The Charges Against Dasuki (including N1.45b for special prayers)

The trial of former NSA, Col Sambo Dasuki and several others indicted in the multi-billion naira arms purchase scam begins today.

See the charges the EFCC is pressing against them.

“That you Col. Mohammed Sambo Dasuki whilst being National Security Adviser and Shaibu Salisu, whilst being the Director of Finance and Administration in the Office of the National Security Adviser and Hon. Waripamowei Dudafa (now at large) whilst being Senior Special Assistant , Domestic Affairs to the President on or about 27th November within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court entrusted with dominion over certain properties to wit: the sum of N10 billion being part of the funds in the account of the National Security Adviser with the CBN, the equivalent of which sum you received from the CBN in foreign currencies to wit: $47million and €5.6million Euros committed criminal breach of trust in respect of the said property when you claimed to have distributed same to the Peoples Democratic Party(PDP) Presidential Primary Election delegates and you thereby committed an offence punishable under Section 315 of the Penal Code Act, Cap 532, Vol.4, LFN 2004.

“That you Col. Mohammed Sambo Dasuki whilst being National Security Adviser and Shaibu Salisu, whilst being the Director of Finance and Administration in the Office of the National Security Adviser(ONSA)  between 22nd January 2015 and 19th March 2015 in Abuja within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court entrusted with dominion over certain properties to wit: N2,120,000,000 which was in the account of National Security Adviser with the CBN committed criminal breach of trust in respect of the said property by remitting the said sum into the account of DAAR Investment and Holding Company Limited controlled by one Dr. Raymond Dokpesi for the funding of media activities for the 2015 Presidential Election Campaign for the PDP and you  thereby committed an offence punishable under Section 315 of the Penal Code Act, Cap 532, Vol.4, LFN 2004.

“That you Col. Mohammed Sambo Dasuki whilst being National Security Adviser and Shaibu Salisu, whilst being the Director of Finance and Administration in the Office of the National Security Adviser on or about 12th December 2013 in Abuja within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, and in such capacities  entrusted with dominion over certain properties to wit: N90 million which was in the account of the ONSA with Diamond Bank Plc, committed criminal breach of trust in respect of the said property by remitting the said sum into the account of Brains and Hammers Limited for the purchase of 7-bedroom duplex house at No.11 Mansur Bamalli Drive (D1064), Apo 1 Abuja  and you thereby committed an offence punishable under Section 315 of the Penal Code Act, Cap 532, Vol.4, LFN 2004.

“That you Col. Mohammed Sambo Dasuki whilst being National Security Adviser and Shaibu Salisu, whilst being the Director of Finance and Administration in the Office of the National Security Adviser on or about 28th January 2015 in Abuja within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, and in such capacities  entrusted with dominion over certain properties to wit: N170million, which was in the account of the ONSA with Skye Bank Plc committed criminal breach of trust in respect of the said property by remitting the said sum into the account of Urban Abode Nigeria Limited for the purchase of 4-bedroom duplex house  at Plot 2562/2643 Platinum Villa(PV) Asokoro Abuja in the name of AVM M.N.Umaru and  you thereby committed an offence punishable under Section 315 of the Penal Code Act, Cap 532,Vol.4, LFN 2004.

“That you Col. Mohammed Sambo Dasuki whilst being National Security Adviser and Shaibu Salisu, whilst being the Director of Finance and Administration in the Office of the National Security Adviser between 9th October 2014 and 17th April 2015 in Abuja dishonestly misappropriated certain property to wit: N1.45 billion belonging to the Federal Republic  of Nigeria which sum was transferred to Acacia Holdings Limited’s bank account controlled by one Aminu Baba-Kusa purporting same to be payment for organising prayers and  you thereby committed an offence punishable under Section 315 of the Penal Code Act, Cap 532,Vol.4, LFN 2004.

“That you Col. Mohammed Sambo Dasuki whilst being National Security Adviser and Shaibu Salisu, whilst being the Director of Finance and Administration in the Office of the National Security Adviser on or about 17th April 2015 in Abuja dishonestly misappropriated certain property to wit: N750 million belonging to the Federal Republic  of Nigeria which sum was transferred to Reliance Referral Hospital Limited’s bank account in favour of one Aminu Baba-Kusa purporting same to be payment for organizing prayers and  you thereby committed an offence punishable under Section 315 of the Penal Code Act, Cap 532,Vol.4, LFN 2004.

