President Mohammadu Buhari has ordered the Economic and Financial Crimes\u00a0Commission, EFCC to investigate former Chief of Defence Staff, Air Bice\u00a0Marshal Alex Badeh, former Chief of Air Staff, Air Vice Marshall Adesola\u00a0Amosu among others, according to a statement signed by Mallam Garba Shehu,\u00a0Senior Special Assistant to the President of Media and Publicity.<\/p>\n
The statement reads:<\/p>\n
On the recommendation of the committee established to audit the\u00a0procurement of arms and equipment in the Armed Forces and Defence sector\u00a0from 2007 to 2015, President Muhammadu Buhari has directed the Economic\u00a0and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to\u00a0 carry out further investigation\u00a0into the misconduct established against the following retired and serving\u00a0officers of the Nigerian Air Force and Nigerian Army:<\/p>\n
(1) Air Chief Marshal AS Badeh (Rtd)<\/p>\n
(2) Air Marshal MD Umar (Rtd)<\/p>\n
(3) Air Marshal AN Amosu (Rtd)<\/p>\n
(4) Maj- Gen. ER Chioba (Rtd)<\/p>\n
(5) AVM IA Balogun (Rtd)<\/p>\n
(6) AVM AG Tsakr (Rtd)<\/p>\n
(7) AVM AG Idowu (Rtd)<\/p>\n
(8) AVM AM Mamu<\/p>\n
(9) AVM OT Oguntoyinbo<\/p>\n
(10) AVM T Omenyi<\/p>\n
(11) AVM JB Adigun<\/p>\n
(12) AVM RA Ojuawo<\/p>\n
(13) AVM JA Kayode-Beckley<\/p>\n
(12) Air Cdre SA Yushau (Rtd)<\/p>\n
(13) Air Cdre AO Ogunjobi<\/p>\n
(14) Air Cdre GMD Gwani<\/p>\n
(15) Air Cdre SO Makinde<\/p>\n
(16) Air Cdre AY Lassa<\/p>\n
(16) Col N Ashinze<\/p>\n
(17) Lt Col. MS Dasuki (Rtd)<\/p>\n
\nFollowing the submission of the audit committee’s second interim report,\u00a0President Buhari has\u00a0 directed the EFCC to investigate the roles of the\u00a0officers and the following companies and their directors in fundamental\u00a0breaches associated with the procurements by the Office of the National\u00a0Security Adviser (ONSA) and the Nigerian Air Force (NAF).<\/p>\n
(1) Messrs Societe D\u2019 Equipments Internationaux<\/p>\n
(2) Himma Aboubakar<\/p>\n
(3) Aeronautical Engineering and Technical Services Limited<\/p>\n
(4) Messrs Syrius Technologies<\/p>\n
(5) Dr Theresa A. Ittu<\/p>\n
(6) Sky Experts Nig Ltd<\/p>\n
(7)Omenyi Ifeanyi Tony<\/p>\n
(8) Huzee Nig Ltd<\/p>\n
(9) GAT Techno Dynamics Ltd<\/p>\n
(10) Gbujie Peter Obie<\/p>\n
(11) Onuri Samuel Ugochukwu<\/p>\n
(12) Spacewebs Interservices Ltd<\/p>\n
(13)Oguntoyinbo Tayo<\/p>\n
(14) Oguntoyinbo Funmi.<\/p>\n
(15) Delfina Oil and Gas Ltd<\/p>\n
(16)Chief Jacobs Bola<\/p>\n
(17) Mono Marine Corporation Nig Ltd<\/p>\n
(18) Geonel Intergrated Services Ltd<\/p>\n
(20)Sachi Felicia<\/p>\n
(20) Mudaki Polycarp<\/p>\n
(21)Wolfgang Reinl.<\/p>\n
\nThe breaches identified by the Audit Committee include non-specification\u00a0of procurement costs, absence of contract agreements, award of contracts\u00a0beyond authorised thresholds, transfer of public funds for unidentified\u00a0purposes and general non-adherence to provisions of the Public Procurement\u00a0Act.<\/p>\n
Furthermore, the procurement processes were arbitrarily carried out and\u00a0generally characterized by irregularities and fraud. In many cases, the\u00a0procured items failed to meet the purposes they were procured for,\u00a0especially the counter insurgency efforts in the North East.<\/p>\n
A major procurement activity undertaken by ONSA for NAF\u00a0 was that\u00a0concerning the contracts awarded to Societe D\u2019 quipment Internationaux\u00a0(SEI) Nig Ltd.
