In the second part of this interview, Adebayo Shittu speaks on his failed gubernatorial ambition, the future of the All Progressives Congress and his chances of being re-elected a minister. Read the first part of the interview here. Excerpts: PT: Now you are out of the communications ministry and probably…

In this exclusive interview, Nigeria's former communication minister, Adebayo Shittu, grants audience to PREMIUM TIMES' managing editor, Idris Akinbajo, and senior investigative reporter, Hassan Adebayo. Mr Shittu talks about his failure to partake in the mandatory NYSC scheme, his role in the MTN fine saga, his achievements as a minister,…

Anti-corruption operatives in Abuja are currently grilling the Assistant Director of Finance at the country’s secret police agency otherwise known as the SSS, Kunle Kadri, for alleged fraud and mismanagement, inside sources at the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) have told PREMIUM TIMES. Mr Kadri, an accountant and a…

A controversial letter by Nigeria's attorney general, Abubakar Malami, almost frustrated the corruption trial of two multinationals in Italy. PREMIUM TIMES reported how Mr Malami wrote the letter to President Muhammadu Buhari recommendending the stoppage of the trial of suspects involved in the Malabu OPL 245 scandal. The anti-graft agency…

In this second part of the interview with Zizwe Poe, the pan-Africanist speaks on his views about how Nigeria can maximise its potentials within Africa. The don also speaks on the youth and the controversy surrounding the teaching of history in Nigeria. Excerpts: PT: We have spoken a lot about…

A foremost Pan Africanist, Zizwe Poe is an American Professor at Lincoln University. As a scholar who has extensively studied Kwame Nkrumah and has been part of Pan African movements, the don shares his knowledge and experiences on diverse issues including leadership, Pan Africanism and neo-colonialism. In this first part…

An estate agent who helped ex-minister, Diezani Alison-Madueke, buy properties in the UK has been arrested in Nigeria. PREMIUM TIMES reported how Adeyemi Edun helped Mrs. Alison-Madueke buy millions of pounds worth of properties in the UK. The former petroleum minister is held up in the UK where she is…

A British judge ruled on Friday that up to $85 million from the notorious Malabu oil deal should be returned to the Nigerian government.   This is the first money to be successfully recovered from the $1.1 billion sale of the fantastically rich offshore oil block, OPL245, that has been…

President Donald Trump on Wednesday formally recognised Jerusalem as capital of Israel. The American president also directed that processes commence immediately to formally move the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. World leaders including the EU and Arab countries had cautioned against the move saying it could further worsen…

The presidential election in Liberia is set for a runoff as none of the candidates will be able to score 50 per cent of votes after final tabulation of results. As at 9 p.m. Nigerian time, results in 95.6 per cent of the polling units had been announced by the National Elections…

The transfer of over $800 million to accounts controlled by Dan Etete from a Nigerian government account was fraudulent and in contravention of Nigerian laws, the federal government told a UK High Court. The money was part of the $1.1 billion paid by Shell and ENI for OPL 245, considered…

Nigeria’s Minister of State for Petroleum, Ibe Kachikwu, on Tuesday held a closed-door meeting with Acting President Yemi Osinbajo, with one of the major subjects of discussion being the Malabu OPL 245 scandal. Tuesday’s meeting comes about five days after Mr. Kachikwu told journalists that ongoing investigation and prosecution of…

Lionel Messi scored two goals to help Barcelona defeat Real Madrid in the Spanish League match played on Sunday night. Casemeiro put Madrid ahead in the 28th minute before Messi equalised four minutes later. Ivan Rakitic made it two for the visitors before Sergio Ramos was sent off for the…

The anti-graft EFCC has appealed a court order to unfreeze a Skye Bank account belonging to the former first lady, Patience Jonathan. An official of the anti-graft agency confirmed this to PREMIUM TIMES on Wednesday. “We have appealed the order,” Wilson Uwujaren, said in a telephone interview. The Federal High…

The presidency on Tuesday gave the clearest indication yet that it would not succumb to the Senate and remove Ibrahim Magu as chairman of the anti-graft EFCC. The Senate recently refused to screen presidential nominees for the position of the resident electoral commissioners, saying it would not do so until…

After repeated denials in various countries, Anglo-Dutch oil giant, Royal Dutch Shell, on Monday finally admitted it had foreknowledge that the $1.3 billion itself and ENI paid to Nigerian government for the OPL 245 oil block licence would ultimately be used to settle convicted former Minister of Petroleum, Dan Etete.…

The Emir of Kano, Muhammadu Sanusi, on Wednesday blasted conservative northern leaders who discourage attitudes and activities that, he said, would have developed the region. The emir spoke while delivering the keynote speech at KADINVEST 2.0, an event organised by the Kaduna Sate Government to encourage investments. Giving examples of…

The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, on Tuesday pledged that the budget of the National Assembly will be made public in 2017. Mr. Dogara stated this at an interactive session with newspaper editors at his office in Abuja. “We will definitely open the books,” he said, while…

Multinational oil giant, Shell, set up an Intelligence network made up of some of Europe’s top spies which gathered information on some of the top actors involved in the infamous Malabu oil scam during the negotiations leading to payment of $1.1 billion for OPL 245, an investigation by UK-based Finance…

Nigeria’s anti-graft agency, EFCC, has filed fresh corruption charges against two multinational oil firms, Shell and Eni, for their roles in the Malabu $1.1 billion scandal. The charges were filed at the FCT High Court on Thursday afternoon against the oil majors and nine other individuals and firms. Some of…

Nineteen years after it was first awarded to a controversial firm, OPL 245 has reverted back to the federal government. The block, considered the richest in Africa, is estimated to contain over 9 billion barrels of crude and even larger volume of gas reserves. For comparison, at Nigeria's current OPEC…

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, has secured a court order mandating the return of OPL 245 to the Nigerian government. The order was granted by Justice John Tsoho of the Federal High Court on Thursday morning, pending "the conclusion of investigations..." by the EFCC. OPL 245, considered the…

He may be the owner of Abuja's most luxurious building and a friend to several Nigerian government officials, past and present, but the noose is tightening on Aliyu Abubakar in Nigeria and in Europe. [caption id="attachment_219312" align="alignright" width="248"] Aliyu Abubakar[/caption] About a week after Nigeria's anti-graft agency, EFCC, filed money…

A few days after Nigeria commenced prosecution of persons involved in the OPL 245 scandal, Italian officials are also set to commence prosecution of Italians and firms involved in the shady deal. As part of their findings, Italian prosecutors said officials of Italian oil giant, Eni, may have received $50…

Eighteen years after Nigeria's richest oil block, OPL 245, was controversially awarded to a new company, the then petroleum minister has been charged for crimes related to the block. Dan Etete was petroleum minister in 1998 under the military dictator, Sani Abacha, when the block was awarded to Malabu Oil…