Canada a 'safe haven' for 'transnational crime networks and their dirty money': U.S. report

 

'Canada remains a financial haven for kingpins, kleptocrats, oligarchs, and corrupt officials to reinvest stolen funds from their countries'

OTTAWA – Canada has become a “safe haven” and international hub for notorious crime groups as illicit trade in the country is “booming,” according to a report by an American think tank. 

“Canada has become a safe zone for the world’s most notorious crime groups and threat networks that are harming Canada’s national security and imperiling the security of other nations,” warns a report published in late November by the International Coalition Against Illicit Economies (ICAIE).

Production and trafficking or narcotics, fentanyl and fake pharmaceuticals, cross-border money laundering and illegal alcohol are just some of the illicit markets that are growing in Canada and threatening Canadians’ security, the report’s authors highlight. 

“Today, Canada is not merely a consumer of illicit goods and contraband, but increasingly serves as a hub of illicit trade, production and distribution of illicit goods, an exporter of such contraband, and a money laundering safe haven for a potpourri of criminal networks,” wrote authors Calvin Chrustie and David M. Luna. 

“Canada remains a financial haven for kingpins, kleptocrats, oligarchs, and corrupt officials to reinvest stolen funds from their countries in real estate, energy, mining, and other sectors.” 

The report notes that tens of billions of dollars are laundered through Canada annually from the proceeds of crime such as human, drug and weapons trafficking.  

It also says multinational crime syndicates are increasingly setting up shop in Canada.  

“Canada has become a major global refuge for transnational crime networks and their dirty money, including the world’s most notorious networks and their leaders like Joaquín ‘El Chapo’ Guzmán and the Sinaloa cartel, Chinese drug kingpin Tse Chi Lop, Hezbollah Financier Altaf Khanani, and other bad actors,” reads the report. 

Mexican cartels sell cocaine and methamphetamine to criminal biker gangs in Canada with the help of Iranian and Chinese criminal networks, the report illustrates. On the West coast, Chinese syndicates help smuggle illegal and lethal drugs like fentanyl and heroin through Canada’s borders. 

If such crimes have proliferated across the country, it’s because of a “historic dismissal” of the threat of transnational crime by governments at all levels as well as Canadian law enforcement and intelligence agencies for years, reads the report. 

Canada sorely lacks a federal strategy to both assess the breadth of the problem and co-ordinate its enforcement and intelligence agencies — like the RCMP, CSIS, CBSA and even the military — to fight growing illicit markets. 

The report calls on politicians at all levels to urgently recognize the issue and take action, issuing dozens of recommendations such as creating a Canadian National Security Strategy and prioritizing severing the flow of illegal goods across the country’s borders. 

In an interview, Chrustie — a senior partner at Critical Risk Team consulting firm and a former RCMP senior operations officer — said another key issue is that Canadian laws have not kept up with the times and need significant reform. 

“Stop saying you’re fixing the problem unless you’re having substantive discussions about legal reform, including the Charter, because the other things won’t work,” he said. 

He pointed a finger at rules around disclosure of evidence in trials that he says don’t adequately protect sensitive information and evidence, particularly when it’s obtained from allied intelligence and police agencies such as the FBI. 

“Nothing will change unless we change our disclosure laws to allow us to collaborate and co-operate with our foreign partners, because our laws don’t allow us to protect their information and their intelligence,” he said, singling out the 1991 Supreme Court ruling that compels prosecutors to disclose “all relevant information” to the defence in criminal cases. 

He said another issue is that Canada has a “national” police force in the RCMP, but not a “federal policing” force that is focused on fighting modern crimes of national significance, like the drug trade or money laundering. 

In other words, the government needs to get the RCMP out of contract policing in provinces and let it focus on federal policing. 

“You don’t see (the U.S.) Drug Enforcement Agency agents doing highway patrol. You don’t see the DEA arresting drunks. The DEA are targeting the Triad and the cartels for 10 years, 20 years, 30 years. They take it seriously, they know it’s very difficult,” Chrustie said. 

“The people (at the RCMP) are fantastic, but it’s just not sustainable,” he added. “The model is broken.” 

AFCON 2023: Aina, Bassey, Onyeka Were Remarkable Against Ivory Coast - Oliseh

 

Former Nigerian international, Sunday Oliseh has lauded Super Eagles trio of Ola Aina, Calvin Bassey and Frank Onyeka for their remarkable performance against Ivory Coast in Thursday’s 2023 Africa Cup of Nations.

Recall that Nigeria handed the host a 1-0 defeat in their Group A clash at the Alassane Ouattara Stadium with a second-half penalty settling the encounter.

Reacting to the victory, the former Ajax star via hos official X handle, formerly known as Twitter singled out the trio of Bassey, Onyeka and Aina as Eagles best players against Ivory Coast.