\nBetween January\u00a0 2014 and February\u00a0 2015, NAF awarded 10 contracts\u00a0totalling Nine Hundred and Thirty Million, Five Hundred Thousand, Six\u00a0Hundred and Ninety US Dollars ($930,500,690.00) to SEI Nig Ltd.
\nLetters of award and End User Certificates for all the contracts issued by\u00a0NAF and ONSA respectively did not reflect the contract sums. Rather, these\u00a0were only found in the vendor\u2019s invoices, all dated 19 March 2015.
\nAdditionally, some of the award letters contained misleading delivery\u00a0dates suggesting fraudulent intent in the award process. The observed\u00a0discrepancies are in clear contravention of extant procurement\u00a0regulations.<\/p>\n
The SEI contracts included procurement of two used Mi-24V Helicopters\u00a0instead of the recommended Mi-35M series at the cost of One Hundred and\u00a0Thirty Six Million, Nine Hundred and Forty Four Thousand US Dollars\u00a0($136,944,000.00).
\nHowever, it was confirmed that the helicopters were excessively priced and\u00a0not operationally air worthy at the time of delivery. A brand new unit of\u00a0such helicopters goes for about Thirty Million US Dollars ($30m).<\/p>\n
Furthermore, the helicopters were delivered without rotor blades and\u00a0upgrade accessories.<\/p>\n
Additionally, the helicopters were undergoing upgrade while being deployed\u00a0for operation in the North East without proper documentation. It was\u00a0further established that as at date, only one of the helicopters is in\u00a0service while the other crashed and claimed the lives of two NAF\u00a0personnel.<\/p>\n
The Committee established that ONSA also funded the procurement of\u00a04 used Alpha-Jets for the NAF at the cost of Seven Million, One Hundred\u00a0and Eighty Thousand US Dollars ($7,180,000.00). However, it was confirmed\u00a0that only 2 of the Alpha-Jet aircraft were ferried to Nigeria after\u00a0cannibalization of engines from NAF fleet.<\/p>\n
This is contrary to the written assertion of the former Chief of Air\u00a0Staff, Air Marshal AN Amosu to the former NSA that all the 4 procured\u00a0Alpha-Jets aircraft were delivered to the NAF.<\/p>\n
The non-militarisation of the Alpha-Jets made them unsuitable for\u00a0deployment to the North East and they are currently deployed only for\u00a0training at NAF Kainji.\u00a0Furthermore, the procurement of the Alpha-Jets was contrary to the\u00a0recommendation of the assessment team. The Committee found that the\u00a0conduct of Air Marshal Amosu was deliberately misleading and unpatriotic.<\/p>\n
The contract for the procurement of 36D6 Low Level Air Defence Radar for\u00a0the NAF was awarded to GAT Techno Dynamics Ltd in April 2014 at the cost\u00a0of Thirty Three Million US Dollars ($33m) and was funded by ONSA.<\/p>\n
The Committee established that the radars were excessively priced as a\u00a0complete set of such radars (comprising 6 radars including the Control\u00a0Centre) goes for Six Million US Dollars ($6m) averagely. The Committee\u00a0observed that the radars were delivered without the vital component of\u00a0Identification Friend or Foe (IFF) that distinguishes between own and\u00a0adversary aircraft, which has significantly degraded the operational\u00a0capabilities of the NAF in the North East.<\/p>\n
It was further observed that the sum of Three Million, Three Hundred\u00a0Thousand US Dollars ($3.3m) was fraudulently included in the contract\u00a0agreement as VAT and With Holding Tax\u00a0 and subsequently paid into the bank\u00a0accounts of Spacewebs Interservices Ltd and Delfina Oil and Gas Ltd.
