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Patience Jonathan’s $8.4m final forfeiture suit slated for Oct. 7

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A Federal High Court sitting in Lagos, on Monday adjourned till October 7, to hear an application filed before the court by the Economic and Financial Crime Commission, EFCC, seeking the order of the court for final forfeiture of the $5.78 million and N2.4 billion, traced to former First Lady, Dame Patience Jonathan.

The presiding judge, Tijjani Garuba Ringim, fixed the date after hearing the submissions of the counsels to the parties in the matter.

The EFCC had filed the application for forfeiture in 2017 before Justice Mojisola Olatoregun. The defendants in the suit were Mrs Jonathan alongside two companies, LA Wari Furniture and Bathes. The monies were said to have been warehoused by Skye Bank Plc and Ecobank Plc respectively. Justice Olatoregun on April 26, 2017, ordered the temporary forfeiture of the monies, sequel to an ex-parte application filed by the EFCC. The judge’s order was affirmed by both the Court of Appeal and Supreme Court.

However, midway to the conclusion of hearing on the final forfeiture of the said sums, Justice Olatoregun retired from the Bench in 2019. The development compelled the Chief Judge of the court to re-assign the matter to Justice Chuka Obiozor for hearing.
However, Justice Obiozor could not hear the case before he was transferred to the Benin division of the court.

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When the matter resumed for hearing on Monday, EFCC counsel, Mr Rotimi Oyedepo, narrated to Justice Ringim how far the matter had gone.
Oyedepo said: “This matter is a suit instituted before your learned brother, Justice Olatoregun now retired, where we prayed for the final forfeiture of the sum of $5,781,173.55, warehoused in Skye Bank Plc and N2,421,953,502.78, property of LA Wari Furniture and Bathes in Ecobank Plc.

“An interim order was granted on April 24, 2017, upon which appeal was initiated up to Supreme Court and an application for its final forfeiture was moved but the trial judge didn’t deliver the judgment before retiring.
“It was upon that fact that the file was transferred to the registry where it was reassigned to the former judge and subsequently your Lordship.”

Counsel to Mrs Jonathan, Mr Ifedayo Adedipe SAN and Gboyega Oyewole SAN, also informed the judge that the case was adjourned for mention because it was coming up for the first time before him, but counsel to the companies, Chief Mike Ozekhome SAN, argued otherwise by urging the court to adjourn the case on the premise that it was starting afresh and that he intended to file an application challenging the constitutionality of the entire proceedings.

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Ozekhome prayed the court to grant a long adjournment to enable him file the application that the case is supposed to start afresh.
Oyedepo opposed the application, praying the court not to grant it, because, according to him, there is a procedure enshrined in section 17 of the Advanced Fee Fraud and other related offences Act, which the EFCC had complied with except the last step which is a motion for final forfeiture.

He urged the judge to look at the proceedings of February 17, 2021 where the former judge adjourned the hearing of the motion for final forfeiture till April 13, which could not hold because of the Judiciary Staff Union of Nigeria (JUSUN) strike.
Oyedepo prayed the Judge that should the court be inclined to grant an adjournment, it should be for the motion for final forfeiture.

In his ruling, Justice Ringim declared that a proceeding of this nature is a special one and cannot be truncated by any application.
He further said that “I say in my humble opinion that there is a procedure to follow in this type of application which cannot be truncated.

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“The court cannot adjourn the matter because of an application which is yet to be filed. However, due to the nature of the application as hinted by the second respondent, the court will not shut the application out.

“This court will adjourn for the hearing of the application for final forfeiture that is pending.

“Consequently, the second respondent is hereby ordered to file the application if any within 14 days from today and the plaintiff will have one week to respond. It will be heard alongside the motion for final forfeiture.”

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Relief as suspected Ebola cases in Adamawa tested negative

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The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) has said that there are currently no laboratory-confirmed cases of Ebola  in Adamawa.

The NCDC had on Saturday said that there were two suspected cases of Ebola in the north-east state, adding that the individuals had been isolated while contact identification was ongoing.

