President Bola Tinubu’s minister of the interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, is considered the star boy of the new administration, owing to his numerous achievements in his first six months in office. Some of his significant successes in six months included clearing heavy passport backlogs and implementing a new platform to renew passports from the comfort of one’s home, among others.

However, the minister, who was awarded “Public Service Person Of The Year 2023” by the Leadership newspaper and was recently rated as one of the 12 performing ministers of Tinubu by The Economic Confidential, has three major scandals in his record that many Nigerians may not be aware of two of them.

The scandals are listed below:

Betta Edu’s scandal: The minister of interior was recently accused of getting an award of N438.1 million contract by the suspended minister of humanitarian and poverty alleviation, Betta Edu, through a company, New Planet Project Limited, allegedly owned by him.

The company was accused of being paid N438.1 million for consultancy services by the ministry of humanitarian affairs and poverty alleviation under the suspended Betta Edu.

New Planet Project Limited was one of the many firms Edu engaged and awarded the N3 billion National Social Register contract. In his reaction, the minister said he did not have the right to speak for the company because he was no longer part of its hierarchy. In an interview, Tunji-Ojo said: “I have no business with it. I am not involved in the day-to-day of the company. I do not pursue jobs for the company. I do not bid for the company. I do not run the company, I am not a signatory to the company’s account.”

NYSC certificate scandal: During his ministerial screening by the Senate, there were concerns about discrepancies in Tunji-Ojo’s National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) certificate raised by Sadiq Umar, the senator representing Kwara North.

The senator asked why the nominee had his NYSC scheme at 37, and his discharge certificate had a suspicious date. However, Tunji-Ojo dismissed the lawmaker’s concerns, stating that qualified NYSC members could participate in the scheme anytime after graduating as long as they graduated before the age of 30. He said such was his case.

In the NYSC certificate, the minister claimed to have participated in the national service between November 2019 and November 2020. However, the senator’s concerns were that the nominee performed his NYSC at a time when he was already a member of the House of Representatives.

Below is the certificate: Controversies on Tunji-Ojo’s NYSC certificate Photo Credit: Premium Times Source: Twitter

NDDC: Before he was appointed the minister, Tunji-Ojo was a member of the House of Representatives, representing the people of Akoko North East/North West Federal Constituency of Ondo stat.

Many Nigerians did not know that the minister of interior was the infamous ex-chairman of the House of Representatives committee on the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), who clashed with the former minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Godswill Akpabio. Akpabio had appeared before the committee over the alleged mismanagement of funds in the commission.

At the hearing, which was televised, the now Senate president accused Tunji-Ojo and other national assembly members of getting contract awards from the NDDC. Tunji-Ojo had denied the allegation and challenged Akpabio to make evidence available.

Tunji-Ojo was said to have requested another date to appear before the Code of Conduct Bureau for questioning.

The development was contrary to initial claims the minister shunned the bureau that had invited him for interrogation over the N438m contract scandal. A leaked memo showed that a firm linked to the minister was awarded the N438m contract for a consultancy fee by the suspended minister of humanitarian affairs, Betta Edu.

Dangote Refinery is set to supply Premium Motor Spirit (PMS)  popularly known as petrol to marketers next month, May 2024, according to sources familiar with the matter.

Nairametrics reported yesterday that the largest refinery in Africa began the distribution of diesel and aviation jet fuel to domestic marketers at 1,225/ltr, a development that might reduce the retail price of both products in the coming months.

According to Bloomberg report, the new mega-refinery will begin supply of PMS in the domestic market in May, significantly reducing Nigeria’s dependence on imported petroleum products.

The refinery, which began its operations in January, made its first export last month, shipping 65,000 metric tons of low-sulfur straight run fuel oil and approximately 60,000 tons of naphtha.

The facility is operating at an initial processing rate of 350,000 barrels per day, with plans to increase towards its maximum capacity.

According to Abubakar Maigandi, the leader of an industry organization, marketers have started transporting diesel from the refinery and will make payments in naira.

“We are still finalizing the details of the volumes that we are going to take from Dangote as an association and we also haven’t finalized on the price,” he said.

