Khalid al-Mansour/Donald Warden: Obama Money Man in NIGERIA?

By Judah Benjamin, Guest Author (all rights reserved)

TD Introduction: This is a follow-on story to Judah Benjamin’s Sept. 6 article, Dr. Khalid Abduallah Tariq Al-Mansour, examining the likelihood that al-Mansour, aka Donald Warden, a San Francisco-based Black Panther, backed Obama’s admission to Harvard Law School. Obama’s connection to al-Mansour has recently been explored by several bloggers, as well as Newsmax.

Judah Benjamin concluded in his first story that “There is no evidence that Mansour and Obama are connected, though I believe that Obama is a Fraud, and I know that Mansour is.”

But after much investigation, Judah has changed his mind, as you’ll see in this new story. 

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I believe there is an active connection between Donald Warden and Obama, but it doesn’t seem to date from 1988, it dates from about 10 years later.

This is not to say that Obama and Warden did not know each other in 1988. I’m pretty sure they did, but the connection netted no advantage for either, at that time.

The interview Percy Sutton gave NY1 on March 25th is, as I have already said, very interesting:

“I was introduced to him by a friend who was raising money for him and the friend’s name was Dr Khalid al Mansour from Texas. He is the principal adviser to one of the world’s richest men. He told me about Obama. He wrote to me about him and his introduction was ‘there is a young man that has applied to Harvard and I know that you have a few friends left there because you used to go up there to speak, would you please write a letter in support of him?’ That’s before Obama decided to run. And he interjected the advice that Obama had passed the requirements, had taken, and passed, the requirements necessary to get into Harvard and become President of the Law Review. That’s before he ever ran for anything. I wrote a letter in support of him to my friends at Harvard saying to them I thought there was a genius that was going to be available and I surely hoped they would treat him kindly.”

Notice that Sutton uses phrases like “That’s before Obama decided to run”; “That’s before he ever ran for anything”. Now I’ve pointed out already that, in practical terms, Sutton, since he did not know Obama personally and had never met him, could not write a letter to Harvard that would be effectual in terms of gaining him admission but look at this phrase:

“And he interjected the advice that Obama had passed the requirements, had taken, and passed, the requirements necessary to get into Harvard and become President of the Law Review. That’s before he ever ran for anything.”

This phrase would make sense if the letter was not to Harvard but to somebody in the African American Political World, such as Jesse Jackson, or Emil Jones, someone who would brush off a letter from Warden but who would have to listen to someone as respected as Sutton.

In short I think that there was a letter but that it was written at the time Obama decided to run for the Illinois State Legislature, not when he was trying to get into Harvard. Clearly Sutton is talking about a point after Obama left Harvard and mixing up his dates. It also makes sense of the “Before he ever ran for anything”. And if he is writing to a friend, not to the Authorities at Harvard, that would make sense of “I thought there was a genius that was going to be available and I surely hoped they would treat him kindly.”

“I was introduced to him by a friend who was raising money for him and the friend’s name was Dr Khalid al Mansour from Texas”.

So says Sutton, and I don’t doubt it, but again there seems to be evidence that Sutton is mixing his time frame. In 1988 Warden/Mansour was living in California but in the late 90s he was living in Texas.

I believe Warden was raising money for Obama’s Political use, not his Educational use; the question though is where was he raising it? The most likely answer to that question is, Nigeria and West Africa.

Warden/Khalid has very little Financial Pull in the USA. But in Nigeria he was, until recently, on the Board of Directors of a Major Bank and he was/is acquainted with the Director General of the Stock Exchange, among many other significant Financial Players.

Percy Sutton was hinting at a scandal in Obama’s background, a scandal connected to Warden/Mansour at least tangentially, and “Lo, and Behold” there is one but it connects to Nigeria and Ghana, not the Middle East, and it broke in the International Press over two weeks ago. The US Media have yet to deign to notice it. Money has been being raised to support Obama in West Africa in spite of US Law, but how long has this been going on?

Ask the BBC about the connection between the Nigerian Business/Banking System and Obama, ask any of the following [TD NOTE: links moved to end]

Here is an excerpt from OnlineNigeria.com:

“For the current sale, the National Council on Privatisation (NCP) demands an initial 50 per cent bid purchase consideration ($105 million) within 10 working days from the date of official notification while the balance will be paid within the next 30 working days.

