Court Orders Permanent Forfeiture Of Recovered N1.4bn Paris/London Club Refund
Justice Mojisola Olatoregun of the Federal High Court in Lagos on Friday ordered the permanent forfeiture of the sum of N1.442,384,857.84 billion, which is part of unrefunded Paris and London Club Loans, domiciled at Access Bank Plc and Guaranty Trust Bank (GTBank) to the federal government of Nigeria.
The money was discovered by the EFCC the bank accounts of three firms, which allegedly impersonated the consultants engaged by the Nigeria Governors’ Forum to analyse the Paris/London Club loan refunds due to the states.
The commission, alleged that the defendants: Melrose General Services Limited, WASP Networks Limited and Thebe Wellness Services obtained N3.5bn from the Nigeria Governors’ Forum by making false claims.
The anti-graft agency also accused the firms of impersonating a consortium of consulting firms engaged by the governors’ forum for the “verification, reconciliation and recovery of over-deductions on Paris and London Club Loans on the accounts of states and local governments between 1995 and 2002.”
The EFCC had further claimed that the original firms engaged by the governors’ forum were GSCL Consulting and Bizplus Consulting Services Limited.
The EFCC in an affidavit attached to the suit and which was deposed to by one of its investigators, Usman Zakari, had stated that on May 26, 2016, the 36 states governors through the Nigerian Governor Forum (NGF) engaged the services of consortium of consultants made up of GSCL consulting and Bizplus Consulting Services Limited tagged ‘GSCL Bizplus Consortium’, for the purpose of verification, reconciliation, and recovery of over-deductions on Paris and London Club Loans on the account of states and local government between 1995 to 2002.
Zakari averred that the Consortium carried out the said assignment of verification, reconciliation and recovery of the said Paris and London Club loans on the states and local government between 1995 and 2002, and came up with a total sum of $6. 483, 282, 424. 61 billion USD, as due for refund to the states.
He stressed that the report of the Consortium dated 31, August, 2016, showed a break down of the debt profile state by state and over-deductions was addressed to the Honourable Minister of Finance. And that the report was submitted to the NGF.
The EFCC official also alleged that following the report, the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, approved an initial payment of the sum of $1.730,930.53, for the benefit of the various states.
Zakari further claimed that in line with the request of the state governors, the Ministry of Finance through the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), paid the sum of $86,546,526.65 million USD, and N19,439,225,871.11 billion, (representing five percent of the approved initial Paris and London Club refund) respectfully into the GTBank Plc and Access Bank Pic accounts of NGF purportedly to defray consultancy and incidental expenses.
He stated further that the said sum of N19, 439, 225, 871.11 billion, was paid into the Access Bank Plc account of NGF on December 8, 2016. And on December 14, 2016, the NGF paid the sum of N4. 389, 207, 099 .05 billion to the Consortium as part of agreed consultancy fee.
He also stated that the first respondent, Melrose General Services Limited, whose alter ego is one Robert Mbonu, was never engaged by the NGF to carry out any consultancy services in relation to the said Paris and London Club refund. Adding that in order to obtain public fund, the first respondent recopied and misinterpreted the work of Consortium to the NGF for payment as if it was first respondent’s work.
He stated that based on the act of Mbonu, the first respondent was paid the sum of N3.5 billion by the NGF on December 14, 2016, while no consultancy job was executed by the first respondent on behalf of the NGF.
He also states that the first respondent account with Access Bank Plc, which was negative when the sum of N3.5 billion was credited into it. But between December 15, 2016 and January 20, 2017, the first respondent moved out about N2.277,615,142 billion, in order to launder the money leaving a balance of N1.222,384,857.84 billion before the intervention of his Agency.
He also stated that the sum of N220 million was voluntarily returned by the first and second respondents, whose representatives also made extra judicial statements.
He therefore stated that interim order of the court is necessary to forfeit to the Federal government of Nigeria the sum of N1. 222, 384, 857. 84 billion in Access Bank Plc account of the first respondent and the sum of N220 million recovered from both second and third respondents.
The EFCC had on October 13, 2017 obtained an interim order from Justice Mojisola Olatoregun, placing a “Post No Debit” order on the accounts containing the N1.2bn and N220m.
The judge had made the order following plea by counsel for the EFCC, Ekene Iheanacho, who said it would best serve the interest of justice for the respondents to be ordered to forfeit the N1.4bn temporarily to prevent them from dissipating same.
The judge, after granting the interim freezing order last year, directed the EFCC to publish the order in a national daily.
She gave anyone interested in the funds 14 days to appear before her to show cause why the funds should not be forfeited permanently.
Subsequently, one Prince Godwin Maduka and Linas International Limited showed up before the court, praying separately that the funds should be forfeited to them.
Maduka claimed that his firm, Udemgaba Maduka & Associates, had been engaged in 2011 as a consultant by Zamfara State Government to help the state recover some hanging funds, with an agreement that it would be paid 20 per cent of the recovered funds.
He urged the court to forfeit the N1.4bn to his company to cover Zamfara State’s alleged indebtedness to him.
But the EFCC opposed Maduka, contending that the suit was not a debt recovery suit and that Zamfara State was not a party to the suit.
In a ruling on Friday, Justice Olatoregun upheld the EFCC’s argument and dismissed Maduka’s claims.
On its own part, Linas International Limited said it was entitled to the payment of $6m from Nigeria Governors’ Forum.
But Justice Olatoregun equally dismissed its claim, holding that the suit was not a debt recovery suit.
Having dismissed both claims, the judge ordered the permanent forfeiture of the N1.4bn to the Federal Government.
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