2013 CHRISTIAN PILGRIMAGE: NCPC BOSS INAUGURATES THE FEDERAL MEDICAL COMMITTEE

The Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Christian Pilgrim Commission (NCPC), Mr. John Kennedy Opara has inaugurated the Federal Medical Committee for the 2013 Christian Pilgrimage exercise. Inaugurating the committee in his office in Abuja recently, the NCPC helmsman charged members of the committee to maintain high sense of integrity and honesty in the discharge of their assignment. 

He urged them not to be involved in any manipulation, but should ensure that honesty and integrity are considered always. His words: “let us agree that in honesty and integrity that we are able to give all”. Mr. Opara stressed that the knowledge of man is limited but only God has the ultimate knowledge, hence the need for the medical personnel to depend completely on God’s direction and not their own professional knowledge. Consequently, he urged them to always give praise and appreciation to God for what he has done and what he will do in the characteristics of David in the Bible.

The NCPC Boss scored the performance of the past Federal Medical Committees in the last three and four years high thus he tasked them to maintain the same tempo if possible to surpass their records. He stressed that the zero mortality rate achieved by the Commission would not have been possible but for the total commitment of men and women who served in the past Medical Committees. 

While inaugurating the 13 man Committee, the Executive Secretary charged them to work strictly in tandem with the terms of reference in their letters of appointment. He equally advised them to embrace the spirit of team ship by working as a team with love. 

The Committee is expected to carry out the following activities: coordinate the selection of medical personnel for the pilgrimage operation by ensuring that all those that apply are given equal opportunity to prove their capability, to ensure that the State Christian Pilgrim welfare Boards provide adequate drugs and medical personnel for the operation to arrange and coordinate the orientation of medical personnel in various zones before the pilgrimage, to disqualify any medically unfit intending pilgrim even at the point of departure after due consultation with the Executive Secretary of the Commission, among other duties.

In his remarks at the event, the Chairman of the Federal Medical Committee, Dr. Amedu Joseph Omale of the Federal Ministry of Health described the expected role of the Committee as a “very clean” one. He on behalf of his Committee accepted the full responsibility of the terms of reference. He promised that his Committee would certainly work as a team in order to achieve the expected results. His words: “I am happy that this is not a worldly assignment, we will work in honesty and integrity”, he assured.

The composition of the Federal Medical Committee comprises medical personnel from each geo political zones of the country and experienced medical doctors from both public and private hospitals across the country.

Indian hemp found in Ekiti private school classroom

Ekiti State command of the National Drugs Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has announced the discovery of 122 kilogrammes of cannabis sativa, more commonly known as Indian hemp, hid inside one of the classrooms in a private secondary school in Ado Ekiti, the state capital.

The NDLEA told newsmen in Ado Ekiti on Wednesday that the hemp was “inside 10 sacks and were dumped there by unknown drug dealers apparently because the NDLEA has dislodged the drugs dealers from their hideouts in the state capital.”

According to the Assistant Commander of NDLEA in the state, Mr Samson Ofila, following the dislodgment of the drug dealers at Atikankan and Ojunmose, as well as other drug points in the state capital which gave way to the urban renewal project of the state government, the dealers were looking for all kinds of space to hide their illicit merchandise.

Officials of the Operations and Intelligence unit of the command, who spoke on behalf of the state commander of NDLEA, Mr Bamidele Akingbade, explained that the owner of the school saw the exhibits and quickly came to report his finding to the NDLEA.

According to him, “the efforts being made by Ekiti NDLEA command had made it difficult for drug dealers in the state to find a safe place to store their drugs,” adding that “last month, a task force was set up to raid all the notorious joints in Ado Ekiti’s  supply of hard drugs to Ekiti State.

“This led to drastic reduction of hemp in the state and a lot of cannabis sativa plantations in the state have been destroyed, which made available ones expensive and difficult for many of them to purchase.”

The NDLEA chief disclosed that six drug dealers arrested recently in the state were taken to the palace of the Ado Ekiti traditional ruler, Oba Adeyemo Adejugbe, and were made to swear an oath that they will leave Ekiti State and not come back, adding that “the action was taken to ensure they don’t come back to destroy the state with hard drugs.”

Arapaja Hails FG, Jordan economic cooperation

Nigeria’ Ambassador to Jordan, Ambassador Taofeek Arapaja, has commended the Federal Government of Nigeria and Jordan for taking concrete steps to expand the frontiers of economic cooperation between the two countries.

