Federal Govt, Lagos head for showdown

THE stage seems set for a showdown between the Federal Government and the government of Lagos State over the 37 Local Council Development Areas (LCDAs).

The Federal Government said yesterday that it was ready to enforce the Supreme Court’s ruling on the issue.

Minister of State for the Interior Demola Seriki and Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice Michael Aondoakaa accused Lagos State Governor Tunde Fashola (SAN), of trying to whip up sentiments on the issue.

Both ministers, who spoke to reporters after the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting at the Presidential Villa, said the Yar’Adua administration would not accept any illegality.

Andoakaa said there was no point going through Fashola’s letter which was sent to him by President Umaru Yar’Adua for advice on the matter because, according to him, the Supreme Court’s judgment is there.

Aondoakaa said: "I have nothing to study; the law is there. He directed me and I have replied him. What do you mean by studying the matter. The judgment is there, the judgment of the Supreme Court is thorough; what do I have to study?

"The law is so clear, it is so elementary and the governor knows it and that is the law and it can’t be changed."

Yar’Adua last week hinted that he would explore dialogue to resolve the issue, even as he stressed that the constitution would not be compromised.

The 37 LCDAs were created by the Lagos State House of Assembly in 2002 under the Bola Tinubu administration. Fashola is insisting that since the LCDAs were legally created, they could not be arbitrarily disbanded. All that is left is for the National Assembly to play its part and get the council areas listed in the Constitution after amending the first schedule.

At the Murtala Mohammed Airport, Ikeja, Lagos yesterday, Fashola told reporters that he was not disturbed by the presidential directive on the LCDAs.

He said: "I will not like to speak on that matter but urge you to see wherever you go the imprimatur of our work, our government, our party and tomorrow (today), we will be giving account again of what we have done in the last 100 days.

Seriki said: "This government is not in opposition to the creation of additional local governments. I, as a Lagosian and a minister from Lagos State, am not opposed to such as well ..."

Aondoakaa said the government’s action does not amount to arm-twisting Lagos State but a matter of constitutionality.

"Let me be very clear that President Yar’Adua supports development but we have to follow the law in doing things. Local government has two aspects of legislative imperative; the process starts from the state and terminates, at the State House of Assembly.

Government is open to dialogue to ensure that this matter gets resolved. Our position is to make the law clear, discuss with Lagos State. The law is very clear.

The Nation

Nigeria on the brink

Four days of violence in Nigeria have left hundreds dead, destroyed towns and villages across the north, brought the cold-blooded police shooting of an Islamist rabble-rouser and left the outside world horrified. Nigeria, with 140 million people, is Africa’s largest country. It is also one of the most corrupt, unstable, unequal and fissiparous: in half a century of independence it has seen civil wars, separatist rebellions, military coups, ethnic vendettas and a terrible descent into virtual ungovernability. What happens in Nigeria matters not only to Africa: it affects the huge diaspora in Britain, distorts the oil market, drives international criminality and opens the gates to extremism and terrorism.

The latest violence comes after an uprising by a bizarre Islamist sect, Boko Haram, that urged followers in several northern states to attack police stations, prisons and churches and burn down schools in an attempt to enforce extreme Sharia and rid the country of all Western education. This is not the first such uprising in the north or the only time that militants, who model themselves on the Afghan Taleban, have clashed with federal authority. At least 10,000 people have been killed in sectarian clashes since the Government, attempting to appease the growing current of Islamic extremism after years of military dictatorship, allowed 12 of the northern states to proclaim Sharia. But President Yar’Adua now sees the very unity of Nigeria at stake. After a warning this week that the sect was preparing to unleash “holy war”, he ordered troops to eradicate Boko Haram once and for all.

The order has been carried out with indiscriminate brutality. House-to-house searches, gun battles and helicopter searches have killed sect members in scores. Their leader, a university dropout with a violent agenda and views so benighted that he asserted the world was flat and rain was not caused by evaporation but by Allah, was caught in a goats’ pen, and shot dead by police after begging for mercy. It is not only his followers who are outraged: many Nigerians and human rights activists have warned of inevitable reprisals and exacerbation of the nation’s religious divide.

