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How IGP Is Shielding Andy Uba From Prosecution For Certificate Forgery, Extortion

The Inspector-General Police (IGP), Mr. Lawal K. Idris, SaharaReporters can reveal, is protecting Mr. Andy Uba, the senator representing Anambra South Senatorial District, from being arrested and prosecuted for certificate forgery, extortion as well as intimidation.

Documents exclusively obtained by this website showed that the IGP ordered the Deputy Inspector-General (DIG) of Police in charge of the Force Criminal Intelligence and Investigation Department (FCIID) to hands off the matter and should henceforth refer petitions and complaints to him before investigating. The IGP’s order was contained in a personally signed letter, dated 30 August 2017, to the FCIID boss, who had invited Mr. Uba for an interview the next day, following a declaration by the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) that it did not issue the secondary school leaving certificate the senator is parading.

“It has been observed with dismay that you have formed the habit of receiving and investigating complaints/petitions addressed to your office without referring same to me for clearance. This practice has to stop forthwith, while petitions against Andy Uba that you are handling be forwarded to me without delay. This is for strict compliance,” stated the IGP in the personally signed letter.

The matter has its origin in an application filed by a group, Anti-Corruption and Integrity Forum (ACIF), at the Abuja Division of the Federal High Court seeking the arrest and prosecution of Mr. Uba. Listed as respondents in the suit (FHC/ABJ/GS/175) are the IGP and the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF), Mr. Abubakar Malami (SAN).

In an affidavit in support of the application, deposed to on 24 April 2017 by Mr. Ikechukwu Nwaozichi, a lawyer with Amobi Nzelu and Co., the applicants stated that the law firm of Anthony Agbonlahor, on behalf of Mr. Victor Uwajeh, wrote to the IGP in respect of the fake West African Examination Council (WAEC) certificates being paraded by Mr. Uba.

Sequel to the letter, the IGP ordered the office of DIG, FCIID to investigate the matter.  

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In compliance with the directive, the office of the DIG, FCIID, contacted the WAEC Registrar via a letter dated 11 May 2017. The letter, exclusively obtained by SaharaReporters and dated 11 May 2017, stated that Mr. Uba is being investigated for extortion, forgery and injurious falsehood.

Titled “Investigation Activities Candidate Name: Uba Emmanuel Nnamdi Examination Number: 05465/089,” the letter was signed by Acting Deputy Commissioner of Police, Mr. Habu A Sani.

WAEC, in a letter dated 19 May 2017 and signed by Mr. Olu Adenipekun, Head of National Office, stated: “The certificate with No. SC 544753 in respect of candidate 05465/089, June 1974, from which a copy was made and attached to your letter under reference was not issued by the West African Examinations Council. We hope you will find our response to your enquiry very apt. Please, feel free to contact this office should you require further clarifications on any of these issues.”

On account of the response from WAEC, the FCIID wrote a letter through the office of the Senate President requesting Mr. Uba to come for an interview with the DIG, FCIID, on 31 August 2017. The requested interview never held because of the intervention of the IGP.

Sequel to the intervention, the matter was taken over by the IGP Monitoring Unit, which wrote to the head office examinations body on the same issue. Responding in a letter dated 5 June 2017, the WAEC Registrar stated categorically that the certificate was not issued by the examinations body and proceeded to reproduce the grades scored by Mr. Uba in the 1974 School Certificate Examination. According to WAEC, Mr. Uba’s real grades were Statistics 8, Mathematics 7, Physics 8, Chemistry 6, Biology 9, English Language 8 and English Literature. He also scored 9 in Bible Knowledge and Economics.

Mr. Uba, however, went to forge the West African Certificate Council Certificate, showing him as having obtained six credit passes from nine subjects offered as a student of Union Secondary School, Awkunanaw, Enugu, and presented same to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to make him eligible to contest in the 2015 senatorial election.

The applicants wondered why, in spite of the huge evidence against him, the IGP and AGF have not initiated criminal proceedings against Mr. Uba.

The applicants stated that forgery is an offence against the state and that time does not run against prosecuting agencies in criminal matters. They maintained that the IGP and AGF

 are statutorily qualified and empowered to arrest, investigate and prosecute Mr. Uba, hence their application. The applicants equally added that letters written to the IGP and AGF on 12 February 2018, giving them a three-day ultimatum to take action against the senator, were not replied.

Mr. Victor Uwajeh, also dragged Mr. Uba to the Federal Capital Territory High Court. The suit (No: CV/2063/16) filed on 28 December 2016, is currently pending before the court.

 According to Mr. Uwajeh’s lawyers, the  senator engaged their client on 28 December 2012 to represent him in three cases in the United States of America and to discharge the  warrant of arrest issued against him in the state of California. Mr. Uba granted Mr. Uwajeh power of attorney in the matter.

On 5 January 2013, Mr. Uba gave Mr. Uwajeh another durable power of attorney to include the removal of the restriction and exclusion order from the United Kingdom by the Home Office Secretary. The senator subsequently gave a letter of authority to sign documents on his behalf to Mr. Uwajeh, who was personally present in court at different times until the warrant of   was successfully discharged.

But the UK Home Secretary had, in a letter dated 2 December 2008, stated that the presence of Mr. Uba in the UK “was not conducive to the public good on the basis of his character, conduct and association with fraud and other criminal activities".

Mr. Uwajeh said in spite of Mr. Uba’s exclusion from the UK, he wrote many letters to the UK Border Agency and the Home Office in this regard. To prove that he was no guilty of the allegations brought against him by the Home Secretary,  Mrs. Theresa May (incumbent British Prime Minister), Mr. Uba sent the originals of his credentials, by courier, to Mr. Uwajeh for inclusion in his  applications.

But before the couriered credentials reached Mr. Uwajeh, Mr. Uba, through his agent, one Chike Okeke, had sent scanned copies of the documents to Mr. Uwajeh via email. Mr. Uwajeh went ahead to engage the services of public agencies to help confirm the authenticity of the WAEC certificates and results sent by Mr. Uba.

On 12 February 2014, WAEC replied, stating that the results were forged. To conclude the removal of the exclusion decision, the Home Office requested our Mr. Uwajeh to pay the legal cost of Mr. Uba's litigation in suing the UK government to lift the exclusion decision, which was set at £29, 638. 66.

However, the senator refused to pay the cost and there was a dead lock in the lifting of the order. Attempts by Mr. Uwajeh to ensure Mr. Uba pays him his professional fees, said his lawyers, have been rebuffed by Mr. Uba, forcing Mr. Uwajeh to sue for the recovery of his fees.

Instead of paying up or facing court proceedings, said Mr. Uwajeh, the senator claimed to have written a petition to the IGP, published in some national newspapers and blogs, in which he included his personal phone numbers in the UK and Nigeria.

On account of that, Mr. Uwajeh said he has been receiving calls from unknown people warning him to back off or get killed. On account of the threats to his life, Mr. Uwajeh wrote to the IGP, who has refused to act.