- As 200 firms risk closure over forex crisis, says MAN
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has filed 10 counts of money laundering against the immediate past Chief of Defence Staff, Air Marshal Alex Badeh (retd.), accusing him of removing a total sum of N3.9bn from the accounts of the Nigerian Air Force between January and December, 2013.
Badeh, who has remained in EFCC custody since February 8, is charged along with a firm, Iyalikam Nigeria Limited, before Justice Okon Abang of the Federal High Court in Abuja.
The relationship between Badeh and the company is not disclosed in the charges.
Badeh, who is also a former Chief of Air Staff, will likely be arraigned along with the company on Thursday (today).
Another judge of the Federal High Court in Abuja, Justice James Tsoho, had on Monday fixed March 4 (Friday) for ruling on Badeh’s bail application.
The anti-graft agency in the charges, numbered FHC/ABJ/CR/46, 2016, accused Badeh and Iyalikam Nigeria Limited of spending the total sum of N3,974,362,732.94, on acquisition, construction, renovation, furnishing of various properties, including a shopping mall in many choice areas of Abuja.
Some of the properties were said to have been purchased, renovated and furnished for a son of the former CDS, Alex Badeh (Jnr.).
The properties allegedly include a mansion at No. 6, Ogun River Street, off Danube Street, Maitama, Abuja, which the defendants were said to have purchased with N1.1bn.
The accused also allegedly bought a commercial plot of land at Plot 1386, Oda Crescent, Cadastral Zone A07, Wuse II, Abuja, for N650m.
They were said to have paid N878m for the construction of a shopping mall at Plot 1386, Oda Crescent, Cadastral Zone A07, Wuse II, Abuja, and another sum of N304m to complete the construction.
The anti-graft agency also accused them of paying N260m to purchase a duplex at No. 19 Kumasi Crescent, Wuse II, Abuja, for Badeh’s son.
The sum of N60m was said to have been paid for the renovation of the property and another N90m to furnish the property.
The accused persons also allegedly paid N330m to one Honourable Bature to purchase a duplex at No. 14 Adzope Crescent, Off Kumasi Crescent, Wuse II, Abuja.
They were also accused of paying N240m to Rabiu Isyaku Rabiu to buy a semi-detached duplex at No. 8A Embu Street, by Sigma Apartment, Wuse II, Abuja.
They also allegedly renovated a private property at No. 2 Nelson Mandela Street, Asokoro, Abuja, with N62m.
In the charges signed by EFCC’s Deputy Director, Legal and Prosecution Department, Aliyu Yusuf, the anti-graft agency alleged that the sum of N3.9bn was removed from the accounts of the Nigerian Air Force.
The commission alleged that the various sums of money were part of proceeds of Badeh’s unlawful activities, which it said constituted a “criminal breach of trust and corruption”.
The money laundering charges are said to be contrary to Section 15(2)(d) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2011 (as amended) and punishable under Section 15(3) of the same Act.
Some of the charges read, “That you, Air Chief Marshal Alex S. Badeh (whilst being the Chief of Air Staff, Nigerian Air Force) and Iyalikam Nigeria Limited between January and December 2013 in Abuja, within the jurisdiction of this honourable court, did use dollar equivalent of the sum of N1,100,000,000 (one billion, one hundred million naira only) removed from the accounts of the Nigerian Air Force to purchase for yourselves a mansion situate at No. 6 Ogun River Street, off Danube Street, Maitama, Abuja, when your reasonably ought to have known that the said funds formed part of the proceeds of unlawful activity (to wit: criminal breach of trust and corruption) of Air Chief Marshal Alex S. Badeh and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 15(2)(d) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2011 (as amended) and punishable under Section 15(3) of the same Act.
“That you Air Chief Marshal Alex S. Badeh (whilst being the Chief of Air Staff, Nigerian Air Force) and Iyalikam Nigeria Limited between January and December 2013, in Abuja, within the jurisdiction of this honourable court, did use dollar equivalent of the sum of N650,000,000 (Six hundred and fifty million naira only), removed from the accounts of the Nigerian Air Force, to purchase for yourselves a commercial plot of land, situate at Plot 1386 Oda Crescent, Cadastral Zone A07, Wuse II, Abuja, when you reasonably ought to have known that the said funds formed part of the proceeds of unlawful activity (to wit: criminal breach of trust and corruption) of Air Chief Marshal Alex S. Badeh and you thereby committed an offence contrary to section 15(2)(d) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2011 (as amended) and punishable under Section 15(3) of the same Act.
