News
Olufuye bowls out as AfICTA Chair, narrates success story
After founding and successfully stirring the affairs of the Africa Information and Communication Technologies Alliance (AfICTA), for six years running, Dr. Jimson Olufuye has stepped down as its founding Chairman.
This is even as AfICTA at its 6th Annual General Meeting held in Nairobi, Kenya recently and in line with its constitution, elected its second Chairman, Engr Hossam Elgamal of the Arab Republic of Egypt.
AfICTA is a concerned private sector led alliance of ICT Associations, multi-national corporations, companies, organisations and individuals in the ICT sector in Africa.
Dr Olufuye, who has been in the vanguard of African digital inclusion in his farewell speech while narrating his success story outlined seventeen achievements recorded during his tenure.
Some of his achievements included the articulation of the Constitution of the Alliance.
Development of the AfICTA Strategy document; development and hosting of the website and successful migration from .org to .africa, registration of the alliance in Nigeria, registration in Nigeria of the trademarks: Africa ICT Champion and Africa ICT Personality Awards, setting up of a self-sustaining AfICTA Secretariat with 2 staff, unbroken organisation of the Alliance Summit for the past 6 years, among others.
He listed other achievements to include, signing of MoUs with Software Engineering Competency Centre (SECC), IT Industry Development Agency (ITIDA), Egypt, National IT Development Agency (NITDA) Nigeria and Asian-Oceania Computing Industry Organisation (ASOCIO), World Information Technology and Services Alliance (WITSA), Alliance for Affordable Internet (A4AI), enhancing links between business and governments across Africa, boosting intra-African Business Match-making for trade and wealth creation across Africa, initiating the “1m Jobs Initiative by 2025” powered by EITESAL, continuous engagement with the African Union especially on IGF and the growth of member countries from 6 to 30 with 24 African countries to go.
Meanwhile, current membership are from Nigeria, South Africa, Egypt, Kenya, Namibia, Cote d’Ivore, Ghana, Tunisia, The Gambia, Niger, Mali, Ethiopia, Burundi, Rwanda, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Tanzania, Zambia, Sudan, Somalia, Libya, Chad, Benin, DRC, Senegal, Uganda, Mauritius, Cameroon, Gabon and Lesotho.
In his acceptance speech, Engr Elgamal thanked Dr Olufuye for all the good works he had done and promised to take the Alliance to greater heights in collaboration with his colleagues on the board and members in general.
AfICTA’s vision is to fulfil the promise of the digital age for everyone in Africa while its mission is to encourage multi-stakeholder dialogue fostering accelerated and ICT enabled development in Africa and the use of cutting-edge innovative technologies including mobile, computing and satellite technologies to achieve an Information society in Africa.
News
EFCC: New Documents Extracted Shows Yahaya Bello Allegedly Paid School Fees To The Tune Of $845,852,84 For His Family Members
Still on the EFCC trailing on Ex Governor of Kogi State, Yahaya Bello, Documents serving as exhibits have shown how he allegedly paid school fees in advance for his family members already in the school and even those to be enrolled in future with hundreds of thousands of dollars withdrawn from the state coffers.
A letter from the American International School of Abuja to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has shown the school admitting that Bello, the former governor of Kogi State, paid $845,852,84 into their bank account since September 2021 as advance school fees for 4 family members from the present class until they graduate.
Payment was also made for any future student to be enrolled by the family.
The document alleges that the payment was made by Mr. Ali Bello, alleged to be the eldest son of Yahaya Bello.
In the document, the school stated that they have deducted the fees for the educational service already rendered to the Bello children in the institution and what is left is $760, 910, which would be refunded to an account provided by the EFCC as the commission continues investigation into alleged money laundering levelled against Yahaya Bello.
The school also added that from the Bello family kids, “no further additional fees are expected in respect of tuition until they graduate from ASIA.”
News
Niger State Prisoners Run From Facility After Rainstorm Brings Down Part Of Fencing
Many prisoners serving time at the Suleja Correctional Centre, located in Suleja Local Government of Niger state, fled the facility after a rainstorm brought down a part of the inner fencing.
This incident happened as a result of the heavy rainfall which fell on Wednesday night. This led to a cell being torn down, providing incarcerated individuals with a chance at freedom.
Reporters gathered that security forces fired many shots in the air, attempting to scare the inmates out of hiding.
While the State Comptroller of Prisons declined to speak to the press, it has been noted that security has been beefed up on the Minna-Suleja and Suleja-Kaduna roads, including the Madalla axis to Abuja road, which is a likely escape route out of the state for the inmates.
News
EFCC: Former Governor Of Kogi State, Yahaya Bello Fails To Show Up In Court, Says He Is Scared Of Arrest
The embattled immediate past Governor of Kogi state, Yahaya Bello, says he would have appeared at the Federal High Court in Abuja to answer to the 19-count charge preferred against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, but is afraid he would be arrested.
Though Bello was absent for his arraignment today April 23, His team of lawyers addressed the court on his behalf.
A member of his legal team, Adeola Adedipe, SAN, had this to say on his behalf;
“The defendant wants to come to court but he is afraid that there is an order of arrest hanging on his head,” Adedipe, SAN, submitted.
Adesipe then appealed to the court to set aside the exparte order of arrest it earlier issued against the former governor. The lawyer contended that as at the time the order of arrest was made, the charge had not been served on his client as required by the law.
He argued that it was only at the resumed proceedings on Tuesday that the court okayed substituted service of the charge on the defendant, through his lawyer.
“As at the time the warrant was issued, the order for substituted service had not been made. That order was just made this morning. A warrant of arrest should not be hanging on his neck when we leave this court,” counsel to the defendant added.
According to him, the Federal Government did not consult the 36 States of the federation before it enacted the EFCC Act through the National Assembly. He argued that section 12 of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, required the various Houses of Assembly of states to ratify the Act before it could become operative.
“This is a very serious matter that borders on the constitution and the tenets of federalism. It has to be resolved because as it stands, the EFCC is an illegal organization,” Bello’s lawyer added
However, EFCC’s lawyer, Mr. Kemi Pinheiro, SAN, urged the court to refuse the application, insisting that the warrant of arrest should not be set aside until the defendant makes himself available for his trial.
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