The uprising, however, is just a symptom of the social breakdown that has made Nigeria so prone to violence. Rampant corruption has undermined even the feeble central government efforts to tackle social inequality, failing health and education systems, the stinking detritus burying most big cities and widespread unemployment. The oil boom has only exacerbated corruption and inequality, and the dreadful conditions in the Niger Delta have spawned an endemic rebellion, regular kidnappings and crime syndicates that siphon off so much oil that total production is running at millions of barrels below capacity.

Into this maelstrom have stepped Islamist extremists. Al-Qaeda has identified Nigeria as fertile ground for its nihilist message, just as it saw Somalia, another failing African state, as a new base for its operations. It is swiftly spreading the jihadist message, exploiting the unease over Sharia by pushing for the most extremist interpretation and recruiting Nigerians as new agents to infiltrate Western society. This is extremely alarming. There is a large Nigerian community in most European countries, and an especially big one in Britain. Already there are fears that organised crime is exploiting the link to racketeering. If al-Qaeda can recruit sleepers among still largely moderate Muslims living in the West, the security services have a nightmare on their hands.

Nigerians are desperate to see better government in Abuja. The onus is now on President Yar’Adua to overcome doubts about his democratic legitimacy, grasp the urgency of Nigeria’s situation and save a failing state before he is swept away by violence, despair or another coup.

London Times

AP shares: House dissociates self from committee’s report

The House of Representatives on Sunday dissociated itself from the report made public by its committee on capital market, concerning the controversy trailing African Petroleum (AP) Plc’s shares. Addressing newsmen in Abuja, Eseme Eyiboh, chairman, House of Representatives committee on media and public affairs, said the purported findings by the committee were not known to the House.
It would be recalled that Ahmed Wadada, chairman, House committee on the capital market had on Friday said that the House had recommended the cancellation of the controversial AP Plc hybrid shares, just as it ordered that the funds raised from it be returned to investors.
Wadada had also said that the committee’s findings revealed that there was ample evidence suggesting irregularities in the offer prospectus.
He said the committee had in June conducted an “investigative public hearing” on AP’s shares’ manipulation and its hybrid offer.
The lawmaker also absolved Aliko Dangote, chairman, Dangote Group of Companies, from the allegations of manipulating the AP shares.
He said that the committee equally adopted the recommendations of both the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on the involvement of Dangote in the shares scandal.
The committee, however, upheld the punishment recommended for the managing director of Nova Finance and Securities Ltd, Eugene Anenih, but appealed for a review.
But Eyiboh said the clarification became necessary because of the sensitive nature of the sector in question, adding that the procedure was for such report to be debated and adopted by the whole House before it was made public.
“We are not formally and officially aware of any report. There was no report before the plenary session of the House. The report is a product of private pursuit,” Eyiboh stated.
He said the action of his colleague in presenting the report as if it was the resolution of the House had undermined the integrity of the House, appealing to Nigerians to disregard the report in its entirety.
“The committee has the task of intervening and bringing the report back to the House.
“It is because of the sensitive nature of the sector, because comments from an institution like the House of Representatives could cause panic in the economy and also have a spill over effect.
“This is not coming from House of Representatives; neither is it coming from its leadership, whatever comment outside this, is a private pursuit and cannot be linked to the institution, because if it is a report of the House, it would have come to the plenary for debate,” he said.
Efforts to get the reaction of Wadada (PDP-Nasarrawa) proved abortive as he was said to have traveled abroad on holiday. (NAN)

PTI relocation: How 2011 forced Yar’Adua to beat retreat - The kitchen cabinet connection

AS the controversies generated by the relocation of the Petroleum Training Institute (PTI) from Effurun, Delta State, to Kaduna seem to have settled with the confirmation of the Presidency that the degree-awarding status of the PTI remains unchanged, fresh insights regarding the reason for the presidential clarification emerged on Sunday.

After about two weeks of heated debate over the propriety or otherwise of the transfer of the degree-awarding status from the PTI to the National Petroleum College in Kaduna, with a take-off budget of N14billion, President Umaru Yar’Adua finally broke his silence over the vexed issue on Saturday.

The Nigerian Tribune gathered, however, that political, rather than other considerations, informed the decision of the president to speak out in order not to “rock the boat already sailing,” according to a source.

The president’s clarification, the third in the series of denials since the controversy began, came through his Adviser on Media and Publicity, Mr. Olusegun Adeniyi.

Adeniyi said the approval given by the administration of Chief Olusegun Obasanjo for the upgrading of the PTI to a university had come to stay.The statement all the same remained silent on the fate of the N14billion said to have been budgetted for the take-off of the petroleum university.

