News Agency Of Nigeria

<h2>A Federal High Court on Tuesday ordered the release of processes and documents in the money laundering trial of a former Minister of State for Finance, Nenadi Usman and others to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).</h2>

The prosecutor, Rotimi Oyedepo (SAN) made an application before Justice Daniel Osiagor to release all documentary evidences or processes in the suit, following the decision of an appellate court.

Usman, is charged alongside a former Minister of Aviation, Femi Fani-Kayode and Yusuf Danjuma, a former Chairman of the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON). Also charged is a company, Jointrust Dimentions Nigeria Ltd.

EFCC had preferred a 17-count charge bordering on ₦‎4.6 billion money laundering against them before a former judge, Justice Mohammed Aikawa.

The defendants had each pleaded not guilty to the charges and were granted bail.

Trial had began before Justice Aikawa and witnesses were still being led in evidence, until Aikawa was transferred out of the Lagos division.

The charge was consequently, re-assigned to a new judge, Justice Osaigor, and they were consequently, re-arraigned on January 24. 2022.

Again, the trial had since commenced in the case and witnesses were still giving evidence before the court.

However, following an appeal filed by Usman, seeking a transfer of the case on jurisdictional grounds, the court of appeal found in favour of the defendant.

When the case was called on Tuesday, Oyedepo announced an appearance for the prosecution, and informed the court of the appellate court's decision, directing that the case be transferred to the Abuja division of the court.

He also informed the court that it is still the case of the prosecution adding that the prosecution is still leading evidence as PW 1 was still testifying.

He, consequently, sought an application for the release of all documentary evidence and exhibits in the case to the prosecution, so as to save time and avoid delay.

In a short ruling , Justice Osiagor held that in line with the decision of the appellate court, all documentary evidence as well as exhibits tendered, be released to the prosecution.

In the charge, the defendants were alleged to have committed the offences between January and March 2015 in Lagos.

They were alleged to have at various times, unlawfully retained over ₦‎4.6 billion which they reasonably ought to have known formed part of the proceeds of unlawful acts of stealing and corruption.

Meanwhile, in counts 15 to 17, Fani-Kayode and one Olubode Oke who is said to be at large, were alleged to have made cash payments of about ₦‎30 million, in excess of the amount allowed by law, without going through a financial institution.

The said payments are alleged to have been made to one Paste Poster Co (PPC) of No 125 Lewis St., Lagos, in excess of amounts allowed by law.

All offences were said to have contravened the provisions of sections 15 (3) (4), 16 (2) (b), and 16 (5) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) (Amendment) Act, 2012.

Femi Fani-Kayode [Facebook/Femi Fani-Kayode]

A Federal High Court on Tuesday transferred the money laundering trial of former ministers, Femi Fani-Kayode and Nenadi Usman, and others, from Lagos to Abuja.

Court transfers Fani-Kayode's ₦‎4.6 billion fraud trial from Lagos to Abuja

Jude Egbas

<h1>Former Aviation Minister, Femi Fani-Kayode, is taking on ex-Senate President Bukola Saraki over recent reconciliation moves in the opposition Peoples' Democratic Party (PDP).</h1>

This week, Saraki led reconciliation meetings with former state governors elected on the platform of the PDP and former President Goodluck Jonathan who oversaw Nigeria's affairs from 2010 to 2015.

Saraki leads ex-PDP governors and officials to a meeting with former President Goodluck Jonathan at his office in Maitama, Abuja (Pulse)

There have been rumours that Jonathan intends to defect to the All Progressives Congress (APC).

However, Saraki <a href="https://www.pulse.ng/news/politics/saraki-led-pdp-reconciliation-committee-meets-jonathan/33yvl03">poured cold water on those rumours this week,</a> saying: "Jonathan reassured all of us of his commitment to the PDP and he told us that he is still ready to offer his time, experience and resources to strengthen the party."

