1. SaharaReporters has gathered that a huge dossier prepared on the activities of the erstwhile Chief of Staff of President Goodluck Jonathan, whom he fired today, revealed an extensive corruption profile.
But the former Deputy Governor of Edo State is unlikely to be asked to answer to any of them because Mr. Jonathan does not want to open a Pandora’s Box involving persons at the highest levels of his administration, analysts have told SaharaReporters.
Mr. Oghiadomhe’s bag of tricks includes Kerosene subsidy fraud at the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) to the magnitude of millions of dollars with a controversial businessman, Jide Omokore, owner of oil companies Atlantic Energy Limited and Seven Energy.
Both companies are at the center of the $6 billion fraud cited by the Governor of the Central Bank, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, in his recent revelation to the Nigeria Senate that the NNPC has not been able to account for $20 billion of the $67 billion worth of oil it lifted between 2012 and 2013.
Mr. Jonathan reportedly asked Mr. Oghiadomhe to resign after security agencies revealed his deep involvement, first, in a Rice waiver scam used to fund Mr. Jonathan’s Presidential Election in 2011; the security reports traced billions of naira to the duo, showing that they did not declare or remit a greater portion of the “profit” from the Rice waiver to the Jonathan campaign.
The campaign treasurer the was Ms. Stella Oduah, the current minister of Aviation, enmeshed in various financial and ethical scandals in her ministry.
In recent days, it also emerged that Mr. Omokore and Oghiadome benefited immensely from the N1 billion-naira-a-day Kerosene subsidy fraud.
Last week Tuesday, Omokore sent his wife, Angela, to meet with President Jonathan in order to explain that her husband did not partake in the fraud, but Mr. Jonathan appeared unconvinced as the CBN governor buffeted the nation with further revelation of massive fraud in the petroleum sector. Angela Omokore is Oghiadome’s goddaughter.
Also, Nigeria’s Petroleum minister Mrs. Diezani Allison-Madueke reportedly washed her hands off the fraud case claiming that Oghiadome and Omokore shortchanged Nigerians in the deals.
When the former Chief of Staff showed up for work at the Presidential Villa in Abuja this morning he was told to submit his resignation letter. After complying, he returned to his residence.
He was not subjected to any questioning or surveillance, leaving him free to do as he pleases with his time and resources.
In order to fend off inquiries, presidential spokesperson Reuben Abati told some reporters today that Mr. Oghiadomhe “voluntarily resigned” to go and participate in politics.
The spin is aimed at deflecting public outrage that could force Mr. Jonathan’s hands in taking action against others involved in the NNPC fraud, particularly the Minister of Petroleum Resources, Alison-Madueke. She is currently reported to be “sick,” and is maintaining a low profile in far away London.
The challenge facing Mr. Jonathan is that, particularly in an election year, it would be impossible for him to claim that Mr. Oghiadomhe carried out his full briefcase of alleged corruption activities at the NNPC all the way from Aso Rock without the knowledge of the Minister, and that he has done all of it since 2010 without the knowledge of the presidency and the security agencies.
Mr. Jonathan is also likely to face questions as to why, each time a top official of his government is accused of corruption, he or she is at best removed from office, as has happened in the cases of Mr. Oghiadomhe and the former chairperson of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Farida Waziri.
Most of the time, such an official is shielded from any investigation, as has happened in the cases of the Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Mr. Mohamed Adoke; the Minister of Aviation, Stella Oduah; Alison-Madueke, and now Oghiadomhe.
In recent times, Nigerians have increasingly accused Mr. Jonathan of boosting corruption and impunity in Nigeria by, among others, failing to take action against his corrupt officials. Only yesterday, the Conference of Nigerian Political Parties called on Mr. Jonathan to institute a comprehensive investigation into corruption in the NNPC since 1999.
….SAHARA REPORTERS
2. Jonathan Forces His Chief Of Staff Oghiadomhe To Resign - The Nation
It was supposed to be a normal day for Chief Mike Oghiadomhe. He arrived in his office, which is a few minutes away from President Goodluck Jonathan’s, at the Presidential Villa, looking forward to another busy day. It was not to be.
A few hours later, he called his personal staff to an emergency briefing. He dropped the bombshell. He was quitting his job as Chief of Staff to the President – a job he did with great panache.
Oghiadomhe packed his personal effects and left after submitting a terse resignation letter. According to the letter, he was quitting due to “political expediency”.
But, some highly placed sources said President Jonathan asked Oghiadomhe, who many have described as his friend, to go. The Presidency said he left to pursue a political ambition.
But, many were wondering last night what the “ambition” could be as there is no election coming up soon in Edo State, where Oghiadomhe is from.
