"The most interesting aspect is the bid of the Committee to create an entirely new human being, 'Mrs. Olufemi Shille Aluko", purportedly my wife and owner of INDEPENDENT STRATEGISTS LIMITED.
My wife's name is Mrs. Sileola Omowunmi Aluko who has no shares whatsoever, or owns
INDEPENDENT STRATEGISTS LIMITED. There is no person called Mrs. Olufemi Shille Aluko as indicated in the report. The shareholders of INDEPENDENT STRATEGIST LIMITED as provided by the Corporate Affairs Commission to the Committee are Mr. Nasiru Ali-Ahmed and Mr. Olufemi
S. Aluko.
What the Committee did was to replace the S. in Olufemi S. Aluko with Shile, and convert a male to a female in order to connect the company to me through my wife. I cannot possibly marry a male and have three children from my wife............We are all witnesses to the experience of our President and Commander in Chief, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo a few years back as it relates to the phantom coup and false allegations against him which led to his imprisonment and dehumanization for more than three years.
Mr. Senate President, Distinguished Colleagues, this Senate must not succumb to the blackmail of a phantom report and inadvertently destroy the political lives of some of its members. "
Mr. Senate President, distinguished Senators, I apologize for not being present in the Senate last week when the debate of the committee report commenced as I was away abroad for pressing personal matters for which I took appropriate permission from the Senate President and the Leadership of the Senate.
However, immediately I was informed that the debate had commenced last week and adjourned till today, I made immediate arrangements to return to Abuja for today's session.
I have personally waited patiently for this day in order to be able to explain and defend myself principally to my fellow Senators, my electorate in Ekiti South Senatorial District and Nigerians at large from the floor of the senate were it all started.
Since I have limited time, I will go straight to the issues.
The Report
The Committee in its conclusions and recommendations wrote the following as it relates to me, and I quote.
"Evidence before the committee shows that he (Senator Aluko) withheld the sum of N35 million out of the N45 million provided for the disbursement to Senators for the repairs of their quarters.
The committee finds Senator Gbenga Aluko to have abused his office and therefore recommends that:
He should resign as Deputy Chief Whip for these abuses.
He should refund the sum of N35 million and a further N39,257,598 million by which the computers and office equipment were over priced as detailed in Table 5 Appendix 1.
" End of quote.
Let me now deal with these issues above one after the other.
BN35 million Renovation, Refurbishment and Improvement of Capital Assets allegedly withheld
First and foremost, the committee claims that evidence shows that the sum of N35 million being part of the N45 million approved in the 1999 Appropriation Budget for Renovation and Refurbishment of Senators Quarters was withheld by me which was provided for disbursement to Senators, when in actual fact, the evidence in their possession was contrary to this assertion.
On Saturday 29th July 2000, at about 9.00 p.m., I telephoned Senator Idris Kuta on his mobile telephone to inform him that I had a letter to deliver to the Committee. He asked me to come over to his office in the Senate on Sunday 30th July between 12 noon and 2.00 p.m. to deliver the letter. [SEE NOTE NUMBER 1 BELOW]
I obliged and went to the Senate to deliver the letter which coincidentally all the committee members and Secretary were present when it was handed over to him. He handed it over to Senator Osunbor after some mild histrionics between him and me.
I took the liberty to sit down with Senator Osunbor thereafter to go over the contents of my letter and attachments which contained explanations as to the expenditure of the purported missing N35 million which I was informed the committee made reference to during their sitting of Friday 28th July 2000. I even went with Senator Osunbor to the Nicon Hilton Hotel to make photocopies of the attachments to my letter as there was an outage of power at the National Assembly Complex on the day, and proceeded to drop Senator Osunbor at his home at the Apo Village.
I was convinced that Senator Osunbor, faced with my letter and incontrovertible documentary
evidence will proceed to explain to his committee members the true position of the expenditure regarding the N35 million. I have since discussed this issue with him and his response was that although he was convinced about my explanation, he was only one out of seven members of the Ad Hoc Committee.
I am going into great lengths about this issue because it has come to my notice that some members of the Kuta Panel are complaining that some of us indicted are producing evidence and explanations as to our innocence after the committee report has been submitted and not under oath, and that our actions are afterthoughts.
However this is a clear example of a 'beforethought' with due respect to English Language, which was completely ignored even though it was presented to the Committee a clear two days
before Volume II, which contains Conclusions, Findings and Recommendations of the panel was submitted to the Senate.
This two days was enough time to check the veracity or otherwise of my claims in my letter from the Director of Finance and Supplies who is the custodian of the accounts of the National Assembly. The committee proceeded to conclude that my claims were dubious without cross checking from the appropriate authority.
Appendix 2 shows were Senator A.T Ahmed in his own handwriting instructs the DRSP (Director of Research, Statistics and Planning) and I quote,
We need this for our Senators houses in Apo, Please process" dated 18th
November 1999 and
Use Vote for Refurbishment, Renovation and Improvement of Capital Assets, (45 million Naira) end of quote.