He gave this commendation while addressing journalists on Wednesday after his arrival at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Lagos, with top officials of  Royal Jordanian Airline, members of the business community in Jordan and other dignatries.

Arapaja described the visit as the beginning of a renewed economic tie that would impact positively on investment and job opportunities for the nationals of the two countries, particularly in the areas of agriculture, mining, tourism and cultural exchanges, aviation, security and education.

The former Deputy governor  said he was aware of the high expectation of the government and the people of Nigeria, but as a politician with focus  on making a difference, no matter the odds, he would continue to pursue policies and programmes that would improve the economic fortunes of Nigerians in its diplomatic relations with Jordan.

Ambassador Arapaja added that President Goodluck Jonathan, his Jordanian counterpart, King  Abdullah Bin Al Hussein and officials of  the foreign and aviation ministries of the two countries had been of tremendous assistance and support, which led to the successful establishment of direct air link between Nigeria and Jordan.

NCPC to partner Greece on pilgrimage

THE Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Christian Pilgrim Commission (NCPC), Mr. John Kennedy Opara has said that the commission would collaborate with Greece for improved pilgrimage activities, especially in the area of visa issuance for intending pilgrims to Greece.
He disclosed this recently in his office in Abuja while playing host to the Greece Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr Dionisions Sourvanos.
“We as a commission will partner with you, we promise to assist in any way possible to make this partnership work.”
Opara intimated the Ambassador that the commission had extended its pilgrimage operations to Rome and Greece to accommodate New and Old Testaments thus making pilgrimage a complete circle.
He informed the Ambassador that the act setting up NCPC empowers it to coordinate all pilgrimage activities to Israel and other holy sites in the holy land. Opara intimated the Greece Envoy that the commission has an understanding with the Italian government in the area of issuance of Shengen visas to intending pilgrims to Rome as well as ground handlers.
He hinted that based on the understanding the commission has with Italian authorities, about 5000 Nigerian pilgrims had successfully travelled to Rome without any recorded case of abscondment.
“We can assure you that the pilgrims that go to Greece will always return.”
Opara also informed the visiting ambassador that the commission also has an understanding with ground handlers in Israel and Rome who work harmoniously with ground handlers in Greece.
The NCPC boss further told his guest to work out the modalities of procuring Greece visas to the intending pilgrims to Greece and that the commission would do everything possible to assist the rmbassy in bringing this to fruition.
In his response, the Greece Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr Sourvanos promised to collaborate with NCPC despite the daunting challenges encountered by the embassy.
He explained that the issue of visa procurement for intending pilgrims to Greece would be handled by all the relevant departments in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Tourism and Religious Affairs in Athens, Greece.
He added that about 20 million tourists visit Greece every year. He thus assured, “we must make use of all the possible means.”
The envoy further reiterated that his embassy would support the NCPC to realise its targets, therefore thanked the NCPC boss and his management team for the invitation to visit the commission which he considered a great honour.
“I thank you for our meeting which was held in a really friendly atmosphere and I hope that everything we have discussed today will be realised.
Personally, I believe and will do all that is possible for this.”

Mimiko re-affirms commitment to fight against child-killer diseases

Mimiko re-affirms commitment to fight against child-killer diseases

The Ondo State Governor, Dr Olusegun Mimiko, has said his administration will not relent in its war to rid the state of all preventable child-killer diseases.

The Governor gave this assurance at the official flag-off of Pentavalent Vaccine Introduction in Ondo State which was held at the State Specialists Hospital, Akure.

He said that the state would continue to sensitize the general public on polio eradication initiative, routine immunization and all maternal and child health programmes in the state.

The Governor who explained that the Pentavalent Vaccine combines five different vaccines in one injection to protect against five diseases such as Hib diseases, Diptheria, Pertussis, Tetanus, and Hepatitis B, also noted that the Pentavalent Vaccine will replace the DPT vaccine Nigeria’s routine immunization (RI) schedule, adding that an estimated 27,143 children below one year will be saved annually from Hib related deaths.

According to Mimiko, it has been estimated that nearly 400,000 cases of Haemophilus Influenza type B (Hib) associated illness will occur in children aged less than 5 years of age every year in the country,
saying that the majority of these will present as pneumonia and potent vaccine, with the potential for disease elimination.

He said that Nigeria had got approval from GAVI to introduce the Haemophilus Influenza B antigen as a pentavalent vaccine in a phased manner into its EPI schedule beginning with 13 states and FCT in phase
One, 7 other states in phase 2 and 16 states, Ondo State inclusive in the third phase of introduction.

