SURE-P Funds: ICPC witness admits discrepancies during investigation

Mr. Seidu Mohammed, Star witness of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), in the ongoing trial of a United Kingdom-based Professor of Neurology, Reuben Oluwakinmilehin Obaro and his wife, Mrs Ayodele Olubunmi Obaro, a practicing nurse in the UK, has told a High Court of the Federal Capital Territory sitting in Zuba that he did not interview relevant persons and government agencies before going ahead with the prosecution of ‎the medical practitioner and his wife.

Seidu, an investigator with the‎ ICPC told the court under cords examination by the the defence lawyer Mr. John Nnaemeka Egwuonwu, SAN that the commission only acted on a petition it received against the defendants without interfacing with the former Chairmen of SURE-P and the Federal Ministry of Health, which authorized the release of the fund in question, before charging the defendants to court.

Oluwakinmilehin Obaro and his wife Olubunmi Obaro were charged to court for allegedly misappropriating N233.6 million.

They were accused of misleading officers of the Commission, frustrating investigation and misappropriating funds meant for the establishment of a stroke centre in Nigeria being funded partly by the defunct Subsidy Reinvestment Empowerment Programme (SURE-P) and personal money of the Professor and his wife.

However when the matter came up for hearing, the witness admitted some discrepancies in the investigation the commission carried out.

He told the court that the commission did not find out from SURE-P how much the stroke centre will cost.

He said, “In the course of my investigation, I did not interface with Dr Christopher Kolade, the then Chairman of SURE-P.

“I did not also interface with Dr.Martins Luther Agwai, the successor to Dr Christopher Kolade. I also did not interface with Mr Ishaya Akan, the last SURE-P Chairman before it was dissolved”,he said.

Seidu stressed further that he did not have any contact with the Federal Ministry of Health, despite the fact that the ministry was deeply involved before the seed grant was released to the defendants by SURE-P.

Asked if he made his findings from the SURE-P office in the course of his investigations, the witness said, “I did not find out from SURE-P the type of building to be built. I did not find out its cost and I did not find out the time line for the building to be completed”.

He similarly said that he was not aware of whether SURE-P appointed external auditor for the defendants.

Seidu told the court that he never invited the defendants to confirm or deny the cash analysis he did on the money spent on the project so far.

He revealed also that he did not investigate whether the defendants organized an awareness campaign lecture in Abuja, “because the Commission (ICPC) saw it as unnecessary to so investigate it”.

Trial judge justice Justice A. O. Ebong subsequently adjourned the case to July 5 and 9, 2018.