The House of Representatives Committee on Power and Steel has indicted former President Olusegun Obasanjo, Ondo State Governor Olusegun Agagu, his ousted Cross River State counterpart Liyel Imoke and 14 other persons for mismanaging $16 billion power funds between 1999 and 2007.
Agagu and Imoke were ministers of power at different times during Obasanjo's eight-year tenure.
Also indicted were 15 companies that handled the controversial National Integrated Power Projects (NIPP) as well as the Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN), Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) and Energy Commission of Nigeria (ECN). The committee in its report on the power sector probe, which is yet to be submitted to the House, said the former president and other persons found culpable in the investigation should be called to "account for the reck
lessness in power sector" and should also be investigated further by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC).
Findings and recommendations of the report, posted on Sunday by internet news medium Sahara Reporters, listed other persons who should be held to account for the power funds to include former Minister of State for Energy Alhaji Ahmed Abdulhamid (now Nigeria's ambassador to Turkey), former presidential adviser on energy Joseph Makoju, Engr. G.O.P Osakue, Engr. C.N.O Nwachukwu and Mr. J.A. Olotu.
Attempts to find out from House power probe committee chairman Ndudi Elumelu whether he authorised the release of the report failed yesterday as our reporter could not reach him by telephone despite repeated efforts.
But a member of the committee told Daily Trust on telephone last night that the report is authentic. After our reporter read parts of the report as posted by Sahara Reporters, the committee member said, "If what you read to me is what they have published, then it is the report. There are so many indictments in the report, and the committee has recommended that both the ICPC and EFCC should further investigate the matter and prosecute those indicted."
The member added: "I could have given you the report but we have resolved in our meeting not to speak to the press on the matter until it has been laid on the table. I am surprise how this report leaked out." The report would be laid before the House in the second week of September when the lower chamber would resume from a recess.
The House committee was set up several months ago to investigate alleged spending of $16 billion on the power sector between 1999 and 2007 without commensurate result. The committee had held public hearings and toured power project sites across the country.
But the panel had recently been mired in controversy over alleged collection and sharing of bribes amounting to N100 million, an allegation Elumelu denied.
The report said of the indicted persons that they should further be probed "by the appropriate agencies for their roles in subversion of government policy on due process which gave rise to project over-scoping, project cost inflation, Awarding one contract two times and general lack of performance in the power sector in spite of huge expenditures made.
"The barefaced looting of the national treasury through the NIPP and PHCN and other projects greatly diminished national capacity to provide electric power leading to wholesale decline in productive business activities and erosion of competitiveness of Nigeria products in the world market."
On Alhaji Ahmed Abdulhamid, the committee said the former Minister of State for Energy was liable for "his patently and wilful manipulation of due process, flagrant abuse of due process, gross abuse of financial procedures in the award of contracts and payments, especially during the last weeks of the Obasanjo administration, exemplified by initiation of requests to the president and procurement of presidential approvals for huge and questionable payments in respect of Papalanto Phase II, Omotosho Phase II, Geregu Phase II, Alaoji Phases II, Mambilla Packages 1, Zungeru Hydro, Omoku Expansion, Gbarain-Ubie Expansion and Egbema Expansion (9 additional GE Frame 9 turbines to Rockson International) without due process compliance for contract award and certification for payment."
The committee recommends that Ahmed "should be investigated by EFCC and ICPC and if found culpable, banned from holding public office for the next 10 years and if he is already holding any, he should be recalled and the appointment cancelled."
On Agagu, it said, "During his tenure in 2002, the committee found that numerous contracts were awarded, including huge contracts to some unregistered companies." The committee said the indicted companies should also be further investigated by EFCC and ICPC to recover "huge sums fraudulently received on power project contracts."
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This report does not contain absolutely required SPECIFICS. There is nothin spelt out of any specific project for details of any contract violation or specific individual that is found to have stolen money with details of amount. The $16b has not been proved indubitably as the specific correct amount spent during the period. WITH THE AMOUNT OF MONEY AND TIME SPENT, THE WORLD WILL SEE THIS REPORT AS RIDICULOUS AND SHAMEFUL.
The leakage of this report first of all is normal but it is also a way the committee on energy is shouting out to the people that there is a smoking gun. This is a prelude to stop any wishy-washy effort by Obasanjo's surrogates to rubbish the indictment during a debate in the whole house and beyond.
This is welcome news that finally it is on record that the former President has been indicted. On that note the N/A assembly should ask Obasanjo to declare his assets both foreign and domestic and explain to the Nigerian people how he acquired them. It would also allow the EFCC or other agencies charged with such powers to go after undeclared assets or those fronted by his friends and family members.
But if after all this efforts and no result and this whole thing ends in an open ended probe then the National Assembly, the Presidency and the Chief Justice would be seen as covering up and the public should then hold them culpable. But so far so good
I agree, the leakage of this report is a good move by the legislators that probed the power sector.Because its obvious that Obasanjo apologists are doing everything they can to kill or seriously dilute the end report. Now if the EFCC is realy serious under Farida Waziri, they should be bold and immediately go after Obasanjo, Imoke, Agagu and all those indicted in the power report.They should not wait for the report to be debated upon first as they did not wait for the Aviation probe to conclude before swooping on the indicted Ministers.Anyone holding brief for OBJ is only doing harm to himself because OBJ has been fully unmasked. Someone whom God gave a golden oportunity from prison to presidency for the second time.He could have used his 8 years to resurrect Nigeria and write his name in Gold. But no,He used his 8 years to steal Nigeria blind.Under OBJ's 8 years public money was so unashamedly stolen in millions of dollars that Nigeria has become the laughing stock in the committee of Nations.EFCC started going after guys in cyber crime saying that they bring bad reputation to our country.But the truth is that OBJ, his cohorts and his stuge now are those bringing so much bad reputation to this country that it is lamentable and a mockery to go after guys who are ingenious enough to get money out of the internet.If they created employment for the teeming youths in the first place, cyber crimes will seize to lure youths into it and will reduce to a very manageable proportion. I recommend that OBJ who created EFCC should be made to warm the cells of his creation.
For justice to reign and Nigeria to progress and develop as other developing nations of the world, the judicial system in Nigeria should take this Power Probe seriously and handle it expeditiously and judiciously. The whole world is watching! Especially as it involves Obasanjo and his gentlemen of fortune, such as the erstwhile, now ex-governor of Ondo State and others. The EFCC and other branch of government that oversees corrupt practices should immediately go to work and not allow them to escape or start covering their tracks or even galvanizing efforts to block the law from taking its path. Obasanjo really made a mockery of himself and this nation for all the atrocities he committed during his two terms. I am of the opinion that there are other loots that will surface involving him and his cohorts. Such mismanagements will include, but not limited to, all the TV and Radio licenses he approved for himself and his families, about 29 of them if I am not mistaken - the license's records should be subpoenaed in order to get the accurate number, the numbers of all the deals he made on crude oil. I've never heard of a president who after firing his Petroleum minister and never replaced him. The motive of course is to handle the most lucrative government ministry himself, which he did for the rest of his term. By my guesstimation, OBJ's corrupt practices will be very close, if not worst than Abacha's. Records and time will tell. He's really a disappointment and I'm afraid if Nigeria will ever recover from it in this and next generations' time. Olusegun Obasanjo and his gentlemen of fortune should all rotten in prison, Amen.