Gov. Yahaya Bello covers up Fani-Kayode hidden mission of joining APC

Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi State was struggling in Okene to cover up the perceived hidden mission of Chief Femi Fani-Kayode lobbying to join the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) after years of antagonism of President Muhammadu Buhari.

Governor Bello in a media interaction after revalidation of his APC membership in Okene, exposed that the former Aviation Minister, Fani-Kayode, met him, requesting to defect to the APC.

While certain northern APC leaders, including governors, were said to reject Femi Fani-Kayode’s return to the APC, Governor Bello declared that Fani-Kayode has joined the APC.

The Kogi governor was cited to have declared: “Our brother and friend, Chief Femi Fani-Kayode, has joined our party in good faith. He is joining our party to come and add his own positive energy and make contribution into ensuring that APC is a party to beat.

“Remember that Chief Femi Fani-Kayode was a foundation member of this great party. Due to misunderstanding, he decided to port elsewhere, now he has decided to join our party, approached me, and by the mandate given to me by the party, I must not segregate or discriminate against any individual.”

Contrary to Governor Bello’s, there were insinuations that Femi Fani-Kayode may have become financially broke and afraid of the corruption cases against him being prosecuted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and may, therefore, be seeking soft-landing and new appointment in the APC.

SaharaReporters cited a source who disclosed that the former minister “…is currently broke,” narrating: “when he was broke during the former President Olusegun Obasanjo era, he started attacking Obasanjo until he was offered a position…

“As soon as he got a job with Obasanjo, he started attacking Prof. Wole Soyinka and Chinua Achebe. “That was why Obasanjo said what politicians need to do for Fani-Kayode to hail them is to give him food.”

It added: “Years after, he started attacking former President Goodluck Jonathan. Jonathan’s wife was so scared of him that she begged her husband to employ him, that was why he was made the spokesman for the PDP’s presidential campaign committee.

“When APC came on board, he started attacking President Muhammadu Buhari because of the various corruption cases against him but the late chief of staff, Abba Kyari, was shielding him from trial. Now, that Kyari is dead and his trial is progressing well, he is afraid that he might get Metuh’s treatment. He is expected to be in court on February 23 and 24, 2021. He does not want to go to prison.

“In addition, he is very broke… So, he started reaching out to APC stalwarts. He also told some of us that journalists conspired against his nationwide tour of states where he was initially making money.”

Fani-Kayode has been facing prosecution since 2016, with former Minister of State for Finance, Nenadi Usman; as well as Danjuma Yusuf, and a firm, Joint Trust Dimensions Limited on allegation of N4.9 billion fraud.

It was highlighted that in a count, the EFCC accused them of “conspiring among themselves to “indirectly retain the sum of N1,500, 000,000.00,” according to EFCC, “which sum you reasonably ought to have known forms part of the proceeds of an unlawful act to wit: stealing.”

The four defendants were said to be accused of indirectly retaining N300 million, N400 million and N800 million, which EFCC said, were all proceeds of corruption.

Fani-Kayode was said to have been accused of directly using parts of the money at various times, including N250,650,000.00, which he allegedly spent between March 20 and 25, 2015.

EFCC was said to have further accused him of a cash transaction in the sum N24 million with one Olubode Oke, who was said to still be at large, on February 12, 2015 “to Paste Poster Co of 125, Lewis Street, Lagos Island.”

Fani-Kayode and Oke were alleged to have purportedly sealed the deal outside any financial institution. EFCC argued that the act was contrary to sections 1(a) and 16(d) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) (Amendment) Act, 2012, and punishable under Section 16(2)(b) of the same Act.

EFCC was said to have later arrested Fani-Kayode on allegation of receiving the sum of N26 million from the office of the former National Security Adviser (ONSA), Col. Sambo Dasuki (retd.) in 2014.

It was disclosed that the former Aviation Minister will be returning to court on February 23.