The Governor called for the support of the people of Ondo State for complete acceptance and importance of the new Pentavalent Vaccine in the state more so that the state is currently pave-setting for other states in the Immunization Leadership Challenge in the country, he added.

Mimiko also appreciated the supports of the donor agencies and the development partners such as the World Health organization (WHO), National Orientation Agency (NOA), UNICEF and NPHCDA..

Earlier in his welcome speech, the State commissioner for health, Dr Dayo Adeyanju, who was represented by the Permanent Secretary in the ministry, Dr Taye Oni said that all logistic supports had been given to health workers in all the council areas  to ensure smooth implementation of the programme.

I have no disbaility at all - Opebe

 

 Yomi Kings  popularly called Opebe is an household name in the Yoruba section of the Nollywood. he is a trained Printer  but divert into acting because of the passion for the industry. His disbality role singled him out in the industry and with this character he has won  Trophy and  hope to win more.  In a chart with Alarinka Agbaye in Ondo recently Opebe explained how he ventured into film industry and how he nearly ran mad when he was given 200 Thousand Naira cash by  one of his  fans

Can we meet you?

 My name is Yomi Kings popularly known as Opebe A.k.A Apa njo ese nlulu

 How do you come about the name Opebe  and Apanjo ese nlulu

 It’s just a stage name and what I will call in Yoruba Inagije

 You use to appear like a disable in the film

 That is Opebe logo, people have to have identity and i have to create that identity for myself so that people will know that its opebe, and that is just my logo as you see me now you can see i am yomi king with good  hands   so there is different between yomi kings  and Opebe on stage

 Could you please tell us the difference?

 Yomi King is an able man while Opebe is a disable man that is just it

 People believe that you are once disable and that you fought somebody who use juju on you before you get the miracle from somewhere to regain the hands back to normal  

 I was never a disable, one thing i want to tell you, everybody in this industry  have identity  by the time i enter into the industry most of our leaders have identity that separate them from others, for example when you see Baba sala, you will see him with a big stomach and a wonderful watches and   glass, the same thing with baba mero they all create identity for themselves the same  way i think in have to create an identity for myself so that when people see me they will be surprise that i can walk very well so that is why i  choose to always act like a disable man

 Who trained you?

 I trained under two boss, before i joined Babatunde Omidina theatre group which is Baba suwe i was already with tunde Ibitayo Oke Agba theatre group by then the group deal with culture they don’t know anything like comedy or anything they deal with pure culture i trained with the likes of kokosari, Fadeyi and others so i need to cram a lot of incantation, and me i don’t want that i want something that will make people to laugh that is why i cross to Babatunde Omidina  group which is Baba suwe

  When was that

  That was 1984, when i joined Baba suwe, i started acting in 1979, i started with Babtunde Ibitola How old were you then  I was very young by the time i started acting i think i should be 18  or 19

 You have acted in so many films which one will you described as you best performance

 Every film i have acted in are the best  but the one that is coming soon is the best  and  i have  a soap that is  been run on the TV  called Civilian barracks i can say that is the best also, that is another dimension i am not Opebe inside that one.

 How many wives do you have?

 I have one wife

 With how many kids

 I have boys and girls

 Any intention to marry another wife soon

 No why should i marry another  wife i am satisfy with the one i have

 How do you manage the external affairs and they are like how many

 Don’t worry about that ( laughs)

 Is entertainment world today in Nigeria up to billing?

 First of all we have to thank God,  i don’t know n where this field is going to by the time we started acting we thought that was the  end but for now you need to have something to support it ,   entertainment is not like  before,  because of enormous challenges facing us, number  i the issue of piracy, they don’t allow us to enjoy the fruit of our labour,  secondly our government didn’t support us  if you see foreign actors you will understand  what i am talking about better we are just like  a tools here, when they are through with us they throw us away, we are not really  enjoying  the way it should be  but we thank God for our lives

 Ok what advise do you have for the government and how do you want them to help?

 Advise the government, the government know what they can do to make things better for us and as regard the advise, people before me had advise government on so many occasions write papers and do a lot to give government a sense of direction on how help this industry grow so i cant start re advising them now they won’t listen to somebody like me, a disable man in acting

 Your happiest moment in life

 I am always happy, every day of my life i am happy because it’s a privileged to be alive so i have to be happy.

