The Group Chief Executive Officer of Nigeria’s Access Holdings Plc, Herbert Wigwe, his wife, son and others may have died in a helicopter crash in the United States yesterday, February 9.
Report reaching us at Greenbarge Reporters online newspaper and hardcopy magazine today, February 10, said that the helicopter, a Eurocopter EC 130, was carrying six people onboard at the time of the incident, and was headed to Las Vegas when it crashed near a border city between Nevada and California.
In a statement, San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department said: “We are not able to confirm how many people were on board or their names. No survivors have been located.”
He confirmed that the authorities were aware of the downed aircraft shortly after 10 pm yesterday.
Reports said that others onboard the aircraft included Wigwe’s wife and son and the group chairman of Nigerian Exchange Group Plc (NGX Group) Abimbola Ogunbanjo.
The media is currently agog with the story of the arrest and detention of a popular social media personality, Malam Mahdi Shehu. Shehu, a Kaduna based quasi-whistleblower, achieved notoriety with series of videos backed by doctored documents which were intended to prove (more appropriately, mislead the public) into believing phantom corruption allegations against former Governor of Katsina State, Rt. Hon. Aminu Bello Masari, and senior officials of his administration. While it lasted, Mahdi’s solo voyage to fame crashed with as much speed as it gained popularity. The climax of the voyage was when, after appearing in court on a stretcher, wearing neck collar to appear totally incapacitated, he was secretly recorded in his holding cell removing the medical costume he deceptively wore to court for the desperate purpose of dodging the numerous cases of libel instituted against him by Katsina State and some of its officials seeking for redress for being maligned by Mahadi in series of videos backed by doctored documents.
With the viral police – holding cell video showing Mahadi Shehu disrobing and discarding his medical costume, many observers thought the last was heard of “Mahdi Shehu the activist.” Alas, the best for Mahadi’s victims and of course, the worst for him, was yet to come. His chickens finally arrived home to roost precisely Tuesday, 6/2/24. Shehu was caught pants down in a seedy hotel room with tons of documents purportedly supportive of fraudulent activities of former Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Malam Abubakar Malami (SAN). He was there, either daftly or courageously, to bargain with Malami, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), as well a former Chief Law Officer of Nigeria, to “help” sweep supposedly damaging documents linking Malami with fraudulent activities under the carpet. This he will do for a kingly sum of $500,000 (N500m in local language). Quite unprecedentedly courageous albeit daft. More than Mahdi, followers of his social media anti-corruption crusade were more rudely shocked by the cheap manner he was nabbed practicing the exact opposite of what he spent a considerable time preaching against. No gainsaying the shameful incident explicitly highlighted the gullibility of Mahadi’s followers as much as it punctured his claim to any moral and intellectual disposition. Always confident and wearing a false mien of righteousness, uprightness and impeccable character, Mahdi is the least candidate for a notorious blackmailer in the minds of his seemingly hypnotized followers, not with his trade mark incantations of verses of the Holy Quran heralding every new “revelation”of one uncovered fraud or another with which he held them spellbound for a very long time while dragging the names of many honorable people in the mud with reckless impunity. Mahdi Shehu is now in jail for a lot less than he accused many of his victims. He’s arrested not only for attempt to blackmail former Minister Malami, he’s in the net for a bigger criminality of hacking bank accounts, social media accounts, e-mails and whatsapp accounts of members of his family. In the petition the former Minister presented to the IGP, he accused Mahadi Shehu of attempting to open a fake bank account with the name of his (Malami’s) wife, Aisha Abubakar Malami, obviously for the purpose of implicating Malami in nefarious financial activities to compliment the “bad guy” image of Malami he (Mahdi) has spent considerable time trying to impress in the minds of Nigerians. And for clarity, Malami and