A petition signed by civil rights activists, Bishop Dr.
Osadolor Ochie and
Marxist Kola Edokpayi has been addressed to the
Economic and Financial
Crimes Commission (EFCC), accusing the
immediate past governor of Edo
state, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole of defrauding
the State to the tune of
over N50 billion while in office as governor.
According to the petitioners, who also forwarded
copies of the petition to
the president, Mohammadu Buhari and the senate
president, Bukola Saraki,
they said 80% of contracts executed during the
Oshiomhole administration
were never advertised.
“Throughout Oshiomhole’s tenure, over 80% of
contracts that were awarded
were never advertised or made public, and the
costs were inflated.
The scheme used was called “virement,” and this
approach allowed the
governor to approve new contracts as additional
work to the tune of N99
million without advertising such contracts or
seeking the approval of the
state executive council,” the petitioners alleged.
The former governor was also alleged to have used
N5 billion for chartered
flights during his time as governor of the state.
The petitioners added that, Adams Oshiomhole
engaged in contract
splitting, where contracts for roads were awarded
along with road
infrastructures such as street lights, walk ways,
drainage which were
later re-awarded to the same contractor.
“Contract splitting amounting to N76,390,306,746
was awarded to Messrs
Hani Associates Ltd. for the preparation of the bill
of quantities for
construction and renovation of public schools
(dates of approvals of
payment 21/01/2016, 20/10/2016, 18/10/2016, and
25/10/2016),” the petition
stated.
He is also being accused of diverting funds for
security votes running
into billions of naira.
“Diversion of security votes to proxy accounts vis:
Chief M. A. Kadiri
vouchers from 2008 to the last day of the tenure of
Comrade Adams Aliu
Oshiomhole, totalling N42 billion.
Also, in December 2014 alone, Comrade Adams
Oshiomhole approved
N700million and Chief M. A. Kadiri was on hand to
sign and collect it via
attached vouchers and detailed documents,”
according to the petitioners.
The petitioners further alleged that the former
governor inflated the
price of the purchase of 2 units of Toyota Prado
TXL at N28,953,600.00.
“ Sata Motors Ltd., 3 Oyaide Street, GRA, Benin
city, purchase of 2 units
of Toyota Land Cruisers V8 at N45,031,200.”
They added, “We have at our disposal a truck load
of approvals and
vouchers if the one supplied is not enough for your
investigation and we
are prepared to supply more photographs of
Comrade Adams Oshiomhole’s
properties all over the world and relevant vouchers
and approvals that he
made while in office to misappropriate Edo State
funds, particularly for
the Edo University whose funds were not approved
by the Edo State House of
Assembly.
“Another issue of concern is the construction of
168 male students’ hostel
complex at the rate of N10 million per room at the
University of Science
and Technology, Uzaire awarded to Messrs A & K
Construction Ltd. at a
total cost of N1,880,483,836.66.”
Comrade Oshiomhole was also alleged by the
petitioners to have used state
fund for an on-going event centre, cinema theatre
hall and shopping mall
at finishing stage directly opposite the University of
Benin, Ugbowo,
Benin city.
They also alleged that Comrade Oshiomhole
expended N20 billion on personal
mansion at Okoro Otun and an on-going hotel being
constructed next to
Benin Club in GRA.
.
.
More allegations leveled against the former
governor, according to the
petition iclude;
.
Former Guinness Building on Reservation Road,
GRA, Benin city
.
Our investigation shows that Oshiomhole bought the
Guinness guest house
located along Reservation Road, GRA Benin City
soon after he was sworn in
as governor in 2009.
The property was quickly converted to the office of
HANI and ASSOCIATES,
the consultancy firm that has supervised all civil
construction works in
Edo State since 2008.
We are reliably informed that Governor Adams Aliu
Oshiomhole bought the
building for over N100 million.
.
