Anti-graft agency quizzes Nafada, Akogun, 4 others

Posted by admin House, Legislature Wednesday, June 8th, 2011

Six immediate past principal officers of the House of Representatives, including the ex-Deputy Speaker, Usman Nafada, were interrogated yesterday in Abuja by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission [EFCC], in connection with allegations of fraud for which Dimeji Bankole, who superintended over affairs at the House in the Sixth Assembly was docked yesterday.

Others who were summoned to the commission’s head office in Abuja and quizzed alongside Nafada, included the former Majority Leader, Hon. Tunde Akogun, Baba Shehu Agaie, Sulaiman Kawu, Bello Mohammed, and Ali Ndume, who was elected into the Upper Legislative Chamber in the last National Assembly polls. The ex-officials of the House were invited to explain their roles in the financial misdeeds allegedly perpetrated during Bankole’s tenure as Speaker, including inflation of contracts amounting to N894million, breach of provisions of the Public Procurement Act, and other sundry issues.

EFCC’s sources said that the ex-principal officers were summoned for interrogation based on the fact that their names appeared on some of the official documents under scrutiny, and are therefore, being asked to explain what they knew about the deals. Nafada and others were said to have arrived the EFCC office for the grilling session at about noon yesterday, but were yet to be released as at press time. It was, however, learnt that they might be granted administrative bail.

Since the travails of Bankole who also presided over the sixth House began, the EFCC had raised sundry allegations against its leadership. The alleged misdeeds had bothered on bloated budgets for the purchase of items, including but not limited to electronic gadgets, vehicles and other office accessories.
EFCC had pulled a fast one on the former No 4 citizen, by digging into Bankole’s past to unearth some of the alleged underhand dealings during his tenure. It came against expectations that the former Speaker would be quizzed over the sourcing of N10 billion bank loan to service the recurrent expenses of the Reps.

Bankole’s current battle for survival is the culmination of the crises that characterized his tenure as Speaker. The first allegation financial impropriety against his leadership was the inflated purchase of Peugeot 407 cars for members valued at N2.3 billion. With, now EFCC lawyer, Festus Keyamo blowing the lid off the alleged scam, Keyamo’s lone voice was soon drowned by the vociferous pro-Bankole lawmakers. The matter was then laid to rest.

-Sunwp_posts