According to the source, who is a member of the PDP National Working Committee, both the Presidency and the party were taken aback by the courage of the South-South governors and the level of support they garnered by their threat penultimate week to back out of the Federal Government’s amnesty deal for militants in the restive Niger Delta region.

The governors had given the relocation of the PTI, among other reasons, as the basis for their threat.

“The threat issued by the South-South governors is one of the most courageous moves ever in this country in recent times, and that is the beauty of democracy; they really shook all of us; initially we thought by the time we talk to some of their leaders to reconsider their decision on the issue, they would back down, but by the time the level of support the decision attracted from their kinsmen began to manifest, the entire leadership of the party had to ensure that something was done not rock an already sailing boat.

“You know the region is one of the strongholds of the PDP, and you equally know what it means to incur the anger of even our own men; so we felt for them and reasoned that they will find it difficult to continue to sell the PDP in the coming elections in 2011. Remember, we have already lost one state in the region to the AC; so to gamble with the issue of the relocation of an institution from its original place was too much for the party to bear. Some of us are therefore not surprised that the president has finally spoken on the matter, we have been on it for days without resting, trying to enlist the support of some close confidants of the president to look at the issue once again.”

It was gathered that the party set up a secret lobby group comprising mostly, members of the president’s kitchen cabinet to meet the president and tell him the implications of the decision to relocate the University of Petroleum Resources from Effurun to Kaduna.

It was further learnt that the lobby team had to swing into action when the South-South governors, in their meeting with the president, insisted on the reversal of the Federal Executive Council’s decision conveyed by the Petroleum Minister, Dr. Rilwanu Lukman, that while the PTI would remain a training ground for middle level manpower in the oil and gas industry, the NPC, Kaduna, was to be upgraded to a degree-awarding institution to breed the nation’s managerial needs in the same sector.

Among others, a former governor and a frontline member of the party’s BOT were said to have impressed it on the president that it was not politically expedient to effect such a policy when it is likely for him to seek a second term in the year 2011.

The governors, apart from Comrade Adams Oshiomhole of Edo State, were equally said to have told the president that they could not guarantee the voting pattern of their people in 2011 if the decision was not reversed.

Nigeria Tribune

Fighting rages, death toll hits 300 in Borno

HEAVY bombardments by the nation's forces on suspected strongholds of Boko Haram, the northern-based Islamic sect that is championing a 'Jihad' (holy war) in the region, continued yesterday.

Unconfirmed reports said that the death toll from the clash had risen to 300 while thousands of the residents had been displaced in Maiduguri, the Borno State capital.

The leader of the sect, Mohammed Yusuf, was reportedly using some residents of the heart of the clashes, the Maiduguri Railway Terminus Areas (MRTA), as human shield.

In Jalingo, Taraba State, security agents have located a school where the sect trains its members while in Kano, the state government has demolished a mosque used by the armed group.

A senior government official in Maiduguri claimed that 4,000 people had fled their homes as troops and militants engaged in battles for the fourth day.

The opposition Action Congress (AC) has described President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua's trip to Brazil in the face of the crisis as ill-timed.

The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) spokesman Apollus Jediel said about 1,000 people fled their homes in Maiduguri yesterday alone and appealed to the state government to assist the displaced persons.

Militants seeking to impose Sharia law throughout the multi-religious country attacked a police station in Bauchi State on Sunday. The violence spread to three other states,

hundreds of people are reported to have been killed in the violence. Police said most of the victims were militants.

Yusuf's residence was shelled by troops on Tuesday evening, along with a mosque where many of his followers meet, but he allegedly escaped.

"The house and the mosque have been pulverised and reduced to rubble. To be honest with you I don't think the campaign will be finished within the next day or two," a police officer said.

Yesterday, the Borno State government advised residents of the six areas adjoining the scene of the fighting to stay indoors as the attack on the militants continued, to avoid being hit by stray bullets. The areas include Kumshe, Floor Mills, Kasuwan Shanu, State Low Cost, Kofar Biyu and Gamboru Police Station.

The police in Borno also said yesterday that they had concluded arrangement to return the 180 women and children allegedly lured to Maiduguri from Bauchi and nine others from Bukuru in Plateau State under the guise that they were going for Islamic Jihad.

Police spokesman, Isa Azare, commended the state government for its pledge to assist the command transfer the women and children back to their Bauchi base.

