By Gabriel Ewepu, Abuja
As Nigerians remain caught in the web of corruption impacts occasioned by some few persons and their collaborators, the Africa Network for Environment and Economic Justice, ANEEJ, yesterday, urged President Bola Tinubu, to fish out individuals behind the Process and Industrial Development Limited, P&ID, gas project scandal.
The call was made by the Executive Director, ANEEJ, Rev David Ugulor during a press conference in Abuja on the victory of Nigeria at a United Kingdom, UK, Court, while describing the verdict as justice won for impoverished Nigerians, which he said the outcome of the case was “a blessing for poor Nigerians.”
He pointed out that those who have conspired to sabotage the economic growth and development of the economy through involvement in such magnitude of corruption should be prosecuted and jailed to end such impunity in the disguise of negotiating for Nigeria and Nigerians.
Therefore, he called on the UK and Nigerian Governments to place perpetual travel bans and other sanctions on companies and individuals involved in corrupt business transactions.
He also called on the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice to set up a panel of enquiry to unpack what happened in the P&ID case so as to draw lessons for future engagements.
However, he maintained that it is needful for the Tinubu-led administration to publish the total amount spent on the execution of the cases for transparency and accountability sake.
He said: “If we don’t raise our voices Notting will happen to those involved in the P&ID scam it will send a wrong signal, and encourage impunity as people will feel that they get away with wrongdoing.
“We call on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu that we need justice for Nigerians, and ensure these people are brought to justice, we must fish out the individuals that are destroying Nigeria in collaboration with foreigners.
“We, therefore, wish to call on the Nigeria and UK Governments to ensure that they expose and prosecute all those who are involved in the grand corruption to serve as a deterrence and also end the culture of impunity in business transactions in Nigeria.
“We also call on the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, to set up a panel of enquiry to unpack what happened in the P&ID Case and draw lessons for future engagement.
“The Nigerian and UK Governments should blacklist and place an indefinite ban on the companies and individuals that were involved in the scandalous business transaction.”
Meanwhile, it would be recalled that on Monday a London in landmark judgment halted the enforcement of $11 billion arbitration award in favour of P&ID against Nigeria based on Justice Robin Knowles discovery that the massive arbitration was tainted by fraud, hence the way the award was procured, which was obviously contrary to public policy.
He (Ugolor) commended the Buhari government to establish a strong prime facie case on the premise that the 2010 gas project was procured by bribes paid to some officials to execute a grand plan to Nigeria via organised defraud, which the ANEEJ boss said the call out of some Nigeria officials for their greediness and unpatriotic act that could have cost the country $11billion in damages, which is about one-third of the 2024 budget.
Meanwhile, ANEEJ hailed the UK Court for blocking the thieves from carting away the people’s resources, and applauded the Muhammadu Buhari government’s tenacity for rejecting the dubious out of court settlement the Goodluck Jonathan’s administration were negotiating for.
Source: Vanguard