Fresh facts emerged yesterday on the disagreement between the Federal Government and the Director-General of the IBB Campaign Organisation, Chief Raymond Dokpesi, over non-payment of N3.04billion debt incurred by DAAR Communications on 2009 Under-17 World Cup.

Investigation by The Nation revealed that Dokpesi, who supported the actualisation of Jonathan as acting President early in the year, had been mounting pressure on the government right from the late President Umaru Yar’Adua’s era, to pay the bill.

The memo, obtained by The Nation, reads: “In a letter dated October 30, 2009 to His Excellency, President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, the chairman of DAAR Communications made a passionate plea to Mr. President to save DAAR Communications from imminent collapse, which he blamed on the refusal of Local Organising committee of FIFA Under- 17 World Cup, Nigeria 2009, to pay “ the sum of Three Billion, Four Hundred and five Million Nine Hundred and Ninety six Thousand Two Hundred and fifty Naira (N3,405,996,250) agreed with the Negotiation/ Harmonisation Committee set up by the Honourable Minister of Sports as payments due to Daar Communication Plc.”

The President, it was learnt, subjected the claim of Dokpesi and DAAR Communications to bureaucratic process and was not convinced about the bill.

According to findings, a November 11, 2009 memo by a former Minister of Sports, Engr. S.M. Ndanusa, to the late President Umaru Yar’Adua had put the debt owed Dokpesi at N100million instead of N3.04billion, being claimed by the latter.

Following the non-payment, Dokpesi sent a distress memo, dated January 26, 2010 to President Goodluck Jonathan (who was then the Vice-President) to save his business from collapse.
Dokpesi wrote: “The vice president is cordially invited to note:

i. The imminent collapse of DAAR communications Plc as a result of the refusal of the Local Organising Committee of Nigeria 2009 to pay the sum to Daar Communications PLC.

ii. Daar’s role was borne out of patriotic and nationalistic zeal to save the country from embarrassment and ensure that its image is projected in the international community.

iii. The Local Organising Committee (LOC) and the National Sports Commission have not paid the negotiated sum of N3,405,996,250 ( Three Billion, Four Hundred, and fifty naira) only to DAAR Communications PLC for services rendered during the FIFA U17 Championship Nigeria 2009 till date.
“Apart from MTN and INTELSAT, we have had to appeal and stretch other creditors beyond the limit, appealing for time and understanding. This we cannot continue to do indefinitely. There is an urgent need for us to defray our bills in respect of services rendered during the FIFA U-17 championship Nigeria 2009.

“Your Excellency sir, we urge you to intervene and save DAAR communications PLC from collapse by prevailing on the Local Organising Committee (LOC) and National Sports Commission in the payment of the negotiated sum of N3,405,996,250 (Three Billion, four Hundred ,and five million, Nine Hundred and Ninety Six Thousand, Two Hundred and Fifty Naira) only to DAAR Communications PLC.”

A panel raised by President Jonathan, in a memo with Ref. SH/AP/79 of March 12, 2010, however, came up with different findings.

“Following the above, the Honourable Minister of Sports/ Chairman, National Sports Commission was instructed to respond to Daar Communications’ submission. In his response, the Hon. Minister of Sports pointed out the following:

a. The highlights of the Harmonisation Committee meeting jointly endorsed by the members in attendance including Daar Communication Plc chairman, Chief Dokpesi “ contain no mention of cost elements;

b. A technical sub- committee of the Harmonisation Committee which was subsequently set up to negotiate with Daar Communication on its demand for N5,685,000,000.00 recommended that “only 30% of Daar Communication’s request may be considered” with a proviso that “ the CEO LOC could further negotiate since he is privy to all the documents and exposure with DAAR”.

c. That the claims by DAAR Communications Plc that an agreement was reached by the Harmonisation Committee for the payment was reached by the sum of N3,4.5,996,250.00 to DAAR was a misrepresentation as there is no document that effect.

d. There is no document tendered by DAAR Communication to show that LOC entered into any contractual form of agreement with the company in this respect.
“The minister therefore concluded that ‘Chief Dokpesi’s strategy to down load his financial investment on the Federal Government without due process is uncharitable …” adding that, ‘The Harmonisation Committee has reviewed Chief Dokpesi’s approach and arrived at a process of leasing, as opposed to investment in infrastructure. .

“Relying on the submission of the technical subcommsation Committee, the minister invited Mr. President to note that, “the recommendations to offset the DAAR Communications’ expenses is only for the leasing of the IBCC towards U-17 World Cup competition to the tune of N100,000,000.00 (One Hundred Million Naira only).

