Wednesday, January 13, 2016

Jonathan Must Speak Out Now On $2.1bn Arms Scandal – PDP

aAs more startling revelations continue to emerge over the way and manner the former National Security Adviser, Sambo Dasuki allegedly disbursed over $2.1 billion meant for arms purchase to various individuals, the national leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, has, said former President Goodluck Jonathan cannot continue to remain silent.

According to the PDP, since the former president is alive, he should come out and explain to Nigerians whether he authorized his former NSA to distribute money meant to fight Boko Haram into his campaign.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, is currently prosecuting some high profile officials of the Jonathan administration, including Dasuki, for their alleged role in the diversion and misappropriation of the arms fund.

Addressing Journalists yesterday in Abuja, the PDP Deputy National Publicity Secretary, Abdullahi Jalo said in light of the revelations so far made, silence on the part of ex-President Jonathan is no longer golden.

According to Jalo, “Jonathan is alive, he should clarify whether he asked the National Security Adviser to distribute money meant to fight Boko Haram into his campaign. What is important for one to know is that former President Goodluck Jonathan is alive. Has he ever said go and take the money for arms meant for Boko Haram to campaign for me? Is there any time that Jonathan asked for anything from either Dasuki to go and distribute this money meant for fighting Boko Haram for his campaign?

“As you all know, no single kobo will be spent by the federal government or former President Goodluck Jonathan without the Act of the National Assembly. Some people however decided to divert this money to something else.

“Darkness has now come to light, we have now discovered that it is not only PDP members who collected the money but those in APGA collected, Falae collected, Tanko Yakasai collected. They all collected the money under the guise that they are campaigning for Goodluck Jonathan.

“It is known to us that money meant for campaign are given to the national chairmen of various political parties. We had a dinner in the banquet hall where some billions were collected meant for campaign for Jonathan. That money was meant for campaign. Dangote, Otedola and others donated. So why would somebody tell us that you are taking money meant to fight Boko Haram, which is from an Act of the National Assembly. Any money appropriated is coming from consolidated account of the federal government and its usage must be meant for that”.

The PDP, which also disowned its embattled National Publicity Secretary, Chief Olisa Metuh, who has remained in EFCC custody for over a week, said that as a party, it will not fight for his bail and others who have been alleged to be involved in the arms deal scam because they did that on personal levels and not on the platform of the party.

“The issue of bail does not have anything to do with PDP”, Jalo said. “Let them tell us how much they have brought to PDP, to the national chairman and the money used for campaign, we want to know from them.

“PDP has nothing to do with individuals that used their companies to get money. PDP has no company, it is a political platform. There is PDP account and they did not even inform the PDP that they had received this money, they just went and slept with their families eating eggs and rice”.

The deputy national publicity secretary of PDP, who noted that members of the public should not misconstrue the unfolding issues with that of the opposition party, said that individuals that were presently involved, accessed public funds through their various private companies and not the PDP even though they were members of the party.

He added that the arms fund were an appropriation of the National Assembly to which former President Jonathan and Sambo Dasuki were aware of and were aware of the limit of using the funds other than what it was meant for.

Jalo futther said “There are a lot of outcries against our members that have been taken to court because they received money from what we called Dasukigate or arms deal.

“The former acting National Chairman, Dr. Bello Haliru, who was taken to court is now on bail, he has a company Pam Proper and Property limited, he was given N600 million under a registered company of Corporate Affairs Commission, you can find out what the contract was meant for. Has he done what he was asked to do with the N600 million?

“Olisa Metuh’s company is Destral investment limited, he was given a job of N400 million. What has that got to do with PDP, you can bear me witness, when Olisa was accusing Lai Mohammed that he collected a contract from one of the states in the West, even Lai Mohammed took him to court, so now the hunter is now the hunted. Lai’s case has not been proved, Olisa is under investigation.

“Let us put the record straight. We want anyone of these people that have been accused whether in PDP, APGA or APC to come out and tell us that the money they collected, was given to PDP or their party. When he was given this money was he given the money to go and campaign for Jonathan, if yes let him show us the paper, let him present an evidence, but whoever was given this money should know that this money was not meant for that, it was meant for arms purchase.

“Thank God the party has kept quiet deliberately, maybe, because some have benefited. If we cannot clean the party now, the future is going to be bleak.

“If the Legal Adviser of PDP, rushes to go and bail out Olisa Metuh now he is doing the wrong thing, because he has to separate the party and Olisa as an individual”.

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