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Atiku Abubakar, candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), on Wednesday, swore to the integrity of the process that led to his picking the party’s ticket, saying it remained untainted and consistent with the wills of the members.
Against the backdrop of the insistence of Babachir Lawal, former Secretary to Government of the Federation (SGF), that he stole the ticket by corrupting the process, Atiku, Vice President between 1999 and 2007, pooh-poohed the claim.
Before the former SGF Rotimi Amaechi, former Governor of Rivers State and Minister of Transportation as well as Mohammed Hayatu-Deen, former Chairman of Nigeria Economic Summit Group, both candidates in the contest for the ADC ticket, had rejected the process as flawed, even before the outcome.
Lawal, who had earlier announced his resignation from the ADC a fortnight ago and made sundry allegations of gaming the system against Atiku, had doubled down on Monday, while appearing on Politics Today, a public affairs programme on Channels Television, claiming he personally monitored the exercise and had evidence that the primary was rigged.
Hear him: “Don’t forget I was the National Vice Chairman (North-East). I was in the field during the exercise, so I have evidence. Atiku’s people are the ones trying to deny what they did. We are all human beings. We know what they did. I knew the primary was rigged at the point it was being done and the results declared.”
Regardless that neither Amaechi nor Hayatu-Deen had recanted their original position Atiku, insisted that nothing was amiss, adding that his opponents actually won in the areas of their individual popularity and stronghold.
Conveying his position through Phrank Shaibu, his spokesman, who appeared as a guest on Politics Today, a public affairs programme on Channels Television, the former VP said: “Anybody who claims rigging or irregularity in the last election should check the places and locations they won. Where are the states that Rotimi Amaechi won? If you check the figures and the margins he got there, you will know that those are his strongholds. It was not a fraudulent process.
Maintaining that the burden of proving any fraud rested on the former SGF Shaibu, Shaibu depicted his boss as the most popular among the contestants, arguing that the outcome of the event should not be surprising to anybody.
He said of the ex-SGF: “Babachir reminds me of a baby who is yanked off her mother’s breast while suckling. It is like a deprived suckling; definitely the baby will throw tantrums. He admitted on your show that his preferred candidate was Hayatu-Deen. He worked for him.”
Nothing outside the immediate appearance – dead or alive – of Mele Kyari, former Group Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer (GMD-CEO) of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), will be enough to satisfy the Senate, which appears to be baying for blood over the alleged loss of over N210 trillion from the company during his time.
Incensed at the repeated absence of the former NNPCL boss from its investigation, the Senate Committee on Public Accounts, which is carrying out the probe covering the period from 2017 to 2023, insisted on Wednesday that he must appear in person and not through any proxy to answer questions.
Relying on the audit queries forwarded to the committee by the Office of the Auditor-General for the Federation (OAGF), the committee, chaired by Ibrahim Dankwambo, senator representing Gombe north, actually went for the big hammer to order his arrest as a result of the development
Victor Umeh, representing Anambra Central, who moved the motion for his arrest had submitted that the committee could no longer tolerate delays in an investigation involving one of the largest financial accountability exercises undertaken by the national assembly.
Seconded by Onyekachi Nwebonyi, Senator representing Ebonyi North, Umeh told his colleagues in his motion: “This matter has lingered for too long. Nigerians deserve answers. The committee cannot continue to wait indefinitely while critical questions concerning trillions of naira remain unanswered.”
Dankwambo, who excused Bayo Ojulari, Kyari’s successor, who was represented by Dapo Segun, the company’s chief financial officer, agreeing with the motion, said, “For Mele, I agree with you. We hereby rule that anywhere Mele Kyari is, the former group GCEO, should be arrested and brought before the committee immediately.”
An attempt by Tony Nwoye, Senator representing Anambra North, who tried to intervene saying he was aware that the former NNPCL boss was in a hospital in Germany, met a brick-wall, and even led to a shouting match between him and some of his colleagues.
Nwoye, a member of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), had told his colleagues: “I spoke to Mele Kyari about a week ago. He promised that he would be here. But incidentally, I learned last night that the man is hospitalised in Germany.”
But even while he was still making his pitch, Nwebonyi interrupted him shouting – point of order, point of order, which appeared to have incensed Nwoye, who riposted – you can’t shout me down.
In reply to the assertion of Nwebonyi, who would not let off, but shouting: “You are not Kyari’s lawyer!” Nwoye riposted that he was all the same duty bound to guide the committee with information at his disposal.
His words: “I am not holding brief for Mele Kyari. I am duty-bound to bring this information to the committee. The decision on whether to issue a warrant of arrest is entirely for this committee to make.”
But the highpoint came with Adams Oshiomhole, appearing unfazed by the report of Kyari’s reported ill-health, thundering that even his dead body would not escape being questioned in the investigation and be made to answer.
Hear the former Governor of Edo State and now Senator, representing Edo North: “Some people believe they are bigger than Nigeria. The law must be effective when it catches the lion, not only when it catches the rabbit. This parliament risks diminishing its authority if it fails to compel compliance with its summons.
