General
Dariye Loses Another Bid to Frustrate N1.2b Fraud Trial
By Dipo Olowookere
Former Plateau State Governor, Mr Joshua Dariye, has again lost his bid to scuttle his N1.162 billion fraud trial, preferred against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
Justice Adebukola Banjoko of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court, Gudu, Abuja, on March 6, 2017 threw out his motion seeking for his lordship to be disqualified from the trial.
Mr Dariye, who is facing a 23-count charge for allegedly diverting the state’s Ecological Fund to private companies including Ebenezer Retnan Ventures and Pinnacle Communications Limited, had in January lost in a similar bid, having applied to Justice U.I. Bello, the Chief Judge, CJ of the FCT High Court, accusing the trial judge of “manifest and undisguised bias”, and seeking for the case file to be transferred to another judge.
The CJ threw out the application and ordered Mr Dariye to go and continue with his trial before the judge as his allegation of bias was “baseless”.
At the time Mr Dariye sent his letter to the CJ, dated December 13, 2016 his defence counsel, G.S. Pwul, SAN, also brought two motions to the court, one of which was the one asking the trial judge to “disqualify” his lordship from the case.
He had also applied to the court, seeking for the recall of two principal witnesses, Musa Sunday, an EFCC operative who was cross-examined by both the prosecution and defence on January 25, 2016 and Peter Clark, a retired detective constable with the United Kingdom, UK Metropolitan Police, who was cross-examined by both counsels on May 9, 2016.
At the last sitting on March 2, 2017 Pwul, while arguing the applications, contended that it was necessary to recall the witnesses “in relation to new evidence”.
Citing exhibits D6 – D34 as the reasons for the recall, he further argued that there was need to further cross-examine Sunday as regards transactions between the Plateau State government and Pinnacle Communications Limited. He had also urged the court to summon Clark “in relation to his evidence and investigation activities carried out in the United Kingdom and to confront him with new evidence”.
Prosecution counsel, Adeniyi Adebisi, in his argument contended that the defence was provided with the list of all the witnesses in the proof of evidence, which included the names of the witnesses, which it wanted to bring to the court.
He added that “the defence knew in advance the witnesses to be called by the prosecution and so had adequate time and opportunity to review their statements and all evidence referred to were in existence and available long before Musa Sunday and Peter Clark testified before the court”.
Adebisi further argued that: “Dariye was present at all proceedings and well represented by his counsel who thoroughly cross-examined the two witnesses.” He reminded the court that Clark had retired and during the trial “the defence was never stampeded and the court didn’t force the counsel to conclude his cross-examination”.
He surmised that: “The applications are a ploy to delay the case and the Supreme Court has given directive for expeditious hearing”. He urged the court to dismiss the applications “with substantial cost”.
Justice Banjoko in ruling on the motion seeking for his lordship to be disqualified from the case, said: “I have no interest whatsoever in this case and I have so far presided over the case without fear or favour, and in line with my oath of office and so the motion lacks merit and is accordingly dismissed.”
The trial judge ruling on the second motion, noted that “the defence has called 16 witnesses and is now seeking to reopen prosecution’s case when defence is still going on”, and “the prosecution has already closed its case”.
The trial judge citing several authorities noted that while a recall by a party involved in a case is not out of order, “a recall is permitted only by a trial judge” and based on two facts that the party seeking a recall brings to the court “good enough facts as well as questions he intends to ask the witness which in this instance the defence has not done”.
While dismissing the application seeking for recall of Clark, the trial judge ruled that: “I have carefully considered all the authorities and submissions of counsels and found that Peter Clark the prosecution witness nine, PW9, resides in a territorial jurisdiction outside of Nigeria and in his oral testimony he stated that he retired on 9 March 2015, and came to Nigeria on his own freewill to see to the end of an investigation he started and the court can see that the witness was extensively cross-examined by the defence and the defence was not curtailed or prevented and so had maximum advantage to cross-examine him.”
The trial judge noted that Clark was a master of his own time and there was nothing to hold that he still resides in the UK since his retirement and moreover, he was not a “compellable witness”.
“The application is hereby denied and accordingly dismissed,” the trial judge held.
Justice Banjoko while adjourning to March 16, 2017 “for defence to continue”, however acceded to the request of the defence to recall Sunday for “further cross-examination in the interest of justice” and because he still resides in the “territorial jurisdiction of Nigeria”.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Chairman of the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA), Mr Segun Ogunsanya, has called for greater mobilisation of domestic capital from local institutions to drive Nigeria’s economic development.
