling their actions as intellectually lazy.

“Ninety per cent of the persons criticizing me for whatever they believe my tactics to have been in writing the book have not read the book,” he argued. “If Nigerians would stop being so philistinic and illiterate, if they would dare to read, there would be no arguments as to the proof of what I have written.”

Team of police officers attached to the Area F of the Lagos State Police Command have been detained for allegedly extorting a Chinese expatriate along the Sheraton-Opebi link Road area of the state.

PUNCH Metro learnt that the incident occurred when the officers numbering three were conducting a stop and search at the location on Wednesday.

The police officers were said to have flagged down the foreigner and requested his documents, including a green card.

Although the expatriate presented the documents through his phone gallery, the officers insisted on seeing the original copies.

A rights activist, Lameed Adekunle, who was privy to the development told our correspondent on Sunday that after a series of discussions and pleas from the expatriate, the officers forced him to pay N100,000 into a Point Of Sale account.

He said, “The expatriate was on his way for an urgent meeting when the police officers stopped him and demanded his documents including his green card which was shown to the officers through a phone gallery but the officers insisted on seeing the original. Because he was unable to provide it, the officers requested N100,000 and since they did not want to get late to the meeting, they had to make the payment into the account provided to them.”

Speaking on how it became public knowledge, Adewale Ojo of the Committee for the Defence of Human Rights said the expatriate, who works with a popular construction company, narrated his experience to his Nigerian co-workers who later escalated the matter.

He said, “The man just moved to Nigeria and he felt so disappointed in the way he was treated. He had to tell some of his workers who later informed us. We took it up, informed the police authorities and the officers were identified. This also led to their arrest and detention.”

He further stated that the policemen were summoned to the provost’s office in the Ikeja area of the state, adding that they had since been detained.

Ojo added the police officers were instructed to refund the money to the foreigner.

“The money is expected to be refunded tomorrow,  Monday. We are doing this to make sure that the bad eggs in the police are fished out and we also want to follow this particular case to the end like we have always done,” he added.

In a picture sent to our correspondent, one of the officers was seen conversing with the expatriate in his vehicle.

A receipt of the transfer bearing the name of the expatriate and the recipient was also seen by our correspondent.

The command spokesperson, Benjamin Hundeyin, could not be reached for a reaction as calls made to his telephone line were not answered. A text message sent to him had yet to be replied to as this report was filed.

PUNCH Metro reported in October 2024 that officers from Area C Police Command in Surulere allegedly extorted the sum of N1m from three members of the National Youth Service Corps members.

It was gathered that the corps members were stopped along the Surulere expressway before a group of officers surrounded their vehicle and started searching.

An argument ensued between the corps members and the officers before the vehicle was driven to the Area C Police Station where the extortion was said to have taken place.

The Ondo State Police Command has arrested a suspected notorious mobile phone thief, Temidayo Fadahunsi, at the Ijoke area of Akure, the state capital.

According to the police, there was a case of phone theft reported at the police station in the area and the suspect was arrested in connection with the stealing.

The state Commissioner of Police, Mr Wilfred Afolabi, while parading the suspect and other suspects at the police headquarters in Akure, on Saturday, said after the arrest, when Fadahunsi’s house was searched, no fewer than 228 Android phones were found in his possession with many foreign SIM cards.

The CP said, “On February 6, 2025, a case of stealing was reported to the police. Through shared information, police swung into action and arrested one Temidayo Fadahunsi, aged 25, at the Ijoka area of Akure and the following items were found in his possession: 228 types of Android phones, 156 different types of batteries and 23 foreign sim cards, which he could not give a satisfactory account of where and how he got them.

“The suspect is currently under investigation and will be charged to court at the end of the investigation.”

Afolabi also paraded some suspected kidnappers who had been on the wanted list of the state police command for allegedly involving in various kidnapping activities in some parts of the state.

The police boss listed the suspects who included Aminu, Abdullahi Abubakar, Yusuf Saidu, Nafiu Ibrahim, Mohammed Anas, Kabiru Mohammed, Yusuf Suleiman and Ishaku Abdul, who was an ex-convict, recently released from prison.

“On February 13,  2025, through intelligence gathering and the use of technical support, one Aminu, was arrested at the Akure garage in Ikare Akoko. His arrest further led to the apprehension of Abdullahi Abubakar. In another operation that took place between February 14 and 15, other suspects were arrested by the tactical team who had been on their trail: Yusuf Saidu, Nafiu Ibrahim, Mohammed Anas and Kabiru Mohammed.