He said the Deputy Governor, Adamu Shettima Dibal, has promised the state government's financial assistance to the police to enable them transport the people back to their places, but it was not clear as at press time if the promise had been fulfilled.

Azare would, however, not give the exact details of the casualties, saying it was difficult to give a precise figure, given the fact that the operation was on-going. "You know it is not appropriate to give any figure of casualties now, because, apart from the sects members that were killed, there are a good number of policemen that are still missing. Until after the operation when the coast becomes clearer, nobody can give a definite number of those who have lost their lives."

But The Guardian learnt that the two hospitals in the state capital had been finding it difficult to accommodate the growing number of victims. For instance, it was learnt that the mortuary of the University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital (UMTH) had been filled to capacity. As a result, bodies were being dumped at the car park, at the Umaru Shehu Ultra Modern Hospital, Bulumkutu.

However, concerns were being raised as the expected capture of Yusuf appeared far- fetched given the inability of the combined military and police operations to capture the sect leader, who, is said to be taking human shields to avoid arrest. As a resident told The Guardian, the military is incapacitated by the fact that Yusuf had tactically resorted to human shields to avoid arrest.

For instance, at the Shehu North, men of the Operation Flush 11 were seen beating a retreat having been overwhelmed by the high number of the sect members who were said to be coming out in their hundreds from their hide-outs. The area is close to the palace of the Shehu of Borno.

Col. Ben Ahanotu, commander of Operation Flush 11, confirmed the fears as he said residents taken hostage, including women and children of the sect members, numbered over 1,500, adding that "we cannot raze down Yusuf's residence and the mosques right now (yesterday). There are a lot of people in the houses in the MRTA and two main residential areas of Maiduguri and Jere council areas."

A statement by the Director of Press Affairs to the Governor, Usman Chiroma, also confirmed that Yusuf and his followers were using the civil populace as cover".

He quoted Governor Ali Modu Sheriff as advising all residents of the affected areas to stay indoors to avoid endangering their lives.

Maj.-Gen. Saleh Maina, the General Officer Commanding (GOC) 3rd Armoured Division, Jos, who is leading the offensive, ordered his men to suspend the shelling to allow civilians to move out of the area to reduce human casualties, because the fundamentalists live in the State Low Cost Estate, Shehu and Abaganaram."

The Guardian further learnt that at about 1p.m. yesterday, the five armoured tanks deployed to the MRTA, were stationed 500 metres away from the sect's stronghold. One of the armoured carriers was on Tuesday attacked and its tyre was punctured, while advancing towards Yusuf's house and mosque.

While a combined force of 500 soldiers and policemen took strategic positions at all the entries to the area, Ahanotu, in a message to The Guardian disclosed that more than 65 sect members were killed while they were fleeing the platoon soldiers to Yusuf's house and mosque.

He said the joint military and police was able to arrest the second in command to the leader of the sect, Bukar Shekau, while Yusuf, was still with some members holed up in the house. Unconfirmed reports claimed that before the capture of Shekau, both men were sighted in military camouflage.

Shekau, according to military intelligence sources at the Maiduguri Government House, is providing useful information and means of arresting Yusuf and his armed members.

Meanwhile, all schools, markets, banks, the Maiduguri Monday Market and Musa Usman Secretariat complex that houses 18 ministries and parastatals have remained closed. Besides, the major streets in the metropolis, including the ever-busy Post Office-Airport Road and Shehu Laminu Way that lead to the MRTA were deserted.

The Minority Leader of the House of Representatives, Mohammed Ali Ndume, has blamed the Federal Government for not acting enough to reign in the terrorists, in spite of the earlier security information available to it.

The lawmaker, who represents Damboa/Chibok/Gwoza Federal Constituency in the House of Lower Representatives maintained that the government was briefed early enough ahead of the possible out-break of the crisis, but did not act promptly.

The Kano State government, which yesterday expressed concern over the Islamic militant's presence in the North, demolished a mosque in Wudil used by one of the group's leader, Salisu Al- Amin Wudil.

The state government described the activities of the group as unfortunate in view of the fact that the Ibrahim Shekarau administration had been committed to peaceful co-existence and religious harmony amongst residents of the state.

In a statement signed by Adamu Abdullahi, the government reiterated its commitment to the goal of ensuring the security of lives and property of all residents.