Mr Ogunsanya made the remarks during his address at the Invest in Lagos 3.0 Summit, themed Lagos: The Business Gateway to Africa, urging policymakers and investors to tap funds from pension administrators, insurance firms and banks rather than relying heavily on foreign development finance institutions (DFIs) and external funding sources.
He said Nigeria must move beyond heavy reliance on DFIs and external funding, arguing that significant untapped capital exists within the country’s financial ecosystem.
“I would like to see a deeper level of local capital formation. I’ve seen a lot of emphasis on DFIs and the money coming in from outside the country. But if you look deeply, we need to find ways of harnessing local capital, capital from pension funds, capital from insurance companies, capital from banks,” he said.
According to him, domestic pension funds, insurance assets and banking liquidity represent a sustainable source of long-term financing that can be structured to support infrastructure through Public-Private Partnership (PPP) frameworks.
Mr Ogunsanya disclosed that NSIA is currently anchoring a $1 billion infrastructure fund in collaboration with the International Finance Corporation (IFC), designed to strengthen infrastructure investment and de-risk large-scale projects.
“A couple of days ago, we just got some confirmation from IFC. They’re going to be part of a $1 billion fund that we’re anchoring. This $1 billion fund is to provide some sort of guarantee for infrastructure investment,” he said.
He explained that the fund would cover key stages of infrastructure delivery, including project preparation, project development, risk guarantees and risk capital support.
“The World Bank IFC just came in again, and this funding is meant to cover four different areas of any infrastructure investment — the project preparation phase, the development phase, those who want guarantees, and also to provide the risk capital itself,” he said.
Mr Ogunsanya noted that the initiative is aimed at improving project bankability while ensuring strict financial discipline and due diligence in investment selection.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Oyo State Police Command has revealed that a person attached to a member of the family of former Minister of Power, Mr Adebayo Adelabu, allegedly worked in collaboration with kidnappers to abduct his sister and her two children in Ibadan.
Police spokesperson, CSP Olayinka Ayanlade, disclosed that preliminary investigations indicate an insider role in the operation, suggesting that the abduction may have been facilitated by someone close to the family.
Mrs Olaide Busayo Adegoke John-Paul and her 12-year-old twin sons, Peter and Paul, were abducted on June 3, 2026, at the Elewura area of Challenge, Ibadan.
The victims regained their freedom on Saturday (June 6) after a coordinated intelligence-led operation by operatives of the Force Intelligence Department–Intelligence Response Team (FID-IRT) and the Oyo State Police Command.
According to the Command in its latest update, the suspect allegedly provided support to the kidnappers during the incident, which led to the abduction of the victims in Ibadan, Oyo State.
Security operatives said investigations are ongoing to track down all individuals connected to the crime and ensure the safe rescue of the victims.
The police assured residents that efforts are being intensified to dismantle the network behind the kidnapping and bring all perpetrators to justice.
On Monday, the Oyo State Government demolished a three-bedroom bungalow allegedly used as a hideout by kidnappers involved in the abduction of the younger sister of the former Minister of Power and her twin sons.
The property, located at Lakoun Estate along Olomi-Olojuoro Road in Oluyole Local Council of Oyo State, was pulled down by officials of the state Ministry of Public Works and Transportation, accompanied by operatives of the Nigeria Police Force.
Officials added that the demolition also underscores the government’s determination to confront rising security threats and send a strong message to criminal elements operating within the South West state.
The Ojude Oba Festival is no longer merely one of Nigeria’s most celebrated cultural gatherings; it is rapidly emerging as one of Africa’s most influential cultural brands.
A newly released Media Intelligence Report by P+ Measurement Services reveals that Ojude Oba 2026 recorded its strongest media performance to date, achieving significant growth across audience reach, media visibility, social engagement, international attention and digital discoverability.
The report analysed media conversations and coverage generated between May 20 and June 5, 2026, across print, online, social media and broadcast platforms, while benchmarking performance against the 2025 edition of the festival.
The findings paint a compelling picture of a cultural institution that is not only preserving heritage but also increasingly shaping conversations across modern media ecosystems.
