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2023: Fayemi’s Presidential Ambition Tears Ekiti APC Apart

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The widely speculated ambition of the Ekiti State Governor, Dr. Kayode Fayemi to run for president in 2023 is causing more than ripples within the ranks and files of the All Progressive Congress in the state.

The APC had endorsed Governor Fayemi for the presidential race, saying the time has come for the president to come from Ekiti, adding that it would no longer play second fiddle in the southwest’s politics.

The party’s state Chairman, Barr. Paul Omotosho through the spokesman, Hon. Ade Ajayi said that the governor has paid his dues in the ruling APC and Nigeria’s political firmament at large, thus deserve to be entrusted with the responsibility of leading Nigeria in 2023.

Omotosho said its members will drag the governor into the race, if he refuses to contest, saying Fayemi is eminently qualified to occupy the exalted position considering his intimidating political profile.

But strong indications have emerged that there was a sharp disagreement within the state chapter over Fayemi’s endorsement as some leaders under the aegis of Ekiti State Stakeholders Forum flayed the party’s leadership.

The Forum, in a statement on Monday signed by its Secretary, Prince Bamgboye Adegoroye, which denied endorsing the alleged Fayemi’s presidential ambition, noted that the purported endorsement does not reflect the general will of APC members.

It said the purported endorsement, which was credited to a statement by the APC state Chairman, Hon. Paul Omotoso, was a personal view of the Publicity Secretary Ade Ajayi who represented Omotoso at an event in Ekiti at the weekend.

The Forum added Ajayi only expressed a personal view on the matter and that his views neither represented the position of Omotoso nor that of Ekiti APC.

The statement reads: “The attention of the Ekiti State Stakeholders Forum has been drawn to a statement credited to Mr. Paul Omotoso on the idea that APC Ekiti State chapter has backed Dr. John Kayode Fayemi for the 2023 Presidency.

“We want to state unequivocally that Hon. Ade Ajayi who represented Mr. Omotoso barely expressed a personal view at a social event, where the convener was absent or at best, the views of a small clique in the party.

“The leaders of APC in Ekiti State are unaware of the idea. Again, we note that Hon. Ade Ajayi’s boss does not even believe that the position should be zoned to South West as expressed on the national platform recently.”

It stressed that all the 17 states in the southern part of the country deserved a shot at the Presidency if it is agreed upon by the national leadership of the party.

“Ekiti State Stakeholders Forum along with other eminent Yoruba leaders will canvass for the opportunity to produce the next President in 2023 from our zone.

“Adoption of an authentic, qualified, well known, humane and experienced Yoruba man is our goal, and we will play our part in accomplishing that task,” the Forum added.

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“Twin Warrior”: Paul Okoye Accuses Peter Of Song Theft, Vows To Release ‘Original Version’

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Paul ‘Rudeboy’ Okoye, the Nigerian singer, has accused Peter ‘Mr P’ Okoye, his twin brother, of alleged intellectual property theft.

Mr P recently released the single ‘Winning’ — just a few months after the brothers confirmed that Psquare, their shared music group, was no longer active.

However, in a recent Instagram post, Rudeboy claimed that the song was his, stating that it was meant to feature on his upcoming album. He further alleged that the producer hijacked the track.

“Written and sang by Rudeboy. Produced by same producer. Now how come? Now am I supposed to release another version? Mr Producer, your case is for another day,” he wrote.

“Just a simple thing, bring 6 songs, let me bring 6 songs. I submitted 6 songs to the so-called management. Why re-singing my own song? word for word. Song that was supposed to be in my album next year June.”

In another post, the singer vowed to release “original versions of any copied songs,” adding that “the days of manipulation are over.”

“The days of manipulation are over. And to the management, make I hear any song wey na only me sing, I go release the original version. Oloriburuku! Music is not that hard,” he wrote.

Psquare split in 2017 following a feud between Peter Okoye and Paul. Though they reunited in November 2021, their reconciliation was short-lived.

Paul recently revealed another fallout, accusing Peter of orchestrating his arrest by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

Peter, however, denied the allegations and accused Jude Okoye, their older brother, of diverting millions of dollars from their joint account into a secret company.

Paul also expressed frustration over his past role in the music group. He claimed to have done most of the work while others benefited.

Mr P has yet to respond to his brother’s recent allegations.

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US Court Sends British-Nigerian To Seven Years In Jail Over $5m Cyber Fraud

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Oludayo Adeagbo, a British-Nigerian, has been sentenced to seven years in prison for his role in a multimillion-dollar business email compromise (BEC) scheme.

According to the US Department of Justice, Adeagbo, who also goes by John Edwards and John Dayo, conspired with others to steal over $3 million from various entities in Texas, including local government bodies, construction companies, and a Houston-area college.

Adeagbo and his co-conspirators also defrauded a North Carolina university of more than $1.9 million.

The case began in August 2022 when Adeagbo and two other Nigerian citizens, Donald Echeazu, 42, and Olabanji Egbinola, 44, were extradited from the United Kingdom (UK), where they had been residing, to face charges of conspiracy, wire fraud, and money laundering.

The US Department of Justice stated that the offences were committed in North Carolina, Texas, and Virginia.

On April 8, Adeagbo pleaded guilty in two cases against him in North Carolina and Texas for participating in a business email compromise scheme, which is also referred to as a “cyber-enabled financial fraud” scheme.

A business email compromise scheme can be initiated by scammers creating fake accounts that mimic companies a business regularly deals with.

Court records revealed that Adeagbo and his co-conspirators gathered information about significant construction projects across the United States, including a multi-million-dollar project at a university in North Carolina.

“To execute the scheme, Adeagbo, Echeazu, and others registered a domain name similar to that of the legitimate construction company in charge of the university’s project and created an email address that closely resembled that of an employee of the construction company,” the Department of Justice said.

“Using the fake email address, the fraudsters deceived and directed the university to wire a payment of more than $1.9 million to a bank account controlled by an individual working under the direction of Adeagbo and his co-conspirators.”

Adeagbo and his co-conspirators employed the same tactics in Texas, targeting local government entities and universities by impersonating construction companies. They stole over $3 million from the scheme, bringing their total haul to $5 million.

Adeagbo has been ordered to pay $942,655.03 in restitution and will serve seven years in prison.

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Nigerian-American Oye Owolewa Re-Elected To US Congress

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Oye Owolewa, a Nigerian-American Democrat, has been re-elected as the shadow representative for the District of Columbia (DC).

Owolewa, a PhD graduate from Northeastern University in Boston, made history in November 2020 when he became the first Nigerian-American elected to Congress.

He secured 164,026 votes, or 82.84 percent of the total votes cast in DC.

His role, while not officially recognized by the US government as a full member of Congress, is to advocate for the district’s interests, particularly its bid for statehood.

On Thursday, Owolewa expressed his gratitude to DC voters via a post on X, thanking them for their continued support.

“Thank you DC again for giving me chance to serve. I also want to thank the organizations that have supported, partnered with and endorsed me,” he wrote.

While shadow representatives like Owolewa do not have voting power in the US House of Representatives, they play a key role in pushing for recognition and state-level advocacy for DC residents, who are otherwise disenfranchised at the federal level.

Owolewa has consistently championed the cause of DC statehood, which has become a central focus of his work.

The re-election took place on November 5, the same day as the US presidential election.

In that election, former President Donald Trump defeated Vice-President Kamala Harris, securing over 270 electoral votes to win a second term.

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