Fani-Kayode was arrested in July 2008 in connection with alleged misappropriation of a N19.5 billion “Aviation Intervention Fund.He was reported to have had an affair with a female employee (Chioma Ansoh) who was arrested by Nigerian customs agents on suspicion of attempting to illegally export US$240,000 via Abuja airport.
This is Femi Fani-Kayode LLB. He’s only 50 years old.
Fani-Kayode was the Special Assistant (Public Affairs) to President Olusegun Obasanjo from July 2003 until June 2006. He was appointed the Minister of Culture and Tourism of the Federal
Republic of Nigeria from 22 June to 7 November 2006 and as the Minister of Aviation from 7 November 2006 to 29 May 2007.
Fani-Kayode was arrested in July 2008 in connection with alleged misappropriation of a N19.5 billion “Aviation Intervention Fund.He was reported to have had an affair with a female employee (Chioma Ansoh) who was arrested by Nigerian customs agents on suspicion of attempting to illegally export US$240,000 via Abuja airport. Fani-Kayode arrived on the scene and pleaded for her release. Ansoh later denied that the arrest had taken place.
Chioma Anasoh has not only categorically denied that she had an affair with Fani-Kayode but she has also sued the newspaper that alleged that she did so (The Mirror newspaper) for libel at the Lagos High Court. Fani-Kayode specifically refuted the claim that he went to the airport to facilitate or plead for the release of Chioma Anasoh and he also said that she was never caught at the airport with US$250,000.
Fani-Kayode was arrested 22 December 2008 by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and charged with 47 counts of money laundering and associated corrupt activities.The charges were later dropped, with speculation that the government had persuaded Fani-Kayode to provide testimony against other suspects.
In February 2009 the Senate Committee on Aviation, investigating the allegations of misappropriation, recommended that Fani-Kayode be banned from holding public office for five years but subsequently withdrew that recommendation.
Fani-Kayode has alleged that all the allegations of corruption that he was facing from the Umaru Yar’Adua government and the EFCC were politically motivated and that he was being persecuted and witchunted in the same way as some of his former colleagues in the Obasanjo government such as Nasir Ahmad el-Rufai and Nuhu Ribadu, simply for being very close to President Olusegun Obasanjo.
Fani-kayode has declared his interest to run for the gubernatorial race in Osun State. A south-western Nigeria Newspaper, the Nigerian Tribune, in an editorial column of Tuesday the 21st of July, 2009 endorsed Femi Fani-Kayode as the best candidate for the governorship election in Osun State for the 2011 elections.
In October 2009 Fani- Kayode together with all the other leading aspirants for the governorship race within his party was reported to have bought an expression of interest form for the Osun State Governorship contest of 2011.
The national leadership of the People’s Democratic Party PDP said that the practice of selling nomination forms by its Osun State chapter was “fraudulent”.The PDP leadership later ordered its Osun State chapter to refund any money collected from governorship aspirants for the 2011 nomination forms.
Nigeria’s anti-graft police, EFCC had arraigned Fani-Kayode on a 49 count charge of money laundering before Justice Ahmed Ramat Mohammed of the Federal High Court, Lagos but when the case was nearing conclusion,Fani-Kayode challenged the electronic statement of his account tendered as evidence by the EFCC. The judge thereafter ruled that the evidence was inadmissible,a ruling the EFCC counsel, Festus Keyamo challenged before the appeal court.
Fani-Kayode had been arraigned for strange cash lodgements of over N230 million in his Apapa, Lagos Finbank account while he was minister.
On May 27, 2010,the court of appeal sitting in Lagos Nigeria this morning cleared the way for the conviction and imprisonment of former aviation minister, Mr Femi Fani-Kayode when a panel of four justices unanimously ruled that electronically generated evidence can be used to prosecute offenders.
by Bayonle Charles Ayanleke