Bayelsa Unanswered Questions

There was a throw back to the Abacha days when bombs were exploding as regularly as balloons at Yuletide. That was in Yenagoa, the Bayelsa state capital. A bomb blast had exploded in the premises of the state House of Assembly resulting in the destruction of the Accounts section of the building and also rocked some nearby houses.

It sounded bizzare. But it was real.

The bomb blast came after the Speaker of the House had been impeached. And that is after the Governor, Chief Diepreye Alamiesagha had allegedly been served the notice of impeachment for gross financial mismanagement. But that impeachment notice angle to the story was to become clearer a few days later when the new leadership of the House issued a statement denying that the House ever discussed any such notice or even served it on the man they jocularly call "Governor-general".

Indeed, the House of Assembly had compiled a very long list of some mind-bogging expenses said to have been incurred by the executive arm of government in the name, of feasibility studies for all kinds of projects under the sun.

But again, no sooner had the media begun to celebrate the Alamieyeseigha "misdeeds" that the house again rose to clear its name. According to the communiqué from the House, under its new leadership, the House never compiled any such list. The new Speaker who spoke to journalists in Yenagoa alluded that the said list of misdeeds was a figment of the imagination of the former Speaker, Heineken October Lokpobiri. It was his own way of getting back at the governor who he believed had instigated and funded his removal as Speaker as well as his eventual expulsion from the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

But, even at that, the executive arm also had a case against the legislature - under the Lokpobiri leadeship, that is. It was a case of fraudulent tendency.

Some three persons: Malam Sasime, Jonathan Kubor both traditional rulers, and a lawyer, Dan Kemgbe had gone to court to stop the release of funds to the Bayelsa House of Assembly.

Part of the affidavit they swore to averred that "between 1999 and now, the 2nd and 3rd defendant have received over N2billion of allocation for capital expenditure."

Before then, the House had passed its "Self Accounting Law", which is interpreted to mean that the house will account only to itself. That way, it was argued by the executive, the house will be under no cheque beside itself. Such a latitude afforded the legislators the opportunity of building its own Administration block.

Perhaps the worry is not just that the house executed their own projects, but the concern is the price margin always declared for such jobs.

For instance, it caused some concern that the legislators decided to build for themselves some recreation facilities at the cost of N99.2 million.

It was also said they spent N26 million in the "finishing" of Boys' quarters.

The legislators also awarded themselves some N26.2 million as bonus and constituency allowance, per member .

Details of the said acts of the assembly were given wide circulation as a way of invoking public hatred at the legislators. This act was said to have infuriated the legislators (especially those loyal to Lokpobiri) who on their part, dusted the governor's financial dossier in their posession and set the engine of discord buzzing.

The politics of how Lokpobiri had moved against Alamieyeseigha and failed and how the governor's alleged counter-attack had booted the young Speaker out of his coveted seat has since become history.

But time has not wiped off the case against the governor, the enormity of the allegations, as well as the large figures involved.

Of course it had unsettled even the governor enough for him to set up a panel to look into the authenticity of the vouchers, receipts and cheques - some of which have already been published in the press. His plan was to address a press conference on the issue as soon as the report of the panel was turned in.

But many still insist that Alamieyeseigha has a case to answer.

For instance, they say a total of eleven feasibility contracts involving huge amounts were awarded to some companies traceable to a particular source. The papers showed that in five months (August to December last year), Alamieyeseigha awarded contracts worth NI.258 billion for just feasibility studies.

In all, the companies to which the contracts were awarded have a similarity of having the same kind of computer- prepared letter-headed papers. More than that, all of them, except two, have foreign addresses. But more curious is the fact that all the cheques for the various contracts were collected by the same person- Kenem Roberts. That alone means that all the projects were handled or done by the same person or groups of persons.

And that is one of those things Alamieyeseigha has asked the panel to authenticate.

On July 20, 2000, the governor approved the sum of N68million paid through Standard Trust Bank for "a Feasibility Report on the Ultra Modern Radio Communication Network". The approving voucher had a top executive's comment "OT, Please process" The job was given to Vinny Investment Limited with a Washington address.