Some of the buyers who came together under a consortium or Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) called “Capital Leisure and Hospitality Limited” are: Dr. Ndi Okereke-Onyiuke, the director-general of the Nigeria Stock Exchange (NSE); Mr. Festus Odimegwu, the managing director of Nigeria Breweries Limited; Alhaji Aliko Dangote, chairman and chief executive of the Dangote Group; Mr. Jim Ovia, managing director of Zenith Bank Plc; Mr. Jacob Ajekigbe, the managing director of First Bank Plc and Mr. Tony Elumelu, the managing director of the United Bank for Africa (UBA).

Also on the list are oil magnate, Mr. Femi Otedola of Zenon Oil; the re-appointed chairman of the Nigeria Railway Corporation (NRC), Alhaji Waziri K. Mohammed; Otunba Funso Lawal; Tony Ezenna; Adegboyega Olulade and Nicholas Okoye.”

“Other companies in the Capital Leisure and Hospitality Limited are the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF); Kapital Insurance Limited; Harris Dredging Limited and Protea Hospitality Corporation of South Africa.”

This establishes a clear connection between Ndi Okereke-Oniuke and the Management of UBA at a time when Warden was still a Director of the Bank.

Now think:

“United Bank for Africa, PLC

Khalid Al-Mansour

Director since 1998. Attorney at Law, Investment Banker Co-founder of the International Law firm of Al-Waleed, Al-Talal and Al-Mansour. On the Board of several Companies”

A Nigerian and Ghanaian Bank. A Bank that the US Authorities believed/believe was guilty of Money Laundering, a Bank that is implicated in Phishing Scandals, etc, etc. A Bank that removed Warden from its Board of Directors when it was reformed and merged with two other Banks (also implicated in doubtful transactions) to form one of the largest Banking Combines in Africa. And we have the Director General of the Nigerian Stock Exchange, who has business ties to that Bank and a massive scam claiming to funnel money to Obama.

Incidentally, since the management of the Bank changed and Warden was removed from the Board of Directors, UBA has started a dispute with Dr. Okereke-Onyiuke asking where millions of dollars she obtained from the Bank in a Business Deal has gone.

“SaharaReporters was able to confirm that the DG is being specifically asked to explain the intended use of the funds raised at the event she organized under the aegis of the “Africans for Obama” organization. This line of interrogation followed her statement that the funds were not meant to support the Obama Campaign. She is also being asked to provide the list of individuals and entities who have contributed to the efforts.

Mrs. Okereke-Onyiuke is not new to controversy that has to do with dabbling in politics. She was widely condemned for organizing Nigeria’s top corporate players to raise campaign funds for former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s presidential campaign in 2003.

Last year, she also joined Aliko Dangote and a few businessmen in a shady campaign fundraising for the gubernatorial campaign of Mr. Nnamdi (Andy) Uba, a former aide of Obasanjo’s who ran for the governorship of Anambra. Political analysts suspected that the so-called fundraiser for Mr. Uba was designed to deflect questions in the media about the source of Uba’s prodigal spending on his campaign.

Mrs. Okereke-Onyiuke was also instrumental in getting Mr. Obasanjo to support the founding of Transcorp, an investment group that bought up several of Nigeria’s assets at bargain prices. She also convinced Obasanjo to purchase more than 200 million shares in Transcorp, a move condemned as one of the most corrupt acts of the Obasanjo era. Many critics noted that the former president’s stake in Transcorp amounted to a conflict of interest. Besides, many questioned how Obasanjo was able to find the funds to afford the shares he bought.”

So, a lady who raises money for dubious business deals and corrupt politicians has ties to Donald Warden. She has been raising money for Obama, illegally.

“One highly connected source in Abuja told SaharaReporters that some political forces in Nigeria are determined to get Professor Okereke-Onyiuke to explain her financial shenanigans during the Obasanjo era. He said that her arrest on the Nigerians for Obama fundraiser may open the door to ask her other questions pertaining to Transcorp and her other activities.”

Obama already “threw these people under the bus”, in August:

Obama disowns Okereke-Onyiuke, Others.

community.africanloft.com

Wednesday, August 20, 2008 1:15 PM By Semiu Okanlawon and Ayo Olesin

This is the Obama response to the appalling fund-raiser that Ndidi Okereke-Onyiuke supposedly organized to raise funds to rally people to vote for Obama.

The campaign organization of the Democratic Party‘s candidate for the November 2008 United States presidential election, Senator Barack Obama, has dissociated itself from the activities of a Nigeria-based group, Africa for Obama.