Offshore Properties (USA, South Africa, London and
Dubai)
With the benefit of the global fight against
corruption, the EFCC should
investigate allegations of Oshiomhole’s acquisition
of properties in the
United States of America; which are located in
Miami, Florida and in
Louisiana (where his first son, Dr. Cyril Oshiomhole
stays); as well as a
luxurious apartment valued at one hundred million
dollars at Peachtree
Corners (Miami) FL; acquisition of the Penthouse
of One and Only Hotel in
Cape Town, South Africa, as well as apartments in
Dubai, and London (UK).
.
Misappropriation of Local Government funds
Governor Adams Oshiomhole administration took
advantage of the Joint
State/Local Government Account to appropriate and
misappropriate the
monthly allocations accrued to the 18 local councils
to the disadvantages
of the chairmen and people of the local
governments.
The helpless chairmen could not complain openly
because their election or
appointment and tenure are at the mercy and
discretion of the Comrade
Governor.
The irony of this prevailing arrangement is that the
local government
council chairmen were cajoled to take responsibility
for the expenditures
they never made, in the first place; like the
purchase of inflated SUVs.
The Commissioner for Finance and that of Local
Government deducted their
accounts at source.
This sort of irresponsible and unnecessary
expenditure, which is prevalent
in the administration of the local government
councils in Edo State, led
to the inability of councils to pay the salaries of
their staffs until the
bailout offered by the Federal Government.
It will interest you to know that the 18 local
government areas in Edo
State have in the last 6 years received over N212
billion as statutory
allocation.
We believe these breaches deserve investigation.
.
Supply of School Desks and Chairs
The state government, through the Ministry of
Education awarded a contract
in November 2009, worth N1,547,910,000.00 (One
Billion, Five Hundred and
Forty-Seven Million, Nine Hundred and Ten
Thousand Naira only), to Itex
Furniture Limited of Plot 512, Cadastral Zone C16,
Idu Industrial
District, FCT, Abuja, for the supply of 35,000 units
of single seaters
(chairs and desks) and 40,000 units of double
seaters (chairs and desks)
to all public schools in Edo State.
The contract was purportedly “completed” and a
completion certificate
issued for full payment for the job, which only a
middle-level staff of
the State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB)
inspected at the Abuja
factory of Itex Furniture Limited in 2011 (two years
after the contract
was awarded).
Due diligence was not made to verify whether the
advance payment
guarantee/performance bond provided by Itex were
ever authenticated or the
quality and quantity of 75,000 units verified too,
before the full payment
for this supply of this school furniture in 2012.
On Friday, April 4, 2014 (two years after the
purported supply of 75,000
units by Itex Furniture Limited), the state‘s Ministry
of Education placed
an advert on page 16 of the Vanguard newspaper,
requesting for bids, for
the “construction and supply of schools desks and
chairs for all Schools
in Edo state”.
Sources in the Ministry averred that the advert was
a mere window-dressing
as the advertised contract had been awarded to
the same Itex Furniture.
No due diligence was made to find out whether the
initial 75,000 units
were manufactured and supplied. The contracts
eventually snowballed into
paid advertorial contest between ITEX and the state
government.
However, most schools in Edo State have no chairs
and desk.
It is instructive to state here that the pioneer
chairman of the State
Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) under
Oshiomhole’s administration,
Sir Emoabino and a former Secretary to the State
Government to Gov. Adams
Oshiomhole, Dr. Imuokheme, were arrested and
tried by EFCC for fraud
totaling N300million.
The Subeb contractors were criminally directed to
pay part of their
payments proceeds to Oshiomhole’s campaign
account in 2011.
.
N1.172Billion Certificate of Occupancy Waiver/
Dangote Cement shares
On June 1, 2013, Governor Oshiomhole granted
Alhaji Aliko Dangote a
staggering N1,089,530,370.00 (One Billion, Eighty
Nine Million, Five
Hundred and Thirty Thousand, Three Hundred and
Seventy Naira) waiver for a
Certificate of Occupancy.
