By Elor Nkereuwem
November 28, 2010 12:14AM


The former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Chukwuma Soludo, is under the radar of British crime investigators who want to understand his role in the N29 billion polymer banknote contract issued during his tenure.

Between 2006 and 2009, the Central Bank carried out currency reforms that saw the introduction of polymer bank notes to replace the paper notes of the country’s lower denominations. In late 2009, media reports alleged that top CBN officials had received bribes in order to grant an Australian company, Securency International Pty Ltd, the contract which saw the Australian company supplying Nigeria with at least 1.9 billion pieces of the polymer substrate.

The contract is now the subject of a multi-national investigation straddling Vietnam, Malaysia, Australia, the UK and Nigeria, from which about N3.5 billion was paid out in slush fund. Investigators believe that millions out of the amount were paid to top Nigerian politicians and bank officials.

Investigating the Scandal

International sources who spoke to NEXT in confidence, said that feelers from the on-going investigations by the British Serious Fraud Office (SFO) point to the fact that Mr. Soludo has become a subject of their investigations. NEXT had earlier reported that the former bank chief directed contract processes in the CBN as well as the Nigerian Security Printing and Minting PLC, of which the CBN has a 77% shareholding.

“SFO is investigating the Nigerian deal in the UK. Soludo may be tied to a lot of those Nigerian deals which explains why the SFO may be investigating him,” our source said.

The SFO’s spokesperson in an email exchange with NEXT however declined to confirm or refute the claims.

“Without wishing to be unhelpful, I am unable to provide any further details. The investigation is ongoing. For guidance; it is not SFO policy to confirm or deny the names of suspects in its investigations,” Katie Winstanley of the SFO said. Ms. Winstanley further said that the SFO has arrested at least five people so far in connection with the on-going investigation.

A source within the EFCC, who asked not to be named, however confirmed that the SFO had indeed contacted the Nigerian anti-graft agency in relation to the investigations involving Mr. Soludo.

“There may be something like that. I know that there has been intelligence exchange between the EFCC and the SFO concerning this matter. It is an on-going investigation which was not initiated by the EFCC,” our source said.

In the months following the media reports, several anti-corruption agencies within and outside Nigeria have launched investigations into the scandal. In Nigeria, the initial enthusiasm showed by the Nigerian Police, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), and the National Assembly has since waned. None of the Nigerian investigations have yielded any results.

Efforts to get obtain reactions from the official spokesmen for the EFCC and the CBN were unfruitful.

Sharing the contract commissions

Documents obtained by NEXT show that Securency, whose parent company is the Reserve Bank of Australia, paid about $23 million dollars in suspect commissions to a company domiciled in a tax haven, Seychelles. The company, SPT Limited, further commissioned two other agents to secure the Nigerian contracts.

The Australian media, championed by The Age, is claiming that the agents chosen had close links with top government and CBN officials. One of the agents, Joseph Raad, who was appointed as a ‘confidential sub-agent’ by SPT LTD, is Iceland’s honorary Consul General to Nigeria. SPT, which stood to gain 12% of all contract deals secured from Nigeria, pledged to pay its agents between 4.5-5% of the contracts worth.

http://234next.com/csp/cms/sites/Next/Home/5647115-146/british_investigators_turn_sight_on_soludo.csp

Must all our leaders be anything other than corrupt?

Well, this goes to show that leadership in Nigeria must have corruption as an inborn trait.

Eyin Oyibo E wa fun mi ni Visa!!!

hope the autralian company dont escape the full weight of the law

Wow. Hope he turns out to be clean. . .

[color=#000099][/color]HMMM JOE BOY AFTER THE SOLUDO GUY FOR PITCHING TENT WITH THE NORTH, THEY CLAIM THE INVESTIGATION WAS NOT INITIATED BY EFCC, BUT I TELL U THE EFCC AND CBN OFFICIALS WHO FELL OUT WITH SOLUDO RECRUITED BY JONA- FATHER ARE AT WORK HERE. ANYWAY LETS SEE HOW IT WILL ALL END, BUT SOLUDO SHD JUST BACK OUT A LITTLE BIT JUST TO SAVE HIS NECK 4 JONA CANT TAKE ANY OPPOSITION NOW,

hahahahahahaha . . . . . Jonathan and his gang are playing with the wrong guy.
Soludo can never be intimidated or cowed into joining GEJ 2011 bandwagon.