“Meanwhile, the Chairman of DAAR Communications PLC, Dr. Dokpesi insists that DAAR Communications incurred expenditure to the tune of N12, 348,484,790 to provide essential facilities for the coverage of the U-17 tournament in order to avoid national embarrassment and that it only requested for a refund of N5, 685,000,000.00 to cover just facilities required to make the broadcast of the event a huge success.

“Dokpesi said that DAAR accepted a downward review of negotiated sum of N3, 405,996,250 in the national interest and that DAAR faces the danger of imminent collapse and being shut down by its creditors should LOC refuse to pay its claims for services rendered to the LOC of U-17 World Cup, Nigeria 2009.

“From all indications, negotiations have broken down between the LOC and DAAR Communications PLC. Considering the wide gap between the current claim of DAAR Communications, N3,405,996,250.00 and the sum of N100,000,000 that the U-17 LOC and the Hon. Minister/Chairman, NSC appears ready to consider for payment, there are differences between the two parties that can only be resolved by the intervention of a third party.

“It is common knowledge that DAAR Communications PLC was a major factor in persuading government to host the tournament and that without its encouragement and support, the global football audience might not have enjoyed the impressive media coverage; that it did not require or use most of the telecommunication facilities provided by DAAR Communications in partnership with MTN and that its LOC’s FIFA partner shunned same.

“Despite its valid claim of helping to save Nigeria from embarrassment by providing the facilities that encourage FIFA to confirm Nigeria” hosting right, it is obvious that DAAR Communications stands on a shaky legal ground as it appears to have no valid contract or memorandum of understanding with either LOC or FIFA.

“In addition, apart from its own version of minutes of meetings held with LOC and Sports Commission officials, DAAR has no document to support the figure (the sum of N3, 405,996,250.00) which it claimed to have secured from the Harmonisation/Negotiation Committee.

(iv) “It is however not fair or in Nigeria’s national interest for LOC to take advantage of its standing on superior legal ground to refuse to negotiate a fair deal with DAAR Communication. As a national broadcasting outfit that rallied around the LOC and resuscitated Nigeria’s hosting right, DAAR Communications deserves better understanding and cooperation than it is getting from the LOC.

“I recommend that His Excellency, the Acting President, should empanel a ministerial committee comprising the Minister of Finance, Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Minister of Information and Communication, Minister of sports, Minister of Labour, and Minister of Youths Development to ascertain the actual services rendered by DAAR Communications to the LOC/FIFA with a view to recommending a fair payment for DAAR Communication PLC.”

http://thenationonlineng.net/web3/news/16791.html

There are many sides to this matter. Daar is acting on greed, whilst the minister was 'trying to save govt from waste' but The NSC were to be paid from daar's claim, they would have convinced the presidency no?

It is safe to assume that Amos Adamu, the suspended FIFA executive member who is widely known in Nigeria to be very corrupt, is a party to DAAR communication's ( Raymond Dokpesi ) attempt to illegally scam the Federal Government to the tune of N3.04 billion.

After all Amos Adamu was the chairman of the National Sports Commission until he was fired by the late President Yar 'Adua in November 2008. Until then he was heavily involved with the Local Organising Committee of the FIFA Under 17 2009 and as such would have been involved in all financial transactions relating to the football competition.

Chief Raymond Dokpesi needs to furnish the Government with legal documentation to back his claims, but one can only speculate that he must have done a shady backroom deal with the LOC and the National Sports Commission officials in which they plan to share the loot.

Mr Dokpesi should have gone to court if indeed any of his claims have any truth to them. It is obvious that many individuals took advantage of the ill health of Yaradua to scam the country and make illegal claims on the government with their cohorts who were in positions then.
If indeed, the government is liable, then sue them, at least I trust our courts they will give a good judgment it may take a while though

please let us nt attch sentiments to the issue, lets address it dat dokpesi is a business man and forget all bout him nd IBB for now. Nigerians should nt pretrend like dey dont kno that it is only in Nigeria that contracts are awarder to contractors and it takes year to get der money back from government, this is nt a new thing. Wen the banking crisis started, most of those that were affected were those who did 1 contract or the other for the federal goverment, they borrowed money from the bank hoping that they would be paid by the federal government wen they finished the job nad most of dem wer nott,, so let us nt look at it that it is dokepsi, dis thing happens all the time, and to come to think that tv business is easy peasy its nt