Nigeria Content Online

[ID:59055 Cable dated:2006-04-03T06:35:00]
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C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 LAGOS 000478

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

STATE PASS DOE FOR GPERSON AND CGAY
TREASURY FOR ASEVERENS AND SRENENDER
COMMERCE FOR KBURRESS
STATE PASS TRANSPORTATION FOR MARAD
STATE PASS USTR FOR ASST USTR SLISER
STATE PASS USAID FOR GWEYNAND AND SLAWAETZ

E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/22/2016
TAGS: EPET, ENERG, ASEC, EAID, NI
SUBJECT: CHEVRON NIGERIA SEEKS LONG-TERM SOLUTION TO DELTA UNREST

Classified By: Ambassador John Campbell for reasons 1.4 (d) and (e).

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Summary
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1. (C) Chevron Nigeria security consultant Hamish MacDonald shared concerns that a large amount of money was paid for the release of the Delta hostages and an industry of hostage-taking may be in the offing. Chevron has managed thus far to stay out of harm’s way, but MacDonald feels the urgent need to expand internationally-supported, long-term development programs. He plans to discuss the matter privately with Delta State Governor Ibori. Chevron will be welcoming a new Managing Director, and, with his arrival, MacDonald expects Chevron to transition from an expansion mode to one of consolidation. End Summary.

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Chevron Worries about Deal Struck to Release Hostages
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2. (C) At a March 29 meeting with the Ambassador, Chevron security consultant Hamish MacDonald said Chevron was “blindsided” by the commitments made to effect the March 26 release of three hostages held by the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND). He said company sources indicated “a very large amount” of money had changed hands for this release, far more than in the release of hostages in January, and if true, we might be witnessing the birth of an industry. The Ambassador replied that the USG commitment remained strictly a willingness, at the invitation of the GON, to observe a newly created development commission that might include members of the aggrieved communities which harbor the hostage takers.

3. (C) MacDonald compared MEND to the IRA, noting its small size relative to its demonstrated ability seriously to disrupt oil operations, as well as its facility for manipulating the media. He felt MEND was targeting companies with poor community relations and business practices and, as such, Chevron still enjoyed an uneasy immunity from attacks.
Polcouns observed that both Willbros and Tidex had bad reputations among communities. MacDonald observed that Chevron was consequently rethinking its relationships with various contractors. He admitted that the oil companies did not have a uniform approach to the largest service companies which they all must use.

4. (C) MacDonald did not believe the military yet had the capacity to launch an effective retaliation against the Delta militants, and, he said, control over security forces was fragmented. He said since his arrival in Nigeria in 2003 there had been only very small increases in the military’s operational capacity. He felt National Security Advisor Aliyu Mohammed had his own agenda as well as a large measure of control over security forces. At the same time, MacDonald cherished his relationship with Chief of Army Staff Gen.
Agwai, who is close to the President and commonly believed to have a good handle on the issues behind Delta region unrest.
He said Chevron currently employs Agwai’s daughter through their youth employment program.

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Production Impact Not Yet Critical
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5. (C) MacDonald said that of the country’s 25-30% loss of total oil production, at least 15% could be restored within a couple weeks if the environment were secure. Chevron has so far only suffered one pipeline vandalism at Makaraba, affecting 13,000 barrels per day of production and relatively quick to fix. At the same time, he said, Chevron is still eyeing for the future a more complete resumption of its on-shore production, bringing up to 80,000 bpd back on-line.

LAGOS 00000478 002 OF 003

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New Managing Director is a Consolidator not an Expander
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6. (C) MacDonald announced Fred Nelson would replace Jay Pryor as Managing Director of Chevron Nigeria by mid-May this year and that there would be a two-week overlap. Nelson was in Nigeria 8 years ago and so has some familiarity with the region. MacDonald called Nelson a “consolidator,” while Pryor had been concerned with growth and expansion. He expected Chevron to augment its relationship with the Federal Government in Abuja by increasing its office size there. As opposed to Shell, Chevron had traditionally maintained a very small presence in Abuja, with the effect of distancing itself from the purely political decision-makers. The Ambassador offered to invite Nelson for a country team briefing on his arrival in country, and MacDonald responded enthusiastically.

