By Francis Wilfred

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has arraigned the leader of Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore, Bello Abdullahi Bodejo, before the Federal High Court in Abuja over an alleged $2.33 million money laundering case.

Bodejo was arraigned before Justice Inyang Edem Ekwo on a 12-count charge bordering on money laundering and unlawful cash transactions, contrary to the provisions of Nigeria’s anti-money laundering laws.

At the commencement of proceedings, EFCC counsel, Wahab Shittu (SAN), informed the court that the 12-count charge was dated June 24 and filed on June 25, 2026, and urged the court to allow the defendant to take his plea. The request was granted.

One of the charges alleged that Bodejo knowingly accepted $100,000 in cash from Sa’idu Abubakar, a former Accountant-General of Bauchi State, on January 11, 2022, in Abuja.

According to the EFCC, the transaction exceeded the legal cash transaction threshold of N5 million and was not processed through a financial institution as required by law.

Another count alleged that he received $980,000 in cash from the same former government official on February 7, 2024, also in Abuja, without routing the funds through a financial institution.

The anti-graft agency maintained that the transactions violated the provisions of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.

The prosecution told the court that the alleged transactions formed part of a wider pattern of cash dealings amounting to about $2.33 million.

When the charges were read, Bodejo pleaded not guilty to all 12 counts.

Following the plea, Shittu asked the court to fix a date for trial and remand the defendant in the custody of the Nigerian Correctional Service pending further proceedings.

However, defence counsel, Ahmed Raji (SAN), urged the court to grant his client bail, relying on a bail application filed on June 30, 2026.

The prosecution opposed the application, relying on a 28-paragraph counter-affidavit filed on July 6, 2026.

Shittu argued that the defendant posed a public risk and could interfere with witnesses or obstruct the course of justice if released. He also informed the court that the Department of State Services (DSS) had an interest in the matter.

After hearing both parties, Justice Ekwo ordered that Bodejo be remanded in the EFCC holding facility pending a ruling on his bail application.

The court adjourned the matter until July 20, 2026, for ruling on the bail application.

Chairman of the Senate Committee on Diaspora and Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), Senator Aniekan Bassey, has reaffirmed the 10th Senate’s commitment to strengthening Nigeria’s healthcare system through far-reaching legislative reforms aimed at improving the quality, accessibility, and regulation of health services across the country.
Senator Bassey made the declaration while representing the President of the Senate, Senator Godswill Akpabio, GCON, at the National Assembly’s Public Hearing on key healthcare bills, where he also formally declared the event open.
The public hearing brought together the Honourable Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Dr. Iziaq Adekunle Salako, lawmakers, healthcare professionals, regulatory agencies, and other critical stakeholders to deliberate on legislative measures expected to transform Nigeria’s health sector.
Speaking at the event, Senator Bassey emphasized that the 10th Senate remains focused on enacting people-oriented legislation that bridges the gap between policy formulation and the healthcare needs of ordinary Nigerians. He noted that improving healthcare delivery is central to the National Assembly’s legislative agenda and is essential to national development.
He explained that deliberations centered on two landmark bills designed to strengthen Nigeria’s healthcare architecture.
The first, the University Teaching Hospitals Act (Amendment) Bill, seeks to modernize the country’s teaching hospitals by improving clinical training, upgrading medical infrastructure, and enhancing service delivery to align with global best practices.
The second, the National Health Facilities Regulatory Agency Bill, proposes the establishment of a regulatory framework that will enforce high professional standards, improve oversight, and guarantee patient safety across public and private healthcare facilities nationwide.
According to Senator Bassey, the proposed legislation reflects the Senate’s determination to build a healthcare system that is resilient, efficient, accountable, and capable of meeting the growing needs of Nigerians.
He expressed appreciation to the President of the Senate for the confidence reposed in him to represent the leadership of the National Assembly at the important national engagement, describing Senator Akpabio’s dedication to the welfare of Nigerians as a driving force behind the ongoing legislative reforms.
Senator Bassey stressed that lawmakers have a moral and constitutional responsibility to safeguard the lives and well-being of citizens through sound legislation that strengthens public institutions and improves service delivery.
He assured Nigerians that the Senate would continue to work with the Executive, healthcare professionals, and relevant stakeholders to enact laws that promote quality healthcare, protect patients, and expand access to affordable medical services across the country.
He added that the ultimate objective is to build a professional, accessible, and sustainable healthcare system that serves every Nigerian, irrespective of social or economic status.

