By Lukman Olabiyi

Former Minister of Aviation and chieftain of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Mr. Femi Fani-kayode, was on Friday, re-arrested by the operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
No reason was given for his arrest.
He was arrested outside the court premises of the Federal High Court, Lagos, where he had gone to attend his trial alongside side another chieftain of his party, Mrs. Nenadi Esther Usman, and one Danjuma Yusuf, over alleged money laundering of N4.9 billion.
Prior to his arrest, Fani-kayode’s lawyer, Mr. Wale Balogun, had informed the court presided over by Justice Muslim Hassan Sule, of attempt by the Commission to arrest his client, and urged the court to restrain the anti-graft agency from arresting his client.
Reacting to the submission, EFCC’s prosecutor, Mr. Rotimi Oyedepo, informed the court that he was not aware of any move by his commission to arrest him, and there was no plan to arrest him on the matter for which he was in court.
However, he said that he wouldn’t know if the said proposed arrest was on another charge.
Immediately, after the court proceedings, as Fani-kayode was led out of the court premises, he was accosted and arrested by the operatives of the commission, who drove him to the commission’s office on Awolowo Road, Ikoyi.
Meanwhile, a prosecution witness, Idowu Olusegun has informed the court that the PDP Presidential Campaign Organisation at the last general election still owes him N24 million.
Idowu, a media consultant, whose company’s name is Paste Postal Company (PPC), while being led in evidence-in-chief by the counsel to the EFCC, Justice Hassan Sule l that he wrote a letter to the campaign organisation under the directorship of Mr. Femi Fani-kayode, for printing poster for the campaign organisation.
He informed the court that during the period of negotiation for the printing contract, he did not have any interface with Femi Fani-kayode, but only dealt with one Oke, whose other name he didn’t know.
He also informed the court that he proposed the sum of N80 for A2 poster, and the sum of N30 for A4 Flyer, and the sum of N24 million for media consultancy. But the negotiation end at N50 and N20 for A2 poster, A4 Flyer and N24 million media consultancy respectively.
However, the matter has been adjourned till November 14 and 15, for continuation of trial.


Fani-Kayode-EFCC-2

…Cries out, ‘my life in danger’

Fani-Kayode has cried out, saying that his life was in danger.
In a press statement by his SA (Media), Jude Ndukwe, stated that the EFCC once again lived up to its billings of being used by the current administration for the sinister purposes of silencing the opposition under the guise of fighting corruption.
“As expected and as earlier stated in his press statement, Chief Femi Fani-Kayode had already raised the alarm that he was going to be rearrested by the EFCC as the organisation whose operations have become easily predictable have graduated from being an investigative body meant to serve the interest of Nigeria and Nigerians to a vindictive institution willing to do the biddings of some vengeful cabal whose existence even the wife of the president confirmed recently.
“We are therefore aghast but not surprised that this latest action of the EFCC is in sync with the scriptwriters of this whole episode to silence Fani-Kayode by hook or by crook. Words have filtered to us from credible sources within the presidency and the security agencies that the ultimate aim of those who are behind the former minister’s travails is to apply “extreme measures” on him.
“We have also been told that in security circles, that means to have him killed through the use of some poisonous substances that would break his health down irreversibly and eventually kill him even months after he might have been released so that the suspicion would not be at the doorsteps of state agents.
“Our fears now are that nothing is beyond this government of sadists and fascists. We call on the good people of Nigeria, democrats and lovers of this great nation to rise and demand that no Nigerian should be persecuted or assassinated based on his beliefs and or opinions on critical national matters.
“We are watching very closely, and should anything untoward happen to FFK, Nigerians of course know who to hold responsible even as we demand for his immediate and unconditional release now”.