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EFCC Arraigns Chris Ngige Over N2.2bn Corruption Allegations
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has arraigned former Minister of Labour and Productivity, Mr Chris Ngige, before Justice Mariam Hassan of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court, Gwarinpa, on corruption allegations totalling N2.2 billion.
Mr Ngige, a former Governor of Anambra State, was arraigned on an eight-count charge.
In the eight-count charge, marked: FCT/HC/CR/726/2025, the former minister was the sole defendant.
According to the charge dated October 31 and filed on December 9 by a team of lawyers, led by Mr Sylvanus Tahir (SAN), Mr Ngige was alleged to have committed the offences while serving as Minister of Labour under the ex-President Muhammadu Buhari.
In count one, the defendant was alleged to have, between September 2015 and May 2023, while being the supervising Minister of the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF), used his position to confer an unfair advantage upon Cezimo Nigeria Limited, a company whose MD/CEO and alter ego, Ezebinwa Amarachukwu Charles, is his associate.
Mr Ngige was said to have awarded seven contracts for consultancy, training, and supply by the NSITF to the said company to the tune of ₦366,470,920.68 (Three Hundred and Sixty Six Million, Four Hundred and Seventy Thousand, Nine Hundred and Twenty Naira and Sixty Eight Kobo).
In count two, the defendant was alleged to have, while being the supervising Minister of NSITF, used his position to confer an unfair advantage upon Zitacom Nigeria Limited, a company whose MD/CEO and alter ego, Mr Ezebinwa Amarachukwu Charles, is his associate.
Mr Ngige was alleged to have awarded eight contracts for supply, training, and consultancy, with NSITF, to the said company to the tune of N583,682,686.00 (Five Hundred and Eighty Three Million, Six Hundred and Eighty Two Thousand, Six Hundred and Eighty Six Naira) only.
Count three accused the former Anambra governor of using his position to confer an unfair advantage upon Jeff & Xris Limited, a company whose MD/CEO and alter ego, Mr Nwosu Jideofor Chukwunwike, is his associate, by the award of eight contracts for consultancy, training and supplies with NSITF to the said company to the tune of N362,043,163.16 (Three Hundred and Sixty Two Million, Forty Three Thousand, One Hundred and Sixty Three Naira and Sixteen Kobo) only.
In count four, he was allegedly to have used his position to confer an unfair advantage upon Olde English Consolidated Limited, a company whose MD/CEO and alter ego, Mr Uzoma Igbonwa, is his associate.
He was accused of awarding four contracts for consultancy, training, and construction by NSITF to the said company to the tune of N668,138,141.00 (Six Hundred and Sixty Eight Million, One Hundred and Thirty Eight Thousand, One Hundred and Forty One Naira) only.
In count five, the ex-minister was alleged to have used his position to confer unfair advantage upon Shale Atlantic Intercontinental Services Limited, a company whose MD/CEO and alter ego, Mr Uzoma Igbonwa, is his associate.
Mr Ngige was said to have awarded four contracts by NSITF to the said company for consultancy, training, and supply to the tune of N161,604,625.00 (One Hundred and Sixty One Million, Six Hundred and Four Thousand, Six Hundred and Twenty Five Naira) only.
The offences were contrary to and punishable under Section 19 of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act, 2000.
In count six, the defendant was alleged to have corruptly accepted a gift to the tune of N38, 650,000 (Thirty Eight Million, Six Hundred and Fifty Thousand Naira) only, through his “organisation called Senator (Dr) Chris Nwabueze Ngige Campaign Organisation from Cezimo Nigeria Limited (Zenith Bank Account Number 1011901119), a contractor with NSITF, while performing your official act as Minister of Labour and Employment.”
In count seven, Mr Ngige was alleged to have, while being the minister between September 2015 and May 2023, corruptly accepted a gift, to the tune of N55,003,000 (Fifty Five Million, Three Thousand Naira) only.
The “gift” was received through his organisation called “Senator (Dr) Chris Ngige Scholarship Scheme from Zitacom Nigeria Limited (Zenith Bank Account Number 1017263219), a contractor of NSITF, while performing your official act as Minister of Labour and Employment.”
Also in count eight, the former minister was allegedly to have corruptly accepted a gift, to the tune of N26,130,000 (Twenty Six Million, One Hundred and Thirty Thousand Naira) only, through his organisation called Senator (Dr) Chris Ngige Scholarship Scheme.
The money was received from Jeff & Xris Limited (Zenith Bank Account Number 1011533930), a contractor with NSITF, while performing his official act as Minister of Labour and Employment.
The offences were contrary to Section 17(a) of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act, 2000, and punishable under Section 179(c) of the same Act.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) has confirmed the collapse of five transmission towers along the Ikot Abasi–Eket 132kV Double Circuit Transmission Line.
This was attributed to severe acts of vandalism, as TCN disclosed that the structure collapsed after vandals removed critical structural bracing members.
The affected towers were N9, J4, N10, N11 and N12, the organisation said in a statement on Friday.
It explained that the extensive damage was discovered during a routine joint line patrol conducted on August 9, 2026, by TCN linesmen.
Further inspection revealed that structural members from seven additional towers along the same transmission corridor had also been removed and stolen. The towers, J3, N8, N13, N14, N15, N18 and N19, are now structurally compromised and pose a risk of further collapse.
