Ope Saraki the cousin of the senate president Bukola Saraki, a former Special Adviser to the Kwara State Governor on Millennium Development Goals was arraigned on Tuesday by the Economic and Financial Crime Commission EFCC.

It said Ope allegedly abused his office and laundered state funds for his personal benefit by awarding inflated contracts to companies owned by his cronies.

The commission said in one of the transactions involving the purchase of buses for the state, Ope fraudulently procured 13 Hiace buses from a “local car dealer” and converted the vehicle to an ambulance instead of a factory-built ambulance for which a contract of N171, 990, 000 was awarded to Chemiroy Nigeria Limited.

One of the charges read in part, “That you, Ope Saraki, being the Special Adviser on Millennium Development Goals to Governor of Kwara State sometime in 2012 at Ilorin within the jurisdiction of this honourable court did by undue interest conducted procurement fraud in the procurement of 13 units of ambulance for 13 General Specialists Hospitals in Kwara State at the sum of N171,990, 000, a contract awarded to Chemiroy Nigeria Limited and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 58 (4) (b) of the Public Procurement Act, 2007 and punishable under Section 58 (5) 0f the same Act.”

http://watchdognews.net/efcc-dss-arraingns-sarakis-cousin/