Scam Alert: PDP Chief Accuses Pius Anyim of Tricking GEJ to Sign N1.2bn Deal in Open Letter to Buhari

 

At a press conference convened in Abuja on Monday to react to the protest by a group, New PDP Reformation Coalition and Support Groups, the National Vice Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, South-South zone, Cairo Ojougboh, has petitioned President Muhammadu Buhari, asking him to investigate the immediate past Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Pius Anyim, over alleged multi-billion naira scam.

In a five-page letter, dated July 21, to Buhari, he alleged that the Centenary City project in Abuja, which was built by the Federation Government but which construction was coordinated by the former SGF as part of the activities to mark Nigeria’s 100 years as nation, was a scam. He said the government had no equity in the project and that Anyim, a former senate president, was the sole owner of the 3000 acres of the land allegedly owned by the Centenary City.

Also, in the letter to Buhari, the former lawmaker said that he has “since discovered the landed property appropriated in the name of the Federal Government by the scammers alone is worth more than four billon dollars. This is contradictory to the estimate value which Senator Pius Anyim declared in ThisDay interview. The question then: Why would he want to deceive Nigerians as to the actual value of the Centenary City Project.”

Mr. Ojougboh alleged that as a result of the agitation on the eligibility of the Centenary City Project, the former SGF “persecuted me, recommended and ensured that I was removed as chairman of the board of NEPZA”.

He added that after a thorough investigation he carried out on the various substantive issues raised by the scam, he raised an internal party memo to former President Goodluck Jonathan in April last year denouncing the scam and elucidated on its ramification to the nation.

“I also informed the President that Senator Pius Anyim has been in clear breach of the extant civil service rules on procedure and ethics as he was the sole owner of the Centenary City Project and operated the scam through his surrogate company, Messrs Company First Nigeria.

 

The PDP chieftain, who was chairman of the board of NEPZA during the project’s conception, said the board did not approve a free trade zone status for it.

“I can categorically attest to the fact emphatically and unequivocally, that the board did not approve the grant of the status of free trade zone to centenary city.
Centenary city cannot be a free zone because it is purely a residential estate within the confinement of the Federal Capital Territory and it is implicit that those who live in the free trade zone will require re-entry visa for ingress and egress.

This is against the tenets and spirit of the Public Service rules for a public servant to own such a business whilst in government,” Ojougboh said.

Mr. Ojougbioh however exonerated ex President Jonathan, saying;

“Yes, the former President signed the papers as was presented to him by the former secretary of the Government SGF, he was not properly briefed because of vested interests, I can defend him, he was not part of the fraud. If Jonathan had been properly briefed he would not have approved the project not to talk of going to perform the ground breaking of the project.

However, reacting to Mr. Ojougboh’s allegation, Mr. Anyim said he was already in court over the matter and would not jeopardize the progress of the case.

 

Sources: Premium Times / The Nation