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Open Letter To President Jonathan: Jimoh Ibrahim, N6.4b FIRS Tax Evasion Case And N10b Pension Fraud Case With EFCC

December 1, 2013

Last week the operatives of Federal Inland Revenue Services  (FIRS) arrested Mr. Jimoh Ibrahim. At FIRS, Ibrahim alleged that I, John Nnorom, the Air Nigeria whistleblower, should be held liable, claiming that he was "mere" chairman of Air Nigeria.  

Last week the operatives of Federal Inland Revenue Services  (FIRS) arrested Mr. Jimoh Ibrahim. At FIRS, Ibrahim alleged that I, John Nnorom, the Air Nigeria whistleblower, should be held liable, claiming that he was "mere" chairman of Air Nigeria.  

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I have been invited by the operatives of FIRS to make further statement but Jimoh Ibrahim has also been asked to return to FIRS on 10TH Dec, 2013, hence this open letter to Mr. President. 

Wonders shall never end, that Jimoh Ibrahim, the Group Managing Director of Global fleet Group, now claims to be ordinary chairman. Fellow Nigerians, please google Global fleet group, where Jimoh Ibrahim said, “I AM THE GROUP CEO” also  google; Facebook/jimoh Ibrahim, where jimoh said “ I AM THE GROUP MANAGING  DIRECTOR”.  I need not over- emphasis this title of GMD, as the various newspaper publications even in his National Mirror; Newswatch Daily newspaper etc. are available for Nigerians. Please, find attached some Global fleet magazine, where Jimoh Ibrahim is titled Group Managing Director. What a tissue of lies.  Company and Allied Matter Act, cap C20 defines a one man board CEO, GMD, Chairman as the highest-ranking corporate officer (Executive) or administrator in charge of total management of an organization.  

Jimoh Ibrahim should stop being economical with the truth, even his less than 150 six months unpaid staff, which Jimoh Ibrahim claimed are 21,000 addressed you as GMD.

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 I wrote the petition to FIRS because; I was a victim of Jimoh Ibrahim’s tax fraud. This is my profession. Jimoh Ibrahim was still in secondary school, when I qualified as a Chartered Accountant at the age of 24  in 1986.  With 26 years post qualification experience, Jimoh Ibrahim is not afraid to challenge me, I wonder what Mr. Ibrahim can do to non-tax professional of our nation.

Jimoh Ibrahim’s team of liars advice  about what happened to  Sergei Leonidovich Magnitsky, a lawyer in Russian, who was investigating a tax evasion case but was arrested, beaten to death and convicted as a dead man in 2009, will not happen in this case. I am a principal witness in Mr. Ibrahim’s tax evasion case.  I, therefore, would request that FIRS should open up investigation on other companies owned by Jimoh Ibrahim apart from the N6.4Billion tax evasion involving Air Nigeria. Tax evasion is criminal.

In the article, which I wrote in saharareporters in the month of June, 2013 titled FIRS CAN GENERATE N30 TRILLION, I quote Few years ago, the Russian richest man Mikhail Khodorkovsky was jailed for tax evasion. Even a former Vice President of America Spiro Agnew was forced to resign due to tax evasion. The Watergate scandal which forced American President, Richard Nixon to resign involves bribery, money laundry and tax Evasion. If such, highly placed personalities, can be humiliated in Russia and America, who is Jimoh Ibrahim?  This is what will happen in Jimoh Ibrahim’s tax evasion case.

Jimoh Ibrahim have persecuted me with billions of debt borrowed from banks and several attempts on my life by assassins sponsored by Mr. Ibrahim but when I remember that my deep desire is to move Nigeria forward, my soul rejoices.

EMPLOYEE TAX FRAUD

In the last twenty years, I have always paid my taxes as and when due. It was a great pain to me that taxes deducted from my salaries in Air Nigeria, in my capacity as Executive Director Finance, were not remitted in 2011 to Lagos State Board of Internal Revenue.   All efforts that I made to convince Jimoh Ibrahim to approve the payment of taxes due to Federal Government and Various State Government were turned down.

In all the companies owned by jimoh Ibrahim, taxes were not remitted to the relevant tax authorities. I personally in 2012, visited Lagos State Board of internal Revenue but was told that the case of Air Nigeria has been transferred to the legal department for necessary action. Even before the closure of Air Nigeria, in the last two strikes by  Air Nigeria Engineer and Pilots, the issue of tax deductions not being remitted was one of the reasons for the strike.( please, find attached a scan copy of their letter.) The implication is that, in all these companies owned by Jimoh Ibrahim, no staff has tax clearance certificate. This issue can be confirmed now from the staff and the various tax boards.  During my era, Air Nigeria had tax problems ( Pay- As- You- Earn ) with Imo State Board of Internal Revenue, Enugu State Board of Internal Revenue, River State Board of Internal Revenue, Sokoto State Board of Internal Revenue, Lagos State Board of internal Revenue to mention but a few in Nigeria. Outside Nigeria, Air Nigeria was owing heavy amount in taxes, in Republic Du Benin- Cotonou 500million CFA, Ghana USD $1,200,000, Cameroon USD $810,000, Brazilleville USD $400,000, in UK and USA to mention but a few. These amounts remain unpaid as at today.