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Lack of State and Federal Capacity Hinder Plans for Long-Term Development
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7. (C) MacDonald stressed the importance of the Rivers State development model, spearheaded and partially financed by the State Governor and the Niger Delta Development Commission but with capacity-building support from the USG, HMG and the World Bank. He said state governments, while they did not lack funds for development, did not have the capacity to sustain development programs and would therefore need assistance. He agreed, though, the impetus for these programs had to come from the state governors and indicated Chevron would privately approach Delta State Governor James Ibori to initiate a similar program in his state. MacDonald stressed the private nature of the meeting, intimating Ibori’s reputation with the militants made any direct relationship with Chevron a difficult proposition. (Comment:
In comments to the press during the last hostage crisis, the Presidency likewise stated the Rivers State model, while good, is not enough and must be expanded to other states in the Delta region. End Comment.)

8. (C) MacDonald felt oil companies were being slow to develop a consensus among themselves as to how to respond to the current Delta crisis, and there is a reluctance to formulate a unified solution. The Ambassador noted the potential for the current series of meetings in Washington and London to play a role in such necessary coalition building.

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MacDonald Believes MEND has Impetus from Abuja
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9. (C) MacDonald insinuated Delta unrest had impetus from Abuja, observing that Vice President Atiku had lately appeared more relaxed and free to maneuver. He noted the convenient timing both of the hostage release and the re-capture of Charles Taylor in conjunction President Obasanjo’s visit to Washington. He felt Obasanjo was seeking a closer relationship with former head-of-state and notorious political fixer Ibrahim Babangida (IBB). His sources told him Obasanjo spoke with IBB on the phone for over an hour on March 26 and that IBB’s recent press interview, while bordering on announcing his candidacy for the presidency and opposition to a third term, left his options open.

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Comment
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10. (C) While upper-level management of the oil majors continues publicly to share the GON’s view of MEND and Delta unrest as essentially criminal rather than political in
nature, MacDonald’s view is different. Instead, his
proposed solutions include the immediate expansion of the

LAGOS 00000478 003 OF 003

Rivers State development initiative, added pressure on Delta region governors, beginning with Ibori, to follow suit, and improved cooperation and the building of a united front among the oil companies, and reflect his view that the issues are essentially political. End Comment.

11. (U) This cable was cleared by Embassy Abuja.
BROWNE

Charges of alleged
certificate forgery against the Benue State governor, Gabriel Suswam
lingers on as one of his opponents for the Peoples Democratic Party
(PDP) governorship ticket has asked a Federal High Court sitting in
Abuja, to disqualify Mr Suswam based on his educational qualification.

Terver Kakih also
listed Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), the PDP, West
African Examination Council as defendants.

In a 39-paragraph
affidavit deposed to by the plaintiff, Mr Kakih claimed that Mr Suswam
“used the intimidating influence of the state to foist himself on the
PDP and picked the party’s nomination to contest for office of governor
for a second term in the forthcoming elections.” He also claimed that Mr
Suswam submitted forged credentials to the PDP screening committee.
“One of the information which an aspirant is required to swear to an
Oath on and verify is possession of requisite educational qualification
which will entitle the aspirant, under the Constitution of the Federal
Republic of Nigeria, to hold the office of a governor and to
substantiate the requirement of educational qualification, an Aspirant
must attach to his Party nomination form, copies of his certificates
issued by the relevant educational institutions or examination bodies
charged with issuing such certificates.” Mr Kakih explained.

Sole candidate

The plaintiff said
himself and Mr Suswam submitted their credentials to the PDP and were
both invited for screening and cleared to contest the party primary. He
said he later has reason to doubt the authenticity of the certificates
presented by Mr Suswam and asked the court for an order of interlocutory
injunction restraining the PDP and INEC, their servants, agents and or
privies from recognising or continuing to recognise the name of Mr
Suswam as the candidate of the PDP for the April governorship election
in Benue State, pending the hearing and determination of the substantive
suit.