But in a statement on Sunday, the director-general of NCDC, Jide Idris,
said samples collected from the two individuals, who had symptoms suggestive of Ebola, tested negative after two rounds of testing.

“The report was received by the Adamawa State Public Health Emergency Operations Centre (PHEOC) in the early hours of 30 October 2026, following the identification of two individuals presenting with symptoms suggestive of Ebola, requiring further investigation,” the statement reads.

“Hence the alert that was released early this evening. The individuals have been isolated, and appropriate public health measures have been initiated.

“Samples were collected for laboratory testing to establish the cause of the illness. Fortunately, the samples turned out negative for EBV after two rounds of testing.”

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Idris commended the Adamawa health commissioner and his team for their “proactive approach”, adding that the NCDC was working closely with the state government to investigate the report of suspected Ebola cases.

“Currently, there is no laboratory-confirmed Ebola case in Adamawa state,” he said.

“The index case previously confirmed in the Federal Capital Territory remains the only confirmed case reported in Nigeria to date.”

He urged the public to remain calm and avoid sharing unverified information or speculating about the situation.

“The public is encouraged to obtain information from official government and public health communication channels,” he said.

Idris described Ebola as a serious infectious disease that requires prompt identification, appropriate clinical management and effective infection prevention and control measures.

“Anyone experiencing symptoms such as fever, severe weakness, headache, muscle pain, vomiting, diarrhoea or unexplained bleeding, particularly following relevant exposure, should seek immediate medical attention and inform healthcare workers of any relevant travel or contact history,” he said.

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“Individuals should avoid self-medication and follow the advice of healthcare professionals.”

Nigeriaconfirmed its first Ebola case in more than a decade on October 20, after a 42-year-old Swiss woman tested positive for the Bundibugyo strain in Abuja.

The patient, who had travelled from Uganda to Nigeria, was subsequently isolated and treated by Nigerian health workers.

On Monday, the federal governmentevacuated the patient to Switzerland aboard a medical plane.

Her husband, who was identified as a close contact, was also evacuated to Switzerland.

Ali Pate, coordinating minister of health and social welfare, said the patient was clinically much improved, stable, conscious and communicating, with her laboratory test results approaching baseline levels.

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Good morning! Nigerian Newspapers Headlines: 2027: S’West ADC leaders revolt against Atiku

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1. Many leaders of the African Democratic Congress in the South-West have expressed dissatisfaction with what they described as the marginalisation of the party’s structure in the region by the ADC presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, ahead of the 2027 presidential election.

The ADC leaders, including some state chairmen and governorship candidates, alleged that Atiku had been conducting his political activities in the region through his friends and allies, while leaving the party structure sidelined as presidential campaign activities prepared to gather momentum.

2. A United States federal court has rejected an attempt to obtain discovery from President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and DCI Group in an ongoing Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit involving the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). 

3. The Zamfara State Commissioner of Police, CP Muhammad Bello, has confirmed the “rescue of three of the six Islamic clerics kidnapped on September 12 while travelling to Talata Mafara, Zamfara State.” Bello gave the confirmation in an interview with select reporters in Gusau. He said the rescue followed a multi-agency collaboration and seamless synergy between the Office of the National Security Adviser, ONSA, the Department of State Services, DSS, and police operatives.

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4. The Grand Patron of the PBAT Door-to-Door Movement, Chief Government Ekpemupolo, popularly known as Tompolo, Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke, and the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola, have set a target of at least 1.5 million votes for President Bola Tinubu in the 2027 presidential election. According to a statement, the target was announced on Saturday in Osogbo during the inauguration of the movement’s state and local government structures.

