Bayo Onanuga, chief spokesman for President-elect Bola Tinubu has averred that his principal’s cocaine business in the United States is not enough reason to stop the actualisation of his presidential ambition.

He asserted that Tinubu’s indictment in drug trafficking happened more than 10 years ago and cannot, therefore, be used as a ground for nullification of his victory at the polls last month.

Onanuga made the assertion while responding to a tweet from Ayo Obe, another surrogate of Tinubu, who said the president-elect cannot be sacked by the Supreme Court because his established drug trafficking case in Chicago was already statute-barred.

“The Obi supporters don’t read. They live in a cocoon of falsehood and contrived propaganda,” Onanuga lashed out at other Twitter users who called him out on his uncharitable and uncomplimentary remarks on the microblogging site.

Obe cited Section 137 (1)e) of the Constitution that said a Nigerian cannot be elected president within 10 years of a conviction for offences brought by the Code of Conduct Bureau.

“A person shall not be qualified for election to the office of President if within a period of less than ten years before the date of the election to the office of President he has been convicted and sentenced for an offence involving dishonesty or he has been found guilty of the contravention of the Code of Conduct,” the section said.

Obe, however, left out the preceding section of the Constitution, Section 137 (1)(d), that disqualified anyone who had been fined for any offences in the past from becoming president. That section, which applies to Mr Tinubu’s forfeiture of over $460,000 due to drug crimes in Chicago in 1993, did not give any timeline under which a convict can be released to run for Nigeria’s presidency.

It only said: “A person shall not be qualified for election to the office of President if he is under a sentence of death imposed by any competent court of law or tribunal in Nigeria or a sentence of imprisonment or fine for any offence involving dishonesty or fraud (by whatever name called) or for any other offence, imposed on him by any court or tribunal or substituted by a competent authority for any other sentence imposed on him by such a court or tribunal.”

In 2014, the Supreme Court defined forfeiture as punishment for an offence under Nigerian criminal statutes.

“The word “forfeiture” means – “the divestiture of property without compensation. The loss of a right, privilege, or property because of a crime, breach of obligation, or neglect of duty,” the court ruled on January 17, 2014, in Mohammed Abacha and the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

“A person who has forfeited property on the basis of a crime cannot be entitled to indemnity. Forfeiture is a form of punishment. There is no indemnity in our criminal procedure,” the court further stated in a majority decision delivered by now-Chief Justice Olukayode Ariwoola.

Tinubu’s drug case is among the key grounds for Mr Tinubu’s disqualification in the election petition filed by Labour Party’s presidential candidate Peter Obi against the declaration of Mr Tinubu as president-elect in the February 25 presidential election.

Onanuga’s aggression on Obi’s supporters comes as Nigerian security agencies are warning citizens to tone down confrontation on social media.

Claim: Both social and traditional media were recently awash with claims that a 53-page certified document released by a US court indicated that the presidential candidate of the All Progressive Congress, APC, Bola Ahmed Tinubu was a drug lord convicted in the US.

Full-Text: The post of the claimer reads: “US Court Releases Certified True Copy Of Judgment For The Forfeiture of $460,000 Belonging To Bola Ahmed Tinubu For Narcotics Trafficking And Money Laundering.

“It is no longer news that on October 4, 1993, Bola Ahmed Tinubu forfeited $460,000 to the United States Government for his involvement in narcotics trafficking and financial transactions in violation of the U.S laws. This 59-page attested court judgment confirms this.

“In the cause of the investigations, representatives from Mobil Oil were interviewed regarding Tinubu’s employment status. The representatives confirmed that Tinubu was indeed employed by Mobil Oil Nigeria Ltd as a Treasurer.

“This position, however, does not involve the transfer of large amounts of money between banking institutions. Mobil Oil representatives stated that under no circumstances would Tinubu be permitted to retain money belonging to Mobil Oil in accounts bearing Tinubu’s name. Finally, Mobil Oil confirmed that the corporation never had any accounts in banks in the southern suburbs of Chicago.

“Consequently, the U.S Court ordered that the funds in the amount of $460,000 in the name of Bola Tinubu in account 263226700 held by First Heritage Bank represent proceeds of narcotics trafficking and was involved in financial transactions in violation of U.S laws.The Court also ordered that First Heritage Bank shall issue a $460,000 cheque payable to Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago and be forfeited to the United States Government.”