the NPF were not at the Summerset Hotel to arrest Mahadi Shehu. They were their to nab the imposters that have been using different phone numbers, e-mails and social media accounts trying to blackmail the former minister. It’s fate (or is it sheer stupidity) that took the best of Mahadi and had him come personally, instead of sending a proxy, to collect the $500,000 supposedly agreed with Malami as the price for his silence. You don’t blame Mahdi though. $500,000 is quite a big sum to be entrusted with anybody not to mention the fact that a cheat hates to be cheated. Apparently Mahadi lower his guards to avoid having a taste of his pill by being “defrauded.” The irony of it all, in one of his numerous e-mails to Malami, Mahadi Shehu (or is it Col. Kenneth) expressed anger and encouraged Malami to be smarter for what he said were efforts to track his accomplice, an “innocent woman” as he put it. He wrote and I quote: “You’re sounding silly by now. If you know the data’s we got from your deals I don’t think you’ll be tracking an innocent woman. How do you expect us to be so cheap to be tracked?” Unquote. Funnily, Mahadi (Col. Kenneth in this case) was nabbed cheaply like a village crook who missed his way to the city — waiting in a hotel room with a bagful of incriminating documents waiting to collect $500,000 blackmail fees. Isn’t this ironic given how Mahadi’s notoriety and expertise in the game of hide and seek with security operatives? Indeed, there are great lessons for activists as well as “hacktivists” in this saga. May we learn from. Ahmad Usman Mairukubta! can be reached via ahmadusmandkg3@gmail.com
M.E Sheriff, lawyer to the past Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami and his family, has condemned a press statement by one Mahdi Shehu over his arrest and detection by the police, concerning alleged N19 million online scam. In a statement today, February 10, the lawyer said that the press statement that was made on February 7, 2024 as well as that of 13th January 2021, “is totally not correct, misleading, malicious, and a grossly misrepresentation of the facts leading to the arrest. “We, as solicitors to Mr. Abubakar Malami, SAN and his family, noted the said press statement with grave concern.” The legal practitioner said that without prejudice to the police investigation that is ongoing, the true facts had to do with Complaint/Petition “which we wrote to the Inspector General of Police on allegations bothering on extortion, criminal intimidation and attempt to obtain money by false pretence against a syndicate using GSM Numbers and email addresses. This led to the ongoing investigation into the complaint by the Police. “In the course of the investigation, the Police monitored the sustained communications between our clients and the syndicates, wherein the syndicate disclosed and gave Room Number 9, Summerset Continental Hotel situate at No 73 Usuma Street, Maitama, Abuja, as a place where our client would meet the syndicate’s agent for their own payments. “On reaching the hotel and the room number, Mahdi Shehu was found therein at the scene with copies of documents that were used and sent to our client by the syndicate. Some of the documents which the police retrieved from Mahdi Shehu specifically lend credence to yet another petition of our client that bothers on hacking and financial improprieties affecting Hajiya Aisha Abubakar Malami. “On account of the compromise of our client’s emails, sensitive information was unlawfully extracted from an email account, and the sum of over N19,000,000.00 (Nineteen Million Naira) was unlawfully taken out of our client’s account by the syndicate which turns out to be a syndicate of which Mahdi was coordinating, via a group chat which he joined through the following phone numbers, viz: +2348033316644 and +2348096626226. “He came over to the said provided address to collect $500,000 (Five Hundred Thousand US Dollar) at the instance of the syndicate.” Malami’s lawyer said that the investigation and all the documents recovered thus far are there with the Police for any person that cares to verify. “Therefore, we should all encourage, support and allow the police to do their work as it is the outcome of the investigation that can confirm who is culpable and who is innocent. The statement said that at the moment, if Mahdi Shehu has any explanation to make regarding the arrest, he should do so to the police but not to the press or embark on campaign of calumny via the social media.
