The Peoples Democratic Party has called for a National Assembly investigation into the approval of N500 million, the first installment of a purported N1bn approval allegedly by President Bola Tinubu, for the inauguration of a 37-man Tripartite Committee on the New National Minimum Wage.
A leaked memo surfaced on Thursday, revealing that President Tinubu allegedly approved N500 million out of a total of N1 billion to the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume, for the inauguration of a 37-man Tripartite Committee on the New National Minimum Wage.
The PDP National Publicity Secretary, Debo Ologunagba, in a statement on Friday, described the approval as the height of financial recklessness.
“The PDP describes the said approval of the huge amount for a routine government activity like committee inauguration as the height of profligacy, imprudence, and financial recklessness, which further validates the PDP’s position that the Tinubu-led government is a cesspit of corruption where officials engage in brazen and reckless treasury looting,” Ologunagba added.
He further described it as provocative and unpardonable that at a time when the nation was suffering from acute food shortages, with millions of Nigerians starving due largely to inadequate investment in food production, insecurity, and harsh economic policies of the government, President Tinubu was allegedly spending a huge amount to inaugurate a committee.
The statement read in part, “It is even more revealing that the Secretary to the Government of the Federation allegedly requested an audacious sum of N1.8bn for the event, which was later scaled down to N1bn, out of which President Tinubu reportedly directed the SGF to “start with N500m first.”
Reacting to the PDP’s claim, the Presidency called for a probe into the civil service structure to rid it of those it called “moles” loyal to the main opposition, the Peoples Democratic Party, whom it blamed for leaking classified documents.
It said correspondence between the Office of the President and the Secretary to the Government of the Federation must be airtight. Therefore, leaks show vulnerabilities in the overall system.
The Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Mr. Bayo Onanuga, urged the Federal Government to weed its ranks of moles loyal to the opposition who are leaking classified documents, he told Punch News.
Onanuga said, “What is worrisome is, how come a memo written by SGF to the President and bearing the President’s signature leaked out? It means that there are some fifth columnists within the government.
“It’s not the first time a memo will leak. There was a memo leak when the President went to UNGA about a request for money to pay for his hotel bills, and you wonder where it is leaking from.
“There are so many moles around who are probably doing the bidding of the opposition. They are not respecting the civil service rule for handling official secrets. And it shows that the government should look inward to probe how memos between officials are getting into the public space. Memo that are supposed to be secret are not supposed to be flying all over the place.”
Another Presidency official who wanted to remain anonymous defended the memo, describing it as a normal request for money used to run the affairs of the government.
![Rev. Fr. Anthony Odiong, a US-based Nigerian Louisiana Catholic priest, was arrested in Florida on Tuesday for possessing child pornography, according to law authorities. The suspect is reportedly accused of many other cases of sexual assault. The Waco, Texas, Police Department announced in a Facebook post on Tuesday that officers detained Father Anthony Odiong in Ave Maria, Florida, with assistance from the United States Marshals Service. Waco police announced in March that they had received "credible information" about a sexual assault allegedly committed by Odiong in Texas in 2012. “During the subsequent investigation, a case of possession of child pornography was uncovered,” the police said. The priest was apprehended in Florida by the Caribbean Regional Fugitive Task Force. The Waco Police Department said that he will be extradited to Texas. Odiong had previously served in the Archdiocese of New Orleans before being removed as priest in December of last year due to controversy over homilies in which he claimed, among other things, that the Catholic Church was being taken over by "the gays." At the time, the priest was also accused of abusive behaviour; a Louisiana lady claimed in U.S. bankruptcy court that Odiong had committed both financial and sexual abuse against her. Prior to joining the New Orleans Archdiocese, Odiong served in at least two Texas parishes. On Tuesday, Waco police stated that during their sexual assault investigation, "the presence of other survivors was revealed." “Multiple women have come forward to tell similar experiences as the sexual assault survivor who reported the initial allegation,” the police department said. “Survivors’ experiences ranged from sexual assault and indecent assault, more commonly recognised as groping, and financial abuse, with some survivors experiencing every element of Anthony Odiong’s manipulation.” The police said they “believe there may be more survivors, and we wish to speak with anyone who [has] had similar encounters” with the priest. The Archdiocese of New Orleans issued a brief news release on Tuesday noting Odiong's arrest in Florida. The archdiocese “encourages anyone with any information to contact law enforcement,” the release said.](https://chronicle.ng/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/ezgif-6-4730550ede-450x300.jpg "Odiong: US-based Nigerian Catholic priest convicted over sexual assault")
