TheNewsGuru

Tag: Darius Ishaku

  • Alleged N27bn fraud: Court adjourns trial of ex-Taraba Governor

    Alleged N27bn fraud: Court adjourns trial of ex-Taraba Governor

    An Abuja High Court on Monday adjourned until June 2 for continuation of trial of a former governor of Taraba, Darius Ishaku charged with  15 counts of criminal breach of trust, conspiracy and conversion of public funds to the tune of N27 billion.

    The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), on behalf of the Federal Government, arraigned Ishaku, alongside a former Permanent Secretary, Bureau for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs in the state, Bello Yero.

    They, however, pleaded not guilty to the charge.

    At the resumed sitting on the matter, the defendants were in the court as well as their counsel.

    James Shaba who announced appearance for the prosecution, however, told the court that his principal, Rotimi Jacobs, SAN was at the court of Appeal for another matter.

    He prayed that the matter should be stood down for an hour to enable his principal to get the court.

    However, the counsel for Ishaku, Eko Eko SAN, objected to it.

    Eko informed the court that the former governor’s health was still fragile and it is not right to subject him to long waiting.

    ”My client is bereaved and needs to travel today.

    ”Instead of a stand down, the prosecution should ask for a clear date for an adjournment,” he said.

    Adeola Adedipe, SAN aligned with Eko, saying that a clear day for adjournment is better than a stand down.

    After listening to their submissions, Justice Sylvanus Orji adjourned until June 2, June 11 and July 2 for continuation.

  • Real reason EFCC arrested ex-Gov Darius Ishaku

    Real reason EFCC arrested ex-Gov Darius Ishaku

    The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has arrested Darius Ishaku, a former governor of Taraba State, over alleged involvement in a N27 billion fraud scheme.

    Ishaku was taken into custody from his Abuja residence on Friday.

    A source from the commission revealed that Ishaku faces at least 15-count charges, including criminal breach of trust, misappropriation, and diversion of public funds.

    “We have been gathering evidence for some time now, and his inability to account for certain financial activities during his administration raised major red flags.

    “The former governor is currently in our custody. He has been under investigation since leaving office, and there have been numerous instances of financial malfeasance attributed to him.”

    The EFCC spokesman, Dele Oyewale, confirmed the arrest but declined further comment.

    Ishaku, who served as governor from May 2015 to May 2023, will be arraigned in court soon.

  • Gunmen Kidnap Taraba Governor’s SSA

    Gunmen Kidnap Taraba Governor’s SSA

    Gunmen suspected to be bandits have kidnapped Bala Baba, the Senior Special Assistant (SSA) to Governor Darius Ishaku of Taraba State.

    Confirming the incident to journalists on Tuesday in Jalingo, the police spokesman in the state, Leha Reform, said the victim was abducted in his residence in Sabon Gari area.

    Leha explained that the incident took place on Tuesday (today) at about 2:30 am, adding that efforts were ongoing to rescue him and apprehend the perpetrators.

    The police spokesman, however, noted that the abductors are yet to call to make their intentions known.

    According to him, the Commissioner of Police, Ahmed Azare has ordered for an investigation into the matter and promised to come up with positive results.

    Leha said the police is doing everything within its power to nip collaboration in the bud, adding that the State Police Command is collaborating with other security agencies including the vigilante groups.

    The kidnap incident comes less than 48 hours after the Chairman of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Peter Jediel was abducted and subsequently released.

  • Why Taraba Governor abandoned office in Jalingo, operates from Abuja since December – Aide

    Taraba’s Governor Darius Ishaku has been staying in Abuja for close to two months now, because he is receiving adequate medical treatment for a domestic accident.

    His spokesman Bala Dan Abu, a senior special assistant, gave this information Thursday night in a reaction to calls for his impeachment for abandoning Jalingo, the capital of the state.

    Abu did not elaborate on the nature of the domestic accident the governor suffered, but said the governor is recuperating.

    Abu, a former magazine editor and veteran journalist, dismissed calls for the impeachment of Ishaku, who has stayed out of the state since December.

    He said Ishaku’s continued stay in Abuja does not in any way constitute an impeachable offence.

    He described those calling for the governor’s impeachment as unpatriotic people, who were only bent on promoting “inanities and outright falsehood.”

    “We urge the good people of Taraba, their friends and admirers in and outside the state to ignore the campaign of falsehood being orchestrated by some people.

    “His Excellency is desirous to return to the state and will do so when he has sufficiently recovered.”

    According to Abu, the governor’s absence had not affected the state in any negative way.

    “No aspect of governmental activities has suffered a setback as a result.

    “All government projects are going on smoothly and government has continued to meet its obligations to contractors while progress are being monitored by appropriate government ministries and officials,” Abu added.

    He further explained that the 2020 budget was being implemented with vigour while salaries of workers, pensions and gratuities are also being paid promptly.

    “It is therefore wrong and misleading to suggest that the Governor’s absence has affected morale of civil servants and governance in the state”.

    According to him, it was wrong to claim that the governor had breached Section 190 of the 1999 Constitution (as Amended) by not transmitting power to his Deputy.

    “The said section of the Constitution 190(2) speaks of transmission of power only when the Governor proceeds on vacation or is otherwise unable to discharge the functions of his office.

    “In this case, the Governor is not on vacation and he is not unable to discharge the duties of his office. He has been conducting his official duties diligently.”

    “Government activities are not at a standstill. Governor Ishaku has not breached any part of the Constitution.

    “He remains focused and irrevocably committed to peace and the socio-economic development of Taraba State,” Abu added.

    He advised those claiming that governance was at a standstill in Taraba to visit the state and verify.