TCN condemned this act of sabotage and reiterated its commitment to working hard to maintain a robust and reliable national grid.
The statement said that to mitigate the impact on electricity supply, the network has been reconfigured to prioritise supply to Ekim transmission station, leaving Ibom Power as the only station without supply.
TCN said it is mobilising an urgent intervention to complete the reconstruction of the affected sections of the line, with security agencies also notified to aid investigations and prevent further acts of vandalism along the line route.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mr Tajudeen Abbas, has urged all relevant government agencies to promptly initiate actions for the full implementation of the Nigerian Ports Economic Regulatory Agency Act, 2026, following its signing into law by President Bola Tinubu.
The bill, sponsored by Speaker Abbas, was aimed at repealing the Nigerian Shippers’ Council Act, Cap. N133, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004, and establish the Nigerian Ports Economic Regulatory Agency to ensure effective economic regulation of Nigerian ports while safeguarding the interests of shippers, service providers, and users of regulated port services. With the President’s assent, it has now been enacted as an Act of Parliament.
The legislation represents one of the landmark achievements of the 10th National Assembly. It reflects the Speaker’s commitment to legislative excellence, institutional reform, and sustainable economic growth, according to a press statement by the Special Adviser on Media and Publicity to the Speaker, Mr Musa Krishi.
The bill underwent a rigorous and inclusive legislative process, including extensive stakeholder consultations and a public hearing. It was passed by both Chambers of the National Assembly and subsequently assented to by the President.
The Act provides a robust legal and institutional framework to ensure effective economic regulation of Nigerian ports by fostering transparency, competitiveness, and efficiency in port operations; protecting the rights and interests of shippers, service providers, and other port users; and aligning Nigeria’s port regulatory system with global best practices, thereby enhancing the ease and cost-effectiveness of doing business.
Despite receiving presidential assent, the Act has yet to be fully operationalised.
He warned that any further delay would undermine the legislative intent of the reform, prolong the exposure of port users to arbitrary charges and operational inefficiencies, and deny the nation the anticipated benefits of increased revenue, improved trade facilitation, and stronger investor confidence in the marine and blue economy sector.
The Speaker urged the Federal Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy, in collaboration with all relevant Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) of the federal government, to take the necessary administrative, institutional, and financial measures for the prompt implementation of the Act.
He said this should include the formal transition to, as well as operational empowerment of, the Nigerian Ports Economic Regulatory Agency to discharge its statutory mandate effectively.
The full implementation of the Act is critical to unlocking the economic potential of Nigeria’s ports, reducing the cost of doing business, strengthening trade competitiveness, and positioning Nigeria as the leading maritime and logistics hub in West and Central Africa.
The statement noted that the Speaker reaffirmed the 10th House’s commitment to exercising the necessary legislative oversight to ensure this landmark legislation, along with others assented to by the President, is fully implemented and achieves its intended goals for the benefit of the Nigerian people.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Federal Ministry of Youth Development (FMYD), through the Nigerian Youth Academy (NiYA), has partnered with Cascador, a Nigeria-focused platform for growth-stage founders, to provide funding and support for the next generation of Nigerian youth entrepreneurs.
The announcement coincides with International Youth Day 2026, whose global theme this year — Different Contexts, Common Aspirations — calls on institutions to close the gap between young people’s circumstances and their opportunities. The pilot is an early step toward NiYA’s broader ambition to train and empower 7 million Nigerian youth within two years.
The NiYA and Cascador Founders Programme will begin with a pilot cohort of 20 early-stage Nigerian youth founders, including entrepreneurs without formal business registration or established financial records.
Over four weeks, participants will undergo intensive training focused on business fundamentals, investment readiness and pitch preparation. At the end of the programme, the eight top-performing founders will receive non-dilutive funding of up to N5 million each from Cascador, alongside an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) solution to help them structure, manage and scale their businesses.
The funding and support will be presented at a Pitch Day organised by NiYA and the Federal Ministry of Youth Development.
The Minister for Youth Development, Mr s Ayodele Olawande, said the partnership would enable NiYA to move beyond training by helping young people transform ideas into investable businesses and achieve sustainable economic participation through business preparation and access to capital.
“The pilot is deliberately designed to test a model that can go beyond one cohort. If young founders can be identified early, prepared properly, connected to credible capital and supported to build stronger business systems, then access to opportunity becomes less dependent on background or existing networks. That is the larger objective: to build a youth entrepreneurship ecosystem in which readiness, ideas and execution can increasingly determine who gets the opportunity to grow.”
The pilot will run in-person in Abuja with virtual touchpoints and 1:1 mentorship. All 20 graduates retain NiYA alumni status, with priority consideration for future opportunities.
NiYA and FMYD have already shown what real commitment to Nigeria’s youth looks like — the platforms, the reach, the ambition to train millions. What we’re building together now is the missing piece, a practical bridge from the ideation stage to real capital-readiness. When a Ministry so dedicated to its young people asked Cascador to help build that bridge, it was an easy decision,” said Trish Thomas, CEO of Cascador.
Ms Oyin Solebo, COO of Cascador and former Managing Director of the ARM Labs Lagos Techstars Accelerator, highlighted the partnership’s impact, saying, “This is what innovative capital deployment looks like: a government building real investment readiness at scale, and a partner meeting that foundational work with non-dilutive funding at exactly the moment it’s needed. Partnerships like this open doors that neither of us could open alone.”