Verification: In a letter dated February 4th 2003 which emanated from the US Consulate in Lagos, addressed to the then Inspector General of Police, Tafa Balogun with reference SR.3000/IGPSEC/ABJ/VOL.24/287 and obtained by PRNigeria, the United States clarified that a record check on then Governor Bola Ahmed Tinubu returned negative for any criminal arrest records, wants, or warrants for Mr Tinubu “(DOB 29 March 1952).”

It further clarified that its check was based on the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)’s National Crime Information Center (NCIC) – a centralised information center that maintaining the recordqs of every criminal arrest and conviction within the United States and its territories.PRNigeria fact-check, therefore, queried the database of the FBI’s NCIC, and results returned negative on the search terms.

However, recent reports from the PeoplesGazette, Moneycentral, and ICIR Nigeria among other credible media outlets revealed that the US has released a certified copy of the alleged Tinubu’s drug dealing and money laundering.

Part of the report reads, “latest certified copies of the court case, obtained on August 10, showed Mr Tinubu and two others named K.O. Tinubu and Alhaji Mogati were involved in banking proceeds of illicit drugs and money laundering with Heritage Bank and Citibank.”

The document upon which the report was based and was even shown on National TV was said to have been released by the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois however, there was no direct attribution to the source who released the document from the said court.

PRNigeria, therefore, visited the official website of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois and went to the “Federal Record Lookup page” of the website, entered the “location”, “year,” “case type,” and “case no,” as seen and reflected on the alleged document but there was no document of such nature associated with the said court according to findings from its official website.

PRNigeria‘s further investigations to independently verify if Mr Tinubu actually entered a plea bargain in 1993 which made him forfeit the sum of $460,000 led it to reach out to the clerk who attested to the release of the true copy on 10th August 2022.

Substantiation by US Court Official
PRNigeria tracked and contacted Johny Khuu, one of the signatories on the Court’s document with necessary enquiries on the matter.

Mr Khuu after checking the court records confirmed the existence of the document.After reviewing our records, I have indeed certified and attested those case files. Kind Regards,” Mr Khuu said.When asked further why the document was not accessible from the federal record lookup, he replied as follows.

“The federal record lookup is for seeking the location information of the physical documents for the case. In most cases, where the age of the case is before 1999, the case documents are most likely within the records of the Federal Records Center (FRC) and National Archives and Records Administration (NARA).
For members of the public to view case documents digitally, they must access them through the Public Access to Court Electronic Records (PACER) system.

Please note that many old case documents are in the process of being digitized, so should the documents be inaccessible in PACER, that is when the federal case lookup would be of use as the location information can be used by the FRC and NARA to determine whether it is within their records or within the records of another court,” Khuu concluded.

However, further investigations by PRNigeria revealed that the Judge assigned to the case as far back as 1993, Judge John Albert Nordberg had died on 12th March 2021.

Tinubu’s Response
Meanwhile, Mr Tinubu’s spokespersons have admitted to such forfeiture in 1993.The spokesman of the APC presidential campaign, Bayo Onanuga said that the forfeiture arose out of an investigation by FBI agent Kevin Moss of Tinubu and Compass Investment and Finance accounts at First Heritage Bank and Citi- Bank in the U.S.

He further narrated as follows, “On January 10, 1992, Mr Kevin Moss requested and obtained a court order to freeze the accounts.
“On January 13, 1992, Mr Moss telephoned Tinubu in Nigeria to justify the amounts in the accounts, running into $1.4 million. Part of the money was said to have been deposited by two Nigerians, being investigated for drug offences.

“After the telephone conversation, Tinubu instructed his lawyer in the US to file a lawsuit against the order freezing his accounts. This dragged on till 15 September 1993, when an agreement was reached for an out-of-court settlement. Judge John A Nordberg, of the US district court for the Northern District of Illinois, read out the agreement reached by the two parties. Part of the funds, $460,000 was seized by the government.”

Legal Interpretation
Speaking to PRNigeria on the development, an Abuja based criminal litigation lawyer, Bar. Fatihu AbdulRaheem said the case is more of an indictment than a conviction.

Citing the case of Umana vs. Attah (2004), the court held that an indictment is not evidence that an offence has been committed. “Technically speaking, an indictment is merely a charge or information. It is only when it is accepted by the court that the prosecution will be called upon to prove its case beyond reasonable doubt.

“Conviction has been simply defined by the court in Mohammed V Olawunmi (1990) as a finding of guilt and a sentence. Therefore, under our criminal jurisprudence, conviction and indictment are distinguishable both in substance and nomenclature.

