Africa Press-Nigeria:
Delta lawmaker, Peter Nwaoboshi, has dared the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Godswill Akpabio, on the list of lawmakers who allegedly got contracts from the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC).
Mr Akpabio had, on Sunday, released the names of some federal lawmakers involved.
He listed Mr Nwaoboshi against 53 projects.
Some of the projects include emergency repairs of Asue Street, Owa Phase 2; ldumuogbe Road via Ojemaye; Otolokpo College Road, Otolokpo; and the Police lshu Ani Ukwu Road, Issele Uku.
Mr Akpabio also listed two other senators. He said Matthew Urhoghide got six projects, James Manager got six contracts while a former senator, Samuel Anyanwu, got 19 projects.
The former Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on the NDDC, Nicholas Mutu, was also named by the minister as receiving 74 contracts – the highest among the listed lawmakers.
Some of the projects are emergency roads in Delta, Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa and Rivers states.
A few others were simply identified as Ondo and Edo Reps.
This was in response to the threat issued by the Speaker of the House, Femi Gbajabiamila, to sue the minister for alleged defamation of character.
Mr Akpabio in a hearing with the House panel alleged that the majority of the contracts in the NDDC were given out to members of the National Assembly but was challenged by Mr Gbajabiamila to name the lawmakers involved in the scandal within 48 hours.
The minister earlier retracted his claim saying his reference was not to current lawmakers of the ninth assembly.
But reacting to the list released by the minister, Mr Nwaoboshi, said the allegation has no bearing with the truth. He challenged Mr Akpabio to send the “so-called list to anti-graft and other security agencies if he can substantiate the apparently baseless allegation.”
Mr Nwaoboshi who is the chairman of the Senate Committee on Niger Delta, said he would not make further comments on the matter because it is currently before two competent courts of law.
“However, suffice it to say that this unsubstantiated allegation is in line with Mr Akpabio’s well-known agenda to continuously blackmail me so as to keep diverting public attention away from the serious mismanagement of the NDDC by the Interim Management Committee (IMC) under his supervision and under the guise of a phantom forensic audit that has no operating timeline,” part of his statement read.
Mr Nwaoboshi, who is already facing a two-count charge of conspiracy and money laundering instituted by the EFCC, further advised Mr Akpabio and the IMC to focus their energy on explaining to Nigerians how they spent a whopping N81.5b within five months.