<div class="embed"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">As part of our efforts to listen to the concerns of key stakeholders across our great party, this afternoon, the <a href="https://twitter.com/OfficialPDPNig?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@OfficialPDPNig</a> Reconciliation &amp; Strategy Committee is meeting with our immediate past President, H.E. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan (<a href="https://twitter.com/GEJonathan?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@GEJonathan</a>). <a href="https://t.co/67wNosNnmq">pic.twitter.com/67wNosNnmq</a>&mdash; Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki (@bukolasaraki) <a href="https://twitter.com/bukolasaraki/status/1361650366471880705?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 16, 2021</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

</div>

Fani-Kayode, who is in talks with <a href="https://www.pulse.ng/news/politics/fani-kayode-joins-apc/5bv7f19">APC chieftains on defecting to their camp, </a>hasn't been amused by Saraki's peace moves and offered that much in a subliminal tweet, making sure not to mention Saraki's name.

"Interesting to note that the man that led the team to GEJ's (Goodluck Ebele Jonathan's) house to appeal to him not to leave the PDP yesterday is the same man that led the rebellion against him and the defection of governors from the same party in 2014 and cost him the 2015 presidential election. What an irony!," Fani-Kayode wrote in a tweet.

Saraki in reconciliation talks with ex-governors, PDP officials (Pulse)

Saraki returned to the PDP in 2018, citing persecution from APC chieftains. He failed to nick the PDP's presidential ticket for the 2019 elections.

Saraki leads the PDP reconciliation and strategy committee.

Fani-Kayode shades Saraki for begging Jonathan not to leave PDP

Bayo Wahab

<h1>Former Aviation minister, Femi Fani-Kayode says he has not dumped the Peoples Democractic Party for the ruling All Progressives Congress.</h1>

Fani-Kayode said this hours after Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi State announced<a href="https://www.pulse.ng/news/politics/fani-kayode-joins-apc/5bv7f19"> his alleged defection to the APC</a> on Wednesday, February, 2021.&nbsp;

Bello said Fani-Kayode joined the ruling party in good faith, adding that the former minister would add his positive energy to the party.&nbsp;

But Fani-Kayode in a tweet has debunked his alleged defection, saying he has not left the PDP.&nbsp;

The politician said, “Though we have had meetings across party lines and we are in a season of political consultation I have not left the PDP.”

<div class="embed"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Though we have had meetings across party lines and we are in a season of political consultation I have not left the PDP.&mdash; Femi Fani-Kayode (@realFFK) <a href="https://twitter.com/realFFK/status/1359550087727300614?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 10, 2021</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

</div>

Fani-Kayode had in the past regarded the APC as “Almajiri Peoples Party and a filthy, stinking rat-infested sinking ship.”

He has also called President Muhammadu Buhari and APC chieftains unprintable names.

He has often accused the APC of being a political party that sponsors terrorism and killer herdsmen.

The former minister said he had meetings across party lines but he hasn't left the PDP.

Fani-Kayode says he has not left PDP

<h1>Ex-Aviation Minister, Femi Fani-Kayode who is better known by his initials FFK, has rejoined the governing All Progressives Congress (APC), according to Kogi State Governor Yahaya Bello. </h1>

Fani-Kayode has switched camps from the APC to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and vice versa, since Nigeria's return to civilian rule in 1999.

And now, he's back to the political camp he once labelled the "Almajiri Peoples Party and a filthy, stinking rat-infested sinking ship."

<div class="embed"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Nigerian politicians have zilch honor nor principles. In fact, politicians are zilch. <a href="https://t.co/YOtizp8mDa">pic.twitter.com/YOtizp8mDa</a>&mdash; Olamide Obe (@olajideobe) <a href="https://twitter.com/olajideobe/status/1359529492415467525?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 10, 2021</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

</div>

"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 positive energy and make contribution into ensuring that APC is a party to beat," Bello who hosted Fani-Kayode on February 8, 2021, announced.

"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. He approached me and by the mandate given to me by the party, I must not segregate, I must not discriminate against any individual.

