Bribery: Otedola, Lawan are culpable – Tunde Bakare

CONVENER, Save Nigeria Group, Pastor Tunde Bakare, says Managing Director, Zenon Oil and Gas Limited, Femi Otedola and the suspended Chairman, House of Representatives Ad hoc Committee on Fuel Subsidy Management, Farouk Lawan, are both culpable in the bribery scandal currently rocking the House.
Bakare said this during a news conference in Lagos on Sunday. He submitted that if Nigeria were to be a decent society, Otedola, Lawan and all those involved in the scandal would be in detention by now.
The cleric said, “Otedola gives the bribe and Farouk Lawan takes the bribe, both of them are criminals. But they cleverly said he (Otedola) contacted the State Security Service in order to give marked money.
“Where did they get the money from? Did the money come from government? These are oil vultures. What is the foundation of his riches; is it not corruption? Has Nigeria not been celebrating corrupt fellows? Corruption in Nigeria is now endemic.
“In a decent society, both Otedola and Lawan and all the people involved would be behind bars by now. Unfortunately, Lawan’s greed and naivety got him into a terrible mess. He had the opportunity of being a hero; he ended up a villain because of naivety and greed.”
Bakare, the Vice Presidential candidate of the Congress for Progressive Change for the 2011 presidential election, accused President Goodluck Jonathan of being on a mission to “bankrupt and balkanize Nigeria.”
He said the bribery scandal rocking the House was planned by the government to distract Nigerians attention from the N3trn spent by the Jonathan administration without appropriation.

PUNCH