Atiku Abubakar
Former
Vice President Atiku Abubakar has debunked accusations of financial
improprieties linked to him by the U.S senate in 2010.
The Peoples Democratic Party presidential candidate insinuated the allegations against him are mere rumours.
He revealed this through the spokesman of the Atiku Campaign
Organisation, Segun Sowunmi while speaking on a TV show - Sunrise Daily
on Channels TV today, 12th of October, 2018.
"The United States Senate has a very big idea that every rumour
must be investigated and they also have following on investigation, an
idea that justice must be done if errors have happened. Had anything
been proven, it will not be left in the realm of conjecture" he said.
He went on to explain that the U.S Special Investigative Committee
conducted investigations on many issues regarding international money
transfers due to the prevalent spate of terrorism then. He further said
Atiku was investigated at that time because the Americans were
suspecting Muslim individuals moving money in the country because of
terrorism financing. He concluded that the investigation later failed to
indict Atiku.
"To their (U.S Senate) own surprise, they later found out that
there was so such thing (terrorism financing) around that (Atiku's
financial transactions) ...What was happening that in a bid to pay the
faculty leaders of the American University, money was moving here and
there to pay them and some of these monies which are obviously coming in
for those university and facilities were monies he was looking for from
some of his investments all over. The money wasn't stacked up in one
account and he was just throwing it there. No! He was looking for the
money, if he makes a bit of money in one business, he puts it there" he added.
One the Siemens bribery scandal, he also said:
"The business ethics of nations are different; what they say
they gave or didn't give to a wife or a girlfriend or a sister or a
cousin of anybody cannot be directly traced to me. It's like saying that
someone said he gave me money and just because I'm friendly with Ajuri
(the interviewer), I got the bribe on behalf of Ajuri, that is caca."
It would be recalled that Atiku's fourth wife, Jennifer Douglas who
was living in Washington DC in the United States of America reportedly
received $40 million from offshore shares accounts into U.S banks
between the year 2000 and 2008.
Specific allegations say that $2 million was paid by telephone
company, Siemens to Atiku's wife, Jennifer Douglas on behalf of Atiku
while he was the Vice President of Nigeria. Siemens has admitted to
paying the bribe to Atiku for the purpose of influencing the allocation
of a moneyed contract in Nigeria to the company.
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