Appendix 3 is the letter of award based on the above recommendation.
I refer to this to show unequivocally that N16,796,863 was spent from this so called missing N35 million in order to install Thunder Arrestors and Deflectors in our residence with the full knowledge of the former Senate Services Committee Chairman and not solely under my direction as the Kuta Committee will want you all to believe.
There was no such evidence provided in the Verbatim Report and Attachments thereof by the Committee in Volume I and II of their Report to show that my claims were dubious. For me to collect N35 million from the National Assembly coffers, one will expect an approval for payment to have been granted by either the Senate President or the Clerk of the National Assembly, a payment voucher to be raised, a cheque to be issued, be it cash or otherwise, an acknowledgement of payment given.
There should be a trace of payment in some shape or form. It cannot be that N35 million, not
N35, was paid to me by the Director of Finance and Supplies through the Cash Office without any record or trace. Mr. President, Distinguished Senators, even in the days of Songhai Empire or Old Kanem Bornu Empire when cowries were used, records of payments were being kept by finance
officials close to the King. How then can I be paid N35 million in this Assembly without any record whatsoever! It is absolutely impossible and not done in any government establishment.
It has never been the practice that payments intended for Senators is paid through the account of another Senator for further disbursement to other Senators. The truth of the matter is that no such payment was ever made to me and the Director of Finance and Supplies has since written a letter, ref no. NASS/F&S/14 of 2nd August 2000 absorbing me of any such payment.
Appendix 4. It beats my imagination therefore how the panel found it proper to ask me to refund N35 million without first asking the Director of Finance and Supplies as to the true position of things.
100 KVA Generator Set
Furthermore Table 5 which indicates the level of over expenditure and inflated contracts amounting to N39,257,598 which I am to refund is even more amusing.
First and foremost, I am asked to refund the sum of N11,869,645 being the inflated price of a 100 KVA Generator. Mr. Senate President, Distinguished colleagues, you will recall that in the explanation of the N35 million above and as substantiated by the Director of Finance and Supplies by his letter N14, 157,600 was spent on this same generator which was accounted for above.
For me to be accused again on the same matter and asked to refund another N11, 869,645 is tantamount to double jeopardy.
Irrespective of the above, I did not participate, recommend, process or have knowledge of this 100 KVA Generator until I was investigating the purported missing N35 million and inflated contracts.
Official documents in my possession show that the purchase of the Generator with associated extensive electrical works was recommended by the former Senate Services Committee Chairman, Senator A.T Ahmed through minutes written to the Clerk of the National Assembly in his own handwriting on a letter from the contractor dated 15th November 1999.
He wrote, and I quote, "CNA, This is needed in the Senate Presidents House, This proposal is recommended" end of quote. See Appendix 5, bottom right corner of letter from RIOK INTERNATIONAL CO. LTD addressed to the Chairman, Senate Services Committee.
In actual fact, the sum of N16, 325,000 was recommended by the former Senate Services Chairman which was reduced to N14, 157,600 by the DFS in his minutes on the same letter, bottom left hand corner were he writes to the ACSO/OM and I quote, "Pls. process a letter of award based on our negotiated price (N14, 157,600) see bc (bill of quantities) for the last award of the same type of equipment with the same accessories. Signed DFS on 25/11/99". The award letter was issued on the 26th of November 1999.
The important fact here is that the transaction started prior to 15th of November 1999 by the Senate Services Committee Chairman, Senator A.T Ahmed, was recommended on the 15th of November 1999 and letter of award issued on 26th November 1999 while Senator A.T Ahmed was still Chairman.
How then can I be accused of something I know absolutely nothing about and asked to refund a staggering N11,869,645! Mr. Senate President, Distinguished Senators, the question here is were did the Committee get their evidence to indict me on this matter with this kind of overwhelming facts to the contrary! It beats my imagination.
NOTE NUMBER 1:
The Senate by its resolution of Tuesday, 18th July 2000 decided to set up a 7-man ad-hoc committee under the chairmanship of Senator Idris Kuta to investigate all contracts awarded by the Senate from June 4, 1999 to July 17, 2000 and to check the veracity or otherwise of the status of the contracts.
Other members of the committee were: Arthur Nzeribe of Imo State, Tunde Ogbeha of Kogi State, Femi Okurounmu of Ogun State, Oserheimen Osunbor of Edo State, Dalhatu Sangari of Taraba and Abdul Yandoma of Katsina State, with Chief Emmanuel Ozubele as Secretary.
Senator Gbenga Aluko, Senate PDP Deputy Whip and one-time member of the Senate Services Committeee, testified before the committee on Wednesday, July 26. All his textual submissions and press statements in Connection with the Senate Panel Report are availablePlease read Gbenga Aluko Responds. [back to main article]
Volume Two (Findings, Conclusions and Recommendations) of the report was submitted to the Senate on the 1st of August 2000, while Volume One (containing Verbatim Report and Exhibits) was submitted on August 3. The most comprehensive and readily-available compilation to date will be found in NewsWatch
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