Mr Kakih is also
seeking an order of interlocutory injunction restraining the INEC from
giving any recognition or further recognition to any other candidate(s),
apart from himself and his running mate, as gubernatorial and deputy
gubernatorial candidates of the PDP at the 2011 general election pending
the hearing and determination of the substantive suit.

The matter will come up before Ibrahim Auta, who is the presiding judge on Friday.

The
Federal Government has said it is making steady progress towards
achieving the target of the Roadmap it set last year for the power
sector.

Minister
of Finance, Olusegun Aganga, who presided over the meeting of the
Presidential Action Committee (PAC) on Power on behalf of President
Goodluck Jonathan, told reporters in Abuja that government effort so
far resulted in the supply of about 3,824 mega watts (MW) of
electricity last Monday, the highest level in recent times.

“We
(government) are making good progress in a number of areas, though we
want to do better. The highest level of electricity supply of 3,824 MW
was achieved last Monday. We had a very successful road show on the
privatization of the power sector, and we harvested an encouraging
number of expressions of interest for the companies on offer for sale.
We expect that most of them would be quality investors, who are willing
and committed to help the success of the road map,” he said.

The
minister said government is interested in partnering with companies
that possess not only the financial strength and technical competence,
but also those with the commitment to drive the business and deliver
electricity as quickly as possible, to make the power sector flourish.

“We
are working on a mechanism to gather direct feedback on specific areas
government needs to focus attention on to improve the situation,” he
said.

Impressive growth

Special
Adviser to the President on Power, Barth Nnaji, said the meeting
reviewed government’s effort to improve and stabilise power supply in
the country, pointing out that apart from generation, significant
improvements were recorded in the area of electricity transmission.

In
December 2010, he said electricity transmission capacity achieved 98
percent improvement of the target set under the Roadmap, from 5,155.2MW
at 330kV level and 6,676.8MW at 132kV level last July to 5,515.2MW and
7,328MW at 330kV and 132kV level respectively.

Since
last December, the adviser said two more 60MVA transformers have been
commissioned in Dakata and Port Harcourt municipality, with four more
billed for Ajaokuta, New Haven, Katsina and Birnin Kebbi to be
energised before the end of this month.

In
addition, he said 11 transformers with 60MVA 132/33kV capacity have
since arrived the country awaiting installation at various locations
nationwide, to help boost the electricity transmission capacity to the
100 percent target under the Roadmap.

According
to Mr Nnaji, “Before now, power supply was fluctuating between 2,000
and 3,000 MW. Today, we are making progressing. It would not be
possible for Nigerians to feel the impact, even when the supply rises
to 4,00MW, because the gap between demand and supply is quite huge. The
important thing is that government is doing what it needs to do to grow
power supply to an appreciable level where the people will begin to
feel the impact,” he said.

Holistic approach

He
said government is now looking at the development of the entire
infrastructure in a holistic manner, rather than focus only on
generation and transmission. Director General BPE, Bolanle Onagoruwa,
said about 331 expressions of Interest (EOI) were harvested from
prospective investors in the 11 distribution and six generating
companies, made up of 167 for distribution companies and 174 for
generating companies at the expiration of the deadline last Friday.

Though
the BPE boss said the EOIs are yet to be opened, she said the bureau
will finalize the evaluation criteria within the next one week, while
the evaluation process will begin immediately after.

She assured that investors are not likely to face gas supply
challenges, as all the power plants now being privatised already have
their sources of gas supply.

