Investigation of the $620,000 subsidy probe bribery took a new dimension yesterday when alleged bribe giver Femi Otedola refused to testify in a secret hearing before the House of Representatives ethics committee. �
Otedola demanded that the panel sticks to its initial pledge to hold a public session, just days after the alleged bribe taker Farouk Lawan made his own submission behind closed doors.{jathumbnail off}
This irked the committee, which described the businessman?s stance as insulting and stupid.
Otedola arrived at the House committee room at about 1.45pm, and soon after journalists and other members of the public were asked out.
But he said he would not answer any questions unless the session was left open to the public.
?When this issue arose, the House of Representatives committee on Ethics and Privileges publicly stated that its investigations will be held in public. It is therefore surprising and curious that this committee has made a U-turn to hold its investigative sittings in-camera particularly in the light of unfolding events,? Otedola said.
?I strongly believe that the interest of the public will not be best served if this investigation is held in-camera. I have nothing to hide and will only speak on this issue when this investigation is conducted in a very transparent manner and the press as well as the general public are allowed to be present at the sittings of this committee from the beginning to its conclusion.?
Regardless of his plea, reporters were sent out.
After spending about one and a half hours behind closed doors with the lawmakers, Otedola, accompanied by his lawyer, told journalists that he did not say anything at the session but instead demanded for an open hearing.
A visibly angry committee chairman Gambo Dan Musa also spoke to reporters after the botched hearing, saying the lawmakers were not happy with the way Otedola snubbed them.
He said Otedola laughed at the lawmakers throughout the session, telling them that that he was a successful businessman and not ?hungry? like them.
?(He) was misguided either by his lawyers or anybody who is advising him. We invited Otedola because he was a principal actor in the alleged bribery scandal because it is one thing to come, it is also another thing to refuse to talk,? Dan Musa said.
?We did all that we could by explaining to him our powers under the constitution and our rules and...further explained that nobody could dictate how we are going to conduct our meeting, yet Femi Otedola refused to answer our questions and he said he could only do so when we do it in public.
?We did not find it funny and we were not happy. He went further to insulted us in one way or the other, and we continued to exercise patience.
?He has told us that we are hiding something that?s why we don?t want to do it in public. Rather we told him, he?s the one hiding something by refusing to talk, by refusing to substantiate his allegation.
?We told him the consequences of this but he was not ready to go by our words. He told us very briefly that Farouk has lied four times, and that all that he (Farouk) submitted were not genuine as if he saw the documents.
?He said that he heard that documents submitted constituting evidence had been submitted to us and that he wanted to tell us that all documents submitted to us are not genuine as if he saw what he (Farouk) submitted to us.
?We thought that that was not correct, it was not in order and we told him that if a person made an allegations and he refused to substantiate the allegation, the consequences are clear...he continued to refuse to answer all our questions. We even asked him to produce what he said he had submitted to the SSS and the police and we told him that if he does that, we will even consider it as his own evidence but he refused to do it...
?We told him that he?s not an accused before us but a witness, we are only interested in the conduct of our member who did something against our rules. He has refused to answer all our questions, in addition to that he was just laughing.
?It was very stupid of him and we are not happy. I must say this, because we cannot have a committee of this nature, respected by the House, that somebody comes and tells us that he?s a businessman and he?s not hungry. He was laughing at us all through.?
Dan Musa said as far as the committee was concerned, ?we have done what we are supposed to do. We will invite other relevant parties.?
Rep. Ahmed Kaita (CPC, Katsina) and Ali Ahmed (PDP, Kwara) told Daily Trust that Otedola had committed contempt of parliament by refusing to give evidence and risked being jailed under provisions of the Legislative Houses Powers and Privileges Act and the 1999 Constitution as amended.
Otedola, who is chairman of Zenon oil company, last month said he ran a sting operation in which he gave Lawan $620,000 in bribes as part of a $3 million deal to clear his companies of culpability in the fuel subsidy scam which Farouk?s panel investigated from January to April.
Farouk said he collected the monies not as bribe but with the intension of buttressing his public claims that oil marketers were desperately trying to compromise his committee?s work.
New bribe discussion audio emerges
Otedola said he had recorded his conversations with Lawan during which the bribe was discussed.
On Monday, Channels TV played a recording of voices it said were of the two men discussion the bribe. Lawan dismissed the recording as doctored.
Yesterday, Channels TV played what it said was a second part of the audio recording and posted a transcript on its website, reproduced below:
Farouk: It wasn?t like my brother talking. That?s one. Secondly, please this thing that we are doing, keep it to yourself otherwise you will make
it difficult for us
Femi: Ok. I am.
Farouk: You will make it difficult because somebody called me now and said that we said we are going to address it. So please keep it ...
Femi: Address what?
Farouk: Yea. Because if it is already out that we are going to do something, when we do it, people will think that we are doing it because we had compromised and you know that is something that err... and if my colleagues get to hear about it, I won?t be able to convince them. So keep it to yourself.
Femi: Ok
Farouk: Let it be...let it not be like anybody is aware of what is happening. If anybody asked you, simply explain that this thing, you know from your records, you have all the records and you have made a case to the committee. You have sent your documents to the committee...
Femi: Yea, yea, God bless you.
Farouk: Yea. It?s left for the committee...it?s left for the committee to decide what to do. Please keep it that way.
Femi. Ok. Ok.
Farouk: Yea, because the moment it gets out now we are going to correct it, then it mean we have already ah... so let it be...I want to spring a surprise on the floor and that is the only credible way I can do this...
Femi: God bless you. God bless you my brother. I have been crying anytime I hear your voice.
Farouk: So please, please, yeah, please, yes...you know your sector. You know your sector is very small. Everybody knows...and people are already saying...Somebody just called and said what happened. Ahh, they said Femi has gotten his way around you guys and he has already succeeded.
Femi: That is not true. But let me also tell you one thing...
Farouk: No, no, no. I am saying it. No, no, I am saying it because this is what I heard.
Femi: But my brother, let me also tell you one thing. You know me as a person...
Farouk: It doesn?t have...I know...I don?t want
Femi: People just get up....
Farouk: That makes it difficult. Just, just whoever...you know..... No I didn?t do this. I am sure it must have been a mistake from the committee but I have sent a letter to set the record straight. That?s all.
Femi: Ok my brother
Farouk: yea, yea
Femi: Great. Ok. Thank you.
Listen to the conversation here:
{mp3}faruknotedola{/mp3}
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