According to the report, total media mentions grew by 56 per cent year-on-year, increasing from 18,420 mentions in 2025 to 28,735 mentions in 2026. Audience reach expanded even more dramatically, growing by 75 per cent from 124.8 million to 218.6 million people globally.
Social media emerged as the primary engine of visibility, generating over 81,000 public conversations during the monitoring period, representing an 88 per cent increase compared to the previous year. Engagements more than doubled, rising by 115 per cent from 3.9 million interactions in 2025 to 8.4 million interactions in 2026.
Perhaps most notable was the improvement in public sentiment.
Positive sentiment increased from 60 per cent in 2025 to 79 per cent in 2026, while negative sentiment declined by half, dropping from 10 per cent to just 5 per cent. Conversations around cultural pride, heritage preservation, fashion, equestrian displays, community identity and the enduring legacy of the late Awujale of Ijebuland, Oba Sikiru Adetona, drove the overwhelmingly positive perception.
The report identified the legacy narrative of Oba Sikiru Adetona as the single most influential thematic driver of media coverage throughout the reporting period.
Unlike previous years, where conversations focused primarily on spectacle and pageantry, the 2026 edition witnessed a deeper engagement with themes of history, leadership, continuity and cultural preservation, elevating the festival beyond entertainment and positioning it as a significant cultural institution.
International visibility also recorded substantial growth.
While Nigeria remained the dominant source of conversations and media coverage, the festival generated measurable attention across the United Kingdom, United States, Canada, France, Germany, South Africa, Ghana, the United Arab Emirates, Kenya and the Netherlands. This expansion contributed to a near doubling of the festival’s global footprint and reflects the growing interest in African cultural experiences among international audiences and diaspora communities.
The report further found that social media accounted for the largest share of total conversations, followed by online news platforms, print publications and broadcast media. Coverage was amplified through extensive reporting by Channels Television, TVC News, OGTV, City People TV, Araba TV and GoldMyneTV, alongside significant digital coverage from leading Nigerian news and entertainment platforms.
Among personalities driving online conversations, Farooq Oreagba once again emerged as the most discussed cultural figure associated with the festival. Other highly visible personalities included Eniola Badmus, Lateef Adedimeji, Rotimi Salami, Jide Awobona and Samuel Banks, whose appearances and social media mentions helped sustain public interest throughout the event period.
Corporate sponsorship continued to play a critical role in the festival’s visibility ecosystem.
Globacom retained its position as the most visible sponsor, followed by Orijin, FCMB, Goldberg, Rite Foods, Maltina, Honeywell Foods, Adron Homes, Maggi, SIFAX Group and Seaman Schnapps. The report notes that brands increasingly view Ojude Oba as a strategic platform for cultural storytelling, community engagement and reputation building.
One of the most significant additions to this year’s report is the application of the AMEC GEO Framework, the newly introduced global measurement model designed to help organisations understand how reputation, content and visibility influence outcomes in AI-driven information environments.
Using the framework’s three core dimensions—Upstream Reputation Signals, Search and Content Readiness, and Downstream AI Outputs—the analysis assessed Ojude Oba’s performance not only in traditional media but also within emerging AI-powered discovery systems.
The assessment found strong performance across earned media authority, cultural relevance, content visibility and reputation consistency. The festival demonstrated growing discoverability within AI-assisted search environments and generated strong indicators for future cultural visibility across generative search platforms.
According to P+ Measurement Services, this represents a fundamental shift in how cultural events should be evaluated.
“Media success is no longer defined solely by coverage volume or impressions,” the report notes. “In an AI-driven information ecosystem, discoverability, authority, narrative consistency and reputation signals increasingly determine whether institutions remain visible, trusted and relevant. Ojude Oba’s performance demonstrates the importance of measuring cultural influence through both traditional media metrics and emerging AI visibility frameworks.”
The report concludes that Ojude Oba has evolved beyond its traditional role as a cultural celebration and now functions as a powerful platform for tourism promotion, economic storytelling, cultural diplomacy, national branding and global heritage engagement.
As governments, tourism agencies, brands and cultural institutions seek new ways to compete for attention in an increasingly fragmented media environment, Ojude Oba offers a compelling case study in how heritage can be transformed into measurable influence, sustained visibility and long-term reputation value.
With record audience reach, stronger public sentiment, expanded international visibility and growing AI discoverability, the 2026 edition marks a defining moment in the festival’s evolution from cultural event to global cultural brand.
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