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Oyo ADC Calls On Governor Makinde To Explain N50bn Bodija Intervention Funds

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The Oyo State chapter of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) has demanded that Governor Seyi Makinde account for the N50 billion intervention funds it claims were received from the Federal Government following the January 2024 Bodija explosion.

 

In a statement issued on Sunday and signed by the State Publicity Secretary, Bimpe Adelowo, the party accused the state government of being “unaccountable, deceptive, divisive, and misleading” in its handling of public resources.

 

The controversy was sparked by former Ekiti State Governor, Ayo Fayose, who revealed that the Oyo State Government had requested N50 billion for reconstruction and victim relief.

 

While Makinde’s media aides have since clarified that only N30 billion was received, the ADC insists the public has been kept in the dark until the whistleblower’s intervention.

 

The ADC statement highlighted discrepancy between the funds received and the amount declared as spent on the victims, noting that while the governor claimed to have disbursed about N4.5 billion directly to the victims, and failed to account for the remaining N25.5 billion.

 

“Oyo state governor claimed he had disbursed about N4.5 Billion directly to the victim of Bódìjà explosion but failed to account for the balance of sum of N25.5 Billion,” Adelowo stated.

 

The party questioned whether the State Assembly was aware of the diverted balance or if it had been appropriated for other projects, adding that “it is safe to say that the entire disbursed N30 Billion was misappropriated and unlawfully diverted to projects which were not the purpose the money was disbursed for in the first place.”

 

The party emphasised that the document relied upon by Fayose only showed a request, not a disbursement, but noted that the governor’s failure to disclose the request for N50 billion until pressured indicates a lack of transparency.

 

The ADC urged him Makinde to release a detailed breakdown of the N30 billion intervention funds for public scrutiny.

 

“He should own up and apologise to the people of Oyo for taking them for a ride. He should release the details of the disbursed N30 Billion intervention funds for public scrutiny; after all, he holds the power in trust for them, and they deserve to know,” Adelowo concluded.

 

The Bodija explosion, which occurred on January 16, 2024, resulted in multiple fatalities and significant property damage, and the ADC insists that the use of federal intervention funds must be held to the highest standard of accountability.

 

The Oyo State Government had clarified that it received N30 billion, not N50 billion, from the Federal Government following the January 2024 Ibadan explosion.

 

The statement was made on Sunday by Chief Press Secretary to Governor Seyi Makinde, Mr Sulaimon Olanrewaju, amid allegations by former Ekiti Governor Ayodele Fayose.

 

Olanrewaju, in an opinion on Oyo affairs, dismissed the claim as misleading.

 

“Recent comments attributed to former Governor Ayodele Fayose, alleging that the Federal Government handed N50 billion to Seyi Makinde and that the governor stayed silent to save it for his presidential ambition, are not only misleading, they are deliberately disingenuous.

 

“The Federal Government did not give Governor Makinde N50 billion. This is why Fayose was unable to provide evidence. In fact, the memo he shared shows what was not disbursed,” he said.

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How 2018 Federal Legal Advice Exonerated Saraki In Offa Robbery Case

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In light of the Kwara State Government’s fresh prosecution of Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki and his successor over the Offa robbery, fresh facts have emerged on why the Director of Public Prosecutions of the Federation, Mr. E. U. (Etsu Umar) Mohammed gave the duo a clean bill of health.

The Federal Director of Public Prosecutions cleared former Senate President Bukola Saraki of involvement in the Offa bank robbery in 2018, citing no evidence of a connection.

It was gathered that the DPP reviewed a 16-page police report prepared and signed by Abba Kyari, a Deputy Commissioner of Police and then head of the Inspector-General of Police Intelligence Response Team (IGP-IRT) at Force Headquarters, Abuja. The report detailed investigations into the April 5, 2018, multiple bank robbery attack in Offa, Kwara State.

The DPP in his first report dated June 22, 2018 and signed on behalf of the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, prepared a five page legal advice in which he noted in paragraph 5 (f) that “for the Senate President (Saraki) and the Kwara State Governor (Ahmed), his office is unable to establish from the evidence in the interim report a nexus between the alleged offence and the suspects. Hence, it is our advice that further and thorough investigation in this regard be carried out”.

Following the submission of a second report by the police investigating team to his office on July 27, 2018, the DPP prepared a second legal advice, which was dated August 23, 2018. The three-page legal advice also has only three paragraphs.

In paragraph 3 (vi), he noted that “with regards to the Senate President, Senator Bukola Saraki, since there is no departure from the earlier findings in the interim report, this office is still unable to establish any prima facie case against him for any offences of criminal conspiracy, armed robbery, and culpable homicide punishable with death”.

Both legal advices had recommended six people for prosecution. They are: Ayoade Akinnibosun, Ibikunle Ogunleye, Adeola Ibrahim, Salawudeen Azeez, Niyi Ogundiran, and Michael Adiukwu.

One of the suspects, Michael Adiukwu, later died in police custody, while the other five had since been tried at the High Court in Ilorin.

During the trial, the suspects revealed how they were coerced into incriminating Senator Bukola Saraki.

They mentioned several inducements dangled before them, including money and the promise of a visa to travel out of the country.

The suspects have since been convicted and their convictions confirmed by the Court of Appeal. The matter is now pending before the apex court, the Supreme Court of Nigeria.

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₦400m Ransom Demanded As Gunmen Abduct Another Kwara Ruler

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Terrorists have abducted a traditional ruler in Olayinka community, located in the Ifelodun Local Government Area of Kwara State, Oba Salman Olátúnjí Aweda and are demanding a ₦400 million ransom for his release.

The abduction occurred on April 18, 2026, when armed men, suspected to be militia herdsmen, invaded the community and took the monarch, his wife, and another resident into the forest.

According to JomogNews, residents who witnessed the incident said the terrorists, numbering over 10, invaded the monarch’s residence around Saturday midnight, forced the door open, and abducted him alongside another person in the house.

The assailants reportedly led both victims into the bush.

Chairman of Ifelodun Local Government Area, Mr Abdulrasheed Femi Yusuf, visited the community on Saturday on a sympathy visit and assured residents that efforts were underway to secure the monarch’s release.

“We are deeply concerned about this incident, and we are taking swift and decisive action in collaboration with security agencies,” he said.

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Living Faith Church Founder Declares Week Of Vengeance Against Insecurity Sponsors

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Bishop David Oyedepo, General Overseer of Living Faith Church Worldwide, has declared that bandits and their sponsors will face divine judgment and retribution within seven days.

Speaking on Sunday, April 19, 2026, during a service themed “Covenant Day of Vengeance” at the church’s headquarters in Ota, Ogun State, the cleric stated that those responsible for killings and kidnappings would face imminent consequences.

“I declare judgement on those who caused these tragedies and their supporters in the name of Jesus,” he said.

The cleric further asserted that divine retribution would occur within a short timeframe.

“Unless I am not sent, this will happen in the next seven days,” he added.

Oyedepo also expressed confidence that Nigerians would soon witness outcomes of what he described as divine intervention, noting that the coming days would bring “testimonies of vengeance.”

 

 

 

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