Ikoyi building: Sanwo-Olu gives condition for survivors’ discharge from hospital by Victoria Edeme

The Governor of Lagos State, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has given conditions under which the survivors of the 21-storey building that collapsed on Monday on Gerrard Road, Ikoyi, would be discharged from the Lagos Island General Hospital, Marina. Sanwo-Olu during his visit to the hospital on Thursday stated that the survivors would only be discharged when the medical team gives an all-clear concerning their condition. The government had earlier revealed that six survivors were receiving treatment, while three had earlier been discharged. On his Instagram page on Thursday, the Governor shared pictures of his visit to the hospital. His caption read, “I visited the survivors of the building collapse this morning, and gave them my word that they will get the best of care in the hospital, and will not be discharged until they have been given the all-clear by the medical team attending to them. “As much as we sympathize with all concerned, we will also ensure that we are open and thorough in investigating the cause of the collapse. “In that regard, a high-powered professional investigative panel has been set up, whose membership consists of professionals outside of the Government. The panel, which is headed by the President of Nigeria Institute of Town Planners, Toyin Ayinde, has been given clear terms of reference, with a 30-day assignment to tell us what went wrong at the site. “The panel’s terms of reference also include ascertaining whether there was a compromise of the building codes by the developer, his contractor, and statutory regulatory agencies.” Sanwo-Olu, while addressing journalists at the site on Wednesday had unveiled the members of the six-man investigative panel, stating that a lawyer in a private law firm, Ekundayo Onajobi, would serve as the secretary. Other members of the panel are Akintilo Adeleke, Yinka Ogundairo, Godfrey Godfrey, and Bunmi Ibrahim.

2023 presidency: Northern elders make a U-turn, to work with other regions by Friday Olokor

The Northern Elders Forum on Wednesday made a U-turn on its earlier position on northern presidency in 2023 with a promise that the North would work with other ethnic groups in Nigeria to produce a competent leader that would restore confidence in the system. The organisation also noted that the ongoing debate about labelling bandits as terrorists is a waste of energy, adding that it would only support such if it would lead to improved security. The spokesperson for NEF, Dr Hakeem Baba-Ahmed, said these in a statement on Wednesday after a meeting convened by its leader, Prof. Ango Abdullahi. The statement said the meeting was also of the view that scrapping of the State Independent National Electoral Commissions should be included in the ongoing constitutional amendment. It reads partly, “The Forum salutes all Nigerians who toiled to restore a level playing field to our democratic system. It is now left to politicians and other leaders to conduct the type of politics that builds into it real equity, fairness, competence and justice, through inclusive campaigns and responsible approach towards the 2023 elections. The people of the North want to work with other Nigerians to produce a competent and committed Nigerian leadership that will restore confidence in our country’s capacity to survive and rebuild itself for the next generations.” The NEF noted the Peoples Democratic Party and All Progressives Congress dominated the political landscape, adding that Nigerians would benefit from additional options. “The NEF looks forward to the emergence and consolidation of other parties in the political environment. The continued existence of State Electoral Commissions which conduct elections into local government councils is damaging the democratic process. The NEF advises that the on-going constitutional amendments should include the scrapping of these commissions and the assumption of their duties by INEC.” The organisation urged Nigerians, especially northerners, to register and prepare to vote for new and more competent leaders in the 2023 elections. Read Also Ex-gov candidate backs Arewa youths, asks Amaechi to run for presidency Middle Belt Bishops endorse Moses Ayom for President Voting APC, PDP in 2023 like choosing between devil and deep blue sea –Bishop Awe “The Forum took note of the worsening security situation in the country. Boko Haram insurgency continues to be a major threat in the North-East, while kidnapping and large scale banditry in many other parts of the North are taking over lives of large portions of the population. The IPOB (Indigenous People of Biafra) threatens to eradicate the influence of legitimate authority in the South-East. Politicians and influential people are worsening the nation’s fault lines by the manner they seek political advantages through threats to our unity and peaceful co-existence. “Poverty and poor governance are fueling widespread alienation from mainstream social existence. “The Forum joins the nation in its outrage over the fact that Maiduguri, Borno State capital has been without power from the national grid for 10 months, and is alarmed by signs that its population could be forced to resign to living with this additional assault on their lives and livelihood. This situation must be reversed at all cost. “The planned closure of Internally Displaced Persons’ camps should be carefully considered so that it does not place more victims in avoidable peril. “The Forum regrets that the argument over labelling bandits as terrorists is a waste attention and energy. If labeling bandits as terrorists will substantially improve the capacity of the Nigerian state to eliminate this expanding scourge, the Forum supports it without reservation,” the statement added. PUNCH.