Earlier yesterday,  Dangote oil refinery began supplying the Nigerian domestic market with petroleum products such as diesel and aviation jet fuel on Tuesday,

Abubakar Maigandi, who heads the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, reported to Reuters that diesel’s cost was established at 1,225 naira per litre ($0.96) by domestic marketers after they concluded a collective purchase arrangement, and then they added their mark-up.

The association’s members control about 150,000 retail stations across Nigeria, Maigandi said.

Furthermore, Devakumar Edwin, an executive at Dangote Group, affirmed that the company has initiated the local distribution of diesel and jet fuel.

“We have substantial quantities. Products are being evacuated both by sea and road. Ships are lining up one after another to load diesel and aviation jet fuel.

“Ships load a minimum of 26 million litres, though we try to push for 37 million litres vessels, for ease of operations,” Edwin said.

The Dangote refinery, positioned on a peninsula near Lagos’s commercial centre, represents Africa’s largest refinery project, completed after many postponements and financed by Aliko Dangote, Africa’s wealthiest individual, with an investment of $20 billion.

The refinery, with a processing potential of 650,000 barrels per day, is poised to be the biggest in both Africa and Europe upon achieving full operational status, which is expected either this year or the following.

The Dangote refinery Is expected to significantly reduce Nigeria’s dependence on imported petroleum products.

Nigeria, despite being the most populous country in Africa and its top oil producer, ironically imports almost all of its fuel.

Primarily, this is attributed to the nation’s lack of sufficient refining infrastructure, a gap that the new refinery seeks to fill.

Dangote Refinery is set to supply Premium Motor Spirit (PMS)  popularly known as petrol to marketers next month, May 2024, according to sources familiar with the matter.

Nairametrics reported yesterday that the largest refinery in Africa began the distribution of diesel and aviation jet fuel to domestic marketers at 1,225/ltr, a development that might reduce the retail price of both products in the coming months.

According to Bloomberg report, the new mega-refinery will begin supply of PMS in the domestic market in May, significantly reducing Nigeria’s dependence on imported petroleum products.

The refinery, which began its operations in January, made its first export last month, shipping 65,000 metric tons of low-sulfur straight run fuel oil and approximately 60,000 tons of naphtha.

The facility is operating at an initial processing rate of 350,000 barrels per day, with plans to increase towards its maximum capacity.

According to Abubakar Maigandi, the leader of an industry organization, marketers have started transporting diesel from the refinery and will make payments in naira.

“We are still finalizing the details of the volumes that we are going to take from Dangote as an association and we also haven’t finalized on the price,” he said.

Earlier yesterday,  Dangote oil refinery began supplying the Nigerian domestic market with petroleum products such as diesel and aviation jet fuel on Tuesday,

Abubakar Maigandi, who heads the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, reported to Reuters that diesel’s cost was established at 1,225 naira per litre ($0.96) by domestic marketers after they concluded a collective purchase arrangement, and then they added their mark-up.

The association’s members control about 150,000 retail stations across Nigeria, Maigandi said.

Furthermore, Devakumar Edwin, an executive at Dangote Group, affirmed that the company has initiated the local distribution of diesel and jet fuel.

“We have substantial quantities. Products are being evacuated both by sea and road. Ships are lining up one after another to load diesel and aviation jet fuel.

“Ships load a minimum of 26 million litres, though we try to push for 37 million litres vessels, for ease of operations,” Edwin said.

The Dangote refinery, positioned on a peninsula near Lagos’s commercial centre, represents Africa’s largest refinery project, completed after many postponements and financed by Aliko Dangote, Africa’s wealthiest individual, with an investment of $20 billion.

The refinery, with a processing potential of 650,000 barrels per day, is poised to be the biggest in both Africa and Europe upon achieving full operational status, which is expected either this year or the following.

The Dangote refinery Is expected to significantly reduce Nigeria’s dependence on imported petroleum products.

Nigeria, despite being the most populous country in Africa and its top oil producer, ironically imports almost all of its fuel.

Primarily, this is attributed to the nation’s lack of sufficient refining infrastructure, a gap that the new refinery seeks to fill.