 The most embarrassing moment of your life

 Haaaa, hummmm, iyen lo le ju, that one is very very serious o, before now i have a problem before i got my car, it was  a terrible moment, because i go on  commercial  bus, and immediately i enter bus there is always trouble,  the only way to avoid it is either to sleep or keep mute because among fellow  passenger were people of various character who want to address you anyhow and that was the embarrassing moment for me and since i  came over that i have been free, i  thank god  for lifting me up

  Let’s have an insight into your academic background

 As i am i didn’t have much education, i started from primary school ended at secondary school and later went o learn how to print

 When do you intend to quit acting?

 In this our job there is no retirement until ones die, it is no government job, if i am to be in government service i should have reach the level of a permanent secretary or one of the policy makers but in this acting of a thing, we have people who are older enough to be my father and they are nowhere to be found because they don’t have anything to  show for  their years in service and i thank God

 Do you at any point regret ever  choosing acting as a carrier?

 No   i don’t have any regret in fact i do thank God because if i have chosen another profession i may not have achieved what i have achieved today, i have 3 kids in the university i have  my own house ride jeeps and do whatever i want at my own convenience it’s not my power but God  make it happen through some of my fans and lovers who beliefs I must grow and i thank god  for their lives. I want to tell you the first day a fan gave me 200 thousand Naira, i was  dumbfounded because that was the first time i will have that kind of money in my hand cash, i wanted to travel out of the country and i needed money and that man gave me 200 thousand naira cash the  same day i approached him for help so why wont  i be  grateful to God i have another  egbon from Ondo state here that want to buy me a fine car, i am  grateful to everybody for supporting me God will continue to bless you all.

Why i Separated with my ex wife - Dejo Tunfulu

Kunle Makinde Tokunbo popularly called  Dejo Tunfulu is one of the few artists that master  funny character in movie, he has featured in many movie and has written many some as well. In this interview with Alarinka Agbaye recently he spoke about his life and how he was excited getting N50 pay for his first appearance in movie.

Why do you choose to play funny character in  movies

 I developed  the character  right from my school days when i was in secondary school i joined entertainment society and i have a friend  Sefiu Iman, he is a stamarer  so i do imitate him and gradually it became  talent  and part of men,

 Lets have an insight into your background

 I am kunle Makinde Tokunbo, i was born in Lagos Island, brought up in Lagos island but I am an indigene of Ikija, Abeokuta in Ogun state. So i started my education from Answarudeen Primary school Ereko Lagos Island  from there to Dolphin high school Lagos Island  from there to Modern way Nigeria school of printing before we end everything on theatre

  When exactly did you start acting?

 I started from my secondary school around 84 / 85

 How has it been so far?

It has been wonderful both on the positive and the negative side, i really enjoy it I thank God for keeping me and granting me the talent

 Do you play other serious character?      

 Yes, i played normal role in Adufe, which i wrote, i played normal role in Asa written by Ibrahim Chatta and some many more and i enjoy playing it as well but not as the funny character

 How many people have you participated in?

 My brother, i can’t count, they are so many           

 How much were you paid in your first appearance?

I was paid N50 naira,

 What was your feeling then?

 Full movie then was N5000 Naira so how will i feel, i feel great for them to pay me N50 naira, so i feel great and i was glad.

 You first appearance in movie, Tele and stage

 ,My  first appearance on television was Apere Ijongbon by Kolawole International theatre group Akuko Gagara, around 87  my first appearance on movie  was in the first home video in Nigeria  and that is Aje ni iya mi, where i played a minor role because in that play someone just called me “ Dejo se ohun e  ti la and i  answered him” that all and people loved that role

 Have you ever produced or written any films

 Yes i’ve produce many film, lets start from my first movie Eja Ojiji, i produce Tori Ife, Aya Rere, Owo Omago, bom Boy, kofoworola, Ero ibanisaroro BRF Babajide Raji Fasasi, and the coming one Oponu Meta.

Do you feel embarrassed outside when people called you Dejo

 I am two in one,  my name is kunle and at the same time Dejo so  there is nothing bad in  its my name,  even there are some of my friend  that don’t know my real name, they know  me to be Dejo so dejo has been part of my name

 You are a certified printer and rather than continuing with your printing Job you face theatre, who groomed you, who is your teacher

 I was trained in my area where there are many television  stars like Abeni Ajagun, Madam Saje, Ajirebi , Baba Balogun, Ateyepe, so they live in  my area and from there i became part of them and they groomed me  so later when i went to secondary school i joined entertainment society from where i picked up things

 How old are you

 I am close to forty

 Are you married?

 Married before but now single kid

 What happend to your marriage

 Personal                           

 Do you still intend to remarry?

