President Olusegun Obasanjo approved the sacking Monday of his minister of housing and urban development, Ebun Osomo, over corruption charges. Osomo allegedly surreptitiously sold government property in a choice area of Lagos, Nigeria's business capital, to people in government and to Obasanjo's in-laws. Secretary to the Government Ufot Ekaette, said Obasanjo had approved the sacking of the housing minister whose functions would now be over-seen by the Works Minister. Obasanjo in March sacked education minister, Fabian Osuji, also for corruption. Osuji was accused of bribing members of parliament, including the president of the Senate, to secure a sizeable increase in the education budget for 2005. A former police chief of Abuja, Tafa Balogun, pleaded innocent to a list of 70 corruption charges in a high court appearance. An anti- graft commission had traced millions of dollars to accounts controlled by Balogun.
