The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, on Friday slammed
a 24-count charge of stealing on the former Head of Service of the
Federation (HOS), Steve Oronsaye, and two others.
The charges brought against the former HOS and two other accomplices
border on stealing and obtaining by false pretence, otherwise known as
419, people familiar with the matter told PREMIUM TIMES.
We understand that Mr. Oronsaye and his two accomplices would be arraigned in court on Monday.
Already, the case has been assigned to Justice Gabriel Kolawole of the Federal High Court, Abuja.
Mr. Oronsaye was arrested by the anti-graft agency on Wednesday on allegations of corruption.
He, however, ran into fresh trouble when new allegations emerged that he was engaged in theft and money laundering.
The commission had granted him administrative bail and ordered him to report for further interrogation Friday.
After hours of rigorous questioning by top officials of the commission, the 24-count charges were drawn up against him.
PREMIUM TIMES had in December 15, 2013 exclusively reported how Mr.
Oronsaye and other top directors of the Nigerian civil service colluded
to allegedly defraud the nation of N6.2 billion pension fund.
The fund, allegedly stolen through a maze of bogus contracts, was
meant for biometric enrollment and payment for computer accessories that
were never supplied, PREMIUM TIMES learnt.
Mr. Oronsaye, 64, was appointed the Head of the Nigerian Civil Service in 2009.
A reliable source at the commission had at the time said that between
2009 and 2010, almost N6 billion in fake contracts were awarded and
paid for under Mr. Oronsaye’s supervision.
The fraud
According to the EFCC, Innovative Solutions and Project Limited, a
company allegedly handpicked by Mr. Oronsaye, received a contract of N63
million for biometric data capture.
The contract, however, served as a conduit through which three individuals and five companies got N705,368,245.
Other companies which had no contract to participate in the biometric
data capture exercise but were paid include Frederick Hamilton Global
Limited, who received N119,398,500; Xangee Technologies got
N153,146,719; Fatidek Venture received N30,056,000; while Obanlado
Enterprises was paid N96,765,400.00.
During its investigations, the EFCC uncovered how Phina Chidi, a
deputy director in the Pension Account at the Office of the Head of
Civil Service of the Federation, OHCSF, who had given a written
statement to the commission in January, 2011, disclosed to the agency
how she was made to shop for companies that would execute contracts and
make returns to Mr. Oronsaye.
“I was asked by Dr. Shuaibu (Teildi Shuaibu, Director, Pension
Account) to shop for company names to execute our contracts, proceeds of
which should be given to Mr. Stephen Oronsaye the then Head of
Service,” Mrs. Chidi said in her statement.
Mrs. Chidi also detailed how the proceeds of such deals were kept in
the accounts of two banks before Mr. Shuaibu helped to transfer them to
Mr. Oronsaye.
Individuals who benefitted from the string of payments, allegedly
made on the eve of Mr. Oronsaye’s retirement as Head of Service, include
Kate Chinwe Obiekwe, Ibrahim Abdulkarim and Mohammed Abdullahi Ahmed
who were paid N56,612,585.00, N80,108,640.00 and N23,760.00
respectively.
The trio, who are officials of the OHCSF pension, received the
“collective allowance” – allowances paid out to an officer of the OHCSF
for distribution to other staff who are supposedly meant to be on a
trip, contrary to Federal Government directives on e-payment.
Others who also benefited from the payments include Innovative
Solutions and Project Limited and Vivians Ebony Nigeria Enterprise.
The former is said to have a N63 million worth of contract with the
Office of the Head of Service but its emergence as the preferred
contractor is in breach of the procurement process since the contact for
the biometric exercise was not advertised.
Also, a Certificate of no-objection was not obtained by the office of
the Head of Service from the Bureau of Public Procurement, BPP,
although Mr. Oronsaye allegedly indicated in his statement before the
EFCC that he made an informal request to the BPP about the process
involved.
Apart from breaching the procurement process, the contract awarded to
Innovative Solutions and Project Limited was also fraught with a series
of irregular and inflated payments made to the company, according to
the EFCC.
Robert Ikhaziboh, the Chief Executive of the company, admitted to
EFCC investigators that he was instructed by one Osarenkhoe Afe, an IT
consultant and nominee of Mr. Oronsaye as member of the Pension Reform
Committee, to work with two companies – Upstrach Communication and
Federick Hamilton Global Limited – with specific instructions on the
amount to pay the companies whenever he received payment.
When questioned by the EFCC, Mr. Afe stated that Frederick Hamilton
was paid N289.05 million for its contract, out of which he got N35
million and Mr. Oronsaye received N250 million through third parties.
Mr. Afe stated that he was willing to make a refund.
Under questioning by the EFCC on December 7, PREMIUM TIMES learnt,
Mr. Oronsaye claimed ignorance of some of the companies that received
bogus payments and traced back to him.
He also claimed ignorance of Xangee Technologies, Fatidek Ventures
and Obalano Enterprises and said he never approved any payment to them.
However, when provided with evidences of payments to these companies,
Mr. Oronsaye became silent; sources at the commission said.
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