The Federal Government on Sunday vowed to prosecute all Nigerians involved in the $6m bribery scandal in Wilbros.
The Minister of State for Energy (Petroleum), Mr. Odein Ajumogobia, told our correspondent that the government was determined to stamp out corruption in the country.
The government was reacting to a list of the alleged beneficiaries of the bribe.
Ajumogobia, in a text message to an enquiry by our correspondent said, �I am on my way to Abu Dhabi, for a meeting of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries. I am actually on board of a plane to Doha in Qatar.
�Regret that I have not been able to evaluate the evidence of the alleged involvement of certain named NNPC staff alleged to have been implicated in the unfortunate Wilbros matter.
�My reaction is that anyone against whom there is credible evidence of impropriety will be prosecuted in accordance with the Yar�Adua administration�s policy of intolerance towards corruption.�
According to web reports, �A colour-coded list provided by the United States Government and filed in court by the defendant, a former General Manager of Wilbros, Jason Edward Steph, who pleaded guilty, in the scandal shows that the $6m deal was carried out in four series of payments made to Nigerian officials, whose names were not properly mentioned.�
Court papers, however, indicate that about $7m was committed in bribes by the US company to Nigerian officials.
There were still outstanding bribe payments to be made as at the time the whole transaction ended in 2005.
The colour-coded list also reveals that there were different projects involved.
The projects were executed under the Eastern Gas Gathering system (EGGS).
The affected projects were Engineering Procurement and Construction (EPC); coating and others.
Multinational oil companies like Fusion Petroleum Asasa/Asabo, Addax, Shell and Chevron were mentioned as those handling different aspects of the projects.
The officials alleged to have benefited from the EPC projects appeared on the colour-coded list.
They are Phil; James O; Chizea; Pedro; Ichakpa; Enuikim; and Okor.
Others are Ibraheen; Balogun; Soleye; Dankouro; Gubio; V. Dania; Toyin; Gibson Okeke; Charles; Lanre; and a sponsor simply identified as No. 2.
But a former Vice-President, Alhaji Atiku Abubakr, released a list of 21 officials (withheld by THE PUNCH), who allegedly received gratifications on the EPC project.
The Atiku Campaign Organisation claimed that the former vice-president got the list through discreet investigations.
When contacted on the telephone on Sunday by one of our correspondents, a former Minister of Finance, Dr. Onaolapo Soleye, said, �The PUNCH is one of the newspapers I read. I am not going to speak on the issue.
�You are just wasting your time. I have told you that I am not going to speak to any newsman on the issue.�
The Managing Director, National Engineering Technical Company Limited, the engineering arm of the NNPC, Mr. Phil Chukwu, said on the telephone that he could not react because �the matter is already being investigated.�
The GMD, Group Public Affairs of the NNPC, Dr. Levi Ajuonuma, did not reply to calls and text messages to his telephone by one of our correspondents.
The former Group General Manager, NAPIMS, Mr. George Osahon, said, �Don�t insult my intelligence on this matter.
�There is a new GGM at NAPIMS. Call him to speak for his staff.�
A spokesman at NAPIMS, referred our correspondent to the GGM, of the Public Affairs Division, on the grounds that �all the units in the system report to the group.�
Also at the Shell Petroleum Development Company, an official said, �The matter requires full investigations, it�s not just something you can react to immediately. One has to be careful in order not to damage one�s reputation.�
The Wilbros scandal first broke out in 2003, with revelations that some Nigerian and multinational companies� officials benefited from the $6m bribe allegedly distributed by the Wilbros Group to secure contracts for the EGGS.
The EGGS Phases I and 2 contracts were approximately put at $387.5m.
The Federal Government on Sunday vowed to prosecute all Nigerians involved in the $6m bribery scandal in Wilbros.
The Minister of State for Energy (Petroleum), Mr. Odein Ajumogobia, told our correspondent that the government was determined to stamp out corruption in the country.
The government was reacting to a list of the alleged beneficiaries of the bribe.
Ajumogobia, in a text message to an enquiry by our correspondent said, �I am on my way to Abu Dhabi, for a meeting of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries. I am actually on board of a plane to Doha in Qatar.
�Regret that I have not been able to evaluate the evidence of the alleged involvement of certain named NNPC staff alleged to have been implicated in the unfortunate Wilbros matter.
�My reaction is that anyone against whom there is credible evidence of impropriety will be prosecuted in accordance with the Yar�Adua administration�s policy of intolerance towards corruption.�
According to web reports, �A colour-coded list provided by the United States Government and filed in court by the defendant, a former General Manager of Wilbros, Jason Edward Steph, who pleaded guilty, in the scandal shows that the $6m deal was carried out in four series of payments made to Nigerian officials, whose names were not properly mentioned.�
Court papers, however, indicate that about $7m was committed in bribes by the US company to Nigerian officials.
There were still outstanding bribe payments to be made as at the time the whole transaction ended in 2005.
The colour-coded list also reveals that there were different projects involved.
The projects were executed under the Eastern Gas Gathering system (EGGS).
The affected projects were Engineering Procurement and Construction (EPC); coating and others.
Multinational oil companies like Fusion Petroleum Asasa/Asabo, Addax, Shell and Chevron were mentioned as those handling different aspects of the projects.
The officials alleged to have benefited from the EPC projects appeared on the colour-coded list.
They are Phil; James O; Chizea; Pedro; Ichakpa; Enuikim; and Okor.
Others are Ibraheen; Balogun; Soleye; Dankouro; Gubio; V. Dania; Toyin; Gibson Okeke; Charles; Lanre; and a sponsor simply identified as No. 2.
But a former Vice-President, Alhaji Atiku Abubakr, released a list of 21 officials (withheld by THE PUNCH), who allegedly received gratifications on the EPC project.
The Atiku Campaign Organisation claimed that the former vice-president got the list through discreet investigations.
When contacted on the telephone on Sunday by one of our correspondents, a former Minister of Finance, Dr. Onaolapo Soleye, said, �The PUNCH is one of the newspapers I read. I am not going to speak on the issue.
�You are just wasting your time. I have told you that I am not going to speak to any newsman on the issue.�
The Managing Director, National Engineering Technical Company Limited, the engineering arm of the NNPC, Mr. Phil Chukwu, said on the telephone that he could not react because �the matter is already being investigated.�
The GMD, Group Public Affairs of the NNPC, Dr. Levi Ajuonuma, did not reply to calls and text messages to his telephone by one of our correspondents.
The former Group General Manager, NAPIMS, Mr. George Osahon, said, �Don�t insult my intelligence on this matter.
�There is a new GGM at NAPIMS. Call him to speak for his staff.�
A spokesman at NAPIMS, referred our correspondent to the GGM, of the Public Affairs Division, on the grounds that �all the units in the system report to the group.�
Also at the Shell Petroleum Development Company, an official said, �The matter requires full investigations, it�s not just something you can react to immediately. One has to be careful in order not to damage one�s reputation.�
The Wilbros scandal first broke out in 2003, with revelations that some Nigerian and multinational companies� officials benefited from the $6m bribe allegedly distributed by the Wilbros Group to secure contracts for the EGGS.
The EGGS Phases I and 2 contracts were approximately put at $387.5m.