Eight days later,, July 28, another N65 million was approved by the governor to Multiweb Ltd again with Cambridge Health Road, in London for the purpose of presenting "a study report on the Establishment of Bayelsa Refinery". Again the approving authority commented: "please deal under G.H (Government House) misc. vote."

Alamieyeseigha would not be dragged into the discussion but his aides agree that many of the said contracts were actually given, however, they say the rates are far lower than what the circulating papers claim.

Three transactions were done with the cartel in the month of September, where-in Multi Web Ltd with a U.K address was awarded N80 million contact to submit "proposal for the Establishment of a multi-purpose Oil Mill (Soya beans, Ground-nut and Palm Kernel) for Bayelsa State Government.

The comment on the payment voucher underscored the urgency of the business as it instructed the officer-in-charge to "raise P.V (Payment Voucher) today. The governor approved on September 5.

Five days later, the sum of N72 million was approved to Lee Ventures with US and Lagos addresses to prepare feasibility report on the automation and computerisation of all government departments in Bayelsa State.

Another N95 million was again approved on September 20 to Tee Network to submit five sets of feasibility reports and drawings for a sea port. The payment voucher carried a comment "please process immediately."

The following month, October the government did business with the cartel just once. It was on October 10, when the sum of N75million was awarded for a _feasibility study on Municipal solid waste Incinerating plant in Yenegoa." The money was paid through All state_s bank cheque.

As in many of the cases in the scandal, it is curious that the feasibility work on the said projects are so expensively priced causing many to ask that if a feasibility study will cost as much as N75 million, how much is the Incinerating plant itself?

That question may need to be answered by Britts Investment Ltd which undertook the said study .The company had actually quoted N114.2 million for the said job. It claimed that it has an office in the United States of America.

Two business deals also marked the relationship between the cartel and the government in the month of November. The sum of N90 million was first approved to the same Britts Investment Ltd for the purpose of submitting two copies of yet another feasibility report on Yenagoa air strip. The payment documents bore an approval date of a Saturday meaning that the deal was closed on a week-end. And for effect, it had the comment "Please raise P.V today, Saturday 18/11/2000." Six days later, November 14, one Jowiz Nigeria Ltd was again commissioned to prepare ten sets of technical drawings, five sets of architectural drawings, and six complete sets of Feasibility report, at the cost of N100 million. With a "please process immediately "instruction, the documents sped through the usually bureaucratic system in a matter of days culminating in Kanem Roberts picking up the Standard Trust bank cheque no 644194 for the said sum, less the normal deductions and charges.

In the closing month of December, three deals were closed. The first being on December 7 where-in the sum of N350 million was approved for the "general mobilisation of B&B Construction (Equipment and Personnel)" Not more was stated. The accompanying instruction is "please procees on behalf of S.P as H.E wants this sure for them to collect the cheque on Monday 11/12."

By December 17, five days after the last award, ADM Investment Ltd with an office address in Brazil and Nigeria, collected the sum of N145 million to prepare and submit ten volumes of the feasibility report comprising two sections; ten volumes of technical analysis and ten volumes of cash flow analysis and income flow to the government" The sum was paid through All state's Trust Bank cheque.

Another N145 million was released on the 17th of December 2000, to B-Union Partners to prepare and submit six volumes of Binded (sic) set of feasibility report on the establishment of a cement factory in Yenagoa. It also submitted "a detailed technical drawings of eleven copies each of the proposed factor." The payment which was made through Standard Trust Bank was also collected by the Kanem Roberts.

A breakdown of the transactions shows that for the five months, a total of eleven feasibility jobs were commissioned at a total cost of N1,285 billion with the month of December netting the highest sum of N640 million.

But then the suspicion in all these is that the documents are believed to be coming from Lokpobiri who could be out to get back at his enemy - real or perceived - Alamieyeseigha.

That is why everyone is waiting for the outcome of the panel. However, some questions still stick out: Eleven feasibility projects are traceable to the ubiquitous Kanem Roberts; so who is Kanem Roberts? Is he real? or is he fronting for certain persons? Or better still, is he so efficient as to be the only one whose nine companies will win eleven big jobs in just five months? Questions and questions. An answer is imperative.