<div class="embed"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Fani Kayode has joined our party, the APC in good faith — Yahaya Bello <a href="https://t.co/oJn4stgqZO">pic.twitter.com/oJn4stgqZO</a>&mdash; Maybeks (@Maybeks) <a href="https://twitter.com/Maybeks/status/1359509399002316809?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 10, 2021</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

</div>

"Even if he has his different opinion about the party before...about the government before, he has seen the light, the reality and the need to join the APC, it is just nice, it is just important, it is just smooth and very, very sweet to accommodate and welcome Chief Femi Fani-Kayode.

"Remember that this party does not belong to one individual. It belongs to all Nigerians. You are free to join. We will welcome you with our arms wide open," the Kogi governor added.

Fani-Kayode has also called President Muhammadu Buhari and APC chieftains unprintable names in the past.

He has often accused the APC of being a political party that sponsors terrorism and killer herdsmen.

From L-R: Fani-Kayode, APC caretaker boss Mai-Mala Buni and Gov Bello on Feb 8, 2021 (APC)

Fani-Kayode has called the APC and President Buhari unprintable names in the past.

Gov Bello says Fani-Kayode has joined APC

<h1>Former Minister of Aviation, Femi Fani-Kayode, has begged the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi to forgive political enforcer, Sunday Adeyemo aka Sunday Igboho over his comments against the monarch.&nbsp;</h1>

Igboho during a virtual townhall meeting with Yoruba in diaspora on Tuesday, February 2, 2021, said the monarch disappointed the Yoruba people when he visited Muhammadu Buhari over the herdsmen crisis rocking the South-West region.

<a href="https://www.pulse.ng/news/local/sunday-igboho-explains-why-hes-angry-with-killer-herdsmen/ys2czf0">Igboho</a> also threatened to deal with the monarch and Yoruba leaders for not speaking up against herdsmen crisis in the region.&nbsp;

The political enforcer called the Ooni unprintable names and also threatened to attack him.&nbsp;

<div class="embed"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Sunday Igboho insults Ooni of Ife and Tinubu <a href="https://t.co/QyhNTFCJlx">pic.twitter.com/QyhNTFCJlx</a>&mdash; Naija Class Captain (@naijaclasscapt) <a href="https://twitter.com/naijaclasscapt/status/1356977578784018437?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 3, 2021</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

</div>

Reacting to Igboho’s comments in a series of tweets on Wednesday, February 3, 2021, Fani-Kayode said he has spoken to Igboho, adding that the political enforcer has expressed regrets over his comments against the monarch.&nbsp;

He tweeted, “I just spoke with Sunday Igboho and he confirmed to me that what he said about our revered Ooni of Ife was said in the heat of the moment.

<div class="embed"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">I just spoke with Sunday Igboho &amp; he confirmed to me that what he said about our reverred Ooni of Ife was said in the heat of the moment. He expressed his regrets &amp; I was relieved to hear that. To err is human &amp; to forgive is divine. I appeal to Kabiyesi to forgive him. 1/4&mdash; Femi Fani-Kayode (@realFFK) <a href="https://twitter.com/realFFK/status/1356999493695201283?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 3, 2021</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

</div>

“He expressed his regrets and I was relieved to hear that. To err is human and to forgive is divine. I appeal to Kabiyesi to forgive him.

“For the record let me state clearly and categorically that no Ooni of Ife, whether living or dead, has ever been a slave of the Fulani and neither will they ever be.

“I can also confirm that my friend and brother Seyi Makinde, the Governor of Oyo state, is a deeply courageous individual who would never bow before anyone let alone be a slave to the Fulani.

“We in the South-West must remain united in our quest for liberty and justice and in the face of the common enemy and we must move forward as one.

“No one can dispute the fact that Sunday has fought hard and done well. He has won the respect of all and sundry in Yorubaland and he has inspired millions of our people all over the world. Let us forgive him for this slip and continue to support and pray for him.”

Igboho recently issued a seven-day quit notice to herdsmen in Oyo State. After the expiration of the ultimatum, he stormed the Ibarapa area of the state with his followers to chase herdsmen accused of perpetuating crimes out of the Fulani settlement in the area.