NBA petitions commission, panel over Malami, magistrate’s roles in Odili’s home raid by Eniola Akinkuotu

The National Executive Council of the Nigerian Bar Association has resolved to file a petition against the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN), and Mr Emmanuel Iyanna, the Chief Magistrate in Abuja, who issued a search warrant for security officials to search the home of a Supreme Court Judge, Justice Mary Odili. A top member of the NBA NEC told The PUNCH on Wednesday that Malami would be reported to the Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee and the Legal Practitioners Privileges Committee, which would consider if the AGF should be stripped of his title of a senior advocate. “What we discovered is that a lot of the attacks on the judiciary are being sanctioned by Malami. The NBA believes that enough is enough. So, the NEC will dispatch petitions against Malami. A communiqué will be issued soon,” a member of NEC said. Confirming the development to The PUNCH on Wednesday, human rights lawyer, Mr Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa (SAN), said a petition would be filed against Malami, while another would be sent to the Judicial Service Commission against the magistrate. Adegboruwa, who attended the NBA NEC emergency meeting on Tuesday, said he was not satisfied with the denials by the police, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and the office of the AGF regarding the raid on Odili’s home. He also argued that the magistrate’s claim that he was deceived by the Ministry of Justice into issuing the illegal search warrant was not tenable. The senior advocate stated, “We do not accept the excuse by the magistrate that he was fooled, because no magistrate should put himself in a position that he would be fooled in any way whatsoever. And that is why we have taken a decision to file a formal charge against the magistrate before the Judicial Service Commission. “The NBA has resolved to do that. At our national executive council meeting held yesterday (Tuesday), we resolved to file a formal complaint against the magistrate; we also resolved to file a formal complaint against the AGF and we resolved to engage the NJC to protect judicial officers.” Adegboruwa noted that Malami’s office had constituted several panels drawn from security agencies, which act without the force of law. He stated that the ugly trend would soon be brought to an end once investigations by the NBA were concluded. He added, “This unfortunate incident has thrown up a challenge to the NBA and lawyers to X-ray the activities of the AGF and we have agreed to set up an independent body to really investigate each occurrence of these ad hoc panels that seem to be exercising judicial powers without any law setting them up and without any laid down procedures that you can use to checkmate the arbitrariness of these so-called panels and recovery bodies under the AGF. “So, I am sure that by the time our panel comes up with its report, we will inform Nigerians of the outcome of our exercise, but I can assure you that the days of these panels are numbered. I can assure you that somebody is going to be held accountable for the mess created by these amorphous panels that have no statutory backing or law setting them up.” Adegboruwa said search warrants, arrests warrants and ex parte orders had been abused by magistrates, who work hand in glove with EFCC operatives and policemen. The senior advocate said on several occasions, magistrates sign blank warrants and hand them over to security agents, who go ahead to “fill in the blank spaces.” He added, “We have had audience with the relevant authorities in charge of the judiciary in the Federal Capital Territory, mainly the chief judge, and we have expressed our displeasure over the practice of magistrates signing blank arrest warrants, blank search warrants and even blank ex parte orders to freeze the accounts of citizens of Nigeria. “They sign those papers and the security agencies will just go and fill in the names of innocent Nigerians, freeze their accounts behind their back, arrest them and search their houses; so, we are taking a holistic step in this regard to reform the system to henceforth prohibit any magistrate or judicial officer from signing blank documents for the arrest of citizens, or for the search of houses of citizens, or for the freezing of the accounts of citizens.” Security operatives had last Friday stormed the home of Justice Odili on Imo River Crescent, Maitama, with a search warrant. The leader of the operation, CSP Lawrence Ajodo, also wore an identity card allegedly signed by Malami. However, both Malami and the police have denied knowledge of the operation, while Ajodo has been suspended by the police authorities. The magistrate later revoked the warrant, claiming that he was deceived into issuing it. Reacting, however, the spokesman for the AGF, Dr Umar Gwandu, said Adegboruwa’s claim that the AGF’s office under Malami was fond of creating panels arbitrarily was false. He said Malami stood by his statement that the panel, which orchestrated the raid on Odili’s home, acted illegally. Gwandu stated, “The onus is now on he who asserts to prove. It is tantamount to conjectures and fabrications for someone, who is expected to be learned, to be uttering statements devoid of substance. It is a great disservice to the proposition positing if one could not substantiate claims with convincing proofs and clear examples. Was there any assets recovery panel set up by the AGF? Absolutely, there is none. “In what ways are panels, if any, set up by the attorney general of the federation and chief law officer, whose mandates and responsibility to serve the public interest are constitutionally guaranteed, becomes unlawful to the extent of carrying out extrajudicial operations. It is abundantly clear that there is nothing called the Assets Recovery Panel in the office of the AGF. “Those who went to concoct a name using deceitful letterhead and apparently mischievous email and location address can go to any length, including forging a signature of government officials.” On reports that the NBA was going to file a petition against the AGF, Gwandu noted that its committee was made up of seasoned professionals He, however, said it would be pre-emptive of the NBA to write a petition against the AGF when security agencies were still investigating the matter. Gwandu added, “Members of the committee will not be dancing to the tune of mischief makers to satisfy the whimsical aspersions of certain individuals. “By saying ‘to take action against the AGF’ makes it confusingly pre-emptive, antithetical to doctrines of fair hearing and presumption of innocence, prejudicial, conclusive and does not give any room for further investigation at a time when the matter is being investigated by relevant agencies.” ,, PUNCH.