“Also, in Ipele, a woman was abducted by unknown gunmen in her house, the police and youths of the town mobilised and immediately trailed the footpaths of the suspects. Their effort yielded positive results as they were able to rescue the woman and while searching for the assailants. They recovered an AK 49 rifle at the scene of the rescue.

Subsequently, through intelligence-led policing one of the suspects, Yusuf Suleiman, was arrested.

“In the same vein, one Ishaku Abdul was arrested by the Special Anti-Kidnapping Squad based on a tip-off. The suspect who is an ex-convict and recently released from a correctional centre was suspected by the neighbours to be complicit in the recent uprising of criminal activities in the area. He was arrested at the Aladura camp, Oke-Oge, Osi (Akure North LG), the area where recent kidnappings occurred.”

The CP noted that all the suspects had been on the police wanted list, and would be charged to court after the end of the investigation.

President Bola Tinubu says the African Union Peace and Security Council (AUPSC) should prioritise the establishment of a combined maritime task force to enhance security in the Gulf of Guinea.

Tinubu spoke on Sunday at the 38th ordinary session of the assembly of the AU heads of state and government in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

Represented by Yusuf Tuggar, minister of foreign affairs, Tinubu proposed Lagos, Nigeria’s economic nerve, as the security outfit’s headquarters.

“The time has come for the African Union Peace and Security Council to prioritise the creation of a combined maritime task force for the Gulf of Guinea,” a statement issued by Bayo Onanuga, special adviser to Tibubu on information and strategy, quoted the president as saying.

 

“I wish to announce that Nigeria would like to host the headquarters of the task force in Lagos.”

Tinubu’s recommendation of a maritime task force comes on the same day that Nigeria signed an agreement with the AU.

The statement said Nigeria agreed to provide strategic sea lift services for AU peace support operations, natural disaster support, humanitarian actions, and personnel movement.

Under the agreement, the Nigerian Navy will provide a vessel for the operations on a cost-recovery basis.

Badaru Abubakar, the minister of defence, signed the agreement on Nigeria’s behalf while Bankole Adeoye, AU commissioner for political affairs, peace, and security, signed for the union.

The statement noted that the AUPSC had previously held a high-level meeting.

Tinubu expressed satisfaction at the decision to upgrade the Nigerian National Counter-Terrorism Centre to a regional counter-terrorism centre, which was one of the outcomes of the meeting.

The president also highlighted the insecurity affecting Sahelian countries grappling with democratic transition.

He blamed the worsening situation on the instability in Libya and urged the assembly to back initiatives to restore law and order in the country.

“It would not be out of place to explore the possibility of extending the inherent benefits of UN Security Council resolution 2719 to support AU peace support operations,” the president said.

In doing so, Tinubu added that the AU must try to prevent the increasing incursion of extra-continental forces, including private military companies, into African security matters.

Abdulrahman Bello, the suspected ritualist accused of killing Yetunde Lawal, a female student of Kwara State College of Education, has denied any involvement in her death.

The 24-year-old student was said to have gone missing on February 10, prompting her parents to file a report at a police station in Ilorin, the capital of Kwara state.

Following the police investigation, Bello was arrested in connection with her disappearance.

The victim was said to have been killed and her body dismembered by the suspect, whom she met on Facebook.

 

In a video circulating online on Saturday, Bello, who introduced himself as Mohammed, claimed that he did not kill Yetunde.

According to him, Yetunde had told him she was asthmatic before visiting his house on the day of the incident.

He claimed that she attended an event earlier in the day and returned to his home, complaining of hunger.

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Speaking in the Yoruba language, he said, “My name is Mohammed; I am a Muslim cleric. I am about to gain admission into KWASU.”

“The girl is Hafusa. She is my girlfriend; I met her on Facebook. I didn’t kill her. I am just a victim of circumstance.

“She told me they had an event at 1 pm after school that day. She got back after 3 pm. When she came, she told me she hadn’t eaten, so I went to get her food. However, she was gasping for breath when I got back.

“I was in shock when she died, so I couldn’t cry out for help. I dismembered her body and disposed of it at the public refuse dump because I couldn’t think of any better way. I have never done this before. This is my first time.”