“That you Acacia Holdings Limited and Aminu Baba-Kusa between 9th October 2014 and 17th April 2015  in  Abuja knew that an aggregate sum of N1.45b directly represented the proceeds of criminal conducts of Mohammed Sambo Dasuki and Shuaibu Salisu, who were NSA  and the Director of Finance of ONSA respectively, to wit: criminal breach of trust in respect of the said amount, used the said property and  you thereby committed an offence punishable under Section 17(b) of the EFCC (Establishment) Act 2004 .

“That you Col. Mohammed Sambo Dasuki whilst being National Security Adviser and Shaibu Salisu, whilst being the Director of Finance and Administration in the Office of the National Security Adviser on or about 9th April 2015 in Abuja dishonestly misappropriated certain property to wit: N380 million belonging to the Federal Republic  of Nigeria which sum was transferred to Belsha Nigeria Limited’s bank account controlled by Hon. Bello Matanwalle for distribution to support some members of the House of Representatives for  their re-election campaign and  you thereby committed an offence punishable under Section 309 of the Penal Code Act, Cap 532, Vol.4, LFN 2004.

“That you Col. Mohammed Sambo Dasuki whilst being National Security Adviser and Shaibu Salisu, whilst being the Director of Finance and Administration in the Office of the National Security Adviser(ONSA)  between 12th August 2014 and 23 rd March 2015 in Abuja within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, and in such capacities  entrusted with dominion over certain properties to wit: the sum of N670million being part of the funds in the account of the ONSA with the CBN committed criminal breach of trust in respect of the said property when you transferred same to the bank account of General Hydrocarbons Limited with the Guaranty Trust Bank controlled by one Nduka Obaigbena purporting the said sum to be payment for “energy consulting” and  and  you thereby committed an offence punishable under Section 315 of the Penal Code Act, Cap 532,Vol.4, LFN 2004.

“That you Col. Mohammed Sambo Dasuki whilst being National Security Adviser and Shaibu Salisu, whilst being the Director of Finance and Administration in the Office of the National Security Adviser(ONSA)  on or about 28th November 2014  in Abuja within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, and in such capacities  entrusted with dominion over certain properties to wit: the sum of N260 million being part of the funds in the account of the ONSA with Skye Bank Plc committed criminal breach of trust in respect of the said property when you transferred same to the bank account of Tony Anenih with First Bank of Nigeria Plc and  you thereby committed an offence punishable under Section 315 of the Penal Code Act, Cap 532,Vol.4, LFN 2004.

“That you Col. Mohammed Sambo Dasuki whilst being National Security Adviser and Shaibu Salisu, whilst being the Director of Finance and Administration in the Office of the National Security Adviser(ONSA)  between 8th January and 4th March 2015 in Abuja within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, and in such capacities  entrusted with dominion over certain properties to wit: an aggregate sum of N345 million being part of the funds in the account of the ONSA with  the CBN committed criminal breach of trust in respect of the said property when you transferred same to the bank account Starbriid Limited with Stanbic IBTC and Guaranty Trust Bank controlled by one Emmanuel Lawani on behalf of Senator Iyorchia Ayu for the construction of shopping mall at Jabi, Abuja, purporting the said sum to be payment for satellite charges and security equipment and  you thereby committed an offence punishable under Section 315 of the Penal Code Act, Cap 532,Vol.4, LFN 2004.

“That you Col. Mohammed Sambo Dasuki whilst being National Security Adviser and Shaibu Salisu, whilst being the Director of Finance and Administration in the Office of the National Security Adviser(ONSA)  between October 2014 and April  2015 in Abuja within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, agreed to do an illegal act to wit: criminal breach of trust by public officers in respect of an aggregate sum of N13.570 billion being part of the funds in the accounts of the ONSA and that the same act was done in pursuance of the agreement  among you and  you thereby committed an offence punishable under Section 97 of the Penal Code Act, Cap 532, Vol.4, LFN 2004."

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Abacha Loot: 11 Questions SERAP Wants Okonjo-Iweala To Answer

Following the controversy surrounding the spending of the recovered Abacha loot, Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project, SERAP has posed the following questions to former Minister of Finance, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala.

“First, the World Bank confirmed that of the 51 projects reviewed, 23 were described as “completed”, 26 were at various stages of completion, and 2 were described as “abandoned”. Nigerians would like Mrs Okonjo-Iweala to show us evidence of the 23 projects allegedly completed, and whether the 26 projects where actually completed; and what became of the 2 abandoned projects.