Nadeem Anjarwalla, one of the two Binance executives detained in Nigeria for alleged tax evasion and other offences, has escaped from lawful custody, those familiar with the matter have told PREMIUM TIMES.

Our sources said Mr Anjarwalla, 38, escaped on Friday, 22 March, from the Abuja guest house where he and his colleague were detained after guards on duty led him to a nearby mosque for prayers in the spirit of the ongoing Ramadan fast.

The Briton, who also has Kenyan citizenship, is believed to have flown out of Abuja using a Middle East airliner.

It remains unclear how Mr Anjarwalla got on an international flight despite his British passport, with which he entered Nigeria, remaining in the custody of the Nigerian authorities.

Authorities are also said to be working to unravel his intended destination in a bid to get him back into custody.

An Immigration official said the Binance executive fled Nigeria on a Kenyan passport. He, however, said authorities were trying to determine how he obtained the passport, given that he had no other travel document (apart from the British passport) on him when he was taken into custody.

Another source said the two officials were held at a “comfortable guest house” and allowed many rights, including the use of telephones, a privilege Mr Anjarwalla is believed to have exploited to plot an escape.

When contacted Sunday night on the escape of the Binance executive from detention, the Head of Strategic Communication at the Office of the National Security Adviser, Zakari Mijinyawa, said he would enquire and revert. He has yet to do so as of the time of filing this report.

Mr Anjarwalla, Binance’s Africa regional manager, and Tigran Gambaryan, a US citizen overseeing financial crime compliance at the crypto exchange platform, were detained upon their arrival in Nigeria on 26 February 2024.

A criminal charge was filed against the two executives before a Magistrate Court in Abuja. On 28 February 2024, the court granted the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) an order to remand the duo for 14 days. The court also ordered Binance to provide the Nigerian government with the data/information of Nigerians trading on its platform.

Following Binance’s refusal to comply with the order, the court extended the remand of the officials for an additional 14 days to prevent them from tampering with evidence. The court then adjourned the case till 4 April 2024.

Also on 22 March, the Nigerian government approached the Federal High Court in Abuja and slammed another four-count charge on Binance Holdings Limited, Mr Anjarwalla and Mr Gambaryan, accusing them of offering services to subscribers on their platform while failing to register with the Federal Inland Revenue Service to pay all relevant taxes administered by the Service and in so doing, committed an offence, contrary to and punishable under Section 8 of the Value Added Tax Act of 1993 (as Amended).

The defendants were also accused of offering taxable services to subscribers on their trading platform while failing to issue invoices to those subscribers to determine and pay their value-added taxes and, in so doing, committed an offence contrary to and punishable under S.29 of the Value Added Tax Act of 1993 (as amended).

Count Three of the charges accused the three defendants of offering services to subscribers on their Binance trading platform for the buying and selling of cryptocurrencies and the remittance and transfer of those assets while failing to deduct the necessary Value Added Taxes arising from their operations and thereby committing an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 40 of the Federal Inland Revenue Service Establishment Act 2007 (as amended).

The last count of the charges wants the defendants punished for allegedly aiding and abetting subscribers on their Binance trading platform to unlawfully refuse to pay taxes or neglect to pay those taxes and, in so doing, committing an offence contrary to and punishable under the provisions of S.94 of the Companies Income Tax Act (as amended).

The Nigerian government had, in the past three months, been cracking down on suspected money launderers and terrorism financiers, some of whom it alleged are using the Binance platform for criminal activities

The Nigerian government said over $21.6 billion was traded by Nigerians whose identities were concealed by Binance.

The government also claimed its investigations revealed that unscrupulous elements were using Binance for money laundering, terrorist financing, currency speculation and market manipulation, distorting the Nigerian economy and weakening the Naira against other currencies

The detention of Binance officials in Nigeria began months after the crypto exchange platform pleaded guilty and agreed to pay $4.3 billion to settle criminal money laundering charges levied by the US Department of Justice.

Binance founder and CEO Changpeng Zhao, also known as CZ, pleaded guilty and agreed to resign. His criminal trial has been postponed to 30 April by a US court.

• PREMIUM TIMES