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Alleged N2.8b Fraud: Court Defers Ruling To Discontinue Trial Of Sirika To Day Of Judgment
Alleged N2.8b Fraud: Court Defers Ruling To Discontinue Trial Of Sirika To Day Of Judgment
Justice S.C. Oriji of the Federal Capital Territory High Court, Maitama, Abuja on Tuesday, June 2, 2026 deferred ruling on a motion on notice for the prosecution to discontinue the trial of the former Minister of Aviation, Hadi Sirika to the day of final judgment in line with the provision of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act ACJA, 2015.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC is prosecuting the former minister alongside his daughter Fatima Hadi Sirika and son-in-law Hamma Jalal Sule on amended six-count charge, bordering on contract fraud involving Al Buraq Global Investment Limited, a company linked to his daughter to the tune of N2, 825,032,220.97 (Two Billion, Eight Hundred and Twenty-five Million, Thirty-two Thousand, Two Hundred and Twenty Naira, Ninety-seven Kobo).
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In bringing the motion, Sanusi Musa, SAN, counsel to Hamma Jalal Sule, the third defendant, prayed the court not to further allow the prosecution to present further evidence before the court on the matter. He also urged the court to expunge all evidence and exhibits, so far tendered and also for the court to dismiss the charge entirely, arguing that the case was filed by the prosecution on the basis of an incomplete investigation.
The defence team, led by Rotimi Jacobs, SAN, however, countered with Section 379 Sub-section 2 of ACJA 2015 which permits that additional evidence and exhibits can be filed at any time before judgment is given. He further told the court that there are several decisions of the Supreme Court and the Court of Appeal in favour of filing additional proofs in an ongoing case.

Court
Justice Oriji while relying on the provision of Section 396 Sub-section 2 of ACJA 2015, observed that a defendant may raise an objection to the validity of the charge at any time before judgment is given, but such objection could be considered alongside the substantive issues for which ruling can be made at the time of delivery of judgment.
“This motion is not challenging the validity of the charge. However the issues and prayers in this application are inextricably tied or connected to the determination of the charge. Therefore, in my view, judicial prudence dictates that it is better to deliver the ruling on the motion along with the judgment on the charge after the trial and I so direct,” he said.
He adjourned the matter till June 10, 2026 for continuation of trial.
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Nigeria Customs Boss CGC Adeniyi Signs Anti-Corruption Documents, Activates ICRAM Steering Committee
Nigeria Customs Boss CGC Adeniyi Signs Anti-Corruption Documents, Activates ICRAM Steering Committee
The Comptroller-General of Customs (CGC), Adewale Adeniyi, on Tuesday signed the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for Conducting Internal Corruption Risk Analysis and Mapping (ICRAM), the ICRAM Handbook, and the Integrity Action Plan, while directing their immediate implementation across all zones, commands, and units of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS).
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The Comptroller-General gave the directive on Tuesday, 6 October 2026, during a ceremony held at his office in the NCS Headquarters, Maitama, Abuja. As part of the milestone event, CGC Adeniyi also formally activated the ICRAM Steering Committee, cementing the Service’s systematic framework for identifying, assessing, and mapping corruption risks across all operational and administrative processes.
CGC Adeniyi said the documents resulted from a painstaking process involving an internal team, the World Customs Organisation (WCO), and partner administrations such as His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC), noting that the objective was to ensure integrity remains central to all operations.
“These two documents are products of a painstaking process which we have undertaken with efforts from an internal team working together with our partners from the WCO and a number of other Customs administrations that have walked this path with us to ensure that we have a Service where integrity leads,” CGC Adeniyi said.
He explained that the documents were developed as practical tools to enable officers at ports, borders, and airports to identify and map corruption risks within their areas of operation and implement targeted measures to eliminate them.
“We want to believe that we have laid a practical step, very easy to follow, for all our operatives at the ports, the borders, and the airports, to be able to conduct corruption risk mapping in their places, giving them the opportunity and capacity to implement the action plan to instil integrity in our system,” he added.
Earlier, the Assistant Comptroller-General of Customs in charge of the Strategic Research and Policy Department, ACG Nafi’u Isyaku, who led senior officers to present the documents, sought approval for its full rollout across the Service.

Nigeria Customs Boss CGC Adeniyi
Before the formal launch, the ICRAM methodology was piloted across seven key Commands and Units, covering 66 processes across regulatory, core Customs, and support functions. The pilot locations included:
Sea Modality: Apapa Area Command
Air Modality: Murtala Muhammed Cargo (MMAC) and Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) Commands
Land Modality: Seme Area Command
Specialised Units: Customs Police Unit Zone A, PAAR Ruling Centre, and the Procurement Unit.
The pilot produced a comprehensive Integrity Action Plan (IAP) with 101 Action Items and 295 Sub-Action Items. Key focal areas include enhanced automation, strengthened supervision and accountability, robust audit trails and traceability, clear segregation of duties, regular staff rotation, targeted training, and improved officer-stakeholder controls.
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FG Unveils Plans to Reduce Fuel Price for Nigerians
FG Unveils Plans to Reduce Fuel Price for Nigerians
The Federal Government has announced a 30-day petrol price relief plan aimed at making fuel cheaper for Nigerians at NNPC filling stations.
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Speaking at a press conference in Abuja on Thursday, the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, said the discount would particularly benefit public transporters.
According to him, the government will also implement a “negotiated landing cost” for petrol, with the arrangement subject to monthly review.

Taiwo Oyedele
“There’ll be a discount on NNPC petrol for the next 30 days, with priority for public transporters,” Oyedele stated.
More details on the implementation of the plan are expected from the Federal Government.
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Nigeria Customs Boss CGC Adeniyi Pledges Support for Nigeria’s $1tn Economy Target
Nigeria Customs Boss CGC Adeniyi Pledges Support for Nigeria’s $1tn Economy Target
The Comptroller-General of Customs (CGC), Adewale Adeniyi, has pledged the full support of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) for the realisation of Nigeria’s ambition to build a $1 trillion economy, stressing the need for institutions to translate national aspirations into concrete, measurable results.
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CGC Adeniyi committed on Tuesday, 6 October 2026, while delivering a keynote address at the New Nigeria Festival at the Shehu Musa Yar’Adua Conference Hall, Abuja, saying the economic target was achievable if the plans and strategies developed to achieve it were properly implemented.
The CGC said the Customs had moved beyond ideas and discussions to taking practical steps in support of the national economic ambition, citing the Service’s ongoing Modernisation Reforms, including the deployment of B’Odogwu, the Authorised Economic Operator (AEO) programme and the Advance Ruling mechanism, as initiatives designed to facilitate legitimate trade, improve predictability in the trading environment and ultimately strengthen revenue generation.
“Execution is nothing if it is not concrete. We have to move from ideas to action and ensure that whatever we plan translates into results. That is how we can begin to see the kind of transformation we are talking about.” He said.
Adeniyi stressed that the responsibility for achieving the $1 trillion economy could not rest solely on government agencies, noting that the target required the collective commitment of institutions, businesses and citizens.

Nigeria Customs Boss CGC Adeniyi
He said the Customs Service, by virtue of its responsibilities in revenue collection, trade facilitation and border management, remained strategically positioned to contribute to the country’s economic transformation.
CGC Adeniyi therefore called for a shift from rhetoric to implementation, stressing that the country’s economic ambition could be achieved only when institutions and citizens alike took ownership of their responsibilities and turned plans into practical, measurable action.
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