The sacked Executive Secretary of the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TeTFund), Abdullahi Baffa, is squealing he was shown the door because a minister in the present administration sought a bribe of N200 million he declined to oblige him.
As expected, the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is screaming blue murder and beating its talking drum of corruption allegations against President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration.
It says in a statement: “The PDP Presidential Campaign Organization (PPCO) says the confession by the sacked Executive Director of the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFUND)…has further exposed the seething corruption in the Buhari Presidency.
“PPCO says the revelation did not come to many Nigerians as a surprise and has further vindicated the PDP’s position that the Buhari Presidency is inherently corrupt and thrives on concealments, deception, beguilement, propaganda and lies.”
Curiously, Baffa has been replaced with his predecessor, Prof. Suleiman Bogoro,
who was sacked for no reason nearly three years ago.
On BBC Hausa Service on Wednesday, Baffa spilled out that the said supervisory minister allegedly sent a contractor asking for his share of N200 billion disbursed by the agency to tertiary institutions in Nigeria.
He stated that he has never collected a dime from any of the benefitting tertiary institutions.
“If they bring any evidence indicting me, I’m ready to accept death punishment,” Baffa said.
He added that his minister often allegedly accused him of insubordination for addressing the press without authorisation.
The PPCO says it has always alerted Nigerians that President Muhammadu Buhari “presides over a sanctuary of treasury looters who, as ministers, Presidential advisers, heads of special Presidential committees, APC leaders and members of President Buhari’s Campaign Council fritter our national resources with reckless abandon under Mr. President’s official cover. ”
It adds: “We invite Nigerians to note that the Buhari Presidency has not given any reasons for Bichi’s removal. It has not also offered any form of explanation to the huge allegation bordering on corruption against a cabinet minister; a development, which betrays a collusion at very high level.
“This is especially given the series of corruption entanglement around the Presidency, including the allegations that officials of the Buhari Presidency took N500 million as bribe to reduce the fine imposed on a telecommunication company from N1.03 trillion to N330 billion.
“Nigerians have not forgotten the case of the former aide of the First Lady, Aisha Buhari, Mr. Baba Inna, who was arrested in September last year for allegedly receiving N2.5 billion from politicians, businessmen and women on behalf of the First Lady.
“This is in addition to the case of Mrs. Amina Mohammed, who while being paraded by the Department of State Services (DSS), last year stated in public that persons close to President Buhari were involved in serial looting under the official cover of the Buhari Presidency.
“Moreover, we hope this is not one of the conduits through which funds siphoned to finance the alleged involvement of some individuals said to be close to the Buhari Presidency in the N1.032 trillion alleged corrupt acquisitions in 9Mobile and Keystone Bank PLC.
“The PPCO therefore calls on President Buhari to end his sanctimonious posturing as Nigerians are already aware that he leads a parade of corrupt and inept leadership that has taken the fortunes of our nation to the abyss.”