“The President received the letter today, which is titled ‘letter of resignation’ and it says he wishes to pursue other political necessities in our great party,” presidential spokesman Reuben Abati told reporters after many hours of silence over Oghiadomhe’s exit.
Abati, who spoke to reporters after a meeting with President Jonathan, said: “You would recall that about two weeks ago, before the President travelled to Ethiopia, he announced in council that if there was any member of the cabinet or any major political appointee who wants to pursue some other political roles, that he had been hearing rumours that some people want to go and pursue other things in whatever capacity, that such people are going to be engaged heavily in political activities, they should let him know; and if they see that they are going to be really busy, and such activities may occupy their time extraordinarily, they should please step aside or come and see him for discussion.
“That you can confirm, it happened in the open floor of the council. And you can see what I have pointed out as the reason for the chief of staff’s resignation is in line with that. So, we find the speculation, particularly by some of the online platforms, callous, completely unreasonable, considering that this is a man who has served and given time and energy to the pursuit of the good interest of our country.”
“Mr President appreciates his contributions and he would like to put on record that indeed he was a man who discharged his responsibilities diligently and the country is very grateful to him and the President personally would like to wish him well in his future endeavours.”
On replacement for the position, he said: “Not yet”.
But sources gave various reasons why Oghiadomhe had to go. It was gathered that the issue came to a head last Saturday in Sokoto.
Oghiadomhe was said to have breached protocol by keeping Sokoto State Governor Aliyu Wamakko of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the dark concerning President Jonathan’s visit.
Oghiadomhe was said to have written the letter on Jonathan’s visit to Deputy Governor Mukthari Shagari, who is still of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
Wamakko, one of the five PDP governors who defected to the APC, not minding the breach, was said to have made adequate arrangement for the President’s visit.
The President was in Sokoto to receive ex-Governor Attahiru Bafarawa, who was defecting to the PDP.
There were indications that more heads may roll in the cabinet following Oghiadomhe’s exit.
Some controversial ministers might be dropped from the cabinet, it was learnt yesterday.
3. Why Jonathan’s CoS, Oghiadomhe Resigned - Vanguard
The shoddy handling of the President’s trip to Sokoto, where he received former governor of the state, Attahiru Bafarawa into the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, may have been responsible for the removal of the former Chief of Staff to President Jonathan, Chief Mike Oghiadomhe from office.
However, the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Dr Reuben Abati, who confirmed Oghiadomhe’s resignation, said it was to enable him seek higher political office within the PDP.
He also debunked an online report that the former Chief of Staff was sacked because of his involvement in alleged fraud in the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC.
Vanguard gathered that though the President had been inundated with series of allegations against his former Chief of Staff, the Sokoto incident was the final straw that broke the camel’s back.
A source at the Presidential Villa told Vanguard that the Chief of Staff failed to inform the Governor of Sokoto State, Magatakarda Wammako of the President’s visit as protocol demands.
Instead, he was said to have informed the Deputy Governor, Muktar Shagari who, unlike the governor, refused to decamp to the opposition All Progressives Congress, APC.
Despite the fact that he was not formally informed of the President’s visit, Governor Wammako allegedly directed that every thing must be put in place to ensure that the President’s visit was successful.
The President was received at the Airport by the Deputy Governor, Mukthar Shagari even though the governor was in town at the time of the President’s visit.
Jonathan’s angerThe President was said to have been angry that, at a time everything was being done to woo some of the aggrieved governors who left the PDP back to the Party, deliberate obstacles were being created by some of his close aides.
An indication that Oghiadomhe’s resignation was contrived emerged when he resumed in the office yesterday morning and attended a meeting of a committee on the Centenary Celebrations.
Confirming Oghiadomhe’s resignation, Abati said it had nothing to do with the speculation that one online publication had tried to portray.
“The president received the letter today which was titled ‘letter of resignation’ and it said he wished to pursue other political necessities in our great party. You would recall that about two weeks ago before the president travelled to Ethiopia, he announced in council that if there was any member of the cabinet or any major political appointee who wanted to pursue some other political roles, such people may want to go and pursue other things in whatever capacity, stressing that such people are going to be engaged heavily in political activities. They should let him know; and if they felt that they are going to be really busy, and such activities may occupy their time extraordinarily, they should please step aside or come and see him for discussion.
“That you can confirm. It happened on the floor of the council. And you can see what I have pointed out as the reason for the Chief of Staff’s resignation is in line with that.
“We find the speculation particularly by some of the online platforms callous, completely unreasonable, considering that this is a man who has served and who has given time and energy to the pursuit of the good interest of our country.
“Mr president appreciates his contributions and he would like to put on record that indeed he was a man who discharged his responsibilities diligently and the country is very grateful to him and the president personally would like to wish him well in his future endeavours”.
On whether there is a replacement, Dr Abati said “Not yet”.
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