<a href="https://www.pulse.ng/news/metro/2-feared-dead-as-sunday-igbohos-supporters-storm-fulani-settlement-in-oyo/nwr61q0">Two people reportedly died as a result of the violence</a> that erupted between Igboho followers and herdsmen.

Sunday Igboho called the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi unprintable names and also threatened to attack him (Punch)

Igboho called the Ooni unprintable names and also threatened to attack him.

Fani-Kayode begs Ooni to forgive Sunday Igboho

Odion Okonofua

<h1>Nigerian talent manager Tunji Balogun also known as Teebillz has taken a swipe at the former aviation minister Femi Fani-Kayode over his support for Donald Trump.</h1>

This came after Fani Kayode via his Twitter handle on Wednesday, January 20, 2021, shared a photo of the outgoing President, Trump with a tribute.

"You stood against evil, fought a good fight, and shone your light upon the world. No-one can take that from you. Proud of you: now and always. Farewell and Godspeed President Donald J. Trump," he tweeted.&nbsp;

<div class="embed"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">You stood against evil, fought a good fight and shone your light upon the world. No-one can take that from you. Proud of you: now and always. Farewell and Godspeed President Donald J. Trump. <a href="https://t.co/RJcBWjtrIj">pic.twitter.com/RJcBWjtrIj</a>&mdash; Femi Fani-Kayode (@realFFK) <a href="https://twitter.com/realFFK/status/1351739896357150727?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 20, 2021</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

</div>

In his response, Teebillz mocked the former minister over his tweet.

"I am still curious to know what position Trump promised this man! Can someone check on pls," he wrote.

Trump's four years tenure as president of the United States of America came to an end on Wednesday as <a href="https://www.pulse.ng/news/politics/biden-preaches-unity-in-inaugural-speech-as-46th-us-president/vwl2jy3">Joe Biden was sworn in as the 46th president</a>.&nbsp;

Teebillz and former minister of aviation Femi Fani Kayode [Instagram/Teebillz323] [Instagram/MoreGist]

The talent manager wonders if Femi Fani-Kayode was promised a political appointment.

Teebillz mocks Femi Fani-Kayode over support for Donald Trump

<h1>Former Aviation Minister, Femi Fani-Kayode, has threatened to sue Daily Trust and a public affairs analyst over an article which referred to him as a drug addict.</h1>

Fani-Kayode has come under intense criticism after he verbally attacked a Daily Trust reporter in Calabar, the Cross River State capital.

FFK (as Fani-Kayode is famously known)<a href="https://www.pulse.ng/news/politics/fani-kayode-didnt-just-lose-his-mind-he-never-had-one-pulse-editors-opinion/91q38bb"> called the journalist “stupid”</a> for asking who was bankrolling his good governance tour of states across Nigeria, during a press briefing.

On August 29, 2020, Daily Trust published an article titled: “FFK, The Drug Addled Thug In Designer Wears.”

<a href="https://dailytrust.com/ffk-the-drug-addled-thug-in-designer-wears">The piece,</a> which was authored by Iliyasu Gadu, took Fani-Kayode, who was educated at the University of London and Cambridge University, to the cleaners and painted him as a spoilt, privileged, drug wielding politician.&nbsp;

Femi Fani-Kayode was trained as a lawyer in the UK (Premium Times)

Gadu had written that: “But if the idea was to mould him (FFK) in character and training in the best traditions of an English gentleman, having attended these institutions of British upper crust society, it has proven to be a waste of expensive English public school education.

“His bohemian lifestyle while in the United Kingdom included an addiction to drugs for which he had to seek spiritual and physical rehabilitation in Ghana. But till today he has not been totally cured of that habit which leads him to fits of boorishness, irascibility and thuggish behaviour unbecoming of the status he occupies in Nigerian public life.”

In his pre-litigation letter, Fani-Kayode described the article as libelous and demanded an apology from the newspaper, which he wants published in other national dailies.

The former minister also demanded that negotiation be entered into for possible payment of N6 billion, due to the irreparable loss the article has caused him.

