A non-government organisation (NGO); Citizens United for Peace and Stability has accused the duo of the immediate past National Security Adviser (NSA); Col Sambo Dasuki (rtd) and the incumbent Director General, Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA); Dr Ziakede Akpobolokemi of using the International Ships and Ports Security facility (ISPS) code to allegedly fraudulently siphon a whopping N447Million.
The NIMASA is designated authourity (DA) for the implementation of the ISPS Code in Nigeria.
A non-government organisation (NGO); Citizens United for Peace and Stability has accused the duo of the immediate past National Security Adviser (NSA); Col Sambo Dasuki (rtd) and the incumbent Director General, Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA); Dr Ziakede Akpobolokemi of using the International Ships and Ports Security facility (ISPS) code to allegedly fraudulently siphon a whopping N447Million.
The NIMASA is designated authourity (DA) for the implementation of the ISPS Code in Nigeria.
According to the Anti Corruption campaign group, documents revealed last-minute withdrawals from the national treasury under the guise of National security by NIMASA, former NSA and the office of former President Goodluck Jonathan.
The cup, in its whistle blowing petition stated that it was the DG of NIMASA who initiated the act on April 15, 2015.
The group, which is led by one Dr. Idris Ahmed, alleged that, “on 15/04/2015, the current DG NIMASA (Mr. Ziakede P. Akpobolokem) wrote the former NSA (Sambo Dasuki) requesting for N447 Million, being payment for a project called “Implementation of International Ship and Port Facility Security – ISPS”. The bogus project was meant to be for consultancy, enforcement activities, and verification/inspection exercise. On 22/04/2015, Mr. Dasuki duly wrote ex-President GEJ, endorsing the project. On 27/04/2015, ex-President GEJ wrote the former NSA swiftly approving it”.
Alleging further that it took only 12 days for the act to committed, it added that: “Within a period of just 12 days, Nigerians were defrauded of a whopping N447 Million. The speed at which these huge sums of monies were requested and released is an indication of a grandeur conspiracy between GEJ, Dasuki, and DG NIMASA. This was part of the last minute ransacking of the Nigerian treasury by GEJ and his cabal after losing the Presidential election”.
“The level of theft at NIMASA can only be described as war crimes and crimes against humanity. To this end, we call upon his Excellency, PMB, to freeze the bank accounts and assets of ex-President GEJ, Sambo Dasuki, and the current DG NIMASA. We also call upon his Excellency to freeze both the local and foreign accounts of NIMASA itself, with immediate effect, so as to stop the rot.”
In a copy of the letter from the DG of NIMASA to the office of the NSA, which was actually sighted by one of our correspondents, the DG attributed the request to the need for the agency to further consolidate on its implementation of the ISPS Code ahead of the coming of the United States Coast Guard between May and August 2015.
The DG added that the N477Million was part of the N500Mllion appropriated by the National Assembly for the ISPS Code implementation. The letter was dated April 15, 2015.
In the letter the NIMASA DG claimed that the sum would be for consultancy services (N96Million), enforcement, verification and inspection activities (N176Million). Others are 2015 Port Facility Security survey (N96Million), National Implementation Committee (N30Million) for meetings, tours and trips to countries where ISPS is working perfectly. It will also cover N6Million annual allowance to members of the committee. Lastly, the DG requested and got N50Miilion for stakeholders’ sensitization, workshop and conferences.
The request was approved by then-President; Dr Goodluck Jonathan on April 25, 2015.
The anti-corruption group threatened that it will continue “with its exposure of the grandeur financial theft at NIMASA until all the documents at our disposal are laid bare for Nigerian masses to see”.
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