Crime
Zenith Bank in messy loan scandal as Ekiti Commissioner cries out

By NGIJ team of Oluwasegun Abifarin and Olawale Abideen
After gleefully announcing a gross earnings of 166.8 billion naira and a Profit Before Tax of 58.8 billion for the first quarter of 2020, Zenith Bank Plc has slipped into a scandal splashed on it by its branch in Ado Ekiti, Ekiti state.
Mrs Olajumoke Owoola, a Commissioner in the Ekiti State Teaching Service Commission, TESCOM is crying for help over a loan snare laid for her by EKSU branch of Zenith Bank in Ekiti State.
Her ordeal actually began on December 22nd, 2019 when one Mr. Olusegun Aribisala, a relationship manager with bank approached the Commissioner to move her salary account from Union Bank to his Zenith Bank with a promise of a N3 million loan to the deal. adsbygoogle || []).push({});
An excited Owoola informed her Chairman at TESCOM, Honourable Babatunde Abegunde and her other colleagues, such as Yetunde Adamu and Hon. Bayo Akerele of the Board of Technical Education; Hon. Idowu Ayegbe and Mr. Osuolale Olorunnisola, a fellow Commissioner in TESCOM.
Banking on Aribisala’s assurance that the loan processes will be through in three days after moving their accounts to Zenith Bank, Owoola and her friends swallowed the bait.
No sooner had they move the accounts, that Aribisala started a discordant tune: First, he told Owoola that the three days was not realistic again, since her January salary was yet to enter the account. The second story was that she should go and collect a letter of authorization from her office.
Owoola and her friends complied and dropped the letters and all other documents. Yet, Owoola maintained that “the story keeps on changing.”
Almost two months later, Aribisala brought another excuse that there was a machine error in his office and thereafter brought another set of forms for Owoola and her friends to fill.
This was followed by another request that they should all pay N55, 000 for processing, and gave a personal account (Omolara Aribisala) for them to pay to. “All of us paid into the account,” Owoola told our correspondent.
After this, Aribisala’s assurance that the loan will be ready in another one month did not materialized, a development which forced Owoola’s colleague, Ayegbe to pull out of the arrangement and went back to his Union Bank.
Frustrated, Owoola later went to the Ekiti State University, EKSU branch of the bank to report Aribisala to the Branch manager, Mrs. Olaore Okunola.
Coincidentally, her Boss, the TESCOM Chairman met her there, but Okunola continued to beg and plead with them. “The woman begged and pleaded without making any commitment, after which she gave me a pack of fruit juice and gave a bottle of wine to my boss,” Owoola said.
The Commissioner later called the Zenith Bank’s Lagos office to narrate her ordeal. “But Ayoola Kusimo, the man who spoke to me from the bank’s corporate communications department merely begged me not to go the press and promised to call Ekiti branch..and till today, nothing has happened,” she maintained.
Owoola later decided to go to the bank’s online platform to complain as well, but she merely got an email reply that only her account manager can talk to her…and nobody has talked to her since then. “My effort on the bank’s Facebook account merely raised my fraud antenna, when the person chatting with me was asking for my PIN..and I backed off,” Owoola said.
Now the commissioner is crying for justice to get her loan and if not, a refund of her N55, 000 “processing fee” paid to Aribisala.
When our correspondent called Kusimo on May 6, 2020, the excuse was that bank was just resuming after the Coronavirus lock down and that he had contacted the Ekiti branch which had promised to sort out the problem in ten days.
Twenty days after, it was angry Owoola that sent wattsapp message on May 27, to inform us that nothing had been done about it. According to her, “I was about to call you at dawn when I saw your message. You can go ahead please. I care less again.”
Before the recent controversy, Zenith bank has run into a wild storm of controversy brewed from its IGR collection activities in far-away Niger State.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, the nation’s anti-graft body has been alerted that Bank is in a mud of a N359.2 million IGR controversy in Niger state.
Before the misadventure in Niger State, the same bank has been dressed in similar robe in Nasarawa State where forensic investigation assessed that it withheld about N176.2 million due to the state.
Author Profile

- Prince Abdulrahman Obaje is a Media and ICT Consultant, Journalist, online marketer, social media strategist, Mathematician and Computer Scientist based in Abuja, Nigeria. He is the Founder and the Publisher of The Informavores!. You can reach me on +234 805 939 5252 or send i-witness report directly to me on news@informavores.com.ng.
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Crime
Unknown Gunmen Kill Federal Poly, Senior Engineer, Shot Another in Bauchi

