The impious manner Honorable Johnson Ehiozuwa Agbonayinma, the spokesperson? to the commissioners carried out the media trial and conviction of Professor Isa Mohammed shows disturbing objective and bears eloquent testimony to his disguised intention. How can Honorable Ehiozuwa accuse Isa Mohammed of corruption, when such does not exist? It is very wrong for him to do that, considering that many Nigerians sympathized with him when he was asked to recuse himself from sitting as the Chairman of House of Representatives ad-hoc committee probing PenCom, on account that his daughter was sacked by PenCom over a forged certificate. Nigerians felt that his daughter was an adult who should be responsible for her actions. Even when House of Reps removed Honourable Johnson as the chairman of the committee he was heading at a time, on the strength of what they called questionable certificate, watchers of events at NASS felt that the House leadership should have given him benefit of the doubt, as no court ruled he has a fake certificate.
Here is how Guardian Newspaper of 19 April 2019 reported what transpired at NASS: The chairman of the House of Representatives ad hoc committee probing an alleged N33 billion malfeasance at the National Pension Commission (PenCom), Ehiozuwa Johnson Agbonayinma, has stepped down, accusing a panel member of working in cahoots with the officials being investigated for selfish ends. Barely 10 minutes into the committee’s proceedings yesterday, the Edo lawmaker stunned stakeholders when he claimed that Wale Oke was undermining the inquiry through his alleged romance with the PenCom personnel. Agbonayinma had last week disclosed that billions belonging to pensioners were allegedly withdrawn from the PenCom account in the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) under questionable circumstances. He described Oke’s alleged conduct as infamous and unbecoming of a lawmaker who should pursue justice all times.
The exact words of Ehiozuwa Johnson Agbonayinma, reads thus: “From inception of the investigations, his actions have been infamous and uncomplimentary. He made overtures in subverting the mandate of the ad hoc committee, which was disregarded on March 20, 2019.“He brought the Acting DG of PenCom and the Director of Operations to my office to know what it will take for me to scuttle the investigations. My reply was that the commission should submit requested documents as the committee intends to work judiciously as directed in the resolution of the House. “From our findings, the body language of the honourable member is that of a commissioned agent and with a directive to stifle the investigations and subvert the report of the committee. It is very sad that a ranking parliamentarian is involved in these unwholesome acts. This is the hand of Esau but the voice of Jacob.”
This is how Honorable Wole Oke reacted to Ehiozuwa Johnson Agbonayinma’s allegations: — “How and in what way. Let him substantiate his allegations with facts. They are false and untrue. He should not drag me into his woes and that of his daughter over their allegations of certificate forgery. “The committee has the constitutional powers to do its job and submit its report to the floor. I have no business with PenCom. I do not own any PFA nor am I a director in any.” An online newspaper, THE WHISTLER, in its April 4, 2019 report, re-echoed honorable Wole Oke’s line of thought on Ehiozuwa Johnson Agbonayinma’s family, with respect to certificate forgery. This is the caption of that report: Scandal Hits Lawmaker’s Family, Daughter Sacked for Working with Fake Degrees.
While this writer is not concluding that both The Whistler and Hon Wole Oke were correct on their view on Hon Ehiozuwa and his daughter, it will be an uphill task for Ehiozuwa himself to deny that he is not pursuing sinister agenda at CCB that may unfold after getting Professor Isa Mohammed out as the Chairman of CCB. Rational Nigerians will surely see a disturbing trajectory in his accusations. How can he explain to intelligent Nigerians that his earlier vendetta laced involvement in PenCom probe and the latest untidy participation in accusing CCB Chairman of corruption is mere coincidence?
It is worth noting that, one of the petitioners who happen to be a retired Police Commissioner was said to have expressed shock that his phone number and a forged signature was included among those who signed the petition. The retired CP, as a Board Member, opted out from signing the petition after discovering that most of the issues raised in the petition could not be substantiated. The report said his signature was forged, and his phone number added to their petition. Is this not a clear case of impersonation and forgery, which is criminal in nature?
On the reported scuttling of the corruption hearing by Senator Philip Aduda, is at best laughable because the Senator in question was elected the same manner Senators in Senate committee on ethics and privileges committee were elected. Besides, this writer was told he belongs to the opposition party, PDP. He is the minority leader in the Senate as well as a ranking Senator. By right, he has the right to witness the hearing from the opposition point of view. What he did at the hearing even elevated him as an elder statesman. Nothing prevents him from calling a world press conference to accuse the ruling APC led government of publicly exposing their own corruption. But he elected to advise the combatants to go back and settle their differences and report back to the committee in two weeks’ time. His position also tallied with the position of a senior official at CCB, who told Daily Trust thus: “The house is not in order presently, but that is not a reason for them to go to the press to fight.”
Clearly, the commissioners at CCB are only out to give a dog bad name so as to hang it. The real issue in their petition is not corruption, but how to use it, corruption to engineer the removal of Professor Isa Mohammed to pave for the Chairman that will surrender his mandate to the commissioners, particularly, access to petition against civil servants, public and political office holders, so that they feast on them via blackmail. Imagine what Honorable Johnson may do to Wole Oke and other members, as well as top officials at PenCom, should the commissioners have unrestricted access to their asset declaration forms. And the insidious part of it is that the five commissioners are trying to portray President Muhaamodu Buhari as one who is slow or not interested in fighting corruption by because they should have waited for the President’s response to their petition, by implication. If not, why forward the petition against Professor Isa Mohammed to the President via the SGF when they don’t want it to be treated there?
Emeka Oraetoka
Information Management Consultant and Researcher.
Wrote in from Abuja. e-mail:giltsdaimention@