<div class="embed"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">When a King of Peddling Fake News Against Other People feels he is being attacked with Fake News LOL. I wonder what the question was that so riled him... <a href="https://t.co/avFhwTSm4T">pic.twitter.com/avFhwTSm4T</a>&mdash; Tolu Ogunlesi, MON (@toluogunlesi) <a href="https://twitter.com/toluogunlesi/status/1298228132210708480?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 25, 2020</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

</div>

“Be aware that our client has not only suffered immeasurable loss of goodwill, he is currently confronted with unbearable opprobrium by his fans, followers and colleagues across the globe,” FFK’s letter, which was signed by his lawyer, Adeola Adesipe, reads.

“Our client is alive to his rights both in law and equity but is disposed to an opportunity to undo the evil you have done by retracting the said insalubrious remarks on the same platform it was published and apologising to him in two other national dailies.

“You are also advised to enter into negotiations with us for the sum of N6bn being a token amount for penitence as opposed to the magnitude of infraction caused to our client’s nobility.”

The newspaper has been given 14 days to comply or face legal action.

A similar letter was addressed to Gadu.&nbsp;

Fani-Kayode apologised for his attack of the journalist in the wake of outrage and condemnation from social media users, the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) and Amnesty International.&nbsp;

“I disappointed myself, my family and friends, my colleagues and even my bosses, those who hold me in high esteem,” <a href="https://www.pulse.ng/news/local/i-disappointed-myself-and-my-family-fani-kayode-apologises-for-assaulting-journalist/rlgkhzf">Fani-Kayode had said</a> before television cameras.&nbsp;

<div class="embed"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Femi Fani Kayode apologizes to journalist, says &quot;I felt threatened&quot; <a href="https://t.co/DmRWz9E7x1">pic.twitter.com/DmRWz9E7x1</a>&mdash; Newsbuzz Crypto (@newsbuzzcrypto) <a href="https://twitter.com/newsbuzzcrypto/status/1299745976895275009?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 29, 2020</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

</div>

Fani-Kayode, 59, is the son of late Chief Remilekun Fani-Kayode, aka, Fanny power, who served as Deputy Premier of the Western region in Nigeria’s first republic.&nbsp;

The senior Fani-Kayode moved the third motion for Nigeria's independence on August 2, 1958. He died in 1995.

FFK says the publication has done plenty of damage to his reputation.

Fani-Kayode wants N6billion and an apology from Daily Trust after being called a drug addict

<h1>Former Minister of Aviation, Femi Fani-Kayode has tendered an unreserved apology to Eyo Charles, the journalist he verbally assaulted during a press conference in Calabar.</h1>

The politician also apologised to the Nigeria Union of Journalists, family members, friends, and colleagues of the journalist.

The minister had during the conference angrily referred to the journalist as a stupid man and also threatened to report him to his publisher after the reporter asked him about the sponsor of his tour in the oil-rich South-South states.

Speaking on Friday, August 28, 2020, during a press conference at the Government House in Uyo, Akwa-Ibom capital, Fani-Kayode said his reaction to the question was undefendable, adding that he disappointed himself and his family.

He said,&nbsp;“I’m deeply sorry for the manner I reacted to the said reporter. I was too hard on him. The question was mischievous, but I fell for it.

“I should have been smarter than that. I am using this opportunity to reach out to him, and I hope he will be kind enough to forgive me.”

“I disappointed myself, my family and friends, my colleagues and even my bosses, those who hold me in high esteem.

ALSO READ:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pulse.ng/news/politics/fani-kayode-didnt-just-lose-his-mind-he-never-had-one-pulse-editors-opinion/91q38bb%5C">Fani-Kayode didn’t just lose his mind, he never had one</a>

“I have regrets, it was not my finest day. No leader or public figure should ever react like that. I disappointed myself. I deeply regret it and I believe it will never happen again.”

The ex-minister had on Wednesday, August 26, 2020,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pulse.ng/news/politics/fani-kayode-i-hereby-withdraw-the-word-stupid-used-in-addressing-journalist/2kjq8e7">withdrawn the word ‘stupid’</a>&nbsp;from the insult he rained on the journalist at the conference.