  • Darius Ishaku blows hot, says Nigeria’s democracy is embarrassing

    Taraba State Governor, Darius Ishaku on Tuesday labelled Nigeria’s democracy as “embarrassing and insulting”.
    He made the statement while fielding questions from newsmen shortly after he received a former Minister of Women Affairs and Social Development, Hajiya Aisha Alhassan, who paid him a congratulatory visit at Government House.
    Ishaku noted that the decision of the police to lay siege to his private residence in Abuja was “unaccountable, nonsense and disgraceful”.
    Ishaku said, “I feel very bad that the democratic government of the All Progressives Congress is not living according to the tenets of the constitution, it is disgraceful, embarrassing and insulting.
    “I am shocked that only my party (the Peoples Democratic Party) voiced out in condemnation of the police siege. The APC didn’t talk about it. Don’t they have governors? Can somebody walk into an APC governor’s house and search it?
    “They broke the door of the gate, broke all the doors of my house, threw out my children who I begged for two years to come back to Nigeria. One of them has gone back; I’m still begging him to come back to Nigeria. This is nonsense.”
    Alhassan, who was Ishaku’s main contender in the 2015 and 2019 governorship elections in the state, vowed to work with the governor towards the development of the state.
    She said, “I believe that leadership is ordained by God and we cannot all be governors at the same time. Therefore, I have accepted my fate for losing gallantly.
    “My visit to you is to demonstrate oneness as we all contested to better the lives of our people upon emergence, but we cannot emerge at the same time.
    “It becomes expedient to team up with you to move the state forward. Although I have not defected to the PDP, my supporters and I are ready to assist whenever there is a need for us to render assistance.”
     

  • Benue,Taraba Govs offer amnesty to criminals

    Govs Samuel Ortom of Benue and Darius Ishaku of Taraba have resolved to grant amnesty to criminals operating along the border of the states.

    The offer is part of the resolution at the end of the joint security meeting between the two states held at the Federal University Wukari in Taraba.

    Ishaku, who read the communique at the end of the tour of some border communities of Abako, Sai and Dogon-Gawa, said the amnesty window took effect immediately and would expire by the end of January 2019.

    “We are willing to give amnesty to criminals who are willing to renounce criminality and surrender their weapons so that we can give them better jobs and reintegrate them into the society.

    “Criminals willing to surrender, including those that defaulted in the past, are free to contact any of us (governors), traditional rulers and security agencies.

    “Elections are around the corner and we will like to do this between now and end of January so that we can secure our places and synergise for peaceful elections,” he said.

    The meeting condemned the spate of kidnappings, armed robbery and banditry involving youths in the states at the border.

    It stressed the need for job creation as a fundamental tool to reduce unemployment which made youths to take to criminality.

    It called for adequate provision of logistics support to the security agencies by both the federal and state governments to sustain surveillance.

    The meeting called on the people of the areas to report all forms of criminality to appropriate authorities and not shield criminals in their domain.

    “The governors have resolved to constitute a joint security committee made up of people of proven integrity and locals of the area between the two states to address the security challenges and a joint security forces to be constituted with a police station at Sai.

    “The joint security meeting mandates the Boundary Committees of the states in conjunction with the National Boundary Commission to meet and ensure that boundary issues involving the two states are resolved,” he said.

    Ortom called on the people of the states to report criminals in their domain to security agencies, be law abiding and shun acts capable of dividing them.

    The security meeting was attended by heads of security agencies from both states, traditional rulers and top government functionaries from the states, including the immediate past governor of Benue, Dr Gabriel Suswam.

     

  • Taraba can produce Nigeria’s annual rice demand – Gov Ishaku

    Taraba can produce Nigeria’s annual rice demand – Gov Ishaku

    Governor Darius Ishaku of Taraba on Monday said that the state had the potential to produce 10million tonnes of rice, the annual demand of the country, with adequate financing and availability of modern equipment.

    Ishaku said this in Ardo-kola at a stakeholders’ meeting of the PDP’s delegates representing Jalingo and Ardo-kola.

    He said areas like: Karim-lamido, Gassol, Ardo-kola, Lau, Ibi, Wukari, Takum, among others, had fertile lands suitable for growing large quantities of rice.

    The governor noted that lack of sufficient funds had undermined the capacity of the state’s rice farmers to produce at an optimum level.

    Ishaku, however, said the state government was determined to support farmers in the state with farm inputs and improved seeds to increase their productivity.

    He said that Dominion Farms, owned by a Kenyan investor in Gassol, had been given six months to commence buying of paddy rice from out-growers for processing.

    The governor announced that the state government had bought hybrid seeds of Bennie seeds, soya beans and cassava and it would soon distribute them to its farmers.

    “Recently, there is a high demand of bennie seeds in our markets; though, I do not know what they are doing with it. We have acquired its improved seed.

    “We have also acquired hybrid seeds of soya beans and of course, cassava, because I will soon revive our cassava processing plant.

    “When that is done, it will bring the total companies I revived to five out of the 25 companies that were in comatose when I took over,’’ Ishaku said.

    The governor said he was in Ardo-kola to thank the people for massively voting for him in 2015.

    “The best time to appreciate that support is now; since I have won all the post-election suits instituted by my opponents,’’ he said.

    Also speaking, the state PDP Chairman, Mr Victor Bala, noted that loyalty to party decisions was critical to the growth of party politics.

    Bala urged council area chapters of the party that could not garner adequate support for the party in 2015 election, to “sit up’’ as the 2019 general elections were approaching.

    “Politics is like an investment. If you invest a little, do not expect high dividends at the end of the day, ‘’ he said.

     

     

    NAN