…Benue governor eyeing cement factory acquisition with business partners

We condemn in the strongest terms the reckless and misleading comments by the Governor of Benue State, Rev. Fr. Hyacinth Alia, regarding the privatization of the Benue Cement Company (BCC) in 2006 and his desperate attempt to pin responsibility for the transaction on former Governor George Akume while casting aspersions on Alhaji Aliko Dangote with his company.

Governor Alia’s latest outburst is yet another example of a government that has become addicted to propaganda, revisionism and the politics of blame. Faced with mounting questions about his own stewardship, the governor appears determined to divert public attention by manufacturing controversies and attacking individuals whose records and contributions are already part of Nigeria’s documented history.

The facts are clear. Benue Cement Company was privatized under a Federal Government programme implemented through the Bureau of Public Enterprises. The suggestion that Senator George Akume personally sold BCC to Aliko Dangote is a distortion of history and a deliberate attempt to mislead unsuspecting members of the public. No amount of political grandstanding can alter the facts contained in official records.

It is astonishing that a governor who has access to government files and public records would choose to promote a narrative that collapses under the slightest scrutiny. This raises a disturbing question: is Governor Alia genuinely ignorant of the facts, or is he deliberately twisting them to pursue a political agenda?

Even more disturbing is the governor’s attempt to demonize one of Africa’s foremost investors and industrialists. Aliko Dangote did not seize Benue Cement Company in the dead of night. The transaction emerged from a nationally supervised privatization process that involved regulatory institutions of the Federal Government. If Governor Alia has evidence of wrongdoing, he should present it to the appropriate authorities. If he has none, he should stop maligning people to score cheap political points.

We are not surprised by Governor Alia’s utterances because credible findings suggest that his sudden agitation for a review of the 2006 sale of Benue Cement Company to Dangote has little to do with protecting the interests of Benue people. It has everything to do with advancing his personal political and business agenda.

Having allegedly amassed enormous wealth from state resources within just three years in office, the governor is now said to be eyeing Benue Cement, now Dangote Cement, as another lucrative asset to be captured for the benefit of himself and a circle of business associates, including Bauhaus Global Investment, which has emerged as the preferred contractor for major government projects in the state since Alia became governor.

The real motive behind this campaign is becoming increasingly clear. Governor Alia is reportedly nurturing a 2031 presidential ambition and understands that such a venture would require access to massive financial resources running into hundreds of billions of naira. Should he retain office beyond 2027, he reportedly intends to use every available lever of state power to position himself for that race. In that calculation, Dangote Cement is seen not as a private investment that has transformed a moribund government enterprise into a thriving business, but as a potential cash cow that can be exploited to bankroll a future presidential campaign.

Benue people must therefore look beyond the governor’s emotional rhetoric and ask hard questions. Why is a transaction that took place two decades ago suddenly attracting his attention at a time when the state is battling insecurity, a growing humanitarian crisis, failing infrastructure and widespread economic hardship? The answer may well lie in a desperate attempt to gain control of a strategic asset whose enormous financial value could serve personal political ambitions rather than the collective interests of the people of Benue State.

The people of Benue are not interested in political theatre. They are interested in security, roads, healthcare, education, agriculture, job creation and economic growth. They are interested in how hundreds of billions of naira accruing to the state are being utilized. They are interested in why communities continue to suffer attacks and displacement. These are the issues demanding the governor’s attention, not a calculated campaign to rewrite events that occurred decades ago.

We therefore challenge Governor Alia to immediately publish all documents in his possession relating to the privatization of Benue Cement Company and allow the public to judge the facts for themselves. The era when political leaders could manufacture narratives without scrutiny is over.

The governor should stop chasing shadows, stop misleading the public and stop dragging respected Nigerians into politically motivated controversies.

Signed:
Jerome Zoho
President, Coalition for Truth and Justice (CTJ)