The politician said he withdrew the word because he has many friends in the media.

Fani-Kayode says he hopes the journalist will be kind enough to forgive him.

'I disappointed myself and my family', Fani-Kayode apologises for assaulting journalist

<h1>Former Aviation Minister, Femi Fani-Kayode, says he is withdrawing the word “stupid” which he deployed while verbally attacking a journalist in Calabar, the Cross River State capital, on Thursday, August 20, 2020.</h1>

When Mr. Eyo Charles, 53, of the Daily Trust newspaper quizzed Fani-Kayode on who was bankrolling his tour of projects across the south-south region, the <a href="https://www.pulse.ng/news/politics/fani-kayode-you-are-very-stupid-ex-minister-tears-into-journalist-during-press/dfbbd1e">politician replied by calling him stupid</a> and rained more insults on him.

“What type of stupid question is that? Bankrolling who? Do you know who you are talking to? I will not take any questions from this man. What type of insulting question is that?

"Which bankroll? To do what? Who can give me money for anything? I could see from your face, before you got here, how stupid you are. Don’t ever talk to me like that,” Fani-Kayode went on and on, before storming out of the room in a fit of rage.

After the clip went viral on Tuesday, August 25, Fani-Kayode vowed that he would offer no apologies for insulting the journalist.&nbsp;

“If this insulting assertion were (was) made before (Donald) Trump or OBJ (Olusegun Obasanjo), I know how they would have reacted,” he said. “I have no apology to offer for it.

“I have always had respect for journalists and always will. Those of them that know me or worked with or for me over the last 30 years can attest to that. However, there is a distinction between asking a question and offering an insult.

“This is all the more so when it is clear that the assertion was sponsored and engineered by my political enemies who wanted to use the young man to insult and embarrass me and question my integrity.

“Well, they got more than they bargained for,” the former minister insisted.

ALSO READ: <a href="https://www.pulse.ng/news/politics/fani-kayode-didnt-just-lose-his-mind-he-never-had-one-pulse-editors-opinion/91q38bb">Fani-Kayode didn’t just lose his mind, he never had one [Pulse Editor's Opinion]</a>

On Wednesday, August 26, 2020, Fani-Kayode said he is now withdrawing the word “stupid” from the avalanche of insults he hurled on the journalist, because he has many friends in the media.

Femi Fani-Kayode refuses to walk back his comments of August 20 (Premium Times)

“I met with my advisors and I wish to say the following: I hereby withdraw the word “stupid” which I used in my encounter with a journalist in Calabar. I have many friends in the media who I offended by losing my cool and using such words. I hereby express my regrets for doing so.

“I do however wish to state categorically that no threat of physical harm was ever made to the journalist in question and neither did I send anyone to threaten him. Anyone that says otherwise is lying and I challenge them to bring the proof.&nbsp;

“I would never seek to physically harm a journalist. For the last 30 years, I have defended and worked with journalists and fought for the right of freedom of expression. Now my tour of the south continues. Moving to another state today,” the former minister offered on Twitter.

<h2>Amnesty International condemns Fani-Kayode</h2>

Fani-Kayode's latest diatribe has sparked social media outrage.

Amnesty International said it “condemns the threats made against” the journalist “by Fani-Kayode. Mr. Eyo is a reporter just doing his job. The actions of Mr. Fani-Kayode during that press conference are an attack on freedom of the press. These patterns of attacks on media and journalists must end.”

The <a href="https://www.pulse.ng/news/local/nuj-condemns-fani-kayodes-verbal-attack-of-journalist/2jbj6nr">Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) has also condemned</a> the former minister for his outburst.

Fani-Kayode, 59, was Special Assistant (Public Affairs) to former President Olusegun Obasanjo from July 2003 until June 2006.

Fani-Kayode worked with Olusegun Obasanjo until 2007 (Premium Times)

Obasanjo appointed Fani-Kayode his Minister of Culture and Tourism on June 22, 2006 and relieved him of the role on November 7, 2006.