“This committee must have the courage and the will to deploy its powers and issue a warrant of arrest — not tomorrow, but today. Bring Mele Kyari here, dead or alive. Even if he is dead, we want to see the body, and he will account.
“These are allegations involving trillions of naira at a time Nigerians are suffering, and the country is borrowing heavily. His responsibility is to account for his actions as MD. He can’t be represented in that capacity. Mele Kyari can’t be represented. He is no longer the MD. Having failed repeatedly, we must invoke our powers to order the arrest of Mele Kyari.”
Echoing the position Nwebonyi, added: “The committee has exhausted its patience. This is the ninth sitting of this committee. This committee is not a creation of the Senate. It is statutory. I thereby second the motion, using our powers, to order the arrest of Mele Kyari. It goes without saying that the former CEO of NNPCL has no regard for this committee. Therefore, waiting for him will amount to what we call, in law, a wild goose chase, and I will not be part of that.”
Details of how Hadi Sirika, former Minister of Aviation, tried to scam Nigerians with a fake launch of Nigeria Air continued to emerge on Wednesday, with a witness telling Justice S. C. Oriji of the Federal Capital Territory High Court, Abuja, that the setup was plotted with Ethiopian Airline in the know.
Christopher Odofin, the 12th prosecution witness told the court how Sirika allegedly passed off an aircraft belonging to Ethiopian Airlines in fulfillment of the promise to the late President Muhammadu Buhari.
Dele Oyewale, spokesman of the The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), in a statement capturing the record of the proceedings on Wednesday, said that the “decoy aircraft, adorned with the livery of the promised Nigeria Air,” found its way on the tarmac of the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, on May 27, 2023, being three days to the expiration of the tenure of the Buhari government.
He added in a statement that witnessed claimed that the plane was actually flown back to Addis Ababa on the morning of May 29, 2023, being the handover date to the successor government.
Hadi Sirika is facing prosecution by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission on amended six-count charges bordering on alleged abuse of office and misappropriation of public funds to the tune of over ₦2 billion, alongside his daughter, Fatima Hadi Sirika, son-in-law, Hamma Jalal Sule, and Al Buraq Global Investment Limited.
The contract for the setting up of Nigeria Air was awarded to Tianaero Nigeria Limited, belonging to Gabriel Tilmann, a close associate and friend of the former minister. The witness, an investigator with the EFCC, reading from a portion of the contract agreement with Ethiopian Airlines, said: ‘The aircraft will depart from Addis Ababa (ADD) late evening of May 26, 2023, for it to be positioned early morning of May 27, 2023, at the Abuja (ABV) airport.
The aircraft will stay in ABV airport for static display of Nigeria Air livery until May 28, 2023. The aircraft will leave ABV airport early morning on May, 29, 2023. The chartered flight will be operated by the Ethiopian Airline crew in Ethiopian Airline uniform.
The Federal Government of Nigeria and Nigeria Air may put together local models who will be in Nigeria Air uniforms to pose for ceremonial pictures. The models may come to Addis Ababa so they may fly with the chartered flight to ABV.
The statement narrated how the witness told the court that the display of the aircraft in Abuja International Airport was “deliberately planned to coincide with the end of the first defendant’s tenure as Nigeria’s Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development on May 29, 2023, and to pass the aircraft off as the actualisation of his promise of the return of Nigeria Air”.
Before adjourning to June 17, the court also heard how after the less than 72 hours display of the aircraft, that the Nigeria Air logo was removed from the aircraft and flown back to Ethiopian Airlines in Addis Ababa.
“The witness further disclosed that the investigating team was also able to ascertain that Ethiopian Airlines entered into a charter arrangement for the static display of the Nigeria Air livery for a duration of just three days, beginning from May 27 to May 29, 2023 based on information and documents received from the airline following a letter from it, dated June 12, 2023, in response to the EFCC’s request for information regarding Nigeria Air, and that though the purpose of the contract was for the establishment of Nigeria Air, the charter agreement with Ethiopian Airlines was entered on May 24, 2023, five days to the expiration of the defendant’s tenure for just a static display of the Nigeria Air logo on an aircraft.
“All the documents tendered in evidence by the prosecution were shown to have been duly signed, authorised, and accompanied by certificates of identification and were not objected to by any of the counsels to the four defendants,” the EFCC said in the statement.
It further stated that among the exhibits was a compact disc containing a voice note from the first defendant, Hadi Sirika, marked Exhibit 37, which the prosecution counsel applied to be played in the court at the next adjourned date.
“Further in his testimony, the witness told the court that though the contract for the start-up of Nigeria Air, which was awarded to Tianaero Nigeria Limited for over ₦299 million on April 4, 2022, saw a contract extension award to the company on October 17, 2022, to a sum, exceeding ₦599 million on the instructions and directives of the first defendant, based on his relationship with the company’s alter ego.
He said: “The investigating team arrived at this position when the phone of one Enitan Muyiwa Abel, who was a Permanent Secretary in the first defendant’s ministry, was analysed, showing a voice note sent to the Permanent Secretary while the first defendant was in Spain instructing him to ensure that the contract was awarded to Tianaero Nigeria Limited.’
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