Army can’t fight terrorists, others with N579bn, COAS tells Senate by Sunday Aborisade

The Nigerian Army on Wednesday appealed to the Federal Government to exempt it from the annual envelope budgeting being adopted by the Federal Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning. The Chief of Army Staff, Lt. General Farouk Yahaya, made the appeal when he appeared before the Senate Committee on Army to defend the 2022 budget. Yahaya told the panel that the sum of N579bn approved for the Nigerian Army for the 2022 fiscal year was grossly inadequate to fight terrorism and banditry in the country. He said, “In preparing for year 2022 budget, the Nigerian Army proposed about the sum of N710bn. “However, the Federal Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning budget ceiling reduced it to N579bn. “This reduction would impede the capacity and tempo of the Nigerian Army in carrying out its constitutional duties particularly the ongoing war against Boko Haram terrorists and other criminalties across the country. “The National Assembly should prevail on the Federal Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning to exempt the Nigerian Army from the current budget ceiling or envelope allocation system. “I therefore passionately appeal to this (Senate) committee to impress it on the Federal Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning to begin the release of year 2022 Nigerian Army capital budget from the First Quarter 2022. “This would help the Nigerian Army to rehabilitate dilapidated accommodations in over 138 barracks and training facilities across our units, and formations as well as procure the needed equipment and platforms to prosecute the war against terrorism and other criminalities across the country.” He also requested the approval of N29.6bn as overhead cost and N37.6bn as capital expenditure. He assured the panel that the Nigerian Army was committed to securing the territorial integrity of Nigeria from any violation. Yahaya said, “The timely and complete implementation of the 2022 budget will thus enhance the fulfilment of the Nigerian Army’s constitutional mandate and thus engender peace for socioeconomic development of our country Nigeria.” He said the COVID-19 pandemic affected the global socioeconomic activities including that of Nigeria, adding that the attendant negative consequences allowed insecurity to fester. The army chief also said he recognised the need to boost the morale of the soldiers and that he had been doing so regularly. PUNCH.

Ikoyi building: Death toll rises as Lagos probes collapse, owner, pastor missing by Oluwatosin Omojuyigbe and Deji Lambo