Fani-Kayode served as Minister of Aviation from November 7, 2006 to May 29, 2007.

Former aviation minister, Femi Fani-Kayode at the EFCC headquarters in Abuja on May 9, 2016.

Fani-Kayode has offered no apologies for insulting a reporter, but says he's withdrawing one word.

Fani-Kayode: ‘I hereby withdraw the word "stupid" from the insults I heaped on the journalist’

<h1>Former Aviation Minister, Femi Fani-Kayode, always has a lot to say about poor governance, freedom of speech, freedom of the press and civil liberties.&nbsp;</h1>

He has written tons of rabid essays criticizing the government of the day on just about everything and for just about every action. He's a prolific essayist on good governance and the state of our union.

But when Eyo Charles of the Daily Trust politely asked Fani-Kayode about who was paying for his ‘Good Governance Tour’ of the south-south region during a press briefing in Calabar on Thursday, August 20, 2020, the former minister wasted no time <a href="https://www.pulse.ng/news/politics/fani-kayode-you-are-very-stupid-ex-minister-tears-into-journalist-during-press/dfbbd1e">hurling invective at the reporter, </a>while threatening to have him fired.

“I could see from your face, before you got here, how stupid you are. Don’t ever talk to me like that. What type of stupid question is that? Bankrolling who? Do you know who you are talking to? I will not take any questions from this man. What type of insulting question is that?” Fani-Kayode flared.

Charles had to mutter an apology as the politician assailed him verbally, because he was left with no choice.&nbsp;

“The question I asked was 'Sir, you said you have gone round six or seven states to inspect projects undertaken by those governors, and now you are here in Cross River State, rounding off your one-week visit to Governor Ayade. Who is bankrolling you?” Charles recalls, still visibly shaken.

“I am 53, he is not much older than me. I am not a child, I am an adult and I have children,” the journalist added.&nbsp;

The problem with Fani-Kayode is that he’s always been this way. He’s always been a loose canon, a rabble rouser.

Biafra separatist leader Nnamdi Kanu (Left) and former Aviation minister, Femi Fani-Kayode (Punch)

A former presidency spokesperson and former tourism/culture and aviation minister in the Olusegun Obasanjo administration, Fani-Kayode retains this innate ability to assail, to assault in a crisp, nasal, pejorative accent, and to fly off the handle. He was probably born this way.&nbsp;

Fani-Kayode once boasted about an affair with Bianca Ojukwu just to prove he is no bigot or ethnic jingoist. He’s scoffed at a sitting governor’s humble beginnings and how this governor wore the same clothes for three months; and he’s flip flopped on his political ideologies (or lack of same) as he hops from one political camp to another since Nigeria’s return to civil rule in 1999.

Bianca Ojukwu and Femi-Fani Kayode (Encomium)

Obasanjo once said of Fani-Kayode that if you want him to sing for you, just hand him food.&nbsp;

In attacking and verbally assaulting a journalist last week, and asking his security detail to interrogate this journalist on the hotel grounds after that most embarrassing of press briefings, Fani-Kayode was only being true to character.

Also worth noting is the fact that Fani-Kayode used that meltdown moment to conveniently evade the reporter’s germane question of who was paying for his trips across the south-south region in these pandemic-stricken times.

In what capacity is a washed-up, failed, convicted politician inspecting projects of governors of oil rich states? Who made Fani-Kayode a modern day minister of works or minister of projects?

Told that Fani-Kayode had thrown caution to the wind in a new clip, a friend joked on social media: “is it not when you have caution that you can throw one? This man doesn’t know caution.” There are those who have repeatedly accused the man of substance abuse.&nbsp;

Femi Fani-Kayode shows off his biceps (The Nation)

In any case, those of us who earn a living in the media should all rise and speak up, not just in defense of Mr. Edward Charles, but in defense of our most noble profession. Our job is an often thankless one, carried out in a peculiar, harsh environment.&nbsp;

We are insulted daily by the people, by politicians and by government officials--each accusing us of selling out. We are arrested by government officials for telling the truth. And like we just witnessed on tape, we are often shouted down and harangued into silence by members of a corrupt, privileged political class.

