The Senate through its Panel on Public Accounts has ordered the arrest of the Director-General of the Nigerian Maritime and Safety Agency, Dr Bashir Jamoh, for allegedly paying $5mn to a legal firm as a professional fee for the recovery of a $9.3bn loss.
The $5m was paid for the intelligence-based tracking of a global movement of Nigerian hydrocarbon and recovery of loss by the Federal Government of Nigeria in the sum of $9.3bn between 2013 and 2014.
The Chairman of the Committee, Senator Matthew Urhogbide, at a briefing on Sunday, was furious with the agency over the failure of NIMASA to appear before the panel, saying that the panel had no other option than to issue a warrant of arrest on the DG of NIMASA. He said, “We have invited NIMASA up to three times, but they have failed to honour our invitations.
This committee has no other option than to issue a warrant of arrest against the Director General of the agency. They can come to the National Assembly for fund appropriation, but when it is time to give account, they will be nowhere to be found.
“The committee had invited NIMASA up to three times for the explanation on the payment of $5 million as professional fee and details of $9.3bn loss by the Federal government, but the agency declined the invitation.”