“Even in the United State when a person is indicted, it only means they will be given formal notice that they are believed to have committed a crime and therefrom, an explanation will be required by way of defense,” the lawyer concluded.

Conclusion: Investigations by PRNigeria on Mr Tinubu’s case in the United States did not involve criminal arrest and conviction based on facts from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)’s National Crime Information Center (NCIC) however the released court documents are VALID.

The case is a possible indictment from the accusations and allegations and not a conviction where one is found guilty and sentenced by a court of competent jurisdiction. PRNigeria, therefore, concludes that while it is TRUE that Mr Tinubu forfeited the sum of $460,000 according to attested court records, the claim that he was convicted of criminal charges is FALSE.

Bayo Onanuga, chief spokesman for President-elect Bola Tinubu has averred that his principal’s cocaine business in the United States is not enough reason to stop the actualisation of his presidential ambition.

He asserted that Tinubu’s indictment in drug trafficking happened more than 10 years ago and cannot, therefore, be used as a ground for nullification of his victory at the polls last month.

PRNigeria, therefore, concludes that while it is TRUE that Mr Tinubu forfeited the sum of $460,000 according to attested court records, the claim that he was convicted of criminal charges is FALSE.

UnusualEmissary:
But I thought the word was that Tinubu has no relation with drug and it's just a rumour/ propaganda?

RenaissanceGuy:
I've never seen a more jobless Nairalander like Racoon; maybe the other guy with tons of monikers. Keep on decorating text on Nairaland and don't focus on your life...

Massiveglory:
In the face of undeniable evidences, Bayo onanuga has finally confirmed tinubu is a drug lord.First thing, tinubu would be stripped of the "his excellency " title.

He would be stripped of everything that pertains to being governor of Lagos. Every entitlement received will be collected.For lying to the Nigerian people all these years, tinubu must pay the price.

"Mr Onanuga did not clarify whether or not Mr Tinubu could be held responsible by the law since he was the candidate whose signature appeared on the falsified document filed under oath.

Mr Onanuga said Nigerians should disregard perjury charges against Mr Tinubu because he has not held any political office since he concluded his two terms in 2007, until earlier this month when he clinched the presidential nomination of the ruling party...."

Bayo Onanuga, Mr Tinubu’s campaign aide did not immediately reply to messages seeking clarification on his principal’s contradictory statements.

NaughtyBrainiac:
Tinubu will be Nigeria's President for a minimum of 4 years and There is nothing ANYONE can do about it!
Know this and know peace

Racoon:
Truth hurts a lots. Una go shit for body for body tire.Before you make opinion public think very well. You can answer this question. He has intellectual working with him.Remember USA are yet to congratulate BAT. Interesting days ahead. I have just carefully gone through this Peter Obi’s election petition and I have come to the conclusion that Peter Obi is the most dangerous man in this here country called Nigeria....

Not only is he challenging the fraud for an election, but he is putting the entire country on trial for allowing a drug baron qualify to run and thereafter proceeded to rig the election.

Tinubu has for the longest refused to address his drug past and because of that, he refused to attend unscripted interviews. While INEC and the Nigerian courts refused to disqualify him even when it was obvious that he has a drug past. The storm is now gathering!

Fast forward to “GO TO COURT”.. Peter Obi has now placed Tinubu’s drug records front and center of his petition by front loading the certified true copies of his drug related asset forfeiture as required by the evidence act and stating that Tinubu ought not to have been qualified to stand for the election.

The twist is that since PO is not the author of the said document, someone from the US justice department must be subpoenaed to be led in evidence to present the document in court and I am 1000% sure that the US department of Justice has assured PO’s lawyers that with a subpoena, they will fly in DEA special Agent Moss to come authenticate the Tinubu’s drug related forfeiture court documents.

Perhaps Nigeria is about to be jolted on an international level embarrassment that will be beamed worldwide. This was avoidable if Nigerian courts had done the needful by disqualifying Tinubu!

APC members of this forum should get ready to watch the DEA special agent Moss who arrested Tinubu testify in the tribunal about Tinubu’s drug past and we will assess how the criminal minded Nigerian judges will surmount that embarrassment and still rule that Tinubu is qualified.

RenaissanceGuy:
[And you had to copy someone else's past post to use it to reply me?? (https://www.nairaland.com/7622402/section-137-what-does-law#121962289) That's a new kind of childishness.