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Reps may seek arrest of BPE
directors over Pentascope deal
By Dan Alo
Correspondent,
Lagos
House of Representative
Committee on Communications probing the contract between the Nigerian
Telecommunications Limited (NITEL) and Pentascope has warned that the
unwillingness of the parties to release the original copy of the document
may lead to the arrest of the directors of the Bureau of Public
Enterprises (BPE).
Deputy Committee Chairman
Leonard Ogor said in a telephone interview on Thursday that from all
indications, all the principal figures in the agreement have refused to
tender the original copy of the contract before the committee.
Said he: �When the minister
was here, he mentioned a new schedule G in the contract which will allow
experts from KPM Inc. to provide technical back up for Pentascope. We have
requested for the original copy of this schedule G, till date, himself,
the BPE director general who signed on behalf of the government and even
the managing director of Pentascope could bring before us this all
important document�.
In his view, this singular act
leaves much to be desired, stressing that if they continue to shield
information from committee, �we will be left with no choice other than to
order the arrest of those directors at the BPE and all the people who
signed the deal in contract which carries serious criminal implications
like we have seen during the public hearing on the contract�.
Pentascope has shown that it
lacks the expertise to turn around the fortunes of NITEL, he argued, and
that the company, in four months, is indebted to local banks to the tune
of N14.5 billion.
�The loan they sourced to pay
salaries of staff, and from all indications, they are also looking for
another N450 billion outside the country. The brokerage firm for the
loans, which gets 25 per cent, is the company owned by the husband of the
managing director of Pentascope.
�We have promised to bring to
book all those involved in this fraudulent deal. Even if the federal
government cancels the deal, that does not cancel the fact that there was
an illegality in the deal which was intended to defraud the nation and
there must be sanctions for this as prescribed by the law� Ogor
insisted.
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