Also on the same day, another waiver of
N81,763,200.00 (Eighty-One
Million, Seven Hundred and Sixty Three thousand,
Two Hundred Naira) to
Alhaji Dangote, all for the land allocated to the
billionaire for a
proposed Dangote Fertilizer Factory at Agenebode
in Etsako East Local
Government Area.
The so called factory never saw the light of the
day.
.
Conversion of Edo University to Privately-Owned
Insitution
Oshiomhole has spent over N30 billion of state
funds on infrastructure in
the Edo University he built opposite his country
home in Iyamho, which
documents have revealed is a privately owned
university by private
partners, fronting for the governor.
.
Sapele Road N600 Million Street Light Cotract
In 2012, Governor Oshiomhole awarded the
contract for erection of street
lights from 3rdJunction (Sapele Road) to Country
Home Road Junction
(Sapele Road), a distance of less than 2KM for
N600 million.
Sadly, this work was never executed.
.
The N950 Million Contract for the Beautification of
5-Junction in Uselu,
Lagos Road
The sum of N950million was approved by the exco
as cost for the
beautification project, which was just planting of
flowers.
.
Edo State Government and the Bank of Industry
Counterpart Fund Scheme
In December 2009, Edo State Government signed an
agreement with the Bank
of Industry to support Small Scale Industries with
N500 million; made up
of N250 million from the state and N250 million
from the Bank of Industry.
According to Edo State government records, only
N41.6 million was
reportedly disbursed.
However, credible sources informed us that the
balance of N458.5 million
(approximately) has vanished into private pockets.
.
$225 Million World Bank Loan and Edo State Open
Governmnt Initiative
In 2012, Edo State Government received $75 million
as first tranche of
$225 million loan from the World Bank under the
first Edo State Growth and
Employment Support Credit Project (with the
Project Identification Number
P123353).
Till date, government is unable to account for the
initial $75 million and
another $75 million that was approved by the World
Bank in 2015, despite
massive protests by Edo people and senators from
the state.
We are informed that the unsubstantiated contracts
that were tied to the
loan led to the resignation of Ms. Yemi Keri who
was the Managing Director
of the Information Communication Technology
office in the Governor’s
Office.
The computerization of government activities by
the Directorate of ICT in
the Governor’s Office was used to syphon
resources from the state.
The second tranche of $75 million which was
domiciled at Access Bank has
largely been transferred to offshore accounts while
the remaining was
round-tripped at the detriment of Edo state.
.
Accident and Emergency/200 Bed Central Hospital
and Iyamho Country Home
Projects
An initial contract was awarded to an Italian
company, for the sum of N2.7
billion before it was reviewed upwards to over N3
billion when Governor
Oshiomhole demanded for an extra floor; a process
that made a large part
of the construction within the premises of the
Central Hospital, Benin
City, to collapse on June 4, 2012.
Many workers were injured with a lone casualty, Dr.
Stefano De La Roca,
the owner of the company and confidant of Adams
Oshiomhole.
The contract was later re-awarded to SCL without
penalizing those
responsible for the building collapse. The cost of
the reconstruction is a
closely guarded secret.
What many did not know at the period was that SCI
was also the contractor
handling Oshiomhole’s multi-billion naira sprawling
palatial complex at
Iyamho, Etsako West Local Government Area.
The umbilical cord or nexus between the medical
complex projects in Benin
City and the astonishing Mobutu Sese Seko country
home project of the
Comrade Governor is far more than a coincidence
as SCI was the main
contractor for both sites and most, if not all, of the
construction
materials and workers shared a common pool.
.
Roads, Drains and Bridges
The flagship of road construction, re-construction
and rehabilitation
projects done by Comrade Adams Oshiomhole is
the six-lane Airport Road,
Benin City.
The contract was originally awarded to Servetek
Construction Company
Limited to handle the “construction of drainage
structures and dualization
of Airport Road from Ring Road to Ogba River
Bridge (a distance of 7.2Km
of road and 14.4Km of drainage” at an industry
record-setting N611million
per kilometers, totaling N4,401,101,722.50).