The body of a police inspector identified as Haruna Mohammed has been found in a hotel room in Ogun state.

Mohammed, who was attached to the Ishashi police division in Lagos, was said to have checked into Super G Royal Hotel at Anthony Uzum Estate, Oyeyemi Akute, around 1 a.m. on Saturday with an unidentified woman.

TheCable understands that Deborah Adejobi, the hotel manager, noticed that the room door was left open and found the officer unresponsive at about 8:52 a.m. while the woman was nowhere to be found.

According to a police report, the hotel owner, Abiodun Olagunju, reported the incident to the authorities.

 

Olagunju also noted that the woman had briefly visited the reception at about 6 a.m. to request a bottle of water before disappearing.

Mohammed’s body has been taken to Life Channel Mortuary in the Olambe area of Akute.

Omolola Odutola, the police spokesperson in Ogun state, confirmed the incident.

“At first, it was the uniform found in his bag, so it was not possible to say he is a police officer. There was no identification card on him or his belongings,” Odutola said.

“But further investigation revealed that the deceased is an inspector of police serving with the Ishashi division in the Lagos command.

“The DPO has been contacted and his body identified.”

Odutola said operatives of the command have launched a manhunt for the fleeing lady, while an investigation is ongoing to unravel the circumstances surrounding his death.

Chimamanda Adichie, the award-winning author, has welcomed twins with her husband at age 47.

The boys, born in April 2024, were revealed during her interview with The Guardian on Saturday.

The writer revealed she kept the birth of her twin from the public to “protect” them.

She said that Nigerians’ curiosity about people’s personal lives makes her even more reluctant to share.

“I want to protect my children. I’m okay with having them mentioned, but I don’t want the piece to become about them,” she said.

“So, here is the thing, Nigerians are sosy. They want to know about your personal life. Because of that, I am resistant. I very rarely talk about it,” she said.

Adichie will be releasing her first feature-length novel in 11 years in March.

The novel titled ‘Dream Count’ is a reflection on love, desire, and the intricacies of womanhood explored through the lives of four distinct women.

Talking about her writing hiatus, she revealed it happened unplanned after she got pregnant with her first child.

Adichie said she struggled for years to reconnect with her creative self after feeling “cast out” from the part of her that imagines and creates, even though she could still write nonfiction.

“I did not want to leave such a long gap between novels. When I got pregnant with my daughter, something just happened,” she said.

“I had a number of years in which I was almost existentially frightened that I wouldn’t write again. It was unbearable.

“There are expressions like ‘writer’s block’ I don’t like to use because I’m superstitious. But I had many years in which I felt cast out from my creative self, cast out from the part of me that imagines and creates; I just could not reach it.

“I could write nonfiction, that was fine. But that’s not what my heart wanted.”

Adichie is married to Ivara Esege, a Nigerian doctor. The lovebirds tied the knot in 2009 and welcomed their first daughter in 2016.

Aside from being a novelist, Adichie is also a feminist.

She is best known for her themes on politics, culture, race, and gender.

She has received global recognition and won numerous awards.

In 2019, Adichie became the first Nigerian to receive the United Nations Foundation’s Global Leadership Award.

The writer has also made the New African’s list of ‘100 Most Influential Africans’, New Yorker’s ’20 under 40′, and Time Magazine’s ‘100 Most Influential People’.

Muhsin Hendricks, believed to be the world’s first openly gay imam, has been shot dead in South Africa.

Hendricks was killed on Saturday near the southern city of Gqeberha after assailants ambushed his vehicle and opened fire.

According to reports, the imam had just finished officiating a lesbian wedding before he was killed.

A police statement said Hendricks was in a car with another person on Saturday when a vehicle stopped in front of them and blocked their exit.

“Two unknown suspects with covered faces got out of the vehicle and started firing multiple shots at the vehicle,” the statement reads.

“Thereafter they fled the scene, and the driver noticed that Hendricks, who was seated at the back of the vehicle was shot and killed.”

The imam ran a mosque intended as a haven for gay and other marginalised Muslims.

His killing has stirred anger from the LGBTQ+ community.

Hendricks, involved in various LGBTQ advocacy groups, came out as gay in 1996.

He was also the subject of a 2022 documentary called “The Radical,” which gave an insight into his queer choice as a clergyman.

Hendricks previously alluded to threats against him but insisted that “the need to be authentic” was “greater than the fear to die