- Saadu Alamu is charged by the ICPC for alleged N182 million fraud
- Alamu is alleged to have taken bribe as chairman of the Kwara state polytechnic tenders board
- Namylas Nigeria Limited is also alleged to have forged some documents
A former chairman of the Kwara state polytechnic council, Saadu Alamu, has been remanded in prison custody by a Kwara state high court sitting in Ilorin for alleged fraud to the tune of N182m and abuse of bail condition.
The Punch reports that Alamu, whose name was forwarded to the Senate recently as nominee for commissioner at the National Population Commission (NPC), was charged alongside the chief executive director of Namylas Nigeria Limited, Salman Sulaiman, for allegedly receiving bribe from a contractor.
The report said he was first granted bail by Justice Mahmud Gafar.
However, he was remanded in prison following allegations by the judge that some persons had offered him a bribe to dismiss the case.
READ ALSO: 2019: PDP considering changing name, holds emergency meeting
A statement by the spokesperson of the ICPC, Rasheedat Okoduwa, was quoted as saying in the course of trial, the defence counsel alleged that Alanamu was forced, harassed, intimidated and coerced into making his statement to the ICPC investigators and as a result, what he said should not be admitted in evidence.
Justice Gafar then ordered a trial-within-trial so as to help the court determine whether the statement was made voluntarily or not.
The report said while delivering his ruling on the trial-within-trial, Justice Gafar overruled the objection of the defence and admitted Alanamu’s confessional statement into evidence. He also ‘revoked Alanamu’s bail for abuse of bail conditions’ and the case was adjourned to Thursday, April 19 for hearing.
When the case came up on Thursday, April 19, the ICPC accused Alanamu of collecting N5 million bribe from a contractor, Salman Sulaiman, as a kickback for the award of a contract while he was chairman of the Kwara state polytechnic tenders board.
Counsel for the ICPC, Sunny Ezeana, said Alamu got the money through his First Bank account on February 11, 2015 from Namylas Nigeria Limited, owned by Sulaiman, who is also his friend.
According to the information, Alanamu ensured that the contract for the construction and furnishing of an auditorium in Kwara state polytechnic, at the cost of N182,369, 625.00, was awarded to Namylas Nigeria Limited even when it was found that the company was not qualified to execute the contract.
PAY ATTENTION: Read the news on Nigeria’s #1 news app
The ICPC said it had strong evidence of collusion, bid rigging and corrupt practices against Namylas Nigeria Limited in the bid process.
It also accused the company of falsifying, forging and doctoring PENCOM compliance certificate, tax clearance certificate and ITF certificate of compliance to submit its bid during the bidding process.
NAIJ.com earlier reported that the the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC) urged Nigerians to report corrupt politicians and practices to the commission.
The call was made by Stephen Pimor who is the ICPC commissioner for Oyo/Ogun zone in Ibadan.
What does Nigeria need right now? (Nigerian Street Interview) | NAIJ.com TV
Source: Naija.ng