The All Progressives Congress (APC) has asked President Goodluck Jonathan to urgently take action on the monumental Malabu oil scandal that is again putting Nigeria under the global searchlight as a corrupt nation.
In a statement sunday by its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party said
Jonathan must end his silence on the matter since half of the $1.1 billion paid to Malabu Oil and Gas for Oil Prospecting Lease (OPL) 245 by two oil majors was allegedly used to bribe Nigerian officials who, in turn, used the proceeds to buy private jets and armoured limousines.
The $1.1billion proceeds paid to Malabu oil company was shared by some private firms owned by people
very close to the presidency, a report by an anti-graft agency shows.
The sum of $1.092bn was paid by ENI AGIP and Shell into depository Escrow Account domiciled in JP
Morgan Chase Co, London as proceeds for the sale of oil block OPL 245 on 25, March 2011, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) report, which investigated the deal shows.
The report said that by August 16, the Attorney General and Minister of Justice Mohammed Adoke and the State Minister for Finance Dr. Yerima Lawal Ngama "instructed the release of $401, 540, 000" into Malabu Oil and Gas Ltd accounts domiciled with First Bank of Nigeria and $400 million into another Malabu accounts with Keystone Bank (former Bank PHB).
The EFCC report said "JP Morgan complied with this instruction and made the transfers on 23 August, 2011." Malabu, controlled by Chief Dan Etete, ex-oil minister, who was convicted of money laundering in
France in 2007, further shared these monies to several other accounts belonging to individuals with very close ties to the presidency.
The following day, of the $400 million deposited at the Malabu's Keystone bank account, $336 million was transferred to Rocky Top Resources Ltd's account No 1005556552 with Abuja CBD branch of the same bank. The remaining balance of $60 million was transferred to account No 3610042596 (allegedly belonging to Etete) for forex trading, leaving zero balance with Malabu's Keystone bank account.
Of the $336 million transferred into the Rocky Top Resources account, $165 million was subsequently
transferred into various individual accounts, leaving the balance of only $171 million, the anti-graft agency's report said. Rocky Top Resources, the report said, was registered with the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) with 100,000 shares capital only and is owned by one Abubakar Aliyu.
The report said that first payment of $401 million to Malabu's First Bank account was distributed directly to A Group Construction Co. Ltd-also co-owned by Abubakar Aliyu ($157m); Mega Tech Engr. Co. Ltd ($180M); Imperial Union Ltd ($34m); Novel Property and Development Ltd-also co-owned by Abubakar Aliyu ($30m); leaving the balance of $143 million
Malabu's account. And "reasons for this payment is yet to be ascertained," the EFCC report said.
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