Story Highlights
- Dr. Steve Olusegun Ogidan returned N1.5 billion to the EFCC to avoid conviction in a case involving former NIRSAL MD, Aliyu Abdulhameed, citing it as legitimate earnings from consultancy services.
- The EFCC pursued interim forfeiture of the funds, alleging they were proceeds of unlawful activities, while Ogidan and Abdulhameed argued the money was rightfully earned under a PMRO contract approved by NIRSAL’s board.
- The case, involving allegations of coercion by EFCC officials and a subsequent application for final forfeiture by EFCC lawyers, is scheduled for mention on October 10, 2024, pending the court’s decision.
A private consultant, Dr. Steve Olusegun Ogidan, has returned N1.5 billion to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in the anti-graft agency’s alleged fraud case against a former Managing Director of the Nigeria Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agricultural Lending (NIRSAL), Aliyu Abatti Abdulhameed and himself, before a Federal High Court sitting in Abuja.
This is according to a letter from his solicitors to the EFCC (containing stamps of the EFCC and the registrar of the court), his affidavit deposed before the court and EFCC’s counter processes exclusively seen by Nairametrics.
Nairametrics previously reported that the Ex-NIRSAL boss had urged the court not to grant a final order of forfeiture against N1.5 billion linked to him and Ogidan, on the grounds that it is the “legitimate earnings” of the consultant who runs a consultancy firm, Successory Nigeria Ltd (SNL).
Steve Olusegun Ogidan’s position in the dispute
In February 2024, Justice Inyang Ekwo, in suit no: FHC/ABJ/CS/1686/2023, ordered the interim forfeiture of the money as requested by the EFCC.
In August 2023, Ogidan’s solicitors, B.A. Wali and Associates, wrote the EFCC, asking the commission to compound the case against him or close the matter.
To compound a case is a situation where an institution agrees not to file criminal charges against an accused provided, he returns the proceeds of crime.
The letter tagged “RE: REQUEST FOR PLATFORM AND ROOM FOR RESOLUTION OF ALL ISSUES IN RESPECT OF INVESTIGATION INTO PMRO CONSULTANTS THROUGH THE NATIONAL COORDINATING CONSULTANT OF NIRSAL PMRO SYSTEM“, urged the commission to step down the matter since their client has returned the money in dispute.
The letter partly reads,
“We continue to act as Solicitors to Dr. Stephen Olusegun Ogidan and in the same capacity, we write your good offices on the above subject matter.
“It could be recalled that on the 5th of January 2023, our client concluded payment of a sum of N1,582,000,000.00 into the commission’s recovery account pursuant to the provisions of Section 14(2) of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (Establishment) Act and the commission was notified via our letter of 6th January 2023.
“Following the above, we have an instruction of our client to request your good offices to compound the case, hence we respectfully crave the indulgence of your good offices to invoke the provision Section.14(2) of Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (Establishment)Act to compound the case.
“We look forward to your prompt and positive action.”
However, the consultant filed an affidavit to show cause dated March 5, 2024, before Justice Inyang Ekwo, accusing the EFCC of compelling him to return the money in exchange for non-prosecution.
He accused the EFCC of indicting him for supporting the ex-NIRSAL boss’ political ambition.
He claimed he was also accused of employing only Christians and Southerners as his zonal consultants in the field.
He stated,
“While in the custody of the EFCC, I was compelled by Abdulrasheed Bawa, the former Chairman of the EFCC, through Mr Mahmud Tukur, Head, Monitoring Unit 2 (“CMU2”) to sign an undertaking to pay the sum of N1,582,000,000, being the total sum paid to SNL by the Project Monitoring, Reporting and Remediation Offices (PMRO)consultants for capturing the data of farmers across the country over 5 (five) years, into the EFCC Recovery Account [Acc No: 0020089341028) domiciled with the Central Bank of Nigeria.
“The EFCC confronted me with a document indicating that the total sum of 1,582,093,804.62 was paid into SNL’s account over 5 (five) years by several zonal PMRO consultants.”
He explained that during the period of interrogation, he paid N1,582.000,000 into the EFCC Recovery Account.
“I took several loans from friends and financial institutions to pay EFCC the sum of N1,582,000,000 (A copy of the loan agreement with Dignity Finance & Investment Ltd is hereby attached to the Affidavit and marked as Exhibit U),” he added.
According to him, since his release from custody, he has yet to be charged before any court for any crime by the EFCC or any other prosecution agency over the PMRO Agreement.
He concluded that the award of the PMRO contract to SNL by NIRSAL followed due process and was not tainted with any form of illegality.
He maintained that he is a private consultant with over 25 years of both local and international consultancy management experience.
He insisted that the money in dispute is not a proceed of illegal activity “but the money that SNL legitimately earned under the PMRO Agreement over five years.“
EFCC counters
But an EFCC investigative officer, Mubarak Isa, deposed in his counter affidavit seen by Nairametrics, countering the consultant.
He stated that the respondents and other suspects freely and voluntarily wrote their statements in the presence of their counsel.
He stressed the EFCC never compelled the consultant to make an undertaking to pay the sum of N1,582,000,000.00 as alleged by him.
He explained that the consultant chose to return the money after he was confronted with facts of his alleged unlawful activities through which the money was obtained.
“The EFCC never made it a condition precedent for the 2nd Respondent that unless he made the payment of N1,582,000,000.00 he would not get his freedom from ‘further harassment, intimidation and detention’, “ Isa stated while confirming the consultant’s solicitors’ letter which sought for non-conviction over the offence.
He insisted that the application of the EFCC for the forfeiture of the money was in good faith.
More insights
The Ex-NIRSAL boss had stated that during his first term as Managing Director of NIRSAL PLC, Successory Nigeria Ltd, a company owned by Dr Steve Olusegun Ogidan submitted a proposal to NIRSAL for the design and implementation of Project Monitoring, Reporting and Remediation Offices (“PMROs”) to support NIRSAL in effectively covering the entire nation.
He added that the PMRO framework was designed to support NIRSAL effectively to track performance and to function as the last-mile organizational unit of NIRSAL by providing project-related services to support agricultural businesses.
His lawyers further explained that the consultant was engaged to carry out the project, contending that payments made to SNL under the PMRO Framework Agreement were negotiated, predetermined and approved by NIRSAL’s Board of Directors before disbursement.
Abdulhameed insisted through his lawyers that the money in dispute was the legitimate earnings of the consultant.
Meanwhile, EFCC lawyer, Faruk Abdullah Esq has filed an application seeking final forfeiture of the money.
He insisted that the funds sought to be forfeited are reasonably suspected to be proceeds of unlawful activities.
“No reasonable cause has been shown why the funds subject of the order of interim forfeiture should not be finally forfeited to the Federal Government of Nigeria, ” he added in the application dated 16th day of April 2024 and seen by Nairametrics.
Nairametrics reliably gathered that the court has fixed October 10, 2024, for mention of the case.
What you should know
- The Nigeria Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agricultural Lending (NIRSAL Plc.) is a non-bank financial institution wholly owned by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
- It was established to redefine, assess, measure, reprice, and share agribusiness-related credit risks in Nigeria.
- Former president Muhammadu Buhari had in 2022, removed Aliyu Abdulhameed from office, citing allegations of corruption.
- The ex-NIRSAL boss is facing a separate alleged forgery case at the Federal High Court as instituted by the Nigeria Police.
- It is now within the powers of the court to determine the merit of the case of the parties.