Of course yes

How do you handles female fans

 They are all my friends and we relate as one

Sometimes ago it was rumoured that you are planning to relocate to abroad with your kids how through is that

 Me abroad, that’s not true

 Do you have any plan of leaving the shores of Nigeria without coming back?

 No, Nigeria is my father’s land, i can be going there and coming but no plan to stay permanently

  Are you enjoying what you are doing in Nigeria?

  Yes, you cannot because you don’t like your family and decided to align with another family  your family is your family, Nigeria situations for actors and actresses is not friendly, but we have to endure and pray to God to make entertainment industry in general to move forward,  we should go up like Hollywood and Hollywood

 What do you think can be done by the government and corporate organization to make the industry grow?

 You see in the entertainment industry we need government, cooperate organization and individual support, we have been saying this for long time but nobody is responding as expected which is discouraging

 Why do people in the entertainment industry always look forward to government patronage and not individual and companies?

 Just like i told you we need everybody to work with us to make the industry grow including you, we are not looking at government alone   we need everybody

 You happiest moment in life

 My happiest when was that o, when i sat with Gov .Mimiko, Professor Wole Soyinka at the airport hotel at Joe Odumakin Birthday?

 The most embarrassing moment

 Ehn let me see, ok when i die you can come and ask my corpse

 How do you want your new wife to be and what qualities must she possess

She must be caring and good as a woman, be responsive to her duties and responsibilities at home, as per size and colour, o don’t have any specification Gbogbo ejo ni jije

 What advice do u have for the younger one i mean the upcoming artists?

 Well they should be prayerful and hardworking. That is the only thing that can do it, prayer is much more important and they should be focused.

See the man that catches 200-year-old fish that weight 40-pound

A fisherman in Alaska took home a catch for the ages recently when he reeled in a 40-pound shortraker rockfish that experts believe is at least 200 years old.
The Daily Sitka Sentinel reported that Henry Liebman of Seattle was deep-sea fishing off the coast of Alaska on June 21 when he hooked the record-setting shortraker fish from a depth of approximately 900 feet.
“I knew it was abnormally big (but I) didn’t know it was a record until on the way back we looked in the Alaska guide book that was on the boat,” Liebman told the paper.
Shortrakers, which have hues of orange, pink or red on top of their white bodies, are one of the most commonly sought fish in Alaska and can live at depths of more than 2,500 feet.
Troy Tidingco, Sitka area manager for the state Department of Fish and Game, said the fish is still being analyzed but he believes it is at least 200 years old. Tidingco said that would beat the current record of 175 years. Researchers are able to determine the age of a shortraker by the number of growth rings along its ear bone.
However, a previously caught rougheye rockfish, similar to the shortraker, was believed to have been 205 years old. Still, Tydingco said that record-setting fish “was quite a bit smaller” than the 41-inch specimen Liebman caught.
In 2007, a commercial fisherman caught a similarly sized rockfish that turned out to be 115 years old. Amazingly, researchers from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association say that fish was still fertile at the time of its capture. "The belly was large," NOAA researcher Paul Spencer told The Associated Press. "The ovaries were full of developing embryos."
Liebman told the paper he plans to have the fish mounted back home in Seattle, but he did provide the Alaska Department of Fish and Game with a sample so its age could be determined.
Tidingco noted that if the fish is actually as old as believed, it would easily predate the Alaska Purchase in 1867.
Scientists say they still don't fully understand animal longevity. Normally, smaller animals tend to outlive larger ones, though that does not necessarily appear to be true with the rockfish. The oldest known animal on record was a clam believed to have been 400-years-old.

I want to Surpass Adedibu’s Political Legacy – Alao Akala

 

   June 3rd of every year  is a day of celebrtaion in the life of Otunba Adeayo Alao Akala, the Immediate past governor of Oyo State, and this year June 3rd birthday celebration was not in exemption as friends families and political associates gathers at the Bodija residence of the Ogbomoso born political actor in Oyo state to celebrate with him on his 63rd Birthday. in a short chart with Alarinka.com  Otunba Alao Akala express his feelings at 63, his political accord with the Accord party and how he want to surpass he late Godfather Chief Lamidi Adedibu. excerpt

How do you feel at 63

  I feel good and I thank God for my life don’t have any regret at all, I thank God because it’s not easy for someone who is almost all alone with God to have attained what God has help me to have attain and achieve i life, i think i must be very grateful to God for given me such opportunity, i am always a happy man.