The interconnectivity “war” raging between the two telecommunications giants: MTN Nigeria Communications Plc. (MTN) and Globacom Limited (Globacom) has finally been resolved by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC). A statement yesterday, February 8, by the spokesperson of the NCC, Reuben Muoka, said that the disconnection approval granted to MTN for the disconnection of Globacom has now been withdrawn. “Following its initial Public Notice, the Commission with the aim of mitigating any potential disruptions to subscribers undertook further regulatory intervention, by mediating between the parties and facilitating the reconciliation process. “The Commission reiterates that strict adherence to the terms and conditions of licenses, particularly those delineated in interconnection agreements, is imperative for all Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) and other licensees within the telecommunications industry. “In order to proactively address and prevent future instances of interconnect indebtedness within the industry, the Commission will be requesting relevant records and regular updates from MNOs, as well as adopting a transparent approach towards industry indebtedness.” Mouka said that this statement would serve as a reminder of the Commission’s commitment to fostering a stable and compliant telecommunications ecosystem in Nigeria.
The leadership of Shell Companies in Nigeria has sought the support of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) to achieve accelerated development of three major oil and gas projects at Bonga North deepwater and HI and HA, which are conventional gas projects. The Executive Secretary of the NCDMB, Engineer Felix Omatsola Ogbe, who received the delegation from the international oil company, led by the Chairman of Shell Companies in Nigeria (SCIN), Osagie Okunbor, and the Managing Director of Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company (SNEPCo), Mrs. Elahor Aiboni, at the Board’s liaison office in Abuja, confirmed that NCDMB would sustain its momentum in expeditious consideration and approvals of oil and gas projects. He said that the Board will meet the timelines set by the Service Level Agreement (SLA) instituted for shortening the contracting cycle for oil and gas projects. He charged international oil and gas companies in Nigeria to meet the thresholds set by the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development (NOGICD) Act in their projects, while being transparent with their project plans submitted to the Board. He said that oil and gas projects should be executed with a win-win mindset, adding that NCDMB is able to meet its mandate and create opportunities for local oil service companies to get engaged and employ Nigerians. This was even as the Chairman of Shell Companies in Nigeria (SCIN), Osagie Okunbor pledged the company’s determination to take the Final Investment Decision (FID) on some of the major projects in 2024, which would benefit the Nigerian oil and gas industry and the national economy. He said that the planned divestment by Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) would not affect any contract duly entered by the company, while the major projects in the pipeline, especially the gas projects would be developed under SNEPCo. According to him, the divestment is a business realignment and would only affect the shareholding structure of the company, while the operations and staff would remain intact. Speaking on the new projects, Okunbor said that the Bonga North project would be a tie-back project that would unlock about 350 million barrels of oil equivalent and extend the life of Bonga Floating Production Storage and Offloading (FPSO) for another 15 years. He said that the company had made appreciable progress in the plans for HI and HA projects which would supply 50 percent of the gas required for the successful operation of the Train 7 project currently being developed by the Nigeria Liquified Natural Gas (NLNG) Company. He stressed the need to develop the gas projects speedily, to avoid delaying the Train 7 operation date. While thanking NCDMB for its support for the company’s various projects, Okunbor requested the Board to fast-track the approvals on the new projects to enable the projects to proceed to full execution. He said that the economics of the projects are challenging and making it imperative to carefully manage the expenditures for in-country and out-of-country scopes of the project. The Country Chairman congratulated the Executive Secretary on his appointment and conveyed the enduring support of Shell Companies in Nigeria to the delivery of the Board’s mandate and continued performance as the number one federal agency in the country. He also commended the Executive Secretary for his avowed vision to improve the speed of the Board’s approval processes to enable the development of new oil and gas projects. The Managing Director of SNEPCo, Mrs. Elahor Aiboni reiterated the company’s plan to develop the Bonga North project as fast as possible, to increase the country’s crude oil production.