The death toll in the 21-storey building that collapsed on Monday on Gerrard Road, in the Ikoyi area of Lagos State, has increased to 21. The building crumbled around 2pm when workers were on the site. PUNCH Metro had reported that many people were trapped in the rubble, including the Managing Director, Fourscore Heights Limited, Mr Femi Osibona, who owned the building. The state Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, who described the incident as a national disaster, on Wednesday, confirmed that 21 persons were brought out dead from the rubble. Families denied access to mortuary Some families searching for their loved ones on Wednesday lamented that they were denied access to the Mainland Hospital mortuary, Yaba, where the recovered bodies were taken to. A man, Jude Ogochukwu, who complained about not being allowed to identify his relation, said his family needed early closure. He said, “I went to the IDH yesterday and today (Wednesday) when the deputy governor said we could go there, but it had been terrible. They refused to allow us to see the people there; they refused to allow us to have early closure. We need to know early; this thing can take two weeks to get it done; we are in serious pain.” A father, Edward Godwin, who noted that his 18-year-old son was also trapped in the rubble, said he came from Abuja to look for him. He said, “I came from Abuja this morning (Wednesday); my son is one of the victims, an 18-year-old boy. I got a call about this around 10am yesterday (Tuesday) and I started coming down immediately and ever since I got here, I was directed to the IDH, but they didn’t allow me to check whether my son was alive or dead. I’ve been to the general hospital, but I was not allowed to see anyone.” Another man, who claimed to have taken 10 people to the site, said he had only been able to see one body. He said, “I brought 10 people to this site on Monday; my brother, my wife’s brother and others. But I have only been able to see one body out of the 10 people.” Redeemed pastor, 22 co-workers trapped A pastor with the Redeemed Christian Church of God, Omotosho Emmanuel, told PUNCH Metro that a colleague, Ola Ogunfuwa, and 22 others from the Ibafo area of Ogun State, were also trapped in the rubble. Ogunfuwa, who is the pastor of the RCCG, Living Water Parish, Ibafo, was one of the engineers at the collapsed building. Emmanuel said Ogunfuwa came with the 22 artisans when he was told that workers were needed on the site. He said, “I am here this morning because one of my pastor friends is working here; he is an engineer. He came with about 22 people all the way from Ibafo to work here; labourers, bricklayers, welders, about 22 different guys that came together with him to work just to make sure the project is completed. They talked to him that they needed workers and he brought those guys. “Up till now, out of those that have been rescued, we’ve not seen any of those 22 and he is still there because we learnt that at break time, he came out to eat but as he was about washing his hands to eat, he was summoned by one of his bosses and he went back inside. Not up to five to 10 minutes later, the building collapsed and he was trapped. “He is still there now and we pray that God will have his way upon those that are still there. As a church, we prayed all through yesterday night just to make sure God have his way and we’re still believing that there is nothing God cannot do because we know that people are still many there, they said they are over 50. “The ones they’ve rescued are not up to 10; definitely we are still expecting more people to be rescued.” Lagos approved 15-storey building plan, not 21 The suspended General Manager of the Lagos State Building Control Agency, Gbolahan Oki, on Monday, stated that the collapsed structure was approved as a 15-storey building, and not 21. But the Deputy Governor of Lagos State, Dr Obafemi Hamzat, while countering Oki’s claim, stated that 21 storeys were approved. However, as the rescue operation entered day three, a new document emerged on Wednesday, showing that the Lagos State Government approved 15 storeys for the company. PUNCH Metro noted that the document was issued by the Lagos State Physical Planning Permit Authority. The permit was dated April 9, 2019 and signed by the agency’s general manager. The Lagos State Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Gbenga Omotosho, said the panel set up by the government would look into the issue. He said, “The governor has set up a panel of experts to look at what happened and that will be part of the things that the panel will try to determine. Tomorrow (Thursday), we are going to inaugurate the panel.” Project owner’s whereabouts unknown, survivors identified Three days after the tragedy, nothing has been heard about the project owner, Osibona, who was said to be on the 18th floor of the building when it collapsed. However, the spokesperson for the National Emergency Management Agency, Ibrahim Farinloye, on Tuesday, said the body of his personal assistant had been recovered. The state Commissioner of Police, Hakeem Odumosu, said no one could tell Osibona’s whereabouts, adding that his body had also yet to be recovered. The state governor, Sanwo-Olu, during his visit to the scene on Wednesday, said nine people were rescued alive, adding that three of them had been discharged. He identified the six injured survivors as Odutan Timileyin, 26; Ahmed Kinleku, 19, (Cotonou, Benin Republic); Sunday Monday, 21; Adeniran Mayowa, 37; Solagbade Nurudeen, 33; and Waliu Lateef, 32. Town planning president heads panel Sanwo-Olu, while addressing journalists, noted that an independent five-member panel had been set up to investigate the cause of the collapse. He said the committee was given a 30-day ultimatum to submit its report, adding that an executive order would be signed to back the panel. The governor said the panel would be headed by the President of the Nigerian Institute of Town Planners of Nigeria, Tayo Ayinde, while a lawyer in a private law firm, Ekundayo Onajobi, would serve as the secretary. Other members of the panel are Dr Akintilo Adeleke, Yinka Ogundairo, Godfrey Godfrey, Mrs Bunmi Ibrahim and Mr Ekundayo Onajobi. Sanwo-Olu also stated that a help desk had been set up at the scene of the incident for families seeking enquiries. He said, “This is an event that could be declared as a clear national disaster; this is an event one can say indeed mistakes were made from all angles and an event that truly really should not be happening in a modern-day city like Lagos. “It’s on record that we’ve asked the general manager of the building control agency, Architect Oki to proceed on an indefinite suspension. You can rest assured that if there are other people found culpable in the course of investigation, everybody will face the full wrath of the law.” The governor maintained that it was difficult for the state to know the exact number of the people trapped, adding that none of the people linked to the housing project had come forward to offer information on the manifest. Speaking on why the families had not been allowed to identify the bodies recovered, Sanwo-Olu stated that autopsies needed to be carried out on the corpses before they would be released to their families. He said the state government would conduct integrity and non-destructive tests on buildings under construction within the vicinity to prevent a re-recurrence of the incident. PUNCH.

