Obono-Obla panel seeks forfeiture of PEF director’s assets

The Special Presidential Investigative Panel on Recovery of Public Property has written to the Petroleum Equalisation Fund informing it of an alleged suspicious purchase of N65m worth of shares by one of its top officials, Mrs Aisha Usman.

The letter dated July 31, 2019, the SPIP led by Okoi Obono-Obla, had on that same July 31, filed an ex parte application before the Federal High Court in Abuja praying for the interim forfeiture to the Federal Government of the shares and other “suspicious” assets said to have link to Usman.

The panel’s letter titled, ‘Purchase of shares by Aisha Fanya Usman, Director Operations, Petroleum Equalisation Fund,’ and addressed to the Chairman, PEF Management Board, Musa Talle, stated Usman bought the N65m worth of shares in many blue-chip companies on January 31, 2018.

The letter partly read, “The Special Presidential Investigation Panel has been investigating some staff of the Petroleum Fund, including Aisha Fanya Usman, Director of Operations, for corrupt practices, corrupt enrichment and contribution towards the economic adversity of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

“In the course of investigation, the panel has stumbled on evidence showing that Aisha Fanya Usman purchased shares from several blue-chip companies in Nigeria on January 31, 2018 amounting to N65, 000, 000.

“See attached letter dated July 22, 2019 from Stanbic IBTC Stockbrokers to that effect.”

The panel had listed the N65m worth of shares among other assets including 24 bank accounts linked to Usman in the application for interim forfeiture.

Other listed assets are a property at Plot 46, Damaturu Crescent, Garki, Area 11, Abuja and another one at No. 9, Prince Obi Emmanuel Street, Brains & Hammers Estate, Apo Abuja.

Others which were said to have been recovered on search of her residence, are cash sums of N800,000; €500; 15,505 Dinah; 18 carat white gold; and 21 carat yellow gold.

The woman described by the investigative panel as “a wealthy civil servant” allegedly has N65m worth of shares of Seplat Petroleum Plc, Stanbic IBTC Holdings, Oando Plc, GTB, Dangote Cement Plc and UBA.

The “schedule” attached to the application showing all the assets allegedly linked to her, also revealed that the sum of N40m was in her account with Stanbic IBTC Asset Management Limited and N2,001, 260.77 in her stock-broking account with Stanbic IBTC Stockbrokers Ltd.

Culled from Punch