The Managing Director of the Kano State Urban Planning and Development Agency (KNUPDA), Malam Hassan Na'Abba confirmed the demolition of the mosque and the residents of the militants' leader.

Na'Abba said the mosque was situated in a location in Wudil not within areas earmarked for the constriction of residential and religious buildings.

In Jalingo, the sect's school located at Angwan Lariya, the state capital, was said to be solely dedicated to the teaching of ethics opposed to western civilisation.

Confirming the report, the Chairman of the Moslem Council of Nigeria (MCN), Alhaji Inuwa Jauro Manu, blamed the security agencies and the Ministry of Education for allowing such a school to exist in the state.

The school, reportedly named Alfurqan Islamic School, is located on the same street as the Motor Traffic Division (MTD) of the Nigeria Police.

Manu, who was visibly dejected, said even though, the "sect called itself a religious organisation, its actions and activities does not conform with Islam"

The proprietor, whose name was given as Malam Salihu, was said to have fled to Maiduguri along with some of his followers and their families two days to the mayhem in Borno.

AC has described as ill-timed and ill-advised the current three-day official trip to Brazil by Yar'Adua, at a time the country was in the throes of violence triggered by the misguided and self-styled 'Nigerian Taliban' sect.

In a statement issued in Lagos yesterday by its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party wondered what was so compelling about the trip that it could not be deferred in the national interest.

"At the last count, four states in the north have borne the brunt of the violence unleashed by the senseless members of this sect, and dozens of lives, including those of security agents, have been lost while property worth billions have been damaged.

"In addition, hundreds of our citizens have been displaced and left deeply traumatized, while there is palpable fear across the country that the violence may either spread further or degenerate.

"It is therefore unconscionable that the President, who is the father of the nation, could take this time to travel to Brazil, instead of visiting the affected areas and offering succour to the people affected," AC said.

"The President's hastily-arranged media interaction before his departure, during which he commented on the crisis, has done little or nothing to change the fact that the timing of the trip was bad," the party added.

Guardian

Yar'Adua opts for dialogue in row over Lagos councils

President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua is to explore dialogue in resolving the row over Lagos State’s 37 Local Council Development Areas (LCDAs) which he directed the governor to shut down.

President Yar’Adua, who spoke at the Nnamdi Azikwe International Airport shortly before leaving for a three-day official visit to Brazil, said the bottom line is that the constitution cannot be compromised.

The President also said he hoped that the issue would be resolved once and for all through constructive dialogue.

He, however, warned that if dialogue fails, the Federal Government would take measures to ensure that the government of Lagos State, its State Independent Electoral Commission (SIEC) and other agencies are compelled to abide by the Constitution. He gave no details of such measures.

The 37 LCDAs were created by the Lagos State Assembly in 2002 during the Asiwaju Bola Tinubu administration. Governor Babatunde Fashola (SAN) has asked the President to go to court, if he has any case against the state.

The Chief Olusegun Obasanjo administration withheld about N20billion meant for Lagos State from the Federation Account because the Tinubu administration created the council development areas.

The issue has triggered negative reactions against the Federal Government, but President Yar’Adua said he is awaiting advice from the Attorney General of the Federation, Mr Michael Aondoakaa (SAN).

Yar’Adua said: "What has happened was that I wrote to the Lagos State Governor, drawing his attention to the fact that both himself and myself have sworn to preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of this country and that the action of Lagos State Government and the State INEC was unconstitutional because the Constitution provides for only 20 local governments in Lagos State and I advised the Lagos State governor to take steps to rectify this unconstitutional act.

"He replied me, quoting the state’s statutes and putting forward his legal position that they did not violate the Constitution. I have referred his reply to the AGF to study the reply and advise me.

"What I am determined to do is that what is constitutional must be adhered to. So, if the argument put forward cannot stand on the violation of the Constitution, I will invite him to discuss further with him and dialogue so that this can be resolved peacefully.

"But the bottom line is that the Constitution cannot be compromised. The Constitution must not be violated. If at the end of the day dialogue fails to resolve the situation, then the Federal Government will be forced to take measures that will ensure that the Lagos State Government, its INEC and other agencies are compelled to abide by the Constitution. This is a process that will take some few months and I hope that we will be able to resolve the issue through constructive dialogue.

"Our democracy is still young; we are bound to make mistakes here and there but the important thing is that we must work hard to ensure the Rule of Law in this country. We know it is not easy but it is important to our survival."

