Luka Binniyat, Tordue Salem and Demola Akinyemi
6 November 2008
The Management of Peugeot Automobile Nigeria (PAN) and the National Assembly Bureaucracy, yesterday, declared documents paraded by Lagos lawyer, Mr Festus Keyamo, alleging fraud in the purchase of 380 units of 407 ST Sports Comfort vehicles for about N2.4 billion for the House of Representatives' Committees and its leadership, as fake.
Besides, the House resolved to write a congratulatory letter to United States President-elect, Mr. Barack Obama. The resolution came following the passage of a motion congratulating Mr. Obama by Chief Whip, Emeka Ihedioha.
Mr. Keyamo in a presentation before the House Committee on Ethics and Privileges recently, alleged that the car deal which was handled by the National Assembly was inflated to swindle public funds to the tune of over N500 million among other under-hand deals that went with it.
According to the lawyer, the N2.4 billion was paid to PAN for a tax and discount-free delivery of 20 Peugeot Automatic 407 cars to the leadership, with collapsible side mirrors, automatic rear packing features with 3.0 capacity engines.
Other members, the lawyer alleged, were supplied lower specifications that may have varied in model with either 2.0 engine capacity or 2.10 capacity engines, but with the same price per unit of N5.1 million each (the amount he alleged had crashed from an earlier quotation by the PAN group of N6.1 million per unit).
The lawyer, who had earlier filed a petition against the purchase at the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), insisted that the Management of PAN must offer explanations to Nigerians, on why vouchers issued on the purchase by the Department of Finance at the National Assembly "double-paid" Valued Added Tax (VAT) on the purchases, but the Clerk of National Assembly, Nasir Arab, had in his testimony before the panel, said the National Assembly was statutorily exempted from VAT.
The Director of Planning and Legislative Budgeting, Mr. Muhammed Kabir, told the panel that what Keyamo was "parading" as evidence of double-VAT payment, might have been the payment for delivery which was made twice on February 29, 2008 and June 9, 2008 through the Central Bank.
The Clerk's position was buttressed by PAN, which said the transaction went with a with-holding tax and a N75 million-tax since remitted to the Federal Government.
Keyamo had also alleged that the National Assembly Management (Director of Finance Unit) issued a cheque for the payment of the contract sum of N1.5 billion in the first installment (the purchase is said to have been paid for in installments).
The Acting General Manager of PAN, Mr. Umar Kaita, who appeared earlier before the House Committee on Ethics and Privileges, described the allegations by Keyamo as unfortunate, saying the documents "he is parading" may have been forged, as according to him, they contradicted the documents PAN held on the transaction that was sealed on May 28, 2008.
Questions and Answers session
House panel Member Rep. Yakubu Dogara (PDP Bogoro/Dass/Tafawa Balewa-Bauchi): "Annexure 5 of Mr. Keyamo's petition on the face of it alleges that you supplied the House with 407 ST Sports Auto, not Comfort, but in your quotation, you said you were supplying 407 ST Sports Comfort, so what have you to say?
PAN AGM: What we supplied was certainly, not all Comfort, and in my earlier submission, I said because some of these names are ordered abroad, we can change the appellation to whatever name for commercial purposes.
"Though in our quotation, we quoted to supply automatic, but we changed the appellation to Comfort for commercial reasons and we have been doing it, this is not the first time.
REP. Dogara: Were you paid by the National Assembly through a Zenith Bank cheque?
PAN: We were paid through a Central Bank cheque.
Dogara: Are you kidding us?
PAN: No sir.
Dogara: But Keyamo told us it was Zenith Bank that cashed the cheque.
Dogara: Can this then safely conclude that Keyamo misled this Committee by saying that you were paid with Zenith bank cheques?
PAN: Yes I can say that.
The National Assembly Bureau represented by its Clerk Nasir Arab and his team had in the same vein, dismissed as fake the documents made available on the purported scam to the panel headed by Rep. Sani Saleh Minjibir.
Meanwhile, Speaker of House of Representatives, Mr. Dimeji Bankole, declared yesterday in Ilorin that he remained calm and collected "and will allow the ongoing probe of alleged improper purchase of cars for the House run its full course .
He also said Nigerians had the right to demand a probe of how public money is spent. He was optimistic that he would be vindicated at the end of it all.Mr. Bankole who is Nigeria's Amirul Hajj was in Ilorin to inspect facilities at the hajj camp in readiness for this year's hajj."It is proper that every single Nigerian should ask questions about how money is being spent.
I was also asking questions about how money was being spent so it is factual that they should ask me how money is being spent," he told reporters. "But the point is this, let the investigation take its full course, ok? And then we can make comments after.
But I will remain calm and collected for now and allow Nigerians to have their say and I'm sure that at the end of the day, we in the House of Representatives will have our own say," he said.
The Speaker expressed dissatisfaction at the state of the hajj camps visited so far, four days to the commencement of the airlift. But he gave an assurance that everything possible would be done to improve facilities in the hajj camps.
Receiving the Speaker and his entourage earlier, the Deputy Governor, Chief Joel Ogundeji, on behalf of the governor said pilgrims from the state would obey the rules and regulations while in the holy land. He also urged Nigerians to learn from the just concluded elections in the United States, saying: "Nigerians should learn to accept defeat in good faith whenever there is an election because it is obvious that only one person will win while others will lose. McCain accepted defeat and offered to work with Obama as soon as the result was being announced, you can imagine that," he said.
Only on Tuesday, the Independent Corrupt Practices and other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) said it had constituted a panel of investigators to probe the allegations surrounding the purchase of the cars. Besides, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) last week quizzed top management staff of the National Assembly who awarded the contract.
Vanguard gathered that EFCC officials might also visit Peugeot headquarters in France to clarify some issues raised by Peugeot Automobile of Nigeria (PAN) in its letter to the Commission recently explaining its own side of the story.
Another team of officials was at the Kaduna office of PAN to peruse documents on the contract.
Speaker Bankole confirmed that EFCC officials were at the House last week to quiz management staff of the National Assembly on the issue. Mr. Bankole said he gave the EFCC the go ahead for the interrogation after duly informing him of their mission.
The EFCC Head of Media and Publicity, Mr. Femi Babafemi, could not be reached for comments but PAN deputy head of corporate communications, Alhaji Rabiu Ibrahim, said: "All I can tell you is that we are cooperating fully with the EFCC."
Also, the ICPC has begun the probe of N2.4 billion Peugeot cars by the House of Representatives. The probe is being handled by a panel of investigators, the ICPC confirmed Tuesday. But it was silent on the number of investigators making the panel.
According to the Media Consultant to ICPC, Mr Fola Olamiti, the anti-graft agency convoked the panel following a petition from a non-governmental organisation, the Social Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP). The organisation had on October 26, 2008 petitioned the ICPC, urging it to probe the purchase of 380 cars by the House of Representatives.
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