The arrest last Monday of Innocent Aondoakaa, the brother of Nigeria's Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) Michael Aondoakaa, may have opened a new chapter in the engagement in open corruption by the AGF.
Innocent Aondoakaa was arrested by the by the State Security Services (SSS) at the prompting of presidency officials who said the AGF was an embarrassment to the Federal government on the account of documented and verified corrupt acts and abuse of office he engages in. Although Innocent's arrest was kept from the media, SaharaReporters learnt that the findings of the panel of the investigators handling his case were so shocking that the AGF had to recruit businessman Jimoh Ibrahim to help finance a "clean up" process at the SSS.
It will be recalled that last month Mr Aondoakaa, in the exercise of his powers under section 174 of the 1999 Constitution stopped the prosecution of Mr Jimoh Ibrahim by the EFCC in the Ikeja High Court on a six-count charge of fraud, forgery and impersonation. In a letter dated September 6, 2008 and addressed to the EFCC Chair, Mrs Farida Waziri, Mr Aondoakaa ordered the EFCC to terminate the prosecution of Mr Ibrahim, who is the Chairman of NICON Group of Companies and Chief Executive Officer of Global Fleet Limited.
Last week, when Innocent was goaded from the EFCC to the SSS headquarters, the SSS seized his mobile phone from him and downloaded its contents. While Innocent was released on Monday night, his phone was not released until late on Tuesday night when he returned to the SSS headquarters for further interrogation.Sources at the 'Yellow House' headquarters of the SSS told SaharaReporters that what they found out about Aondoakaa's brother involvement in extortions being carried out by the AGF was too shocking to believe. He was said to have saved text messages with which he and his brother had extorted funds from several high-ranking Nigerians with legal cases pending at his office.
Innocent also reportedly made statements to the effect that Mrs. Farida Waziri and his brother Michael Aondoakaa conspired and received N140 million from Liyel Imoke, the current Governor of Cross Rivers state which they shared in an upstairs bedroom at the AGF’s No- 23 Bujumbura Street, Abuja. He also reportedly admitted to the fact that the AGF provided his "Guest Room" to Liyel Imoke while he was being sought for arrest by the EFCC after the Court of Appeal annulled his election earlier this year. As reported by Saharareporters, the EFCC and AGF Aondoakaa successfully shielded Imoke from arrest and prosecution until he won back his immunity as governor.
SaharaReporters sources also say that Innocent told SSS interrogators that Mrs. Farida Waziri, under the guidance of the AGF, met with Governor Godswill Akpabio of Akwa Ibom state at Michael Aondoakaa's house for a "settlement" of the corruption cases brought against the governor via credible petitions. Innocent allegedly admitted that the AGF and Akpabio shared the bribe money which was brought by Governor Akpabio in US dollars.
Apart from the revelations by Innocent, SaharaReporters has also learnt that Mrs. Waziri was recalled from London by Yar'Adua on a particular occasion to assist Governor Timipre Sylva of Bayelsa state. Upon her return, Mrs. Waziri met with Governor Sylva in the company of Benue (her home state) governor, Gabriel Tor-Suswam to clear Sylva of any financial wrongdoing. This was despite abundant strong evidence about the governor's financial malfeasance. Sylva was allowed to rerun for the gubernatorial elections in Bayelsa that was ordered by the Court of Appeal and handily won with the help of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
As earlier reported by SaharaReporters, the arrest of London –based Nigerian businessman, Terry Waya was aimed at sacrificing him over acts of bribery being undertaken to sway the justices of the Supreme Court of which Terry, an Atiku loyalist was knowledgeable. Terry was picked up last Monday by the Economic and Financial Crimes commission (EFCC) allegedly for "extortion," but Mr. Waya was released the next day without being charged. In a curious twist, he was later re-arrested by the SSS who also released him the following day after warning him to desist from addressing the media.
Saharareporters learnt that when EFCC investigators took Terry's mobile phone, they were stunned to stumble upon an exchange of "very personal text messages" between Waya and the EFCC chairperson, Mrs. Waziri, who had apparently organized Waya's arrest as a way of distancing herself from the controversial Benue-born businessman. When Mrs. Waziri was notified of the development, she hurriedly ordered the release of the businessman and apologized to him, claiming she had to fulfill a directive from "President" Yar'adua to arrest and interrogate him based upon a petition from the Rivers state governor, Rotimi Amaechi.
Sources have told SaharaReporters that Mr. Aondoakaa is angry with Mrs. Waziri for mismanaging his brothers's arrest, questioning why she allowed him to be taken to the SSS in the first place. Our sources also say that both Aondoakaa and Waziri have been summoned to a "peace meeting" in Benue state by the state governor, so they can resolve their differences and resume the same script.
Aondoakaa's exclusive outcry to a reporter of The Nation's newspaper today was as a result of the current pressure he faces over acts of corruption traced to him by security agents. Since he is, however, central to Yar'Adua's game plan to compromise Supreme Court justices concerning the presidential electoral petition before them, it is unlikely anything would be done to him by the presidency.
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