Jimoh Ibrahim tax evasion strategy is, simple,” Let us use government money to do business and make little payment on account, from time to time, so as to make reconciliation absolute impossible”. FORGE THE TAX CERTIFICATES.  

The forgery of expatriate tax clearance certificate started before I joined Air Nigeria. You cannot renew the expatriate quota without tax clearance certificate and since, no remittance was made to the relevant tax authority, the only option available to jimoh Ibrahim is forgery. I attached the internal memo which was forward to a vendor to forge expatriate tax papers and other documents obtain from the ministry of interior.

 

10. CORPORATE TAX - FRAUD

The following companies namely ; Air Nigeria Development Ltd, Global Fleet Oil & Gas Ltd,( A chain of gasoline stations across Nigeria)  Nicon Insurance Plc, Nigeria  RE-insurance Corporation, Nicon Properties Ltd, Nicon Luxury Hotel Ltd  Abuja, Nicon Hotels Ltd Okitipupa,  Nicon Hotels Ltd VGC,   Nicon Hotels Ltd  PHC,  GLOBAL FLEET BUILDINGS, GLOBAL FLEET INDUSTRIES (FORMERLY HFP INDUSTRIES LIMITED) Newswatch Daily Ltd and GLOBAL MEDIA  Mirror Ltd, DO NOT HAVE CURRENT TAX CLEARANCE CERTIFICATE. (Please visit,en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Energy_Bank for more information on Global Fleet Group). All these companies do not pay corporate taxes to the Federal Inland Revenue Services in Nigeria. Even withholdings (taxes) deducted from sales on behalf of Federal Government are not remitted. Air Nigeria is a classical example, the bone of contention for which jimoh Ibrahim was arrested due to tax evasion of N6.4Billion. Since, 2012, I have always challenged Jimoh Ibrahim to publish in two national newspapers, the tax clearance papers of these companies. Before I left the Group, Nicon Luxury Hotel Abuja owed N380million in taxes and NICON INSURANCE Plc owed N150Million to FIRS. As at the time of this write up, these amounts remain unpaid.

The Federal Government should help FIRS.

I publish this information with the deepest level of honesty, sincerity and patriotism. The external auditor, KPMG can attest that Jimoh Ibrahim has not signed the audited account of these companies since 2010 and tax returns cannot be filed.

 

N10BILLION PENSIONER MONEY SPENT BY JIMOH IBRAHIM  

NICON Insurance Plc, acquisition was the biggest fraud ever committed by jimoh Ibrahim. Immediately Mr. Ibrahim acquired the undervalued Nicon Insurance Plc, he traveled to London and cleared the money in NICON account, which was worth 10 times the cost of acquisition of NICON INSURANCE PLC, into his personal account.  When the NICON Insurance Plc. internal auditor raised alarm, Jimoh Ibrahim invited him for a meeting and he was assassinated on his way home after the meeting. Following the elimination of the company auditor, the next target was pensioners’ money from the office of the Accountant-General of the Federation.

Mr. President, The Accountant – General of the Federation paid N10Billion pension money to NICON Insurance Plc. JIMOH IBRAHIM SPENT THIS MONEY.  He has been offering bribe to so many people including the undersigned, who rejected his blood money. Part of this money was used to acquire the challenger 625 jet that Jimoh Ibrahim is currently flying around the world while pensioners are dying every day. I reported this case to EFCC in 2012, they have since confirmed that Jimoh Ibrahim received this money from the office of the Accountant-General of Nigeria and that the money was really spent but the pensioners, who has the legal rights to sue are drying every day and have no financial strength to follow up this case.  Federal Government should help Nicon Insurance pensioners and ask EFCC to proceed to court.

All the 790 former staff of Air Nigeria, who were sacked on the pages of newspaper by Jimoh Ibrahim are in court today asking for judgment on their pension. Jimoh Ibrahim stole our pension and most of us are dying. Federal Government, please help us; I am also a victim having worked for Air Nigeria.

 The business empire of Jimoh Ibrahim exists on loans, fraud and fraudulent diversion of any Federal Government intervention fund.  When I called Air Nigeria planes, FLYING COFFINS, the world heard my voice, the Airline was grounded and over 100 souls were saved. When I told Nigerians that, Jimoh Ibrahim diverted the Bank of Industry loan of N35.5 billion being aviation intervention loan granted to Air Nigeria into his personal account, the Nigerian Senate investigated and passed a resolution on 29th NOV, 2012 asking the Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria to recover the money.

Today, we are on Jimoh Ibrahim tax evasion case of N6.8Billion, which excludes other tax fraud committed at his other sixteen companies, NICON Luxury Hotel N380 Million, NICON Insurance N150 Million, Air Nigeria N1.9Billion etc. At a stage in this tax evasion case, all FIRS operatives that were involved in the initial investigation were transferred out and some resigned but I thank fellow Nigerians, who intervene then and these gallant officers were returned back to the case.

 I hereby appeal to Mr. President, Fellow Nigerians, the Nigeria’s distinguished Senate and the House of Representative to arise again. It must be noted that Jimoh Ibrahim has already pledged and signed an undertaking to pay N4.2Billion out of the N6.8Billion, which confirmed acceptance of the liabilities on tax evasion case.

 

Thank you, Mr. President. 

JOHN I. NNOROM (FCA, ACTI, MBA)

07068021111 OR 08033064519

E-Mail: [email protected]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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