The President is off to Brazil on a renewed invitation of the Brazilian President after last year’s trip was aborted.

Justifying the trip, he said: "I believe this is an important trip because Brazil is a fast advancing economy and I believe that Nigeria can gain from the visit in terms of multilateral cooperation and in terms of our economy and investments, especially in places where they have made very striking advancement in agriculture, agriculture research and agro chemical.

"Brazil has advanced in such a way that they are looking for strategic partners, especially in the developing countries to the underdeveloped ones, and they have their eyes on Nigeria, particularly in the South-South."

Security probes plot to implicate Bankole in N5b contracts scandal

Security agencies are probing an alleged plot to implicate the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mr. Dimeji Bankole, in the N5.2billion contract scam in the Rural Electrification Agency (REA).

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has filed a 156-count charge against Senator Nicholas Ugbane, the Chairman of the House Committee on Power, Mr. Ndudi Elumelu and eight others suspected to be involved in the N5.2billion REA power contracts bazaar.

Also on trial are the Deputy Chairman of the House Committee on Power, Mohammed Jibo; the Chairman of the House Committee on Rural Development, Mr. Paulinus Igwe; Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Power Dr. Aliyu Abdullahi; and the Managing Director of REA, Mr. Sam Gakpe.

Others are: Simon Nanle, Lawrence Orekoya, AbdulSamad Jahun and Kayode Oyedeji.

But the trial of the 10 suspects, who are presently on bail, assumed a new dimension last Friday, following a plot to frame up the Speaker.

When the scandal broke out, there were unsuccessful attempts to link members of the immediate family of the Speaker with the contract scandal, it was learnt yesterday.

One of the suspects had on Friday tried to "set up" one of the Speaker’s aides by claiming that there were five yet uncleared cheques, amounting to N85.78million, in respect of the REA contracts.

The value of each of the five cheques, which was raised last week and possibly backdated, is put at N17, 157,000.

It was learnt that the suspect, who met the aide in a censored office in the National Assembly, said three of the cheques were meant for three companies owned by relatives.

It was gathered that the suspect said the N85.78million was not part of the N5.2billion scandal uncovered by the EFCC.

The suspect was alleged to have prevailed on the aide to "persuade Bankole’s family members to allow their accounts to be used for the clearance of the said cheques".

A source said: "Alternatively, the suspect said, the cheques could be endorsed by the directors of the companies belonging to the Speaker’s relatives directly to Chief and Chief Nigeria Limited, one of the named in the REA contracts bazaar.

"This would necessitate the companies agreeing to sign an agreement with Chief and Chief Nigeria Limited, claiming they got contracts from the REA and are subletting it to Chief and Chief Nigeria Limited. In this case, the aide will facilitate the agreement."

To underscore his seriousness, the suspect was said to have brought in a bank official, simply described as Gabriel, who came with photocopies of the five cheques.

According to findings, the aide had asked the suspect and the bank official of what will become of the two other cheques.

It was learnt that the bank official said new accounts could be "opened in any other bank for the cheques to be paid in".

Suspecting foul play, the aide quickly alerted the Speaker of the plot.

The Speaker reportedly asked the aide to play along and get as much information as possible from the suspect to enable his office to forward a report to security agencies.

The aide retrieved the photocopies of the cheques from the suspect and the bank official, The Nation learnt.

The cheques were dated after EFCC had concluded investigations and charged suspects to court.

It was gathered that shortly after the interaction, the Speaker asked his aide to report the matter to his Chief Security Officer, who in turn lodged complaints with some security agencies, including the EFCC.

None of the media aides of the Speaker was ready to talk about the matter.

One of them said: "It will be pre-emptive to talk since security agencies are probing the plot.

"One thing you should appreciate is that since the REA scandal broke out, some people have been so desperate to rope in the Speaker but they have failed.

"I think they want to use a backdoor approach to achieve their mischief. Again, they will fail."

A security source said: "We are in receipt of the frame-up alert from the Office of the Speaker; we are already closing in on the suspect and his accomplice.

"We have been able to retrieve the photocopies of the cheques which were dated June 8, 2009. The numbers on the cheques are: 04733442-6.

"We are going to invite the officials of the bank concerned on why they wanted to withdraw from the REA account, which has been frozen by the EFCC, pending the determination of the substantive suit."

The Nation