Corruption czar and fraud personified Delta State house of Assembly Deputy Speaker, Mr. Friday Osanebi is on the news again for defrauding his constituents, Delta state oil bearing communities of the Ndokwa East Local Government Area Cluster of OB3 Pipeline Project of over N757 million been royalties, entitlements and benefits due the oil communities.
To this end, the constituents, have written petitions dragging the chronic corrupt deputy speaker, Osanebi to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission ( EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC).
The petitions were signed by C. Oshilim, Esq, on behalf Ndokwa East Local Government Area Cluster of OB3 Pipeline Project, its chairman, Josiah Agbanashi, and A. C. Okwuedei, secretary and mailed to HardReporters.
The petitions, titled “Report Of Large Scale Fraud, Illegal And Criminal Appropriation Of The Sum Of N757, 000, 000, 00 Being Benefits And Entitlements Belonging To Members Of The Ndokwa East Local Government Area Of Delta State Cluster Of OB3 Pipeline Project By Hon. Friday Osaai Osanebi, Deputy Speaker, Delta State House Of Assembly And Engr. Noel Ejidike Of Nest Oil PLC”, called for the immediate arrest, investigation and prosecution of Osanebi and Ejidike, saying that since 2014 till date, Osanebi has used his company, Augoe and Sons Nig. Ltd. to defraud the oil bearing communities to the tune of N757 million.
In November, 2015, Ndokwa youths from the Delta North Senatorial District had protested and accused the Assembly Deputy Speaker, Mr. Friday Osanebi of defrauding the youths of over N1.4 billion.
When contacted, the flamboyant and self acclaimed ” Empowerment Master” Delta state house of Assembly deputy speaker, Mr. Friday Osanebi said Journalists can go ahead with the news and boasted to use his money and connection to make sure the petitions does not see the light of the day.
A Full Copy Of The Petition Is Reproduced Below:
The Chairman,
Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (E.F.C.C.),
Federal Capital Territory, Abuja,
Nigeria.
Sir,
REPORT OF LARGE SCALE FRAUD, ILLEGAL AND CRIMINAL APPROPRIATION OF THE SUM OF N757, 000, 000, 00 BEING BENEFITS AND ENTITLEMENTS BELONGING TO MEMBERS OF THE NDOKWA EAST LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA OF DELTA STATE CLUSTER OF THE OB3 PIPELINE PROJECT BY RT. HON. FRIDAY OSSAI OSANEBI, DEPUTY SPEAKER, DELTA STATE HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY AND ENGR. NOEL EJIDIKE OF NEST OIL PLC
We present this petition to you at the instance of Chief Josiah O. Agbanashi and Chief A. C. Okwuedei respectively as the Chairman and Secretary of the Ndokwa East Local Government Area Cluster of the OB3 Pipeline Project, for themselves and on behalf of the entire members of Ndokwa East Local Government Cluster of the OB3 Pipeline Project. We hereinafter simply refer to them as our clients.
Our clients briefed us that OB3 is a Federal Government Gas Pipeline project designed to transport gas from Obiofu and Obrikom in Rivers State to Oben in Edo State. The said gas pipeline laying project currently under execution by Nest Oil Ltd on behalf of Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) cuts across Rivers, Delta and Edo States within the southern region of Nigeria.
By virtue of the extant local content laws and the local content policy of the Federal Government, our clients as members and indigenes of communities that make up the Ndokwa East Local Government Area Cluster in the Right of Way of the gas pipeline are entitled to a variety of benefits and entitlements. Such benefits include but not limited to job slots/chances, service jobs/contracts and monetary allowances to communities cluster representatives.
However, since the inception of the project sometime around the months of July/August 2014, our clients as members of host communities and as Ndokwa East Local Government cluster Area have terribly been shortchanged by Hon Friday Ossai Osanebi in connivance with Engr. Noel Ejidike, who at some point was the construction manager of the said Nest Oil Ltd.
It will interest you to note that there are eight (8) communities that make up the Ndokwa East Local Government Area Cluster of OB3 pipeline project, and they are as follows: Aboh, Abuator, Afiankwo, Akarai-Etiti, Akarai-Obodo, Ashaka, Igbuku and Umu-Iwerie. The aforementioned individuals are not landlords or members of the host communities but have used their high profile positions to defraud, marginalize and scheme out our clients from their positions as landlords.