Nigerian corrupt system swallows brainwashed educated nigerian academicians like the black hole does to dead stars.And most nigerian academicians are ''brainwashedly'' educated,that is why they lack morals and initiatives.

now i smell a rat it seems the brithish are playing games first ibori now soludo two of them opposed to dimwit jonathan while they hug the most corrupt person in nigeria obasanjo.

redsun:

Nigerian corrupt system swallows brainwashed educated nigerian academicians like the black hole does to dead stars.And most nigerian academicians are ''brainwashedly'' educated,that is why they lack morals and initiatives.

my friend go and sit down if you believe this you hv a problem all of a sudden every person opposed to jonathan is corrupt, is u that is the brainwashed one

Why are we blaming politics now? If you are involved in a multi-country fraud scheme, then don't be surprised if one or more of the gov'ts involved goes after you.

It is absolutely moronic to blame this on GEJ or politics.

Pornodude,

Hw far naa? Na wetin happen wey u no dey bless us wt ur sweet sweet tori? Abeg, guy get back onboard.

Soludo is one of d criminals obj institutionalised, el rufai, ogd, oni, oyin, akala and d least goes on

Why everybody dey shout GEJ? if soludo's hands are clean, there will be nothing to worry about.

BTW is Soludo really anti-GEJ?

Why are nigerian so exaggerating when our course is pursued,we want end to corruption and when there is an initiation of it
we complain about politics of pointing fingers at enemies
if saludo is facing investigation let it be, if there is proof to take him down. let it be
ibori is down because he committed the crime
after all ibori sponsored yar adua/jonathan campaign but still Jonathan was in support of investigation him.

9jarukus:

my friend go and sit down if you believe this you hv a problem all of a sudden every person opposed to jonathan is corrupt, is u that is the brainwashed one

With solodo's recent track records of cheap and irrelevant rivalries over issues agberos should be worrying about,i don't see him overcoming the temptations of nigeria's grossly corrupt and irresponsible system.

99.9percent of nigerian ruling elites are corrupt one way or the other.I will be glad to know who is not corrupt among them when the light shines on them.

9jarukus:

now i smell a rat it seems the brithish are playing games first ibori now soludo two of them opposed to dimwit jonathan while they hug [size=16pt]the most [/size] corrupt person in nigeria obasanjo.

Eureka!

International "Ribadu" ring.
Now we know what he had been up to in the UK while pretending to be on "self-exile".

Nigerians are the most funny people on earth. Imagine being linked to financial crimes spanning FIVE countries, and some people here having the audacity to blame it on politics!

As if one is likely to escape justice from all 5 countries! Not everywhere in the world can you get off scot free from a crime by blaming politics. It is only in Nigeria that this is the case.

So let's simmer down and see what the investigation turns up, rather than just blaming GEJ or politics.

DapoBear:

Why are we blaming politics now? If you are involved in a multi-country fraud scheme, then don't be surprised if one or more of the gov'ts involved goes after you.

It is absolutely moronic to blame this on GEJ or politics.

you are moronic not to think political motivation in action, gej hv stolen more than soludo obasanjo is the biggest looter in our history why not investigate him too

9jarukus:

you are moronic not to think political motivation in action, gej hv stolen more than soludo obasanjo is the biggest looter in our history why not investigate him too

Maybe I should go rob a bank out here in California. And after robbing the bank, get in a gun fight with Canadian police. And then after that, run back to Nigeria and bribe a politician.

Then when all of my crimes come falling on my head, and the authorities in the US and Canada come after me, I'll blame GEJ, politics and Yoruba persecution.