“That you Air Chief Marshal Alex S. Badeh (whilst being the Chief of Air Staff, Nigerian Air Force) and Iyalikam Nigeria Limited between January and December 2013, in Abuja, within the jurisdiction of this honourable court, did use an aggregate sum of N878,362,732.94 (eight hundred and seventy-eight million, three hundred and sixty-two thousand, seven hundred and thirty-two naira, ninety-four kobo), removed from the accounts of the Nigerian Air Force and paid into the account of Rytebuilders Technologies Limited with Zenith Bank Plc for the construction of a shopping mall, situate at Plot 1386 Oda Crescent, Cadastral Zone A07, Wuse II, Abuja, for yourselves, when you reasonably ought to have known that the said funds formed part of the proceeds of unlawful activity (to wit: criminal breach of trust and corruption) of Air Chief Marshal Alex S. Badeh and you thereby committed an offence contrary to section 15(2)(d)of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2011 (as amended) and punishable under Section 15(3) of the same Act.’’
Meanwhile, of the over 2,000 manufacturing firms in the country, more than 200 will be closing shop in the next two months due to lack of raw materials to continue production, according to findings by our correspondent.
The President, Manufacturers Association of Nigeria, Dr. Frank Jacobs, told our correspondent that 100 operators in the general goods sector had indicated that they would shut down in April when their remaining stock of raw materials would have been used up.
Similarly in the pharmaceutical sector, 120 operators are down to two months’ supply of raw materials after which they will close shop, according to the Chairman, Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Group of MAN, Dr. Okey Akpa.
In the food and beverage sector, only few of the 80 operators may be in business by April if the situation does not improve.
The President, Association of Food, Beverage and Tobacco Employers, Mr. Paul Gbededo, told our correspondent that apart from two or three firms, which were able to attain 40 per cent to 50 per cent local sourcing of raw materials, the rest depended on importation and would find it difficult to keep operating beyond April.
“Some people are already going out of business,” he said in an exclusive interview with our correspondent.
It was gathered that a combination of factors, chief among which was the scarcity of dollars and the restriction of forex sales to importers of 41 items (some of them considered as essential raw materials) by the Central Bank of Nigeria, had curtailed the supply of raw materials to the industrial sector, leading to low capacity utilisation and poor output.
Operators said they had been unable to meet both local and foreign financial obligations on account of poor bank credit and lack of access to dollars.
The Chief Executive Officer, Erisco Foods Limited, Chief Eric Umeofia, said the situation had challenged his ability to access bank loans in Nigeria, and had also put a strain on his relationship with his foreign financiers and suppliers.
He said, “Due to the policy on the importation of tomato concentrates, we do not have enough raw materials to produce, and that has incapacitated us because it means we have not been able to service our bank loan.
“In Nigeria, there is a policy that once you cannot service your loan for three months, you are classified as a bad debtor and not entitled to further loans. The same CBN that banned the sale of dollars to the importers of these items did not advise the commercial banks to give loans to the manufacturers to enable them to produce the items locally.
“Currently, we can’t service our bank loans since we cannot import raw materials to produce. I can neither get naira nor dollar from the banks. I don’t have the naira to pursue the dollar, and my foreign suppliers that gave me credit are now taking me to court because I have not met up with my financial commitments.
“When I produce, I am not selling because foreign products are everywhere. If I sell the way they are selling, I cannot be able to pay interest on my bank loans.”
For manufacturers whose products are not on the list of 41, they complain of waiting in the queue for forex from CBN for a period ranging from six months to one year.
The Chief Executive of Sonia Industries, Nnamdi Nnodebe, said he had bought machines on credit from Europe and had been waiting for the past 12 months to obtain forex to pay for the machines.
“It is not as if we don’t have the money to pay. The naira equivalent is there but they have refused to give us the dollars for one year,” he said.
Each manufacturing firm in the country is said to employ a minimum of 100 Nigerians and it is estimated that more than 20,000 direct jobs will be lost in April if more than 200 firms are shut down. The manufacturing sector contributed over N12.935tn ($65bn) to the nation’s Gross Domestic Product in 2015.
The Director-General, Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Mr. Muda Yusuf, said the government should engage the manufacturers to identify what the problems were and how they could be solved.
He said, “The problems will still be there because there are fundamental issues with forex and oil price, but proper engagement will help reshape the economic policies of government. A lot of them import inputs, and if there is no liquidity in the forex market, it will have a lot of effect on them.
“There is a need to review the forex policy; they can’t run away from that. Also, if the manufacturers are complaining about the list of 41 prohibited items, that list needs to be reviewed.”
Upshot with additional report from Punch