[ID:95500 Cable dated:2007-02-06T15:37:00]
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C O N F I D E N T I A L LAGOS 000087

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STATE FOR AF/W
STATE FOR INR/AA
WARSAW FOR LISA PIASCIK
CIUDAD JUAREZ FOR DONNA BLAIR
ISTANBUL FOR TASHAWNA SMITH
SAO PAULO FOR ANDREW WITHERSPOON

E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/06/2017
TAGS: CASC, EPET, KDEM, NI, PGOV, PREL
SUBJECT: SITREP 9: HOSTAGES REMAIN CAPTIVE; GOVERNMENT AGREES TO PAY RANSOM

REF: LAGOS 76

Classified By: Consul Alan Latimer for reasons 1.4 (B) and (D)

1. (C) On February 5, American citizen Bill Graham told Pivot employee (name withheld) the negotiation process should conclude as soon as possible because British national Neil Mirrlees’s condition is very weak. John Walker of Control Risks Group could not confirm delivery of the Oral Rehydration Therapy for Mirrlees. (Reftel)

2. (C) State Security Service (SSS) Director(name withheld) told Walker on February 5 that Governor Ibori has decided to conclude the hostage negotiations despite Federal policy prohibiting ransom payments. This decision was made in light of Mirrlees’s condition, according to SSS Director.
Ransom payment was contingent on the condition that it never be publicly mentioned; SSS Director warned Pivot employee (name withheld) would be arrested if it became known.

3. (C) According to Walker, SSS Director (name withheld) said he would arrange for the hostages’ release once he had the full naira 20 million ransom (approximately USD 156,000) in hand.
BROWNE

The presidential
candidate of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), Nuhu Ribadu; the All
Nigeria Peoples Party candidate, Ibrahim Shekarau and the Social
Democratic Mega Party candidate, Pat Utomi will today, in Abuja,
dialogue with Nigerians on the policy direction of their government, if
elected in next month’s election. However, it is not clear yet if
President Goodluck Jonathan of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and
the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) candidate, Muhammadu Buhari
will participate in the dialogue as they are yet to make firm
commitment on their attendance.

The three
presidential candidates are to speak to Nigerians at a forum titled
‘Policy Dialogue with Presidential Candidates’ organised by the Murtala
Muhammed Foundation. Mr. Muhammed was Nigeria’s head of state between
July 1975 and February 1976, when he was killed in a bloody but failed
military coup led by Bukar Suka Dimka.

The candidates were
billed to speak yesterday, but were absent from the event apparently
due to campaign engagements outside Abuja. Emeka Maduegbuna, one of the
organisers of the forum, said though one of the candidates, whom he did
not name, was expected to dialogue with Nigerians yesterday when the
event began, he could not do so because of flight challenges in Lagos
where he was coming from.

“His aircraft had a challenge and couldn’t fly into Abuja,” he said.

Mr Maduegbuna, who
was also the master of ceremony, explained that the candidates of the
PDP, ACN, CPC, ANPP and SDMP were invited for the programme but that
only Messrs Ribadu, Shekarau and Utomi confirmed their attendance.

Not disappointed

Also speaking,
Aisha Oyebode, a member of the foundation and daughter of the late head
of state, said she was not disappointed that none of the candidates
made it to the programme yesterday. She explained that it was organised
to enable the flag-bearers tell Nigerians their policy directions in
relation to infrastructure and other issues affecting Nigerians.
“Before the election, I think it is important for us to be able to hear
from the presidential candidates in relation to matters that affect the
collective well being of Nigerians; whether in terms of infrastructure,
whether it is in terms of education, whether it is in terms of health,”
Ms Oyebode told NEXT in an interview after the programme yesterday.

“But I am not
disappointed because they said they are coming tomorrow. I have three
of them coming tomorrow. One was supposed to be here today but his
plane had a problem and so there isn’t much we can do about it. That is
an act of God.

He himself was very apologetic but he is definitely going to be here tomorrow (today).”

Nigerians are
miracle workers. They have devised ingenious means of coping with their
miseries. They construct their own roads, build schools, sink bore
holes, discover the best power generating machines. So, whatever the
government does with the commonwealth is not their business. After all,
they have found a way round their troubles. What a people; what a
country.

A former civilian
governor from one of the south-south states, while on the run from the
law, was actually aided by his people to escape from the country. They
frustrated every attempt by security personnel to track him down. These
same people were those whose wealth he had cornered and used for the
good of himself and family.