In a fit of anger over Servetek’s reluctance to allow
any further
tampering with the contractual sum, the contract
was truncated and
re-awarded at over N12 billion to Setraco Nigeria
Limited.
It is instructive to note that the state government
ingeniously padded the
original contract description with “17 access roads”
that ran parallel to
Airport Road whereas these roads (access and
internal roads such as the
Shittu Alao Airforce Base, Oko-Ogba for instance),
were re-awarded as
stand-alone ones, with new cost tags.
This organized rape of Edo State treasury was
replicated in the award and
execution of the over 100 intra and inter-city road
projects that were
turned into veritable Automated Teller Machines
(ATMs).
One of such roads is Sapele Raod, awarded to
Setraco for N
1,429,446,044.25 for a length of 2.1km.
Even the “detailed design of storm water drainage
and associated roads
master plan for Benin City was awarded to a South
African Firm for a
whopping sum of N 446,969,250.02.
The pattern of sleaze ran through all the contracts
he awarded and
financed through suffocating portfolio of debts that
future generations of
Edolites will inherit and pay.
Setraco and Hartland Nig Ltd both companies
chaired by Abu Inu Umoru, a
close associate of Adams Oshiomhole are the
major beneficiaries of
inflated road contracts in Edo State.
.
The N31Billion Storm Water Project
On April 11, 2011, Governor Adams Oshiomhole
went ahead to borrow N25
billion from the capital market through the issuance
of bonds.
While presenting an FCMB cheque of N6 billion to
Mr. Saad, the managing
director of Hitech Construction on March 2, 2011,
Oshiomhole listed
several roads as part of the First Phase of the
Storm Water Project to
include Adolor College Road, Textile Mile Road,
Otote Road, Uwelu Road,
Akugbe Street, Iyoba areas among others.
These roads are still earth roads today; just the
Storm water project has
been abandoned by Hitech and the gullies they left
have killed over six
persons, including children.
We are also aware that when Adams Oshiomhole
went to the capital market to
borrow 25 billion facilitated by Godwin Obaseki’s
Afrivest company, the
purpose of the loan was not just the storm water
project but also included
a power project.
The Azural Power Project has since started in Edo
State but without the
government being a major investor apart from the
paltry shares given to it
by the promoters as compensation for the land
acquired.
Curiously, Philip Ihenacho the original founder of
Afrivest, the same
company Godwin Obaseki, Oshiomhole’s close ally
owns, is a major investor
in the Azura Power Project.
Edo people believe that they have been
shortchanged in this Azura
Holdings, and what should have been Edo State
shares have been allocated
to private individuals holding brief for those who
have abused the
people’s trust.
.
Ewohimi General Hospital Project
Construction of Ewohimi General Hospital in Edo
Central has gulped over an
additional N200 million through the bogus practice
of ‘virement’.
Oshiomhole’s brother in-law, Mr. Victor Eboigbe,
allegedly coordinated the
hospital project.
His company was also reported in the press to
have supplied Dando water
drilling rigs and two street sweepers to Edo State
government for inflated
contract sums of N800 million and N356 million
respectively.
.
Construction of Hostel Block at N10M Per Room at
Iyamho University
Governor Oshiomhole awarded the contract and the
payment in a week for the
construction of 168 hotel rooms in Edo University
Iyamho at the sum of
N1.680 billion (one billion, six hundred and eighty
million naira).
The average cost per room translates to N10
million (ten million naira)
per hostel room.
The firm, A & K Construction Limited was also
awarded additional contract
worth N12,282,852,413.69 (twelve billion, two
hundred and eighty two
million, eight hundred and fifty thousand, four
hundred and thirteen
naira, sixty kobo) to construct Edo State Teaching
Hospital at the
University of Science and Technology, Uzairue, Edo
State (Iyamho
University).