”Second, the World Bank confirmed that 6 out of 8 health centers reviewed pertained to physical infrastructure but were not completed. Nigerians would like Mrs Okonjo-Iweala to explain why these projects were not completed on time, and whether in fact they were completed at all; as well as location of completed projects.

“Nigerians would also like Mrs Okonjo-Iweala to explain the letter she wrote to the Ambassador of Switzerland to Nigeria January 9, 2005 that of the 174 health centers built with Abacha funds, 138 were fully functional and that remaining 36 were expected to be commissioned in January 2005. Nigerians would appreciate it if Mrs Okonjo-Iweala could identify and name all the health centers mentioned her letter.

“Third, as regards power projects, the World Bank confirmed that payments by government to contractors could not be verified “because in most cases contact information for contractors was not available,” and that 10 of the 18 power projects pertained to physical electrical installations. Nigerians would like Mrs Okonjo-Iweala to identify and name the 10 installations, and to provide contact details of the contractors that executed the projects.

“Fourth, the World Bank confirmed that most of the recovered funds were used to repay domestic borrowing. Nigerians would like Mrs Okonjo-Iweala to explain how much exactly was involved as a part of 2004 annual budget execution in anticipation of the repatriation of the looted funds in 2004, as well as repayment terms of the funds and from which banks.

”Fifth, the World Bank confirmed that the government opened a special US dollar account for recovered funds with the Bank for International Settlements in Basel, to which various transfers of Abacha loot were made. The World Bank also confirmed that some $50 mn was received before 2005 which was kept in the special account. Nigerians would like Mrs Okonjo-Iweala to explain how much was left in the account by the time she left office in May.

”Sixth, the World Bank confirmed that the data on inflows of recovered funds are broadly identical but that there was one material discrepancy, which was unexplained. The Bank also said the information it received from the government ‘does not contain a reference to the transfer of $5.2 mn in August of 2006.’ Nigerians would like Mrs Okonjo-Iweala to explain the material discrepancy, and why the transfer of $5.2 mn was not disclosed to the Bank.

”Seventh, the World Bank confirmed that Abacha returned loot was used as source of 2005budget deficit financing, and that the funds were directed to co-financing of capital expenditure and balancing the 2005 budget. Nigerians would like Mrs Okonjo-Iweala to explain exactly the capital expenditure involved.

“Eighth, the World Bank confirmed that the Abacha funds were used to provide additional financing for the Universal Basic Education (UBE) program in the amount of NGN24.25 bn to support basic education throughout the country. This amount was fully disbursed and fully utilized. Nigerians would like Mrs Okonjo-Iweala to identify the number and location of schools which benefited from these funds at the time.

“Ninth, the World Bank confirmed that there were problems with collecting project-related information because of under-developed reporting and accounting standards, and absence of properly set-up databases for sectoral project portfolios; and weak administrative capacity in the ministry of finance. Nigerians would like Mrs Okonjo-Iweala to explain why this was the case under her watch.

“Tenth, the World Bank confirmed that 13 road projects were completed including 3 of the largest road and bridge projects in each geo-political zone. Also, the Bank regretted that it was not possible to interview many contractors in order to obtain independent confirmation of amounts spent on individual projects, and record their comments on project status. Nigerians would like Mrs Okonjo-Iweala to explain exactly what happened, and to identify unconfirmed individual projects, including the largest roads and bridges completed.

“Eleventh, the World Bank confirmed that no special arrangements were made for project selection and monitoring. According to the Bank, ‘Given the weakness of general budget reporting systems at the moment, this decision greatly undermined the opportunity for tracking the returned Abacha funds and analysis of their utilization.’ Nigerians would like Mrs Okonjo-Iweala to explain why this was the case under her watch.”

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We can't keep quiet about arms procurement scam - Buhari

The misappropriation of funds meant to purchase weapons for the armed forces is an abuse trust.

That is what President Muhammadu Buhari said on Wednesday at the old Banquet Hall of the State House in Abuja during a dinner for members of the House of Representatives.

Buhari expressed disappointment that certain people worked against the defeat of Boko Haram by failing to procure the necessary equipment which the funds were meant for.

“Unfortunately for us as a people, we uncovered that billions of Naira and hundreds of millions of dollars were expended by the previous government to acquire good equipment and ammunition so that the military can use, but unfortunately, there was abuse of trust at various levels that cost Nigeria a lot of lives and goodwill.

“We cannot keep quiet about it and facts are coming out gradually. It is very unfortunate. It is a known fact that Nigeria earned its respect from Burma to Zaire to Liberia to Sierra Leone. But it reached a stage where the Nigerian military could not secure 14 local governments out of the 774 local governments.