Another former
state governor who was recently ousted by the Appeal Court, took his
impoverished state to the capital market to take a bond of over N17bn ,
about seven months to the end of his second term in office. By the time
he was thrown out of office, about 60 per cent of the money had been
spent on ‘developmental projects’. For his ‘good work’ while in office,
a well attended thanksgiving service was organised for him in his
village home. Shouts of ‘hallelujah’ echoed, as the drums were rolled
out to welcome back home a proud son of the soil who has represented
his people well.

Following this same
path of honouring our heroes, a befitting thanksgiving service was also
recently organised for a very important politician in a “rascally” part
of the country, following his completion of a two-year jail term for
corruption. Prominent in the crowd of well-wishers at the service were
a former president, serving governors, ministers, ambassadors, among
others. Their mission was simple: to welcome home a darling son,
leader, father and husband who had done his people proud.

A while ago,
$250,000 cash kept in the treasury room of the Nigerian Football
Federation suddenly developed wings. Almost two years later, nothing
tangible has come of the various investigative panels set up to probe
the missing money. The same Nigerian Football Association was purported
to have paid $250,000 to the Iranian Football Federation, for the Super
Eagles’ failure to turn up for a friendly match with the Iranian
national team. Money, of course, is not our problem. It has never been.

We live in a very
special country with very special humans. A country where people with
questionable records rise to hold prominent political positions. A
country where a man who was living on friends yesterday, suddenly
becomes wealthy overnight after a stint in political office. A country
where people place curses on their relatives for coming out poor after
holding political office.

When will Nigerians
begin to make our leaders accountable to their people? When will
Nigerians ask the kind of questions being asked in the Maghreb? Until
then, let us continue to enjoy the enviable record of being the
happiest people on earth.

Ogunbiyi is of the Features Unit, Ministry of Information and Strategy, Alausa, Ikeja

Kano State governor
and the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) presidential candidate,
Ibrahim Shekarau, has said that he is determined and committed to
bringing the desired change if elected the president of Nigeria in
April 2011.

Mr. Shekarau was
speaking to a crowd of ANPP supporters yesterday in Abakaliki, the
Ebonyi State capital, during the flag-off of the party’s presidential
campaign.

He said Nigerians should expect drastic changes they have been agitating for in all segments of the society.

Mr. Shekarau, who
finally launched his campaign after some disagreement with the Ebonyi
State government, said that Nigeria needs to be bailed out from what he
described as the misrule of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the
last 12 years.

“It is true that
majority of Nigerians have lost confidence in the PDP leadership and
are yearning for change. And we promise to give that desired change
they have been searching for.

“We will restore
safety of lives and properties in Nigeria; we will reduce unemployment;
above all, we shall give every Nigerian a sense of belonging by
restoring justice, which is the bedrock of every democracy,” Mr.
Shekarau promised.

In the same vein,
Julius Ucha, the Ebonyi State governorship flagbearer of the party,
urged the indigenes to ensure that they vote for ANPP at the poll,
saying that their votes would determine their future, liberation of
their children, and above all, peace and unity among them.

Ogbonnaya Onu, the
national chairman of the party, who hails from the state, equally
joined many of the speakers at the event to urge the people of the
state to vote out the PDP-led government. He said ANPP has the capacity
to win the presidential election because it is now a united party.

However, two serving ANPP governors, Madu Sherif and Ibrahim Geidam of Borno and Yobe States, were absent at the occasion.

While in the state, Mr. Shekarau paid a courtesy call on the state
governor, who was represented by his deputy, Chigozie Ogbu, in his
absence.

Former secretary to the Oyo State government,
Sharafadeen Abiodun Alli, has alleged that the crisis within the Action
Congress of Nigeria (ACN) in Oyo State is worse because of the
influence of some external forces.

Mr. Alli, who recently left the camp of Rasidi
Ladoja, his former boss, to join the ACN, said the party’s leadership
is still talking to all aggrieved members who were hurt by the
emergence of Abiola Ajimobi as the governorship candidate in the state.

