President Goodluck Jonathan's front woman in the petroleum industry, Mrs Diezani Alison-Madueke was the focus of the House of Representatives on Thursday as the House initiated a probe into an allegation that she spent a cumulative sum of N10 billion in two years flying around in a private jet.
The move to investigate the fraudulent activities came on the heels of the alarm raised by a group, Concerned Aviation Professionals (CAP).
The sum of 500,000 Euros (N130 million) is spent every month on the maintenance, meaning that, over the last two years, a total of N10 billion has been expended on payments of allowances to the plane’s crew, hangar parking and rent based on a lease agreement.
The private jet in question, a Challenger 850, is used exclusively by the minister’s immediate family even as the nation’s cash cow, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), is alleged to have bankrolled the venture for two years...
The controversial N10 billion lease deal on the private aircraft is coming to the fore less than 40 days after the sack of Princess Stella Oduah as aviation minister following her controversial purchase of two bulletproof BMW cars at a cost of N255 million.
There was an effort to stop the move to probe the minister. Soon after Adejare’s submission, a member from Edo State, Hon. Friday Itulah (PDP), made an attempt to counter the motion. Itulah was, however, stopped by the speaker, Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, who relied on the relevant orders of the House to put the motion to voice vote to determine whether an investigation into the matter should be allowed or not.
Minister Alison-Madueke has kept mum over the move to probe her. Efforts to get reactions from the Ministry of Petroleum Resources to the allegations were unsuccessful. Neither calls nor text messages sent to the ministry’s spokesman, Mr Kingsley Agha, were answered.
The House of Reps, acting on the motion moved by Hon. Babatunde Adejare (APC, Lagos), mandated the committee on Public Accounts to commence a probe into the matter and report back in three weeks. Leading a debate on the motion, Adejare said he had reliable information that the minister allegedly sank the sum of N3.120bn into the maintenance of a private jet that is reserved for the use of her “personal needs and that of her immediate family”.
The lawmaker went ahead to say it is worthy of concern “that an official of government could be bankrolling this waste in the face of ever dwindling public resources which amounts to a misplacement of priority, impudence and breach of public trust”.
He noted that her action contravenes the Fiscal Responsibility Act “and all other laws on fiscal discipline”.
Aviation stakeholders had petitioned President Jonathan on the matter, just as copies of their letter were sent to the Senate President and the Speaker of the House of Representatives.
Sources told www.isaiahakomor.blogspot.com that President Jonathan succeeded in blocking the probe of Madam Diezani in the Senate through the help of David Mark but the House of Reps refused to cover up the big mess!
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