Unknown gun men shot and killed a Bauchi State Federal Polytechnic Chief Engineer A bubakar Garba Muhammad.
The Bauchi State Police Command PPRO, SP Ahmed Wakil, has confirmed that gunmen in the early hours of Saturday stormed Burshin Fulani settlement, forcefully entered the residence of a Senior staff of the Federal Polytechnic, Bauchi, Engineer Abubakar Garba Muhammad and murdered him in cold blood.
The incident was announced on the verified and official Facebook page of the Federal Polytechnic, Bauchi: “Innalillahi wa Inna ilahir rajiun. Unknown Gunmen killed one of our staff, Chief Engineer, Engr. Abubakar Garba Muhammad (Babangida Birshi) of Directorate of Physical Planning around 2:30am at his resident in Burshin Fulani”.
The statement contained that, “His Funeral (Jana’iza) prayer as announced by the family will hold by 9:00am in Burshin Fulani Mosque, behind his house. May Allah forgive his shortcomings and grant his soul Jannatil Firdausi” .
Also, another resident of the area was shot by the gunmen and is receiving treatment at the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University Teaching Hospital (ATBUTH) from the gunshot a development that has thrown the residents into confusion as such has not happened in the serene settlement before.
According to the Police Command PPRO, SP Ahmed Wakili who spoke to our Correspondent on Telephone saying that the gunmen whose number could not be ascertained stormed the area to carry out the attack.
The PPRO said, “yes, I can confirm to you that unknown gunmen attacked Burshin Fulani and killed one man, Abubakar Garba Muhammad of FedPoly, he was shot on the neck and died on the spot. Our men who rushed to the scene evacuated him to the Teaching Hospital where the medical team on duty certified him dead”.
Wakili said that, “our patrol team stationed at the main gate of the Polytechnic on hearing gunshots from the direction at about 4am, quickly mobilized and rushed to the area and on sighting the light of the patrol van, the gunmen fled”.
According to him, the late Abubakar Garba Muhammad came out of his house a rescue mission after hearing noise of struggling of one of his sons with some people at the gate of the house and immediately he came out, the gunmen shot and killed him.
He said that, “The Commissioner of Police, Sylvester Abiodun Alabi has directed that the Police should go after the gunmen, apprehend and bring them to justice.
“Our men are after them now and very soon, they will get to them”., he said.
The gruesome murder of Engineer Abubakar Garba Muhammad who was the Chief Engineer of the Polytechnic, Informavores learnt that took place in his residence situated at Burshin Fulani along Bauchi – Dass road at about 2.30am
Informavores also gathered that the Polytechnic through its Public Relations Unit, confirmed the incident describing it as most unfortunate. He however assured that everything humanly possible will be done to arrest the unknown gunmen.
Author Profile

- Prince Abdulrahman Obaje is a Media and ICT Consultant, Journalist, online marketer, social media strategist, Mathematician and Computer Scientist based in Abuja, Nigeria. He is the Founder and the Publisher of The Informavores!. You can reach me on +234 805 939 5252 or send i-witness report directly to me on news@informavores.com.ng.
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Crime
Teenager In Court For Allegedly Threatening Mother’s Life

A 17-year-old boy, Quadri Taiwo, on Monday appeared in an Ikeja Chief Magistrates’ Court for allegedly threatening the life of his mother.
The Police charged Taiwo for breach of peace and threat to life, punishable under sections 168 and 56 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State 2015.
The defendant, however, pleaded not guilty.
The Prosecutor, ASP Kehinde Ajayi, told the court that the defendant committed the offence in November 2020 at Balogun Street, Orile-Agege in Lagos State.
Ajayi said that the defendant threatened the life of Mojisola Taiwo, over a conflicting issue.
He said that Taiwo also conducted himself in a manner likely to cause a breach of the peace by sending a series of abusive text messages to his mother.
“Taiwo was, however, arrested after a thorough investigation,’’ Ajayi said.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Section 56 stipulates a one-year jail term for threatening violence.
Chief Magistrate, Mrs A.O Ajibade, however, granted the defendant N50,000 bail with one surety in like sum.
She adjourned the case until Feb. 11, for mention.
Author Profile

- Prince Abdulrahman Obaje is a Media and ICT Consultant, Journalist, online marketer, social media strategist, Mathematician and Computer Scientist based in Abuja, Nigeria. He is the Founder and the Publisher of The Informavores!. You can reach me on +234 805 939 5252 or send i-witness report directly to me on news@informavores.com.ng.
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Crime
President Buhari Appoints New Service Chiefs

President Muhammadu Buhari has accepted the immediate resignation of the Service Chiefs and their retirement from service.
Mr Femi Adesina, the President’s spokesman confirmed this development in a statement in Abuja on Tuesday.
Those involved are the Chief of Defence Staff, General Abayomi Olonisakin; Chief of Army Staff, Lt-Gen. Tukur Buratai; Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Ibok Ekwe Ibas and Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar.
President Buhari thanked the outgoing Service Chiefs for what he called their “overwhelming achievements in our efforts at bringing enduring peace to our dear country’’
He wished them well in their future endeavours.
Meanwhile, the President has approved the appointment of new Service Chiefs.
They are Maj. -Gen. Leo Irabor, Chief of Defence Staff; Maj.-Gen. I. Attahiru, Chief of Army Staff; Rear Adm. A. Z. Gambo, Chief of Naval Staff and AVM I.O. Amao, Chief of Air Staff.
The President congratulated the new service chiefs and urged them to be loyal and dedicated in the discharge of their responsibilities.
Author Profile

- Prince Abdulrahman Obaje is a Media and ICT Consultant, Journalist, online marketer, social media strategist, Mathematician and Computer Scientist based in Abuja, Nigeria. He is the Founder and the Publisher of The Informavores!. You can reach me on +234 805 939 5252 or send i-witness report directly to me on news@informavores.com.ng.
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