EFCC Arest Ex-NAF chief Amosu spends third day in there custody
information gathared on
Thursday that two teams of the EFCC investigating the arms procurement
fraud had taken turns to interrogate the former chief of air staff since
he reported at the commission’s headquarters at 10.am on Wednesday.
It was learnt that between 10.30pm on Wednesday and 8pm on Thursday, Amosu had been quizzed for a total of 15 hours.
Findings showed that besides being
quizzed, the former chief of air staff was asked to write a statement on
the allegations by the presidential committee that investigated arms
procurement under former President Goodluck Jonathan.
It was gathered that among other issues,
he was quizzed over the alleged fraud that characterised 10 contracts
of the Nigeria Air Force between 2014 and 2015, totalling $930.5m
It was learnt that most of the questions
asked Amosu centred on the procurement of two used Mi-24V helicopters
instead of the recommended Mi-35M series at the cost of $136.9m.
The helicopters were said to have been
inflated and not operationally air worthy at the time of delivery. A
brand new unit of such helicopters goes for about $30m.
Besides Amosu, it was learnt that the
EFCC had also been interrogating another Air Vice Marshal, who had been
taken into custody.
An EFCC operative, who confided in The PUNCH, could not give the identity of the second military personnel being interrogated alongside the former Chief of Air Staff.
The source stated, “The interrogation of
the former chief of air staff started around 10.30am on Wednesday and I
think between yesterday (Wednesday) and 8pm today (Thursday), he must
have been grilled for a total of 15 hours. He has also written a
statement.”
President Muhammadu Buhari had, on
January 15, directed the EFCC to probe 18 top officers of the military
comprising both retired and serving personnel as part of the ongoing
efforts to unravel the $2.1bn arms funds, allegedly mismanaged under the
immediate past National Security Adviser, Col. Sambo Dasuki (retd.).
Another operative also confirmed that Amosu was detained by the EFCC on Wednesday and had been there since then.
“The former Chief of Air Staff, Air
Marshal Adesola Amosu, came yesterday (Wednesday) in response to our
invitation. We sent out invitations to them last week and they were
expected to report with effect from Wednesday,” the operative said.
The Head of Media and Publicity of the
EFCC, Mr. Wilson Uwujaren, said he did not have information on the
detention of the former Air Chief when contacted.
“I don’t have that information,’’ he said.
It was also learnt that the EFCC on
Wednesday started the interrogation of other 18 serving and retired
military officers, who were ordered to be investigated by the President.
It was gathered that besides Amosu, others, who were quizzed on Wednesday, were asked to go home.
The officers, who are being investigated
by the EFCC include a former Chief of Defence Staff, Air Chief Marshal
Alex Badeh (retd.), and a former Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal M. D.
Umar (retd.).
The EFCC is also investigating 11
serving officers, including Air Marshal A. M. Mamu (Chief of
Administration, Nigeria Air Force); AVM Oguntoyinbo (former Director of
Production, Defence Headquarters); AVM T. Omenyi (Managing Director, NAF
Holdings); and AVM J. B. Adigun (former Chief of Accounts and Budget).
Others are AVM R. A. Ojuawo (Air Force
Tactical Air Command, Markudi); AVM J. A. Kayode-Beckley (Director,
Armament Research in Air Force Research and Development Centre); Air
Cdre. A. O. Ogunjobi; Air Cdre G. M. Gwani, Air Cdre A.Y. Lassa; Col. N.
Ashinze (Special Assistant to the former NSA, Dasuki;) and Air Cdr. S.
O. Makinde.
The President’s Senior Special Assistant
on Media and Publicity, Garba Sheu, had, in a statement on January 15,
said the presidential panel’s findings indicated that the procurement
processes were arbitrarily carried out and generally characterised by
irregularities.
According to him, the panel also stated
that in many cases, the procured items failed to meet the purposes they
were procured for, especially the counter-insurgency efforts in the
North-East.
He had said, “A major procurement activity undertaken by ONSA for NAF was that concerning the contracts awarded to Societe D’ Equipment Internationaux (SEI) Nig Ltd.
“The committee had said that between January 2014 and February 2015, NAF awarded 10 contracts totalling $930.5m.
It had stated that the letters of award
and end user certificates for all the contracts issued by NAF and ONSA
did not reflect the contract sums.”
Amosu had, in a report to Dasuki, said the four Alpha-Jet aircraft were delivered.
The panel had stated that the Alpha-Jets
were non-militarised hence they could not be deployed in the North-East
and that they were currently deployed only for training at NAF base,
Kainji.
The presidential panel had said,
“Furthermore, the procurement of the Alpha-Jets was contrary to the
recommendation of the assessment team. The committee found that the
conduct of Air Marshal Amosu was deliberately misleading and
unpatriotic.
“The contract for the procurement of
36D6 Low Level Air Defence Radar for the NAF was awarded to GAT Techno
Dynamics Ltd in April 2014 at the cost of $33m and was funded by ONSA.”
The radars were said to have been valued at $6m.
Copyright PUNCH.
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