We hereunder present to you our clients’ entitlements to which the duo of Hon. Friday Ossai Osanebi and Engr. Noel Ejidike have fraudulently appropriated to themselves.
Bush Clearing Contract: Hon Friday Ossai Osanebi through his company registered as Augoe and Sons Nig. Ltd and without any recommendation from our clients as members of the Right of Way communities fraudulently manipulated his way with the help of Engr. Noel Ejidike and displaced our clients who were in line to carry out the job and secured the bush clearing contract from Nest Oil Ltd. In the end, his company never went to site to carry out the said job but was paid the sum of N15, 000, 000 00. (Fifteen Million Naira) only. This is a contract that our clients as landlord and members of the host communities were entitled to perform and be remunerated accordingly. Bearing in mind that Augoe and Sons Nig. Ltd did not carry out the contract for which they were paid, we demand the investigation of this fact and direct the payment of the sum to our clients as members of the right of way communities.
Labour Supply: Our clients’ communities are entitled to produce 19 workers per each of the eight communities that make up the Ndokwa East Cluster of the OB3 project. However, from nowhere Hon Friday Ossai Osanebi in connivance with Engr. Joel Ejidike falsely represented to Nest Oil Ltd and fraudulently allocated 11 slots to themselves and made only eight (8) available to each of our clients’ communities. Each of the workers is paid the sum of N96, 000, 00. (Ninety Six Thousand Naira) Only as monthly salary. Since around the month of August, 2014 when the project commenced, the duo of Hon. Friday Ossai Osanebi and Engr. Noel Ejidike have been receiving all the salaries and allowances for the 11 workers per each of the eight communities. The total sum so far received by them is N278, 784, 000. 00 (Two Hundred and Seventy Eight Million, Seven Hundred and Eighty Four Thousand Naira) Only, being the total sum due and payable to members of our clients’ right of way communities for the period of 33 months commencing from the month of August, 2014 to the April, 2017. This fraud by the aforementioned persons cannot be allowed to continue in the face of the clear fact that NNPC approved 19 workers per each of clients’ communities. We invite you to investigate this fraudulent appropriation of the aforesaid sum with a view to recovering the sum illegally appropriated for the benefits of clients’ communities.
Bus Supply: By virtue of the agreement reached between our clients and NNPC, the eight communities that make the Ndokwa East Local Government Area Cluster are meant to supply eight (8) buses to Nest Oil Plc. However, Hon. Friday Ossai Osanebi fraudulently represented to Nest Oil Ltd with the aid of Engr Noel. Ejidike and took over the contract and only allowed our clients to supply only two (2) buses for the conveyance of workers. Whereas the officially approved contract sum for each of the bus is N900, 000. 00 per month, our clients are paid the sum of N400, 000. 00. per month for each of the two (2) buses supplied by our clients. Hon. Friday Ossai Osanebi and Engr. Noel Ejidike did not supply the other six buses and neither did they pay our clients the monetary value of the buses which our clients were entitled to s upply. The contract has been in operation for a period of thirty three (33) months now (i e since August 2014 to April, 2017). The aforementioned persons have fraudulently appropriated the sum of N178, 200, 000. 00 being the total sum of the contract for the other six (6) buses not supplied for the period of the contract as aforesaid, thereby denying our clients their entitlement in this regard.
Supply of Boats: This contract was equally awarded to Augoe and Sons Nig. Ltd, a company owned by Hon. Friday Ossai Osanebi. Eight speed boats were approved by NNPC to be supplied by our clients’ as members of the host communities to the gas pipeline laying project. Only two (2) boats are currently in supply by our clients. The contract sum for each of the boat is N900, 000 .00. The duo of Hon Friday Ossai Osanebi and Engr. Noel Ejidike have so far fraudulently converted and denied our clients the sum of N178, 200, 000. 00 being the total contract sum for the six other boats not supplied. This sum is for a period of thirty three months that the contract has been in operation (i e since August 2014 to April, 2017). It is our clients’ instruction to invite you to investigate this colossal fraud perpetrated by the aforementioned individuals against our clients who constitute Ndokwa East Local Government Area Cluster of OB3 pipeline project.