\nThe Committee further established that Two Million US Dollars ($2m) from\u00a0the proceeds was transferred to Mono Marine Corporation Nig Ltd, which is\u00a0jointly owned by principal characters in this deal. The Committee opined\u00a0that the infractions of extant regulations by these companies were clearly\u00a0intended to defraud.<\/p>\n
It was established that between September 2009 and May 2015, the NAF\u00a0expended about Fifteen Billion Naira (N15bn) on the maintenance of its\u00a0Alpha-Jets, C-130H aircraft and Mi-24V\/35P helicopters. Out of this\u00a0amount, Four Billion, Four Hundred and Two Million, Six Hundred and Eighty\u00a0Seven Thousand, Five Hundred and Sixty Nine Naira, Forty One Kobo\u00a0(N4,402,687,569.41) was paid out for contracts not executed.<\/p>\n
It was also observed that in carrying out these maintenance activities,\u00a0contracts worth over Two Billion, Five Hundred Million Naira (N2.5bn) were\u00a0awarded to Syrius Technologies, a Ukrainian company that was not\u00a0registered in Nigeria. Regrettably, in spite of these expenditures, the\u00a0status of NAF fleet remained operationally appalling as only 3 Alpha-Jets,\u00a02 C-130H and one each of Mi-24V and Mi-35P were serviceable as at 28 May\u00a015.<\/p>\n
In October 2013, NAF awarded contracts to DICON for the supply of weapons\u00a0and ammunition at the cost of Five Hundred and Ninety Nine Million, One\u00a0Hundred and Eighteen Thousand Naira (N599,118,000.00). However, only 2 of\u00a0the 7 items contracted were delivered to NAF while the outstanding 5 items\u00a0remained undelivered despite repeated requests to DICON.
\nThe Committee also found that the delivered ammunition were about 40 years\u00a0old, thereby casting doubts on their shelf life. The failure of DICON to\u00a0fully execute the contract and the delivery of aged ammunition diminished\u00a0the capacity of the NAF in North East operation.<\/p>\n
The Committe uncovered insider dealings by military officers in\u00a0procurement activities undertaken by ONSA and the NAF. The officers were\u00a0found to have misused or abused their offices for personal gains by\u00a0influencing award of contracts to private companies in which they have\u00a0substantial interests.<\/p>\n
For instance, an officer serving in the ONSA used his office to secure 2\u00a0contracts for his company, Geonel Integrated Services Ltd, for the\u00a0protection of 20 Dams and Presidential Air Fleet security at the cost of\u00a0Six Billion, Two Hundred and Fifty Million Naira (N6,250,000,000.00) and\u00a0Five Million US Dollars ($5m) respectively.<\/p>\n
Furthermore, some NAF officers used their companies to collect VAT and\u00a0With Holding Tax that were never remitted to FIRS while another officer\u00a0was found to have cross transferred about Five Hundred Million Naira\u00a0(N500m) between a NAF company, Aeronautical Engineering and Technical\u00a0Services Limited, SkyExperts Nig Ltd and Huzee Nig Ltd, companies in which\u00a0he had personal interests.<\/p>\n
It would be recalled that in its First Interim Report, the Committee on\u00a0Audit of Defence Equipment established that the sum of Six Hundred and\u00a0Forty Three Billion Naira (N643bn) and Two Billion, One Hundred Million US\u00a0Dollars ($2.1bn) interventions were received for defence procurements by\u00a0DHQ and the Services between 2007 and 2015.<\/p>\n
In continuation of its assignment, the Committee has so far established\u00a0that the nation spent about Twenty Nine Billion Naira (N29bn) and Two\u00a0Billion US Dollars ($2bn) on NAF procurement activities alone.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
President Mohammadu Buhari has ordered the Economic and Financial Crimes\u00a0Commission, EFCC to investigate former Chief of Defence Staff, Air Bice\u00a0Marshal Alex Badeh, former Chief of Air Staff, Air Vice Marshall…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":45627,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-45624","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-exclusive"],"yoast_head":"\n