On his way to the US, Bob-Oseni stopped by at Ikoyi building site and ended up under the rubble by Ayodele Oluwafemi

Wale Bob-Oseni, a real estate dealer and executive director of African Bureau for Legislative Empowerment, was on his way to the US on Monday. Then he got a call from Femi Osibona, owner of Fourscore Homes, to check out the ongoing development at Gerard Road, Ikoyi, Lagos state. On his way to the airport, he stopped by to see the 21-storey building being developed by his friend and associate. The building collapsed with Bob-Oseni and Osibona inside, and they are now presumably dead after 48 hours of rescue efforts. Dele Momodu, former presidential candidate and publisher, who was close to both of them, told TheCable on Wednesday that both men were his “aburos” — an affectionate term for younger friends. “Wale was on his way to the US… this is so tragic,” he told TheCable on phone. In a video that went viral some minutes after the collapse, a man believed to be Bob-Oseni’s driver was seen crying, saying he was to take his boss to the Lagos airport. “He was heading to America. I want to go and drop him in the airport,” the driver said in tears. There is no official figure of the number of persons who were in the building before the incident happened but over 50 persons are said to have been trapped. Bob-Oseni is also the corporate affairs manager of the First Premiere Mortgage, according to his profile on LinkedIn, which also sates that he had a master’s in international relations and diplomacy from the Howard university in the US. TheCable had reported that the owner of Fourscore Homes is believed to be trapped in the rubble or in hiding. As on Wednesday, the death toll of the incident had risen to 22, while nine persons have been rescued.

