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| Maj. Gen. Atewe |
By Ramon Oladimeji
An Abuja-based businessman, Mr.
Nkem Ahidjo, claimed on Friday that N35m out of the N8.5bn allegedly diverted
by retired Maj. Gen. Emmanuel Atewe was paid to the Living Faith Church,
popularly known as Winners’ Chapel.
Atewe served as the Commander of
the military Joint Task Force, Operation Pulo Shield, in the Niger Delta before
his retirement.
He was last week re-arraigned by
the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission for an alleged fraud of N8.5bn,
which the EFCC claimed was perpetrated during the operation.
He is facing 22 counts before
Justice A.O. Faji of the Federal High Court in Lagos.
The other defendants in the case
are a former Director-General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and
Safety Agency, Patrick Akpobolokemi; Kime Engozu and Josephine Otuaga.
The EFCC accused them of conspiring
among themselves to divert N8.5bn from Operation Pulo Shield between September
5, 2014, and May 20, 2015, using six companies.
The six companies were listed as
Jagan Ltd; Jagan Trading Company Ltd; Jagan Global Services Ltd; Al-Nald Ltd;
Paper Warehouse Ltd; Eastpoint Integrated Services Ltd and De-Newlink
Integrated Services Ltd.
They had been arraigned on three
occasions and had on each occasion pleaded not guilty to the offence.
In a bid to prove its allegations,
however, the EFCC called Ahidjo as its first witness on Friday.
Led in evidence by the EFCC
prosecutor, Mr. Rotimi Oyedepo, Ahidjo introduced himself as a businessman, who
dealt in stationeries, printing, and general contracts.
The witness said he carried on his
trade under his five companies based in Abuja, adding that he was a registered
contractor with the National Assembly, the National Population Commission, and
the Independent National Electoral Commission, to which he made supplies.
He claimed to have known Atewe from
Villa Church in Abuja, where they both worshiped, as of when the retired
general was still a Guard Commander.
The witness said, being a
pentecostal, he also attended Living Faith Church, and Atewe also worshiped
there.
He said he cultivated a good
relationship with Atewe, to the extent that he attended “midnight church” in
Atewe’s house in Abuja, three times a week.
Ahidjo narrated to the court how
Atewe moved to Bayelsa between July and September 2014 where he served as JTF
Commander.
“He invited me to Bayelsa and I
went. He told me that the Federal Government gave JTF a grant for security and
building of barracks and if I have any company into which account money could
be paid. And being somebody I knew very well from Guard Commander to Major
General, I provided the companies that I listed earlier,” Ahidjo said.
The witness said on a second
invitation and visit to Atewe in Bayelsa, Atewe told him that three payments
were about to be made into his accounts and as soon as they were made he should
acknowledge the payments and await further instructions.
He said within two to three days of
the meeting, he started to receive the payments and accordingly informed Atewe,
who asked him to hold on till he (Atewe) returned to Abuja.
The witness said upon Atewe’s
return to Abuja, he invited him to his office at Niger Barracks in Abuja, where
he introduced, Engozu, who is the 3rd defendant, as the person that would take
delivery of the money from Ahidjo.
Ahidjo said in view of the volume
of the monies, Engozu advised him to change the money from naira to dollar
before delivery, and he according contacted a Bureau de Change operator, named
only as Jimoh.
“Each time I received it (money), I
would call a BDC operator, named Jimoh. I knew him before this time. He would
change the money, I would pay him the naira equivalent and take the dollars.
Once I changed it, I would wait for instruction either from Major General Atewe
or Mr. Kime. That was what we continued to do until the end of the transaction
in 2015,” Ahidjo said.
He said he received a total of
N4,915,163,103 within the period, out of which about N4.1bn were converted to
dollars and delivered to Engozu, who in turn issued a receipt for each payment
based on Atewe’s instruction.
Ahidjo said of the remaining
amount, he was instructed by Atewe to transfer N35m to Winners’ Chapel; N103m
to INP Ltd; N170m to First Investment Ltd; N99m to Lord Fem Ltd; N88m to Ocean
Gas and N297m to Cisco Nobot.
Asked by the prosecutor the purpose
of the transfer to Living Faith Church, Ahidjo said, “I don’t know what it was
for; it was on the instruction of Maj. Gen. Atewe. All these monies, I don’t
question what they were meant for. It is not my money, so I can’t question what
it was for. Maj. Gen. Atewe asked me to act on instruction.”
Justice Faji adjourned till March
21, 2017, for Ahidjo to continue his evidence.
Culled from Punch