“Really, there are external forces and pressures from
certain quarters instigating some of the governorship aspirants not to
drop the case against Ajimobi, but I can confirm to you that all that
appears to be changing now because some of them have seen reasons why
they should not destroy the party they all laboured hard to build to
this level,” he said.

He explained that the aggrieved members are now
seeing reasons why they could not afford to allow the ruling Peoples
Democratic Party (PDP) to continue to govern the state.

Mr. Alli was referring to the allegation that three
of the aggrieved governorship aspirants of the party, Messrs. Wale
Oyemakinde, Wole Akinboade (both retired professors), and Soji Akanbi,
who are in court to challenge the choice of Mr. Ajimobi, were being
sponsored by Governor Adebayo Alao-Akala to put the party in disarray,
in order for him to realise his re-election ambition.

But the affected ACN members denied this yesterday,
insisting that the allegation was demeaning. Responding on behalf of
their group, Mr. Oyemakinde said he was no match with Alao-Akala and
could not have descended so low to the extent of conniving with him to
destroy ACN.

“How can I descend so low that I would be having a
meeting with Akala to destabilise my party? It is not possible. I have
been in politics many years ago. In terms of education, I am
well-educated and I have more experience than he. As for the hotel
where they said we met with him, I don’t even know the hotel,” Mr.
Oyemakinde said.

He claimed that they still belong to the ACN, vowing never to have anything to do with the PDP.

“We are different in so many ways. Our ideologies are not the same.
How then can I rubbish my enviable political record and my affinity
with progressives now?” He queried.

Dazzled by the
costumes and jewellery of presidential candidates and their wives,
Nigerians seem to have forgotten how things have steadily worsened
since the New Year. Fresh jobs have not been created; doctors are on
strike, and the condition of the Benin-Ore road has infuriated no less
a citizen than the Oba of Benin. Desert encroachment, deforestation and
coastal erosion are squeezing Nigerians into the Middle Belt where
internecine conflict has erupted in the cold hills of Jos. Food is
insecure, sanitation nonexistent and, of course, Shell and Chevron have
not switched off the gas flares in the Niger Delta.

None of these
issues is of any importance in the campaigns to elect or select what
should be a democratic government in Nigeria this year. Nothing, apart
from zoning, succession, future ministerial appointments and contracts
are vital in the run-up to this election. This probably explains why
bombs are popping like champagne corks to emphasise the bitterness of a
fight to the finish.

Innocent civilians,
hypnotised by the delusion of choreographed rallies, have died in bomb
blasts and stampedes. Over 75 million people are now registered to vote
for men and women of questionable competence and integrity.

Speaking in the
erosion-scarred south-east, Goodluck Jonathan was all smiles,
eulogising and flattering the Igbo. He challenged their prodigal sons
in the United States of America to “come home and assist in the task of
nation-building.” But Mr Jonathan was not explicit on what
opportunities the economy would present to any returnee professionals;
nor did he give an insight into how his government would address those
inequities at home that might have contributed to their migration.

Jonathan’s beloved
Igbo are not only in the US and the UK. Some are adamantly making their
way across the hot Sahara, searching for a better life in North Africa,
ultimately hoping to cross the Mediterranean. Many are largely unaware
of the implosions that await them in the Maghreb.

By contrast, the
children of Nigerian leaders sit comfortably in the expensive,
air-conditioned American School in Abuja. Apparently, the kids are
being prepared for an adult life abroad. These are the reasons, apart
from facilitation of money laundering, for the interest by wealthy
Nigerians in dual citizenship. Meanwhile, the majority of registered
voters have no passports, no ID cards, and no birth certificates.

If Nigerian schools
and hospitals are unfit for our lawmakers and their families, it is
testimony to the institutional decay of a nation they misrule. In which
case, such leaders have no moral right to request Nigerians already in
America or elsewhere to return. Any lunatic can construct that logic.