The campaign organization said in a letter to the Editor, PUNCH online, that it was doing so based on an advertisement that the Nigerian group was organizing a fundraiser for Obama. ‘Africa for Obama’ led by the Director-General of the Nigerian Stock Exchange, Prof. Ndi Okereke-Onyiuke, had at its dinner/concert in Lagos on Monday August 11, reportedly raised about N100m. The letter by the Staff Counsel for the Obama for America, Ms. Kendall C. Burman, reads, “We want to inform you that Obama for America, Inc, which is the principal campaign committee for Senator Barrack Obama in his campaign for President of the United States, and the Democratic National Committee are in no way affiliated with this event or with this organization. “Obama for America and the Democratic National Committee will not accept any funds raised at this event or through the fundraising activities of this group. “We want to make it clear that the event and this organization are in no way associated with Obama for America of the Democratic National Committee should this organization seek to place additional advertisement in your paper.” At the dinner in which notable artistes performed, tickets were sold in the category of Platinum (Corporate table for eight people for N2.5m and individual N325,000. For the gold category, the ticket was sold for N2m for corporate table of eight and N275,000 for an individual. But in a swift response, Okereke-Onyiuke said the event organized by ‘Africa for Obama’ was not aimed at raising funds for Obama but to sensitize Africans living in America. The NSE chief who spoke with one of our correspondents on the telephone on Monday said, ”At no time did we say we were raising money for Obama. “What we are saying is that Obama is for the world and he has been getting support from Europeans, from Arabs and from all over and Nigerians should not be different. “We are not collecting money for Obama. I lived in the US for 14 years; I am a Green Card holder and I know the law. We are just mobilizing people who are eligible voters to go out and register and voter for him and I don‘t know why this should be an issue. “The event was a concert and people bought tickets on their own volition. People have been saying I used my position as D-G to compel corporate organizations to donate money. I am tired of all these. This is not true. No corporate organization gave any cheques. “The guests came in their personal capacity, whether they work in a bank or anywhere else I do not know. Even the table I bought for my friends and relations was paid for out of my own pocket and the money was used for the food and to pay for the artistes. We ate and danced and enjoyed ourselves. “Some people, including journalists, came in for free and what I said there was that if there is any surplus, after the accounts have been done, the money will be used for mobilization.” She explained that the mobilization campaign would involve advertisements and online campaigns to encourage African-Americans to register and vote for Obama. Okereke-Onyuike, who stressed that the event was a private affair, wondered why eyebrows were not raised over similar events where tables went for eight figures. She said, ”Nobody was forced to attend the event. I have paid N10m for a table at a concert; nobody was forced to pay. The event was a private thing and I used my own money to put it together. Some people like to sit in front of the television and watch history in the making but we chose to mobilize people to vote for someone we believe in.” The NSE boss, who expressed her frustrations over negative insinuation about the real intentions of the organizers of the event, said that she was very careful in wording the media adverts that preceded the event. She stressed that it was not a fund raising event. She said, “I am a very intelligent person; I have a PhD that I did not buy. We were careful with our advertisements and we were transparent in all we did. I don‘t understand why Nigerians like to be negative. People have been mobilizing support for Obama all over the world and they are not being castigated. “I want to make it clear that I am a Nigerian and I have the right to do anything I want with my time and my money.” The emergence of Okereke-Onyiuke as the chairman of the group had raised dust as some Nigerians made reference to her role in a fundraiser for former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s re-election in 2003. She did so under the umbrella of Corporate Nigeria. Okereke-Onyiuke was also believed to be a staunch supporter of Obasanjo in his bid to extend his tenure in 2006. Many critics had argued against raising money for Obama as US presidential candidates are barred from receiving funds from abroad. The immediate past General Secretary of the Nigerian Bar Association, Mr. Nimi Walson-Jack, had argued in an article published in THE PUNCH on Monday that ”Political candidates may legally take donations from American citizens or from permanent residents of the United States wherever they happen to live, even if the money is raised overseas. ”But the US political candidates cannot legally accept donations from individuals who are neither US citizens nor permanent US residents.” Also speaking on the matter, human rights advocate and lawyer, Mr. Femi Falana, described the dinner/concert as an illegal action that could impact negatively on Obama‘s presidential aspiration. Falana said, “The funds raised at the dinner will be contributed to the Barack ObamaCampaign Fund contrary to the Electoral Laws of the US , which forbids any form of external financing of political campaigns. “In view of the clear provisions of the US law on external funding of political campaigns, the ‘Africa for Obama ‘08’ should be restrained from raising funds for Obama‘s campaign. Otherwise, Obama is surely going to be scandalized by a powerful section of the US media controlled by the Republican Party.”