Mixed metaphors: The minister wore no panties by Sonala Olumhense

Two weeks after the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd) advised Nigerian journalists to stop identifying insecurity in Nigeria as “rising,” he took the problem to prayer in Saudi Arabia. He recommended that the mass media select, instead, the “reality of declining insecurity.” Insecurity in Nigeria is declining only in the minds of those who are protected day and night by the security forces. More and more Nigerians are learning not to leave their homes after dusk. In many places, parents keep their children away from school. Farms are deserted, as are inter-city travel, particularly at night. Administration insiders respond with curious narratives. Writing in The Guardian (UK) on Wednesday, for instance, Special Assistant Tolu Ogunlesi cited “significant progress” on insecurity. But two days earlier in the same newspaper, Peter Beaumont wrote that under Buhari, Nigeria’s fledgling democracy faced an uncertain future: “The mounting insecurity from banditry in the North-West, jihadist groups such as Boko Haram in the North-East, violent conflict between farmers and pastoralists across large swathes of Nigeria’s “middle belt”, and Igbo secessionists in the South-East calling for an independent Biafra once again, is driving a brain drain of young Nigerians.” The insecurity “has also seen the oil multinational Shell announce that it is planning to pull out of the country because of insecurity, theft and sabotage,” he said, joining hundreds of businesses that have fled the country. Chatham House’s Leena Koni Hoffman described the situation to The Guardian: “To give you an idea of the scale of the conflict happening in Nigeria, I could show you a map coloured pink for where violence is happening – it is pink all over. “For a country that has not been at war since the Biafran war that ended in 1970–and in the middle of the longest stretch of civilian democracy – to be experiencing this scale of intense violence should be alarming.” Not only is that no progress, it contradicts the claims that Buhari advertised of his intentions and abilities when he campaigned for office. As is the practice of the administration, however, Ogunlesi described Buhari as building a “legacy of hope.” In that regard, he celebrated the new Lagos-Ibadan rail line, describing it as an “achievement.” But you cannot build hope on falsehoods. Tha trail line was supposed to have been completed in 2019, not 2021! It has become a contradiction in terms to speak of a meaningful project begun and completed by the Buhari administration. What about maintenance? The trains of the Abuja-Kaduna line are not only ill-maintained, as they break down frequently, they are repeatedly attacked by criminals. The tracks were bombed last week. So much then, for the “reality of declining insecurity.” What has consequently continued to decline is hope. That is why Nigerians learned with derision on Wednesday that Mr. Buhari arrived in Madinah for intense prayers” for peace and security in Nigeria. This illustrates our problem: that those charged with important responsibilities resort to prayers and admonitions instead of performance. Buhari’s nepotism, among others, frustrates achievement. Think about it: In his Future Investment Initiative speech in Riyadh, Buhari celebrated his so-called anti-corruption effort, and suggested that the TSA, BVN, and NIN “reforms” would attract investors to Nigeria. “To further strengthen our anti-corruption drive, increase accountability and transparency, we have centralised government funds through a treasury single account, and ensuring that all Nigerians with a bank account use a unique Bank Verification Number.” The problem is that in Nigeria, we consider the launch of an idea or project to be its success. Announcing a war on corruption is not a war. How is TSA to be considered a success, for instance, when many government institutions fearlessly avoid patronising it? The president himself announced a ban on medical tourism upon arriving in office, but he has routinely mocked the ban because he is above it. Is that a success? And if BVN is a success, why has none—not one—of the crooks who established hundreds of accounts for nefarious purposes been prosecuted? And consider the irony: Buhari, having just requested new foreign loans, also called for debt relief in his speech, reminding Nigerians of his embarrassing address at the United Nations last month. “We cannot invest in humanity without relieving our countries from the crushing effects of the debt burden especially when the COVID-19 pandemic has increased the risk of deepening the debt portfolio of poor countries,” he declared. Mercifully, the Senate finally seems to have woken up to its responsibility for his reckless borrowing. On Thursday, its Committee on Local and Foreign Debt angrily discarded his $700m loan request for Sustainable Urban and Rural Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene. Several members were outraged that previous water loans were not demonstrably used for that purpose. Also before the Senate is another request for $200 million for the procurement of mosquito nets and malaria medicines that Nigerians can easily produce. Three days ago, State House Permanent Secretary Umar Tijjani told a Senate Committee that the State House Medical Centre, alias Aso Rock Clinic, would be rebuilt in one year, starting tomorrow. Now concocted as a 14-bed “presidential clinic,” Tijjani disclosed that it will be commissioned on December 31, 2022: five months before Buhari leaves office. The cost: an astounding N21bn. Not only does this price tag far exceed the combined allocations for all projects, in all 14 federal teaching hospitals nationwide, it screams incredulity. It screams of loss of perspective and priorities, which is what corruption is. And Buhari is “fighting” it! Speaking of the c-word, the Federal Government last week listed for auction 1620 properties recovered across the country. They include houses and cars. Prominent among those who allegedly forfeited the properties is Diezani Alison-Madueke, a former Minister of Petroleum Resources, the government prosecutes in the media like policemen parading suspects. Not only did the government recover real estate from her, it claimed to have recovered such personal property as shoes and blankets, “30 pieces of braziers” and “11 pieces of invisible bra.” The government lies, and not just because it can see invisible items. I am not an Alison-Madueke fan. Indeed, in July 2017, I addressed her story. Some things, however, stretch the imagination. How did the woman ever wear waist trainers and suits and “braziers” or bras without panties? Where did her panties go? What other personal items are not listed? Second, in its July 2017 asset forfeiture case, the United States detailed the Alison-Madueke’s acquisition of four million dollars’ worth of choice furniture in Houston. “At least one of the items…has been matched by vendor number, item number, and store-issued control number to furniture discovered in Alison-Madueke’s residence in Abuja, Nigeria,” it said. But that furniture is not listed in the auction notice. Finally, in April 2019, Buhari directed Finance Minister Zainab Ahmed to dispose of all assets recovered by his government since he assumed office within six months. In November 2020, he set up another committee, headed by Attorney General Abubakar Malami, again to sell off all such assets, also within six months. Neither of those committees did business transparently, and it is anyone’s guess what was sold—if anything—and to whom. The world guffaws. PUNCH