Whether Irish or
Scotsmen, Dutch or Huguenots, Jews or Igbo, people never leave their
place of birth, friends and family, or cultural environment, just for
the hell of it. Social biology and social geography will assist the
more scholarly minded in comprehending the nature of human or even
animal migration. Those much-romanticised “explorers” in history,
including the heroes who “discovered” and colonised Africa and America,
were actually responding to economic hardship, xenophobia, political
and religious persecution To the Diaspora: don’t come home—especially
if you’re not a man or woman for the trenches, or not well-connected.
Nigeria is hard work! Let your head guide your heart. In case you
ignore my advice and decide to make the great leap across the Atlantic,
remember to leave an escape valve. If possible, complete a postgraduate
diploma in Coping with Corrupt and Insensitive Leadership before your
adventurous voyage to the Gulf of Guinea.

In the ongoing
prosecution of the former Edo State governor, Lucky Igbinedion, the
Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, says it has sealed off
his two choice mansions located in Abuja.

According to the
commission in the statement signed by its spokesperson, Femi Babafemi,
the two properties sealed are those located on 7, Justice Fatai
Williams Street, Asokoro, Abuja, and 5, Danube Crescent, Maitama,
Abuja. The commission said that the exercise was carried out on the
heels of a forfeiture order granted the EFCC on Tuesday, March 1 ,
2011, by a Federal High Court in Lagos.

Claiming that the
seizure of the two is just the beginning of the exercise as directed by
the court, presided over by Justice Mohammed Idris, which authorised
the commission to seize 11 choice properties traced to the former
governor. The properties are spread over Benin , Lagos, Abuja, and
London. The exercise, which began in Abuja yesterday, March 8, 2011, is
expected to cover those in other cities in the coming days.

The EFCC team
comprising operatives from the Assets Forfeiture Unit of the
commission, met with occupants of the two properties located in the
Asokoro and Maitama districts of Abuja.

It would be
recalled that Justice Idris, had, after considering an ex-parte
application by a counsel to the EFCC, Mr. Rotimi Jacobs, granted the
forfeiture order which now authorises the EFCC to seize the properties.

Igbinedion and six
others are facing a 66-count charge bordering on money laundering and
mismanagement of public funds amounting to about N3.2 billion.The other
accused persons are Patrick Eboigbodin, Michael Igbinedion, and four
firms: Gava Corporation Limited; Romrig Nigeria Limited; PML Securities
Limited; and PML( Nigeria) Limited.

The commission had
filed fresh charges against Mr. Igbinedion, who is accused of
mismanaging N25 billion belonging to the state after he was earlier
left off the hook on a basis of plea bargaining. He was charged along
with six others at the Federal High Court, Benin, by the Economic and
Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

At a previous court
session, Mr. Igbinedion had been ordered by Justice Adamu Hobon, of the
Federal High Court, Benin, to physically appear in court on March 22,
2011, or be summoned through a bench warrant, due to his absence from
court during the first hearing.

Counsel to EFCC,
Rotimi Jacobs, had pleaded with the court to issue an order for a bench
warrant against Mr. Igbinedion and others, for failing to appear
personally for the trial. He argued that “in a serious criminal matter
such as this, they cannot sit in the comfort of their homes and say
their lawyers will say it for them.”

EFCC stated that, in line with the forfeiture order granted by the
court, the seized assets are: a block of four flats at No 43, Etete
Road, Benin City; a property housing Chicken Republic along Sapele
Road, Benin City; a property at No 3, Boundary Road, Benin City; a
building at No 20B, Estate Road, Benin City; a building along Ugbor
Police Station Road, Benin City; a mansion at Asokoro, Abuja; a mighty
house at neighbourhood of Etete and Ugbor, Benin City; Sheraton Hotel
at Government House Road, Benin City; a property at No 55C, Adebisi
Omotola Close, off Samuel Adedoyin Street, Victoria Island, Lagos; a
property at No 5, Danube Crescent, Maitama, Abuja; and a house at No
29, Sheldon Avenue, Highgate, London.