Boni Haruna

Boni Haruna
Governor of Adamawa State
In office 29 May 1999 – 29 May 2007
Preceded by	Ahmadu Hussaini
Succeeded by	Murtala Nyako
Personal details
Born	12 June 1957

Boni Haruna (born 12 June 1957) is the current Nigerian Minister for Youth Development. He was governor of Adamawa State in Nigeria from 29 May 1999 to 29 May 2007. He was a member of the ruling People's Democratic Party (PDP).

Background

Boni Haruna was born on 12 June 1957. He studied Political Science at Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria.^[1]

Governor of Adamawa State

Boni Haruna was elected to the Adamawa state governorship in April 1999, and reelected in April 2003. The 2003 result was contested by the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP), which claimed massive electoral fraud. An electoral tribunal declared the election invalid.^[2] However, an appeal court overruled the finding and reinstated Haruna.^[3]

In March 2006, Boni Haruna spoke against a third term for president Olusegun Obasanjo, saying most of the pro-third term governors were supporting it because they had something to hide.^[4] He repeated his opposition during an April 2006 meeting of 20 state governors.^[5]

In September 2006, Governor Ahmed Yerima of Zamfara State, Boni Haruna of Adamawa, and other senior politicians joined United States Ambassador John Campbell to cut the ribbon launching full Visa Services at the U.S. Embassy in Abuja.^[6] The same month, the Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, said that Boni Haruna was among 31 state governors under investigation by the commission.^[7] In February 2007, the Adamawa State House of Assembly served Boni Haruna with an impeachment notice for alleged gross misconduct and for inability to perform the functions of office as demanded by the 1999 constitution.^[8]

Subsequent career

Shortly before the April 2007 national elections, Haruni switched allegiance to the newly formed Action Congress (AC) party.^[9] In April 2009, Boni Haruna said that he was dropping support for former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, due to Atiku’s failure to listen to advice from his associates.^[10] The split may have been due to Haruna's decision to return to the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, while Atiku was still remaining with the Action Congress.^[11]

In August 2008, he was arrested by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission headed by Farida Waziri over allegations of corruption while serving as governor of the State between 1999 and 2007. His application for bail was refused.^[12][13] In November 2008, an Abuja Federal High Court granted Haruna leave to travel to the United States for medical treatment, adjourning the case until February, 2009 for the accused to take a fresh plea following the EFCC's amended charges.^[14]

In May 2009, Boni Haruna was re-arraigned by the Federal Government over alleged money laundering involving N100 million, after the discovery of new evidence related to his period in office as the governor of Adamawa State.^[15] In August 2009, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) brought a 28-count charge against Boni Haruna for forgery and illegal movement of about N150m to an unknown destination.^[16] In October 2009, the EFCC filed 28 amended charges against Boni Haruna and three others.^[17] In November 2009, the EFCC opposed an application by Haruna to again obtain travel documents for medical treatment in the United States.^[18]

Haruna competed in the 9 April 2011 election for the Adamawa North Senatorial district on the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) platform. Bindo Jibrilla (PDP) defeated him, polling 75,112 votes to Haruna's 70,890 votes. The Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) candidate, Abba Mohammed, scored 22,866.^[19]

References

1. Tony Iyare (7 August 2009). "BONI HARUNA'S TEARS OF JOY". The Gleaner. Retrieved 2009-12-05.
2. Alkasum Abba (October 2004). "The Distortion and Suppression of Evidence by the Court of Appeal on Adamawa State Governorship Case" (PDF). Centre for Democratic Development, Research and Training. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2010-03-19. Retrieved 2009-12-05.
3. Bashir Abubakar (2004-08-11). "A Peep into Boni Haruna's Regime". ThisDay. Archived from the original on 2005-01-28. Retrieved 2009-12-05.
4. Eric Osagie (March 25, 2006). "Gov. Boni's challenge". Daily Sun. Retrieved 2009-12-05.
5. Jacob Edi and Val Okara (April 20, 2006). "Third term: Govs give Obasanjo conditions•Imo senators okay". Daily Sun. Archived from the original on 2007-01-01. Retrieved 2009-12-05.
6. "US Embassy Abuja Begins Visa Services". U.S. Department of State. September 22, 2006. Archived from the original on 2010-05-27. Retrieved 2009-12-05.
7. "EFCC to prosecute 15 governors soon – Ribadu". Daily Sun. September 28, 2006. Archived from the original on 2006-11-18. Retrieved 2009-12-05.
8. STEVEN MUSA (February 7, 2007). "Lawmakers give Haruna impeachment notice". Daily Sun. Retrieved 2009-12-05.
9. Rabi’u Auwal (April 9, 2007). "Boni Haruna joins AC". Daily Triumph. Retrieved 2009-12-05.
10. David Molomo (April 24, 2009). "Boni Haruna dumps Atiku". OnlineNigeria. Archived from the original on 2012-02-25. Retrieved 2009-12-05.
11. "Why Boni Haruna parted ways with Atiku". Nigeria Daily News. 27 Apr 2009. Retrieved 2009-12-05.
12. Godwim Tsa (August 8, 2008). "Court sends Haruna back to EFCC custody •Rules on bail application today". Daily Sun. Archived from the original on 2008-11-20. Retrieved 2009-12-05.
13. Chris Anucha (September 25, 2008). "SCORECARD - EFCC boss humbles critics . Records 25 convictions in 3 months . Recovers N3 billion … Set for anti-corruption revolution". Daily Sun. Archived from the original on 2009-06-03. Retrieved 2009-12-05.
14. Funso Muraina and Lanre Ogunyemi (29 November 2008). "Boni Haruna Granted Leave to Travel Abroad". This Day. Retrieved 2009-12-05.
15. Funso Muraina (2009-05-29). "Money Laundering: Boni Haruna Re-arraigned". ThisDay. Retrieved 2009-12-05.
16. "Court adjourns ruling on Boni Haruna's application". The Punch. 19 Nov 2009. Retrieved 2009-12-05.
17. "N161m fraud: EFCC files fresh charges against Boni Haruna, 3 others". Nigerian News Service. 6 October 2009. Archived from the original on July 14, 2011. Retrieved 2009-12-05.
18. "N161m fraud: EFCC opposes Haruna's request for travel documents". OnlineNigeria. November 18, 2009. Archived from the original on 2012-02-25. Retrieved 2009-12-05.
19. "NASS Poll: ACN Presidential Candidate Ribadu Loses In Adamawa". Online Nigeria. 12/04/2011. Retrieved 2011-04-23. Check date values in: |date= (help)