A 31 year old suspected lady kidnapper, whose name was given as Janet Igohia, has been arrested by troops from 93 Battalion under 6 Bridget of the Nigerian Army, while trying to pick up ransom for a kidnapped victim in Taraba State. Spokesperson of the Nigerian Army Bridget, Lieutenant Oni Olubodunde, in a statement today, February 8, said that Janet Igohia was arrested after picking up the sum of N1.5 million, being ransom payment for a kidnapped victim at Chanchangi in Takum Local Government Area of the state. He said that Igohia confessed that she was married to Voryor Gata, a notorious criminal and former second – in – command to the late Gana Terwase. “She is currently married to the leader of a violent extremist group in southern Taraba.” She was said to have confessed also of having previously married to high profile criminals, such as the late Terkibi Gemaga aka Mopol, a notorious kidnapper who was killed by troops five years ago. “She revealed that she also got married to the late Gana Terwase, another notorious criminal who was killed during a joint special force operation three years ago.” Lieutenant Olubodunde said that the troops deployed in Mararaba Baissa community of Donga LGA apprehended two other suspected gun runners who were allegedly involved in extra-judicial killings and cattle rustling with the sum of N 600,000. “The money recovered from the suspects was part of the proceeds from their illegal activities and 2 Techno mobile phones.” He gave the names of the suspects as Alhaji Adamu Damisa (40 years old) and Usman Isah (44 years old). Source: DAILY TRUST.
The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd.), has formally pledged to domicile a significant portion of its revenues and other banking services with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). The decision was taken at a meeting between the Group Chief Executive Officer of the NNPCL, Mallam Mele Kyari, and the Governor of the CBN, Olayemi Cardoso. At the meeting in Abuja today, February 8, the NNPC Ltd. and CBN Chiefs noted the value created by the decision for all parties, especially in providing the NNPC Ltd. with an improved platform for managing its cash holding obligor limits in commercial banks set by the Board of Directors. The CBN has provided enhanced digital platforms for all transactions and has established specific limits to manage NNPC Ltd. transactions. A joint statement by the spokespersons of the NNPCL, Olufemi O. Soneye and CBN, Mrs. Hakama Sidi Ali said that both parties have also committed to further strengthening the collaboration to ensure seamless operations of the commercial NNPC Limited. They said that NNPC Ltd. would continue to have banking transactions with commercial banks as required.
The Supper Eagles goalkeeper, Stanley Nwabali has been named Man-of-the-Match after the semi-final encounter with the Bafana Bafana of South Africa. Nwabali saved two penalty kicks to help the Super Eagles earned a place in the final. The Chippa United goalkeeper also made two brilliant saves in regulation time. The Super Eagles won the keenly contested encounter 4-2 this evening, February 7, on penalties. The game ended in a 1-1 draw after 120 minutes. The Super Eagles will face the winner of the second semi-final between hosts Cote d’Ivoire and Democratic Republic of Congo in the final on Sunday.
Nigeria’s Super Eagles, this evening, February 7, kicked out their South African Bafana Bafana in the semi final of the ongoing African Cup of Nations in Cote d’Ivoire. The two teams resorted to mandatory penalty shootouts after the full and extra time ended one apiece. Goalkeeper Stanley Nwabali emerged the hero of the match after saving two of the South African’s penalty kicks. Kelechi Iheanacho scored the last penalty. Ola Aina was the only Nigerian who missed his kick. The match, played at Stade Bouaké in Bouaké, Cote d’Ivoire, saw both sides give good account of themselves. The first goal of the match was scored by Super Eagles On-Field Captain, William Troost-Ekong, from the penalty spot. This followed a foul on Nigeria’s top striker and African Footballer of the Year 2023, Victor Osimhen, in the 18 yard box. South Africa also converted its penalty kick after a player was fouled in the 18 yard box of the Super Eagles.
Police have paraded an over 80 year old man, Pa Olowofela, as one of the suspected bandits, kidnappers and terrorists from Ekiti state. He is believed to be the mastermind of the banditry, killing and kidnapping in Ekiti and Kwara States. He was said to have participated in the recent killing of the three monarchs. Pa Olowofela was arrested after one Baboga Alhaji (another kidnapper that was involved in the killing of the monarchs) was arrested by soldiers. The soldiers also arrested 14 others, including the person receiving the ransom on behalf of the bandits.