Long story short, DON'T COMMIT CRIMES OUTSIDE OF NIGERIA AND THEN BLAME POLITICS! That excuse works in Nigeria, but DOES NOT work elsewhere in the world. Authorities outside of Nigeria don't give a damn about that excuse.

redsun:

With solodo's recent track records of cheap and irrelevant rivalries over issues agberos should be worrying about,i don't see him overcoming the temptations of nigeria's grossly corrupt and irresponsible system.

99.9percent of nigerian ruling elites are corrupt one way or the other.I will be glad to know who is not corrupt among them when the light shines on them.

compare his record against your gej and ask your self who should be investigated first, how can one man blow $27b in ten months with nothing to show for it and you dont seem to hv a problem with it, abeg go and sit down

Some nigerians think the country will rigidly remain the same,where public servants are not compelled to be transparent and accountable.

This is just the beginning of nigerian metamorphosis,whether as a country or as a split up nigeria.

9jarukus:

compare his record against your gej and ask your self who should be investigated first, how can one man blow $27b in ten months with nothing to show for it and you dont seem to hv a problem with it, abeg go and sit down

I think you are mistaking me for beaf.Of course i know jonathan is one of the anti-christ in nigeria,spearheaded by OBJ.

Atiku is a fallen angel fighting frantically to go back to heaven,nigerian treasury

If GEJ's political machinery is strong enough to incite the British Police against ONE PERSON, then he sure is a big boy! Soludo should explain his role in the deal, simples! By the way, how many votes can Soludo take away from Jonathan?

9jarukus:

compare his record against your gej and ask your self who should be investigated first, how can one man blow $27b in ten months with nothing to show for it and you dont seem to hv a problem with it, abeg go and sit down

bros cool down. you seem to be missing the point Dapo is trying to make. It is indeed possible that there are far more corrupt officials than Soludo (BTW what makes an individual [i]more [/i]corrupt than the other?)however, note two things: firstly this particular case not just a domestic case; it spans five countries. secondly, the whistle blower, the SFO, is an independent organ of the UK justice dept. even the british pm cannot influence thier investigations, how much less our dear GEJ.

while it also possible that GEJ misspent the $27b as alleged, that scarcely falls within the purview of the SFO.

Again i ask is soludo [i]really [/i]anti -GEJ?

redsun:

Atiku is a fallen angel fighting frantically to go back to heaven,nigerian treasury

It' s disgusting the way Nigerians are quick to blame politics when their leaders are being called to account!. . .

thiefu!! thiefu!!!!!

If this story is true, then the mumu FG(GEJ camp) have conspired with their imperial masters(british) to start a campaign of calumny against the seasoned chukwuma Soludo. Atiku/Soludo ticket - Some people have started catching cold already  

over to our FG to strike deal with the person(s) involved.
it is obvious that all those who started and ended peacefully with obasanjo are all involved in one shaddy deal of the other.
soludo stoled all the money and wasted part of them in his inordinate ambition to become the gov of anambra state.
all the same, nothing will happen to him because jonathan is even more corrupt than all of them. no wonder none of these corrupt idiots is going down.
at least, jonathan will have good reasons to be re-elected as the president come 2011 as he has provided more than enough shields for those who stole us dry.

homerac7:

Pornodude,

Hw far naa? Na wetin happen wey u no dey bless us wt your sweet sweet tori? Abeg, guy get back onboard.

my person, i just dey like dele. no worry o, na just busyness dey keep me ffrom here o. very soon i will bless una again.take care my person.

jabbok:

If this story is true, then the mumu FG(GEJ camp) have conspired with their imperial masters(british) to start a campaign of calumny against the seasoned chukwuma Soludo. Atiku/Soludo ticket - Some people have started catching cold already  

So does it mean solodo is pitching tent with atiku for real?And people are doubting his dubiousness.

It is like saying aninih was an armed robber,while monday osunbor wasn't.

This scandalous fraud wasn't hidden.We were all aware of it and there were demands from all quaters for investigation.Why is this coming now?