We are easy targets wherever we turn for just doing our jobs.

Fani-Kayode is not one to apologise. Nor should we expect any words of remorse from him. “I have no apology to offer,” he said in the wake of the outrage that has greeted his embarrassing outing in Cross River last week.

However, he needs to be thoroughly ashamed of himself for once again proving true the aphorism that leopards do not change their spots overnight.

*Pulse Editor's Opinion is the opinion of an editor at Pulse. It does not represent the views of the organisation Pulse.

A former minister who has never shown decorum in public shouldn't be expected to display one overnight. And that's fine.

Fani-Kayode didn’t just lose his mind, he never had one [Pulse Editor's Opinion]

<h1>Nigeria’s former Minister of Aviation, Femi Fani-Kayode, ripped into a hapless Daily Trust journalist during a press briefing as he lost his cool.&nbsp;</h1>

Pulse is yet to ascertain what the journalist’s question was, but he got more than an earful from the politician who reminded the reporter he’s got a short fuse.&nbsp;

From Fani-Kayode’s harangue, the reporter probably asked the politician if he’s being paid for some of his recent remarks and criticisms.&nbsp;

SaharaReporters publisher, Omoyele Sowore, says the journalist's question was: "Who is bankrolling your PR junkets these days?"

It was all FFK needed to flare up.

“What type of stupid question is that? Bankrolling who? Do you know who you are talking to? I will not take any questions from this man. What type of insulting question is that? Which bankroll? To do what? Who can give me money for anything?”, Fani-Kayode yelled, eyes bulging and veins threatening to jut out of neck.&nbsp;

“Who do you think you are talking to? Bankroll what? Go and report yourself to your publisher. Please don’t insult me here. I could see from your face, before you got here, how stupid you are. Don’t ever talk to me like that.

“You have a small mind. Don’t judge me by your own standards. I have been in politics since 1990. I am not one of those politicians you think will just come….I have been locked up how many times by this government...suffered. I have been persecuted. Unlike most of the politicians you follow for brown envelope. You!

“I spend, I don’t take. And I am not a poor man. I have never been and will never be. Bankroll who? A former minister? A lawyer?&nbsp;Don’t ever try that with me again. I have a short fuse. Very stupid!!,” Fani-Kayode repeated one last time before storming out of the room in a huff.&nbsp;

Afterwards, some of the journalists could be heard telling the reporter who got under the politician's skin, that he messed up.&nbsp;

“You see your life? You see your life,” one journalist in a red shirt said.&nbsp;

<div class="embed"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">🤣🤣🤣🤣 and Buhari is the tyrant o not <a href="https://twitter.com/realFFK?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@realFFK</a> Just uncomfortable question o, Remi&#39;s Son removed paint and burasia. And the other journalist saying &quot;you see your life&quot; to the <a href="https://twitter.com/daily_trust?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@daily_trust</a> Reporter. Wish he could be identified. <a href="https://t.co/4PMisCLzma">pic.twitter.com/4PMisCLzma</a>&mdash; Káyọ̀dé Ògúndámisí 🇳🇬 (@ogundamisi) <a href="https://twitter.com/ogundamisi/status/1298213899636965376?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 25, 2020</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

</div>

Fani-Kayode, 59, was Special Assistant (Public Affairs) to President Olusegun Obasanjo from July 2003 until June 2006.

Fani-Kayode was Minister of Aviation from November 7, 2006 to May 29, 2007.

Fani-Kayode has switched camps from the APC to the PDP and vice versa, since Nigeria’s return to civil rule in 1999.&nbsp;

He has also served jail time for alleged corruption.

Fani-Kayode was rounding off a week-long trip in Cross River when he sat down with journalists for the briefing that turned awry.

He was guest of Cross River Governor Ben Ayade in Calabar, the Cross River State capital.

He's also been on a tour of other states in the region to inspect projects. Which was why the journalist asked who was paying for his trips.

Femi Fani-Kayode