5. Nigerians lose no less than N75bn annually to visa application expenses across foreign missions, with rejected Schengen visa applications alone accounting for an estimated €11.5m, equivalent to about N19bn in 2025.
This is according to a visa-cost analysis report obtained by Sunday PUNCH from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs

6. With one accord, the governors of Enugu, Imo, Ebonyi, and Anambra States yesterday urged the people of the Southeast to avoid political distractions, and vote massively for President Bola Tinubu in next year’s presidential election. Governors Peter Mbah, Hope Uzodimma, Francis Nwifuru and Charles Soludo, said it was necessary for the zone to support Tinubu’s re-election bid to enable him consolidate the gains of his administration’s economic reforms

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7. Former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Yakubu Dogara, has said Nigeria’s security challenges predate the administration of President Bola Tinubu, noting that terrorism, insurgency and banditry had been entrenched in the country before 2023 when Tinubu assumed office. He said the country’s security problems were rooted in years of porous borders, illegal arms proliferation, youth unemployment and the spread of extremist ideologies.

8. Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Mr Nyesom Wike has directed supporters of President Bola Tinubu to deliver their polling unit in the forthcoming 2027 general elections. Addressing the supporters, Wike framed the upcoming general elections as a critical opportunity for residents of the nation’s capital to rectify past electoral missteps and unite under a strategic development banner.

9. The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, has removed the name of the Kano State governorship candidate of the National Democratic Congress, NDC, Aminu Abdussalam Gwarzo, from its updated list of candidates for the 2027 general elections. A check on the commission’s website shows that the names of Gwarzo and his deputy were conspicuously missing from the updated list.

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10. Four young men have been arrested by the Bauchi State Police Command for allegedly abducting and gang-raping a 12-year-old girl in Sakwa District, Zaki Local Government Area of the state. The suspects were arrested following a complaint by the victim’s 50-year-old father, who reported the incident at the Sakwa Divisional Police Headquarters on Thursday.

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Wale Tinubu, Rabiu, others Join President Tinubu in Makkah for Umrah

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The Group Chief Executive Oando Plc, Jubril Adewale Tinubu; Chairman of BUA Group, Abdul Samad Rabiu, and several other Nigerian business mogul have joined President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in Makkah, Saudi Arabia, for the performance of Umrah, the lesser Islamic pilgrimage.

The presence of the prominent Nigerian business leaders alongside the President in the holy city has drawn attention, bringing together three influential figures from Nigeria’s political and business communities in a moment of religious observance.

Tinubu and Rabiu, both prominent names in Nigeria’s corporate landscape, were seen alongside the President dressed in the traditional white Ihram garments worn by Muslim pilgrims performing Umrah.

Umrah, unlike the obligatory Hajj pilgrimage, can be undertaken at any time of the year. It involves a series of religious rites in Makkah and holds profound spiritual significance for Muslims across the world.

For the Nigerian business community, the appearance of the corporate leaders alongside the President also offers a glimpse into the intersection of faith, business and public life, particularly when influential figures come together outside the usual settings of boardrooms, corporate engagements and official functions.

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The development comes as President Tinubu undertook the pilgrimage to seek divine guidance and offer prayers for Nigeria’s peace, unity, stability and progress.

According to the Presidency, the President performed the Umrah rites early Friday, October 30, at the Grand Mosque, Masjid al-Haram, where he circumambulated the Holy Ka’abah.

Speaking after completing the spiritual exercise, Tinubu described the pilgrimage as significant, linking it to his commitment to Nigeria and its people. He also expressed gratitude to Allah for the opportunity to pray for the country.

The President’s prayers reportedly centre on national harmony, security, economic prosperity and the need for Nigerians to live together peacefully.

Rabiu also used the occasion to express his hopes for the country, describing it as an honour to accompany the President on the spiritual journey. He prayed for lasting peace, unity and prosperity in Nigeria.

For Tinubu, whose Oando Group occupies a prominent position in Nigeria’s energy industry, the journey offered a departure from the familiar world of corporate leadership and business engagements. Rabiu, similarly, is a major player in the country’s industrial sector, with interests spanning manufacturing, cement and food production.

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Their appearance in Makkah alongside the President underscores the presence of leading figures from Nigeria’s private sector at an important spiritual moment for the country’s leader.

Umrah, often described as the lesser pilgrimage, is a significant act of worship in Islam. Unlike Hajj, which takes place during a specific period in the Islamic calendar, Umrah can be performed throughout the year.

President Tinubu is expected to return to Nigeria next week after completing his spiritual engagements in Saudi Arabia.

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