“As I have always said, how has the mighty fallen? We are doing our best and I hope our best will be good enough,” he said.

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I loaned $322m Abacha loot to Dasuki - Okonjo-Iweala

Immediate past Minister of Finance and Coordinator of the Economy, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala on Wednesday disclosed that she loaned $322m Abacha loot to former National Security Adviser, Col Sambo Dasuki for the purpose of prosecuting the war against Boko Haram.

In a statement issued by her Media Adviser, Paul Nwabuikwu on Wednesday, Okonjo-Iweala said ;
“Some new Abacha funds of about $322 million were returned with another $700m still expected to be returned. Former President (Goodluck) Jonathan set up a Committee comprising the former Minister of Justice, former NSA and the former Minister of Finance to determine how best to use both the returned and expected funds for development.

“... the NSA made a case for using the returned funds for urgent security operations since, he noted, there cannot be any development without peace and security. Based on this, a decision was taken to deploy about $322m for the military operations, while the expected $700m would be applied for development programmes as originally conceived.”

The former Finance Minister said that based on the urgency of Dasuki's memo, she requested former President Goodluck Jonathan “to approve the transfer of the requested amount to the NSA’s Office for the specified purposes.”

She however said that her recommendation was based on certain conditions.

She said that she “insisted on three conditions: A. Only a part, not the entire Abacha funds, would be spent on the arms; the rest would be invested in developmental projects as originally conceived. B. The money was to be treated as borrowed funds which would be paid back as soon as possible and C . The NSA’s office was to account for the spending to the President who was the Commander-in-Chief, given the fact that the Minister of Finance is not part of the security architecture and does not participate in the Security Council.

“Throughout 2014, there were public complaints by the military hierarchy to President Goodluck Jonathan about the inadequacy of funds to fight the anti-terror war in the North East, resulting in Boko Haram making gains and even taking territories. A lot of the criticism was directed at the Federal Ministry of Finance under Dr Okonjo-Iweala which was accused of not doing enough to find funds for the operations,” the statement said.

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How Okonjo-Iweala's letter to Jonathan gave Dasuki $322m Abacha loot

On January 12, 2015, the office of the NSA under Col Sambo Dasuki requested for funds for the procurement of arms, ammunition and intelligence equipment to aid the fight against insurgency.

See Okonjo-Iweala's letter to then President Jonathan on the subject matter as published by Premium Times.

“Please find a request by the National Security Adviser (NSA)for the transfer of $300 million and £5.5 million of the recovered Abacha funds to an ONSA (Office of the National Security Adviser) operations account.

“The NSA has explained that this is to enable the purchase of ammunition, security, and other intelligence equipment for the security agencies in order to enable them fully confront the ongoing Boko Haram threat.

“His request is sequel to the meeting you chaired with the committee on the use of recovered funds where the decision was made that recovered Abacha funds would be split 50-50 between urgent security needs to confront Boko Haram and development need (including a portion for the Future Generations Window of the Sovereign Wealth Fund) .

“This letter is to seek your approval to borrow these funds, for now, to disburse to the NSA. These funds form part of the projected Federal Government Independent Revenue, to be appropriated. In the light and for accountability, given the peculiar nature of security and intelligence transactions, we would expect the NSA to account to Your Excellency for the utilisation of the funds."

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EFCC vows to recover stolen arms funds

The Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Mr Ibrahim Magu has declared that the agency will recover all public funds stolen under the guise of arms procurement. 

Speaking at the commemoration of the International Anti-corruption Day at the Shehu Musa Yar’Adua Centre, Abuja yesterday, Magu lamented the negative effects of corruption on the country .

‘‘Corruption is like a chain whose effect impacts various aspects of the society, undermines democracy and the rule of law, distorts markets, erodes quality of life, leads to human rights violations and fans the embers of terrorism and other threats to human security.

“I am sure that many of you would have read in the newspapers stories about the Commission’s on-going investigation into the arms procurement scandal.

“I can assure you that the Commission is on top of that investigation.  We will spare no effort to ensure that we recover every kobo of public funds that have been stolen in the guise of arms procurement,” he said.

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See who is asking where Abacha loot is

Sahara Reporters
@SaharaReporters
FLASH: @NOIweala told the
@WorldBank she spent Abacha loot on road construction & now she is telling the world she borrowed it to thieves.

So, who spent the recovered Abacha loot and for what?

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