I Collected $500,000 Bribe Offer says House Of Rep Member

 
He collected $620,000 from the Chairman of Zenon Oil and Gas, Mr. Femi Otedola, to doctor the panel’s report.

Lawan, who had hitherto denied that neither he nor any member of the committee collected money from any of the oil marketers, told reporters in Abuja that he actually collected $500,000 from Otedola, whom he accused of offering him the money to influence the probe panel’s report.

Apparently reacting to THISDAY’s exclusive story yesterday where Otedola accused him of extorting money from him to remove Zenon’s name from the list of companies that collected foreign exchange from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) without importing petroleum products, Lawan said it was Otedola who initiated the bribe offer.

The House, however, is considering two options of dealing with the scandal, which many lawmakers have described as an undue embarrassment to the legislature, when it resumes plenary on June 19 after a one-week recess.

It was learnt that the House might either refer the matter to its Committee on Ethics and Privileges for probe or set up a special ad hoc committee to investigate the matter.

On his part, the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Mohammed Bello Adoke, has promised that the Federal Government will take appropriate action when it receives the report of investigation into the allegation.

Lawan said he had informed the Chairman of the House Committee on Narcotic Drugs and Financial Crimes, Hon. Adams Jagaba, through a letter dated April 24, 2012 of Otedola’s alleged persistence to bribe him to influence the outcome of the investigation.

Lawan said he attached “the sum of five hundred thousand dollars only offered to me with another promise of two million, five hundred thousand dollars” to the letter.

On why he did not raise the issue on the floor of the House, he said he declined to do so as not to divert attention from the essence of the fuel subsidy probe.

Lawan, in a statement in which he gave a detailed account of what transpired between him and Otedola, said: “I had considered bringing this issue as a matter of privilege on the floor of the House later today (April 24), but I am concerned that the controversy it will generate will dwarf the contents of the report, which needs public attention so that necessary reforms in the sector could be affected.