-How N250M Changed Hands
IT has emerged that elements in the corridors of power in Nigeria are at work to further undermine President Goodluck Jonathan’s government, by putting roadblocks in the path of the government’s efforts at service delivery in the country.
The issue at hand is with regards the president’s nominees to a federal agency, the Federal Road Maintenance Agency, FERMA, whose consideration for ratification by a senate committee headed by Senator Ayogu Eze has been held hostage for the past 9 months.
Prominent on the list of nominees is Mr. Jide Adeniji, who is penciled for confirmation as the chairman of the FERMA board, alongside other zonal representatives. A sister online news outlet revealed that the nominee to represent the south-east zone, Mr. Jerry Ugokwe, rejected the offer for being beneath his qualification.
Sharpedgenews.com has learned that Senator Ayogu Eze, who heads the Senate committee for works, is allegedly resorting to all sort of subterfuge to delay the confirmation of the nominees even as this continues to cause delays in critical work needed to be done to stem the ever-growing loss of lives on some of Nigeria’s deadly roads.
The same sources also hinted that Senator Eze may be trying to feed a rumor into the Nigerian public that the Jonathan government is delaying fixing the roads to meet a certain quota of lives needed to sacrifice in rituals to strengthen Jonathan’s staying power as president.
Mr. Eze’s efforts to stall the new board of FERMA, we learned, are being complemented by that of the Agency’s current managing director, Mr. Gabriel Amuchi.
Eze’s committee is expected check the credentials of the nominees and put together a report before sending it to the floor of the senate for consideration and adoption. But since September 6, 2011, Eze and his committee have virtually ignored the process towards the successful confirmation of the nominees.
Investigations also reveal that minister for works Mike Onolememen may also be involved in the deals being run by Amuchi and Eze. “The minister can’t be sidelined, he is also a player in the game. Since there is no board, Amuchi is board chairman and chief executive,” said one of our sources to sharpedgenews.com.
Up to N250 million has allegedly changed hands between the parties involved in the shady deals involving the Senator Ayogu Eze and MD Amuchi of FERMA, where both men wield immense powers that allow them to freely award juicy contracts for personal benefits, including an Enugu governorship ambition being nursed by Eze.
In the meantime, the presidency seems unaware of all the scheming going on, as President Jonathan is reported to have been in touch with Senate President David Mark to inquire about the status of the confirmation process, after which Senator Mark was said to have informed the president that the process was on course.
Besides delaying the confirmation of the president’s nominees to FERMA, investigations also reveal that Senator Eze actions in his capacity as committee chair has stalled attempts at scrutinizing activities under the purview of MD Amuchi at FERMA, who may have been involved in the award of several questionable contracts.
“The MD, Amuchi is very reluctant to have a board oversee the affairs. So he is working with Senator Eze to stall the inauguration of a new board. Since September last year the President sent the list, nothing has happened,” said our source.
“Before he was incorporated Eze got N250 million from Amuchi. So now they virtually run the agency together.
Nigerian roads meanwhile remain death-traps where tens of thousands of Nigerians perish on an annual basis, taking away Nigerians in whom governments have invested millions of naira in training over the years.