“Ola Aina! Ola Aina!! Ola Aina!!! What a vintage, Naija like, exceptional performance he put up, as Super Eagles got their groove on to down Cote D’ivoire 1-0.

“Frank Onyeka & Calvin Bassey worked herculean too! Bravo boys!!”

Nigeria leapfrog the Elephants to go second in Group A and are behind leaders Equatorial Guinea, who beat Guinea-Bissau 4-2 earlier on Thursday, on goal difference.

Don’t Worry About ‘Japa’, Nigeria Will Train More People — Tinubu

 

With Nigeria’s unemployment rate at a new record high of 33.3 percent, the mass exodus known as the ‘Japa’ phenomenon is in full swing. 

President Bola Tinubu, on Monday, assured Nigerians not to be bothered about the mass exodus of skilled workers from the country, assuring the citizens that the Federal Government in collaboration with sub-nationals will train more persons to fill the professional gap now conspicuous in health, tech and other sectors.

The President spoke in Owerri, the Imo State capital, during the second term inauguration of Governor Hope Uzodimma.

Addressing the people of the state shortly after the governor took the oath of office, Tinubu said the education of children and youths is a priority for the administration of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).

“You see the priority in industrialisation. Healthcare will receive more allocation and more attention.

“Don’t worry about what you are hearing about the Japa syndrome, we will train more people and we will supply them self,” he said.

The President also assured the people of the South-East that “the peace you are enjoying here will be better and we will work more to achieve that peace”.

‘Japa’, a colloquial for the emigration phenomenon that hit Nigeria hard since the COVID-19 pandemic, has caused unprecedented shortage of skilled manpower in many sectors, especially the health sector which contends with myriad issues like poor pay and welfare package.

The United Kingdom, the United States and Canada are top destinations for Nigerian youths who are relocating in pursuit of better education, employment and security purposes, among other reasons.

With Nigeria’s unemployment rate at a new record high of 33.3 percent, the mass exodus known as the ‘Japa’ phenomenon is in full swing.

Ghana Secures Debt Deal As Part Of IMF Loan

 

Ghana received its first $600 million tranche of the IMF loan in May last year.

Ghana has reached an agreement with external creditors for a debt restructuring that was key to its $3 billion credit line with the IMF, the government and the lender said.

Fund (IMF) to help shore up its public finances and better manage its heavy debt load.

Ghana’s economic outlook will be a major part of campaigning for the presidential election in December when President Nana Akufo-Addo’s New Patriotic Party will seek an unprecedented third term in office.

Ghana received its first $600 million tranche of the IMF loan in May last year.

The external debt deal helps clear the way for approval of another $600 million payment.

“This development constitutes a significant positive step towards restoring Ghana’s long-term debt sustainability,” a Finance Ministry statement said late Friday.

Last year Ghana successfully carried out a restructuring of its domestic debt.

Ghana suspended payments on the majority of its external debt, essentially defaulting due to challenges in addressing its substantial balance of payments deficit.

The restructuring parameters encompass both bilateral and commercial debt, including Eurobonds.

IMF managing director Kristalina Georgieva welcomed Ghana reaching “an agreement in principle with their official creditors on a debt treatment, consistent with the objectives of the IMF-supported program, which aims to restore macroeconomic stability and debt sustainability”.

She said the deal “clears the path for IMF Executive Board consideration” of the first review of Ghana’s three-year agreement “in the next few days”.

The Ghanaian government expects approval from the IMF Board will also prompt the World Bank Board to review $300 million in development financing for the country.

Tinubu Approves N683b As 2024 Intervention Fund For Public Tertiary Schools

 

The Executive Secretary of Tertiary Education Trust Fund, TETFund, Sonny Echono, made this disclosure on Friday at the Fund’s strategic planning meeting with heads of beneficiary institutions in Abuja.

President Bola Tinubu has approved N683,429,268 billion as the 2024 intervention fund for public tertiary schools in the country.

The Executive Secretary of Tertiary Education Trust Fund, TETFund, Sonny Echono, made this disclosure on Friday at the Fund’s strategic planning meeting with heads of beneficiary institutions in Abuja.

According to him, from the total, 90.75 per cent is earmarked for direct disbursement, 8.94 per cent for some designated special projects, and 2.27 per cent is budgeted for response to emerging issues.

He also disclosed that each university shall get for the Year 2024 intervention cycle, the total sum of N1,906,944,930.00, polytechnic N1,165,355,235.00

while each College of Education has N1,398,426,282.00.

The intervention fund is expected to go a long way in addressing the long the decades-long calls for better funding of schools in Nigeria. Lecturers in the country’s public schools have often resorted to strikes to drum home their demands which also included better pay and improved facilities for learning institutions.

In late 2022, university lecturers suspended an eight-month strike over pay, welfare, and crumbling facilities, the latest industrial dispute to hit Africa’s most populous nation.

The strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) had shut down federal government-owned universities since February 14 that year despite talks with the government to find a truce.

