27th September, 2010
Rights activist and president of the National Conscience Party, NCP, Mr. Femi Falana has called on the Independent and Corrupt Practices and Other Related Matters Commission, ICPC, to investigate allegations of diversion and looting several trillions of naira from the Federation Account.
Enumerating the details of the alleged corruption, Falana said N1.8 trillion was diverted from the Nigerian National Petroleum Company, NNPC accounts. The breakdown, he stated, included N1.5 trillion on gifts to various persons, N18 million loan granted to a sugar company and N650 million as subvention to the Department of Petroleum Resources, DPR, a subsidiary of the NNPC.
He also alleged that the sum of $8.575 billion was withdrawn from the Federation Account without authorisation.
The Lagos-based lawyer also alleged that trillions of naira have been collected by the Federal Government but which have been withheld from the Federation Account.
These monies, he said, included N750 million earned from natural gas, N600 million signature bonus, N24 trillion out of internally-generated revenue, N400 billion from concession of Nigerian Ports Authority, NPA and N511 billion from sale of Federal Government Assets.
Falana said failure of the government to remit the N1.8 trillion into the Federation Account was a violation of section 162 of the Constitution. He added that the Heads of State who gave the illegal directives to the NNPC violated provisions of the Criminal Code Act and ICPC Act.
He submitted that with the ravaging poverty in the land which gave rise to diseases like cholera, malaria killing the people, the ICPC should consider the petition of the NCP and prosecute the highly placed Nigerians involved in corruption.
The NCP also demanded that the missing trillions of naira be recovered and paid into the Federation Account without further delday.