Orubebe in Fresh Trouble, Accused of Diverting N1.9bn

Former Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Elder
Godsday Orubebe seems to be in a hot soup
following new revelations of massive corruption
and abuse of public office.

 

People's Democratic Party chieftain, Godsday
Orubebe who rose to prominence on the Nigerian
media space after disrupting a national electoral
process in March, 2015 has been charged to court
by the Independent Corrupt Practices and other
Related Offences Commission (ICPC) over a
recently uncovered gargantuan fraud.

The former Minister was charged before an Abuja
High Court for allegedly diverting close N2billion
naira meant for the dualisation of Section IV of the
East-West Road in Delta State.

The politician who is also facing trial at the Code
of Conduct Tribunal was charged alongside Oludare
Lawrence Alaba, Ephraim Towelde Zaki and Gitto
Construction Limited on a five-count charge
bordering on alleged corruption, diversion of funds
and perjury, according to This Day newspaper.

He was accused of circumventing a Federal
Executive Council, (FEC) approval for the
dualisation of the Eket–Oron Road, part of the
East-West Road which runs from Edo to Bayelsa
states, by allegedly instructing the contractor, Gitto
Construction, to rehabilitate it instead.

Orubebe and the co-accused persons are also
charged with conferring undue advantage on the
construction firm when they caused the money
meant for compensating residents whose
properties were marked for demolition paid to
Gitto.

Court papers stated that the sum of
N2,320,686,826.00 approved for payment of
compensation to owners of properties that were to
be demolished to make way for the dualisation of
the road was paid to the contractor instead of the
beneficiaries.