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Mahdi Shehu: Between Activism And “Hacktivism,” By Ahmad Usman Mairukubta
The media is currently agog with the story of the arrest and detention of a popular social media personality, Malam Mahdi Shehu. Shehu, a Kaduna based quasi-whistleblower, achieved notoriety with series of videos backed by doctored documents which were intended to prove (more appropriately, mislead the public) into believing phantom corruption allegations against former Governor of Katsina State, Rt. Hon. Aminu Bello Masari, and senior officials of his administration.
While it lasted, Mahdi’s solo voyage to fame crashed with as much speed as it gained popularity. The climax of the voyage was when, after appearing in court on a stretcher, wearing neck collar to appear totally incapacitated, he was secretly recorded in his holding cell removing the medical costume he deceptively wore to court for the desperate purpose of dodging the numerous cases of libel instituted against him by Katsina State and some of its officials seeking for redress for being maligned by Mahadi in series of videos backed by doctored documents.
More than Mahdi, followers of his social media anti-corruption crusade were more rudely shocked by the cheap manner he was nabbed practicing the exact opposite of what he spent a considerable time preaching against. No gainsaying the shameful incident explicitly highlighted the gullibility of Mahadi’s followers as much as it punctured his claim to any moral and intellectual disposition.
Always confident and wearing a false mien of righteousness, uprightness and impeccable character, Mahdi is the least candidate for a notorious blackmailer in the minds of his seemingly hypnotized followers, not with his trade mark incantations of verses of the Holy Quran heralding every new “revelation”of one uncovered fraud or another with which he held them spellbound for a very long time while dragging the names of many honorable people in the mud with reckless impunity.
Mahdi Shehu is now in jail for a lot less than he accused many of his victims. He’s arrested not only for attempt to blackmail former Minister Malami, he’s in the net for a bigger criminality of hacking bank accounts, social media accounts, e-mails and whatsapp accounts of members of his family. In the petition the former Minister presented to the IGP, he accused Mahadi Shehu of attempting to open a fake bank account with the name of his (Malami’s) wife, Aisha Abubakar Malami, obviously for the purpose of implicating Malami in nefarious financial activities to compliment the “bad guy” image of Malami he (Mahdi) has spent considerable time trying to impress in the minds of Nigerians.
And for clarity, Malami and the NPF were not at the Summerset Hotel to arrest Mahadi Shehu. They were their to nab the imposters that have been using different phone numbers, e-mails and social media accounts trying to blackmail the former minister. It’s fate (or is it sheer stupidity) that took the best of Mahadi and had him come personally, instead of sending a proxy, to collect the $500,000 supposedly agreed with Malami as the price for his silence. You don’t blame Mahdi though. $500,000 is quite a big sum to be entrusted with anybody not to mention the fact that a cheat hates to be cheated. Apparently Mahadi lower his guards to avoid having a taste of his pill by being “defrauded.”
The irony of it all, in one of his numerous e-mails to Malami, Mahadi Shehu (or is it Col. Kenneth) expressed anger and encouraged Malami to be smarter for what he said were efforts to track his accomplice, an “innocent woman” as he put it. He wrote and I quote:
“You’re sounding silly by now. If you know the data’s we got from your deals I don’t think you’ll be tracking an innocent woman. How do you expect us to be so cheap to be tracked?” Unquote.
Funnily, Mahadi (Col. Kenneth in this case) was nabbed cheaply like a village crook who missed his way to the city — waiting in a hotel room with a bagful of incriminating documents waiting to collect $500,000 blackmail fees. Isn’t this ironic given how Mahadi’s notoriety and expertise in the game of hide and seek with security operatives?
Indeed, there are great lessons for activists as well as “hacktivists” in this saga. May we learn from.
Ahmad Usman Mairukubta! can be reached via ahmadusmandkg3@gmail.com