From The Obama File. 

“Senator Barack Obama will partner Nigeria as a major ally of the United States on the African continent if he wins the presidential election for the White House, says his campaign.

Obama’s Foreign Policy Adviser, Ambassador Wendy R. Sherman, told THISDAY that Nigeria was an important country in Africa, not only in terms of its sheer size but because of its growing economy and its influence on the continent.

“Nigeria is obviously a very important country in Africa. It has a growing economy, a large population and a democracy with some bumps on the way. Senator Obama has spoken of the importance of Africa in terms of the growing world economy… the importance of trade, African labour and failed states of which Nigeria is not.”

“Nigerian Police Probe Obama Fundraising Dinner.

Nigeria’s anti-corruption police were questioning the head of the stock exchange after she organized a gala dinner in support of Barack Obama’s U.S. presidential campaign which raised hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Ndi Okereke-Onyiuke, chairwoman of the “Africans for Obama” campaign group, organized the fundraising dinner in the commercial capital Lagos on August 11. A “platinum” ticket for a table of eight cost 2.5 million naira ($21,226).

It is illegal under U.S. law for foreign campaign groups to donate funds to political parties in the United States.”

That is the Warden Scandal that Sutton was hinting at in March, it already happened, but no-one in the USA noticed and the British took two weeks to see it. Obama already got caught with his fingers in that cookie jar. African, not Middle Eastern.

No Grand Islamic Conspiracy here folks, just a typical, sordid, piece of corrupt West African Politics and Business spilling over into the United States. I’m not insulting Nigeria, Nigerians know how bent their system is.

Okereke-Onyiuke used to work for NYSE, lived in the USA for 14years and holds a Green Card, before she took her present position, anybody want to guess who one of her American friends is? You guessed right, if you guessed Khalid Mansour/Donald Warden!

The Obama Campaign say they won’t accept the money, hmm, and they say they returned the money from Gaza, too. What about any money they already received? How long has he been receiving money from Nigeria?

Okereke-Onyiuke got caught this time but she’s been funneling money to corrupt politicians for years and so have UBA, so how do we know how long this has been going on? Answer: We don’t, just like we don’t know a lot of other things about Obama.

Can I prove Warden has been funneling cash to Obama? Not yet, right now its just a theory. But if Warden was “raising money for Obama” the only place he could raise it would be Nigeria, or West Africa, because that’s the only place he has contacts with money, who might give it to him, and he has a lot of them.

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LINKS:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7592362.stm

http://www.thetimesofnigeria.com/TON/Article.aspx?id=903

http://www.dailytrust.com/content/view/16599/242/

http://www.independentngonline.com/poli/lead/article01

http://www.punchontheweb.com/article_comments_report.aspx?com=22254
(try to avoid this site unless you have good anti-virus)

http://nm.onlinenigeria.com/templates/default.aspx?a=5532&template=print-article.htm

http://www.nationalmirroronline.com/crim/article01

http://www.dailytrust.com/content/view/16539/242/

http://www.ocnus.net/artman2/publish/Africa_8/Africa_For_Obama_2008_Scam.shtml

http://www.guardiannewsngr.com/editorial_opinion/article04//indexn2_html?pdate=070908&ptitle=

http://community.africanloft.com/kickapps/service/searchEverythingAsRss.kickAction?keywords=lagos&as=4392&quantity=25

http://www.tradingmarkets.com/.site/news/Stock%20News/1723033/

http://www.ubacapitalafrica.com/news.php?country=NG&&nid=4287

http://www.financialstandardnews.com/home_newsdetail.asp?id=396886885185185

http://www.huhuonline.com/letters9.html
(I highly recommend reading this article)

http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/A/AFRICA_OBAMA_PHENOMENON?SITE=ILCDLB&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2008-08-31-11-27-36

http://www.forums.mlb.com/n/pfx/forum.aspx?nav=messages&webtag=ml-cubs&tid=335559

http://allafrica.com/stories/200808220634.html

http://article.wn.com/view/2008/08/21/Nigeria_antigraft_body_probes_Obama_fundraiser/

http://allafrica.com/stories/200808210411.html

http://article.wn.com/view/2008/08/21/EFCC_Quizzes_OkerekeOnyiuke_Wabara/