Paris Club refund: Ned Nwoko dismisses Governors’ $418m claim

The Lead Consultant of Linas International Limited, Prince Ned Nwoko has alleged that the Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF) demanded and received $100 million to prosecute elections in some states. Linas International Limited are the consultants for the recovery of over deductions from Paris and London clubs debt buy back funds.

The NGF has been in a protracted tussle with  the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mallam Abubakar Malami over the controversial $418 million Paris Club contractors’ fee, which they described as “fraudulent and self-serving”.

At the end of its meeting in Abuja last Wednesday, the NGF announced its resolve to pursue the issue, which is before the law court, to a logical conclusion to determine its next steps.

They insisted that the deductions for the payment of the said consultancy were illegal, especially as the matter is before the courts, adding that Malami was not acting in public interest.

But while reacting to the flurry of allegations and claims trailing his personal and company’s demands for the payment of services fee from the state governments and local government councils in the country, Nwoko described recent outbursts of the NGF as “noise”, adding that a former chairman of the forum told him that the money was needed to prosecute elections in Bauchi, Ekiti and Ondo States.

He also alleged that when he submitted a bill of $350 million as the consultancy fee, the state governors demanded to be paid 50 percent of it before it could be honored.

According to him, the Federal Ministry of Justice intervened and the governors eventually received $100 million.

Nwoke revealed that the money being owed to the consultants was $68 million and not $418 million as claimed.

According to him, the consultants had nothing to do with $418 million, which he said must be a miscalculation.

He absolved the Malami of any wrongdoing, saying the minister was only trying to ensure that the law was obeyed.

Nwoko stated that the agreements and judgment being executed were reached before the advent of the present administration.