What is your message to your political fans friends and associate especially as we are gradually approaching election season.

 My message to them is to be calm, law abiding and  be sure that by the grace of God the change will soon come, i am positive  about that.

 Two years away from election, we have been hearing about your accord with the Accord party leaders especially Senator Rashidi Ladoja , how accord is the accord sir.

You see i can talk to anybody but my going to accord is, i cannot go to accord party i can never join Accord, i can talk to member of Accord to come and join my own party because when you look at it i am above cross carpeting , I’ve been governor by now i should be playing politics at the top and i am very comfortable with where i am now, PDP has done a lot for me so i owe it to PDP to give back a lot so i can never join Accord party  for the purpose of emphasis i can never join Accord party.

 Both you and Accord have set up a committee to work out modalities of the possibilities of working but the committee members from the Accord are your political associate how that is going to work out seriously

 You see when you are in politics you don’t want to miss your own friends, if you are not  in the  same  camp today tomorrow you may be in the same party so why do i have to let them go and politics is not a game of do or die there is dynamism in politics if you are friends today you may be enemy tomorrow and vice versa and that is why i maintained my relationship with everybody as they present them self before me so i am okay  and i know with the alliance there will be something  serious because the committee will work on terms of working together  and  definitely by the grace of God there will be a change in 2015.

Some people from Oyo North Senatorial district are calling on you to come and rescue the zone from come 2015 what do you feel sir.

 One things about politics is that you don’t tell people what you want to do, you look at the large people and  the political associate that are supporting you, you alone cannot  take a decision, let leave everything to God i always love part of Quran which says Idina Sirantali Mustkhimo, May God lead us to the right par. Politically, I want to surpass the legacies of late Chief Lamidi Adedibu and i won’t retire from politics until i bid the world good bye.

N27Bn Scam: “YOU HAVE A CASE TO ANSWER”- Court Tells Atuche, Others

Justice Lateefat Okunnu of a Lagos High Court sitting in Ikeja on Monday, July 1st, 2013, told a former managing director of BankPHB Plc, now Keystone Bank Limited, Mr. Francis Atuche, his wife, Elizabeth and his associate, Mr. Ugo Anyanwu who are facing trial over a N27billion scam, that they have a case to answer and should be ready to open their defence.

According to Justice Okunnu, "a prima facie case has been established by the EFCC against the defendants and as a result, two applications before the court by the 1st, 2nd and 3rd defendants cannot succeed and are thereby over ruled and dismissed. The defendants are hereby called upon to open their case".
Justice Okunnu further stressed that, " a question we need to ask is, has enough been said to warrant an explanation from each of the defendants?" According to her, the 27-count charge against the defendants emphasized that they all fraudulently converted bank's money for personal use.

She also said that: "the prosecution has enough evidence before me, about 12 witnesses have been called, and 272 exhibits have been presented before the court by the prosecution." In addition, Okunnu declared that evidence have been presented by the prosecution that huge sums of money was stolen through former bank PHB and that all the stolen funds were diverted by the first defendant, Atuche for his personal use.

Justice Okunnu, after dismissing the two applications filed by the defendants, adjourned the case to, July 17; October, 2; 4; 23, 24 and 25, 2013.
Justice Lateefat Okunnu of a Lagos High Court sitting in Ikeja on Monday, July 1st, 2013, told a former managing director of BankPHB Plc, now Keystone Bank Limited, Mr. Francis Atuche, his wife, Elizabeth and his associate, Mr. Ugo Anyanwu who are facing trial over a N27billion scam, that they have a case to answer and should be ready to open their defence.

According to Justice Okunnu, "a prima facie case has been established by the EFCC against the defendants and as a result, two applications before the court by the 1st, 2nd and 3rd defendants cannot succeed and are thereby over ruled and dismissed. The defendants are hereby called upon to open their case". Justice Okunnu further stressed that, " a question we need to ask is, has enough been said to warrant an explanation from each of the defendants?" According to her, the 27-count charge against the defendants emphasized that they all fraudulently converted bank's money for personal use.

She also said that: "the prosecution has enough evidence before me, about 12 witnesses have been called, and 272 exhibits have been presented before the court by the prosecution." In addition, Okunnu declared that evidence have been presented by the prosecution that huge sums of money was stolen through former bank PHB and that all the stolen funds were diverted by the first defendant, Atuche for his personal use.

Justice Okunnu, after dismissing the two applications filed by the defendants, adjourned the case to, July 17; October, 2; 4; 23, 24 and 25, 2013.