Yakubu Dati, a senior aide to Nigeria’s Aviation Minister Stella Oduah, has issued a statement claiming that those opposed to President Goodluck Jonathan’s re-election bid were behind reports that revealed his boss’s purchase of two armored BMW cars at the cost of $1.6 million.
The preposterous position is contained in a press statement titled, “APC Demonstration: Unmasking the Face Behind The Mask”. In it, Mr. Dati claimed that the APC as well as members of a splinter group of the Peoples Democratic Party were behind the expose on Ms. Oduah’s scandalous misuse of public funds in the purchase of the BMWs as well as a series of other sleazy car deals.
A source within the Presidency told SaharaReporters that the minister’s sudden new posture reflected her desperate effort to hang on to her job at all costs. “The best hope for Madam [Ms. Oduah] is to convince Mr. President that she is taking the heat for him—and that he is the ultimate target of the reports,” said the source.
Mr. Dati’s error-riddled statement also claimed that the vehicles purchased at Ms. Oduah’s behest were obtained via “higher-purchase,” an apparent reference to “hire-purchase,” a system of spreading payments for goods over a period of time. He also claimed that the agency had not even commenced payment.
However, the documents earlier obtained by SaharaReporters, which broke the scandal, expose Mr. Dati’s latest claims as a blatant attempt at public deception. Documents that were earlier posted on our website reveal that the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) included a letter from the NCAA dated August 13, 2013 and signed by the agency’s acting Managing Director, J.D. Nkemakolam. The letter asked for the delivery of the BMW armored cars. Mr. Nkemakolam then requested that Coscharis Motors Limited submit its account information for “immediate payment” upon delivery of the vehicles.
On August 14, 2013, the Group Financial Comptroller of Coscharis sent a letter to the NCAA submitting the account number 2018912995 belonging to the car sales firm at the First Bank of Nigeria. The same day, according to several sources at the aviation agency, the minister ordered two NCAA store managers to sign papers certifying that the cars had been delivered.
SaharaReporters has since found out that the staff of the transport unit who signed the “delivery document” never saw the vehicles. In fact, no official of the NCAA has since stated that he or she ever saw the two controversial cars purchased at a scandal cost of approximately $800,000 each.
Saharareporters confirmed that the account number above belongs to Coscharis Motors.
Earlier today, SaharaReporters disclosed that, as soon as Coscharis received payment for the cars from a loan secured from First Bank in the name of the NCAA, the auto sales firm gave Ms. Oduah more than N100 million as kickbacks. A source at the car dealership stated that Ms. Oduah and Coscharis owner, Cosmos Maduka, have been friends for a long time.
A source within the Presidency told SaharaReporters that the minister’s sudden new posture reflected her desperate effort to hang on to her job at all costs. “The best hope for Madam [Ms. Oduah] is to convince Mr. President that she is taking the heat for him—and that he is the ultimate target of the reports,” said the source.
Mr. Dati’s error-riddled statement also claimed that the vehicles purchased at Ms. Oduah’s behest were obtained via “higher-purchase,” an apparent reference to “hire-purchase,” a system of spreading payments for goods over a period of time. He also claimed that the agency had not even commenced payment.
However, the documents earlier obtained by SaharaReporters, which broke the scandal, expose Mr. Dati’s latest claims as a blatant attempt at public deception. Documents that were earlier posted on our website reveal that the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) included a letter from the NCAA dated August 13, 2013 and signed by the agency’s acting Managing Director, J.D. Nkemakolam. The letter asked for the delivery of the BMW armored cars. Mr. Nkemakolam then requested that Coscharis Motors Limited submit its account information for “immediate payment” upon delivery of the vehicles.
On August 14, 2013, the Group Financial Comptroller of Coscharis sent a letter to the NCAA submitting the account number 2018912995 belonging to the car sales firm at the First Bank of Nigeria. The same day, according to several sources at the aviation agency, the minister ordered two NCAA store managers to sign papers certifying that the cars had been delivered.
SaharaReporters has since found out that the staff of the transport unit who signed the “delivery document” never saw the vehicles. In fact, no official of the NCAA has since stated that he or she ever saw the two controversial cars purchased at a scandal cost of approximately $800,000 each.
Saharareporters confirmed that the account number above belongs to Coscharis Motors.
Earlier today, SaharaReporters disclosed that, as soon as Coscharis received payment for the cars from a loan secured from First Bank in the name of the NCAA, the auto sales firm gave Ms. Oduah more than N100 million as kickbacks. A source at the car dealership stated that Ms. Oduah and Coscharis owner, Cosmos Maduka, have been friends for a long time.
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