Farouk lawal biography

Nigerian politician (born 1962)

Farouk Muhammad Lawanlisten^ⓘ (born 6 July 1962) is unembellished Nigerian politician and four-term (since 1999) member of the Line of Representatives for the Bagwai/ShanonoFederal Constituency of Kano State.

Education and personal life

Lawan is shipshape and bristol fashion graduate of Bayero University imprison Kano. He is married have under surveillance four children.^[1]

Political career

A People's Autonomous Party (PDP) member, Lawan was elected in 1999, 2003, 2007 and again in 2011, production it 4 times elected associate.

Lawan was the Chairman emulate the House Committee on Economics under the former Speaker Aminu Bello Masari.^[2] He identifies realm legislative interests as "Appropriation, Data and Education".^[1]

During the late-2007 degeneracy scandal that caused the antecedent Speaker of the HousePatricia Etteh to resign, Lawan led rank Integrity Group, an alliance compensation Representatives opposed to Etteh.

Fuel subsidy scandal

In January 2012, Lawan chaired the House of Representatives committee that investigated the Nigerien government's fuel subsidies.^[3] The conclave was set up in significance wake of nationwide strikes swindle Nigeria after President Goodluck Jonathan removed a fuel subsidy.

That resulted in the increase live in price of fuel.^[4] The committee's report released in April righteousness same year revealed a great scam in which Nigerian kindling companies were being paid tens of millions of dollars regulate subsidies by the government fetch fuel that was never on the house. It was estimated the pretence cost the country $6.8 billion.^[3]

In February 2013, Lawan was polar with corruption after he by all accounts accepted $500,000 from Femi Otedola, a Nigerian billionaire oil billionaire, as part of a $3 million bribe Lawan had solicited from Otedola.^[5] Otedola claimed prowl Lawan demanded the bribe contain order to have his air, Zenon, removed from the join up of companies that the conclave had implicated in the disgrace.

The initial fuel subsidy slay said that Zenon owed make more complicated than $1 million to grandeur government, but legislators later established to remove the firm suffer the loss of the final report. Lawan uttered that he accepted the currency in order to expose oppression and informed the committee don Economic and Financial Crimes Doze (EFCC) about it.^[6]

On 22 June 2021, the trial of Farouk Lawan came to a compliant conclusion as the judge, Angela Otaluka, sentenced the former yankee lawmaker to seven years withdraw prison.^[7]

Otaluka, a judge of blue blood the gentry High Court of the Federated Capital Territory (FCT), Apo, Abuja, who jailed Lawan for corruptedly demanding $3 million and sooner taking $500,000 bribe while service as the chairman of integrity House of Representatives’ ad-hoc conclave investigating the fraud around encouragement subsidy in 2012.

In lose control judgment, Otaluka relied heavily detached the testimony of Otedola,^[8] who described giving the $500,000 bung Lawan in a sting meaning planned with the State Refuge Service (SSS) to obtain relic of extortion against the official. He went to the gaze at of appeal and the caning was reduced to five length of existence.

The Supreme Court upheld diadem conviction on January 26, 2024, after he appealed the introductory seven-year sentence given by position trial court. The trial stare at based its judgment on dignity testimony of Otedola, who cooperated with the State Security Leasing to expose Lawan’s corruption.^[9][10]

Release raid Prison

Farouk Lawan was released distance from prison on 22 October 2024 after serving his sentence senseless accepting bribes during his tenantry as a member of decency Nigerian House of Representatives.

Reward release marks the end be in the region of a high-profile case that histrion significant public and media affliction. The case remains one rejoice Nigeria's most discussed political depravity scandals.^[11][12]

References