Ditching Contract: Pursuant to the agreement reached between our clients and Nest Oil Ltd, the host communities are entitled to certain benefits which include service contracts and jobs as members of the host communities. In this regard, our clients wrote several letters to the management of Nest Oil Plc demanding that ditching jobs be awarded to them but all to no avail. Much later, it came to the notice our clients that the contract was awarded to Augoe and Sons Nig. Ltd, a company that our clients never recommend to carry out the job. It will interest you to note that Augoe and Sons Nig. Ltd never went to site to carry out the aforesaid jobs but were paid the contract sum of N20, 000, 000. 00. This is a gross violation of the extant local content laws and local content development policies of the federal government as our clients were denied their entitlement in this regard.
Denial of Monthly Allowances: Since the commencement of the OB3 pipeline project in the year 2014, our clients have never been paid their monthly entitlement as it applies in other local government areas within Delta State and other states that the project cuts across. There are eight (8) communities that constitute the Ndokwa East Local Government Area cluster and each of these communities has three (3) representatives. In all, there are twenty four (24) representatives in the local government. A representative is entitled to the sum of N100, 000. 00 as monthly allowance. For a period of thirty three (33) months, the duo of Hon. Friday Ossai Osanebi and Engr. Noel Ejidike have received the sum of N79, 200, 000, 00 being the total monthly allowance for the period aforesaid, a sum exclusively belonging to our clients.
Food Supply: In this regard, Augoe and Sons Nig. Ltd also got the contract at the rate of N2500. 00 per a plate. This same contract was then sub contracted to a caterer, Mrs. Agbanashi at a paltry sum of N600. 00 per a plate. The rest sum of N1900 per plate, and cumulatively the sum of N76, 860, 000.00 for 72 persons for a period of 427 days is pocketed by the aforementioned individuals in gross violation of the local content policy, thereby denying our clients their entitlements as members of the host communities of the OB3 pipeline project. This sharp practice by these persons is highly condemnable more so when the price of food stuffs has risen and no longer what it was at the inception of the contract.
Pipeline Surveillance Contract: Upon the conclusion and the commissioning of the pipeline project, the next major activity is the surveillance and maintenance of the gas pipeline. As it is now the practice in the entire Niger Delta area, the right of way communities are expected to be involved in the surveillance and maintenance of the pipeline. In this regard, our clients went into alliance with other cluster members in other local governments of Rivers, Delta and Edo States for the purposes of recommending a trusted, experienced and reliable professional. No sooner had our clients done this than Hon Friday Ossai Osanebi began to scheme his way into snatching this job from the person recommended by the entire cluster communities of the OB3 Pipeline project. Determined to achieve his corrupt aim, he made several attempts to bribe some of our clients who rejected his offers and stood firmly against him. Having failed in this attempt, he has gone ahead seeking to constitute a rival cluster with the aim of having his way. To this end, he is in collaboration with Engr. Noel Ejidike and
some persons within Nest Oil Plc to fraudulently hijack this contract from our clients.
By reason of all the above stated details of corrupt enrichment and illegal appropriation of contracts/entitlements by the aforesaid individuals, our clients have suffered unquantifiable loss, deprivation and marginalization running into N757, 000, 000. 00 being the monetary value of contracts, entitlements and monthly allowances as members of the host communities.
Our clients wish to state that this Hobbessian attitude by Hon Friday Ossai Osanebi and his co-conspirator Engr. Noel Ejidike against our clients cannot be allowed to continue in the face of the current anti corruption fight of the President Muhammadu Buhari led federal government.
While recognizing the statutory role of your agency in combating this monster of corruption and bearing in mind the successes recorded by your agency in this regard, our clients are by this petition pleading with your Sir, to cause the aforementioned persons to be apprehended, investigated and made to account for the aforesaid sum of money with a view to compelling them to refund same to our clients as members of the right of way communities and in accordance with the local content policy of the federal government.
Our clients are expectant of your urgent intervention and investigation so that justice may be done to them.
Thanks.
Yours faithfully,
- Oshilim, Esq.
Cc:
The Director,
Nigerian Content Development & Monitoring Board, NCDMB House,
Isaac Boro Expressway, Yenagoa,
Bayelsa State.