That strike was the second longest by ASUU, known for its work stoppages. In 2020, during the Covid-19 pandemic, the university teachers went on strike for nine months.

The demands of the lecturers are the same as in previous strikes — higher pay, improved welfare, increased funding, and upgraded facilities.

Supreme Court Affirms Lawal’s Election As Zamfara Governor

 

The apex court set aside the decision of the Court of Appeal Abuja, which had declared the Governorship Election as inconclusive and ordered a re-run in three Local Government Areas of the state.

The Supreme Court was affirmed the election of Dauda Lawal of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as Zamfara Governor.

Abuja, which had declared the Governorship Election as inconclusive and ordered a re-run in three Local Government Areas of the state.

Also read: Supreme Court Reverses Sack Of Gov Yusuf, Affirms His Election

The Court of Appeal had in November nullified the election of Lawal’s election.

He was declared the winner of the March 18 governorship election. In a shocking victory that dislodged then-incumbent Bello Matawalle of the All Progressives Congress (APC), he polled a total of 377,726 votes. Matawalle scored 311,976 votes.

The APC candidate, now serving as the Minister of State for Defence, had accused INEC of subverting his victory at the poll by failing to include the results of some ward areas.

In an earlier ruling on September 18, the Zamfara Election Petitions Tribunal held that the petition was devoid of merit. While upholding Lawal’s victory, the tribunal awarded the N500,000 fine against the petitioners.

An unsatisfied Matawalle, as observers expected, took the matter to the Court of Appeal in Abuja, to challenge the decision of the lower court.

Respite came for Matawalle at the appellate court as the three-member panel led by Justice Oyebisi Folayemi, nullified the return of Governor Lawal as the winner of the governorship poll.

Justice Sybil Nwaka ordered INEC to conduct a fresh election in three local government areas of the state, where elections had not been held previously or where results from various polling units were not counted.

But the governor proceeded to the apex court to seek redress.

Supreme Court Reverses Sack Of Gov Yusuf, Affirms His Election

 

Justice Okoro held that the tribunal was wrong in deducting the votes accrued to the governor.

The Supreme Court has upheld the election of Abba Yusuf as Governor of Kano State, reversing the decision of the Court of Appeal and the Governorship Election Petitions Tribunal, which sacked the governor.

Justice John Okoro, who read the lead Judgement, said the Court of Appeal was wrong in affirming the decision of the tribunal, which held that Yusuf did not win the majority of lawful votes cast in the governorship election of March 18, 2023.

Also read: Supreme Court Affirms Sanwo-Olu’s Election, Dismisses LP, PDP’s Appeals

In determining the case, the apex court raised two issues: whether the lower court was right in deducting 165,616 from the votes the Independent National Electoral Commission announced for the governor and whether the lower court could determine the issue of party membership.

In the judgement, Justice Okoro held that the tribunal was wrong in deducting 165,616 votes accrued to Yusuf in the election on the grounds that the ballot papers were not signed and stamped by officials of INEC.

According to him, Section 71 of the Electoral Act relied upon by the tribunal to deduct the disputed votes does not apply in the instant case.

The Supreme Court panel of five Justices, subsequently went ahead to restore the deducted 165,616 votes to reinstate the victory of Yusuf in the governorship election.

On the second issue, the Supreme Court again faulted the Court of Appeal for holding that Yusuf was not a member of the NNPP as of the time he contested the election, adding that the issue of nomination and sponsorship is a pre-election matter and outside the jurisdiction of the court.

Justice Okoro observed that contrary to the appellate court, the tribunal never held that Yusuf was not qualified to contest the poll but that his name was not in the NNPP’s membership register submitted to INEC.

The apex court subsequently set aside the judgment of the two lower courts for being perverse and restored the electoral victory of Abba Yusuf.

Gov Yusuf’s Court Of Appeal Sack

A three-member panel of the Court of Appeal led by Moore Adumein, in a unanimous judgement in November,  sacked Governor Yusuf and declared Nasiru Gawuna of the All Progressives Congress (APC) winner of the 18 March election in Kano State.

The Court of Appeal, in addition to that, disqualified Governor Yusuf as a candidate in the election, on the grounds that he was not a member of the NNPP as of the time of the election.

The three-person panel would also deduct 165,663 votes from Yusuf’s total votes claiming the votes are invalid because the ballot papers were not stamped or signed.

In its judgement, the court maintained it acted in the public interest when it permitted the APC to tender papers during the trial since the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had given the APC access to materials piecemeal to undermine the petitioner’s claim.

It also ruled that the 1999 Constitution did not support Yusuf’s lawyer, Wole Olanipekun’s contention that the APC should have included its candidate Yusuf Ganuwa as a party in the tribunal proceedings because a candidate is allowed to be represented by his political party during legal procedures.

According to the court, political parties are required by the 1999 Constitution to maintain a membership register and provide it to INEC and the tribunal upon request.