USAfrica: Nigeria’s ex-President Obasanjo left a legacy of corruption, Kalu alleges in letter

Nigeria’s ex-President Obasanjo left a legacy of corruption, Kalu alleges in letter.

  

Special to USAfricaonline.com,  and USAfrica multimedia networks, Houston. Follow USAfrica at Facebook.com/USAfricaChido , Facebook.com/USAfrica247 and Twitter.com/Chido247 

An escalation of  the conflict between Nigeria’s ex-president Olusegun Obasanjo and former Governor of Abia State, Dr. Orji Uzor Kalu has taken a new, heated turn as Kalu released — this weekend of August 15-16, 2015 — a copy of his harsh, critical letter dated June 25, 2002 to Obasanjo.

 

Kalu, chairman of Slok Group of companies, in the letter which a copy was sent to USAfrica and USAfricaonline.com stated: “The most pressing question I wish to put to you, sir, revolves around your long tenure as Nigeria’s Minister of Petroleum Resources since 1999. Why has there not been a properly audited account of the Ministry of Petroleum resources since then, despite outcry by the people for thisto be done?There is indisputable evidence that all the deals in the nation’s oil sectorare being handled by you, through your cronies and agents. What about the leakages and the fraud at theNNPC withparticular reference to crude oil sales and the accrued commissions? What have you done to check the malfeasance?”On the issue of fighting corruption by Obasanjo, Kalu directly accused the retired General of being hypocritical since “corruption is taking root and multiplying daily in many federal establishments, including Aso Villa, the very seat of power, where you reside…. I have repeatedly made the observation that corruption is rife among senior officials of government, especially those at the federal level, and among your friends, your business associates and cronies. Around you and in your name have coalesced a few powerful brokers of corrupt practices who peddle your influence and extract billions of naira in the form of oil and gas and defence contract commissions.”

“The budget is manipulated at the National Assembly with the active connivance of your surrogates and a few Senators, thereby carting away billions of naira through contract padding or inflation. The felonious activities of this cabal, including the foreign accounts of some of your aides and serving and former ministers are well known to the international community. I would be surprised if you feign ignorance of this unfortunate situation.”

Obasanjo was also accused by Kalu of connivance, citing what he referred to as: “A few examples are necessary to buttress my case: The Abuja National Stadium, why was the original design for the stadium, which had a five star hotel and which contract was won by a Chinese firm discarded and re-awarded to another foreign construction company based in Nigeria without the component of a five star hotel but at five times the price originally quoted by the Chinese firm? There is unquestionable evidence at my disposal pointing to the fact that mega corruption lies at the base of this dramatic turnabout.”

“Why have the operations of Bureau for Public Enterprises (BPE) remained so murky? Who collected the commissions for the sale of Ajaokuta Steel Company and Delta Steel Rolling Mill, Aladja? To what degree would you, Mr. President, defend those transactions as transparent? Who owns Bells University and Bells Secondary School? Who paid for the construction of hostels and gigantic sports complex at the Bells Secondary School? I put it to you sir, that both projects were financed with Nigerian taxpayers’ money through the construction giant, STRABAG, five years ago (2000). What role did a former Minister of Sports play in the whole deal?”

At the time of this USAfricaonline.com report, Sunday morning August 16, 2015, Chief Obasanjo did not issue any response to Kalu’s letter.

I asked Kalu why he chose to make the letter  public — at this time; he responded that “it’s my conscience that persuaded me to release it.”

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VIDEO of the CNN International broadcast/profile of USAfrica and CLASSmagazine Publisher Chido Nwangwu. USAfrica will turn 25 years in 2017   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=68DP3rtPS0c 

Boko Haram: SkyNews London interview wt USAfrica Publisher Dr. Chido Nwangwu on BOKO HARAM vs BUHARI (Nigeria’s President inaugurated May 29, 2015). Interview on May 30 (Houston) May 31 (London) 2015

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VIDEO #CNN special #CHIBOK Girls n #BokoHaram Live intvw wt the Founder of USAfrica multimedia and public POLICY networks Chido Nwangwu. CNN anchors John Berman n Michaela Pereira.  

Forthcoming 2016 BOOK: In this engaging, uniquely insightful and first PERSON reportage book, MANDELA & ACHEBE: Footprints of Greatness, about two GLOBAL icons and towering PERSONS of African descent whose exemplary lives

 and friendship HOLD lessons for humanity and Africans, USAfrica Founder Chido Nwangwu takes a measure of their works and CONSEQUENCE to write that Mandela and Achebe have left “footprints of greatness.”

He chronicles, movingly, his 1998 reporting from the Robben Island jail room in South Africa where Mandela was held for decades through his 20 years of being CLOSE to Achebe. He moderated the 2012 Achebe Colloquium at Brown UNIVERSITY in Providence, Rhode Island.“I’ll forever remember having walked inside and peeped through that HISTORIC Mandela jail cell (where he was held for most of his 27 years in unjust imprisonment) at the dreaded Robben Island, on March 27, 1998, alongside then Editor-in-chief of TIME magazine and later news chief EXECUTIVE of the CNN, Walter Isaacson (and others) when PRESIDENT BILL Clinton made his first official trip to South Africa and CAME to Robben Island. Come to this island of scourge and you will understand, in part, the simple greatness and towering grace of Nelson Mandela”, notes  Chido Nwangwu, award-winning writer, multimedia 
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  •Dr. Chido Nwangwu, moderator of the Achebe Colloquium (GOVERNANCE, SECURITY, and PEACE in Africa) December 7-8, 2012 at Brown UNIVERSITY in Rhode Island and former ADVISER on Africa business/issues to the Mayor of Houston, is the Founder & Publisher of Houston-based USAfrica multimedia networks since 1992, first African-owned, U.S-based newspaper published on the INTERNET USAfricaonline.com; CLASSmagazine, AchebeBooks.com, the USAfrica-powered e-groups of AfricanChristians, Nigeria360 and the largest pictorial events megasite on the African diaspora www.PhotoWorks.TV . He was recently profiled by the CNN International for his pioneering works on multimedia/news/public policy projects for Africans and Americans.   E-MAIL: Chido247@Gmail.com