As the National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Vincent Ogbulafor, today answers charges preferred against him by the Independent Corrupt Practices Investigation Commission (ICPC) over an alleged N114 million fraud, he may also have to absolve himself of insinuations that his National Working Committee (NWC) allegedly embezzled over N4 billion inherited from the immediate past administration.

Speaking last Thursday at the gathering of members of the PDP Reform Forum, former national organizing secretary of the party, Alhaji Umaru Dahiru, had told the gathering that over N4 billion left in the coffers of the party by the last NWC of the PDP could not be accounted for by the present leadership at Wadata Plaza.

But the PDP National Publicity Secretary, Professor Rufai Ahmed Alkali, dismissed the position of the former organizing secretary of the party as unfounded. Alkali, in a statement made available to journalists yesterday, in Abuja, disclosed that less than N300 million was found in the coffers of the PDP, as at March, 2008. Alaki said in the statement:
“Initially, we thought that Alhaji Dahiru was misquoted and had waited for him to correct or retract the statement. Unfortunately, up till now, he has not done so. In the circumstances, we are constrained to believe that the statements attributed to him were indeed correctly quoted by the media.

“Under normal situations, this national working committee would not have engaged a former national officer of the party or comment on what he says in public forum. However, leaving this baseless allegation as it is will not only leave a wrong impression in the minds of our teeming party members nationwide, indeed all Nigerians, it will also cast a shadow of darkness on the integrity of the leadership of our great party.”

“In reality, contrary to insinuations made by the former national organizing secretary, the total amount of money handed over to the present NWC in March 2008 was only N281,887,273.96 (Two Hundred and Eighty One Million, Eight Hundred and Eighty Seven Thousand, Two Hundred and Seventy Three Naira, Ninety Six Kobo Only). Already, the office of the National Treasurer has issued and published in some Nigerian newspapers, the Statement of Account of the party as at the closing day of March 10, 2008.”

The PDP national publicity secretary submitted further that it was constrained to answer the charges of fraud leveled against the NWC, because it thought the former organizing secretary of the party was misquoted and would do a recant which he never did.

SOURCE: http://www.sunnewsonline.com/webpages/news/national/2010/apr/26/national-26-04-2010-005.htm