Former Acting Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the immediate past Interim Management Committee (IMC) of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Barrister Joy Nunieh has narrated events that transpired while she was at the commission.
She claimed that the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Godswill Akpabio wanted to use her, and others to perpetrate fraud, but allegedly refuses to sign documents in the process, invariably to exonerate himself from any queries.
Nunieh, spoke to journalists on Friday at the National Assembly, venue of the Senate Ad-hoc Committee on financial recklessness in the Niger Delta Development Commission.
She said, “the National Assembly had written us that we should not pay for anything and guess what, Akpabio never signed any document.
“He will always refuse to sign but he will tell you to go and commit the fraud. For instance, he told me to go and borrow and give emergency contracts for flood victims”.
Mrs Nunieh also claimed that Akpabio wanted her to take an of loyalty to him, but she resisted, because the oath would mean doing every bidding of the minister.
“He wanted me to take an oath, but he has denied that, but I want to say today, he told me up to three times until we had a reconciliation meeting at the Villa in the house of Mr Seriki Abba, who is the SA to the president on domestics. In that meeting was Alhaji Maikano, he said the only condition was if I take the oath, I refused to take the oath and I did not take that oath and I will never take the oath from him, so he said he was going to remove me.
“He started a campaign of calumny against me, I did not answer him because the fact will speak for itself, now, to end this matter about the procurement process.
“I refused to go with him to deceive Mr President at the FEC meeting because the procurement Act says If I contravene any section of the Procurement Act, it’s five years imprisonment, without an option of fine… You see they say it is for 2020 budget, Akpabio went to get the approval from FEC, the 2020 budget had not even been discussed by the National Assembly.
“2020 budget had not been passed however, he lied to FEC, which is the greatest embarrassment in this country for a budget that has not been passed, for an approval to be given for that procurement.
“I refused to go because he wanted me to send money for the procurement to the Ministry to implement the forensic audit, I refused. I am challenging him to deny any of this allegations from all the facts and all that I have said are all written in my document”.
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