*Daily Telegraph, Peoples Daily, Nigeria Tribune, other leading papers disown Obaigbena, LEADERSHIP agrees
The Chairman and Editor-in-Chief, Thisday Newspapers Group, Mr Nduka Obaigbena has written to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) distancing himself from the on-going diversion of funds from the Office of former National Security Adviser, Colonel Sambo Dasuki (rtd) meant for the procurement of weapons for the fight against Boko Haram insurgency.
In a letter addressed to the Chairman of EFCC dated, December 9, 2015 entitled, “Re-LETTER OF INVITATION,” personally signed by Obaigbena, referring to an invitation by the anti-graft commission dated, December 8, 2015, he explained, “We have never received any suspicious funds from the office of the National Security Adviser. ALL funds received from the office of the National Security Adviser were PAYMENTS FOR COMPENSATION to MITIGATE the following:
“N150,000,000+N150,000,000 and N250,000,000 respectively received in August, November and February 2014 as compensation to mitigate the dastardly Boko Haram twin bombings of THISDAY NEWSPAPERS offices in Abuja and Kaduna on Thursday, April 2012, during which 4 innocent Nigerian lives were lost, our building destroyed and we lost full colour Goss printing tower and three (3) pre-press computer-To-plate and auxiliary equipment and other invaluable property valued at over N2.5 billion.
The letter further reads, “N100,000,000 and N20,000,000 received in March 2015 for the Newspapers Proprietors Association of Nigeria (NPAN) and 12 newspapers who demanded compensation for the brutal and unlawful seizure of newspapers and stoppage of circulation by armed soldiers in Abuja and several cities. As President of NPAN, it was my duty to lead media leaders to hold discussions with President Goodluck Jonathan to avert a class action lawsuit against the Armed Forces and the Federal Government.
Obaigbena further assured the chairman of EFCC, that he would make himself available as soon as he returns from his foreign trip to the United States of America.
Speaking on the development, the Group Managing Director of LEADERSHIP Holdings Michael Okpere, corroborated Obiagbena’s claim that media houses affected by the unlawful seizure of newspapers, including LEADERSHIP were paid N10 million each from the N120 million Obaigbena allegedly received in March 2015.
He stated that the total sum was meant to be paid as compensation to the 12 media houses that were mostly affected by the brutal and crude activities of the soldiers who impounded their newspapers for no other reason than they were perceived to be unfavorable to Jonathan’s government. The soldiers also laid siege on their offices and prevented them from circulating newspapers, at that period.
He stressed, “We did not demand for compensation. We collated our losses and sent them to NPAN in readiness for a lawsuit to claim damages from the military and Jonathan’s federal government. It was then that the NSA met NPAN in Lagos and pleaded for an out of court settlement.”
Okpere stated that LEADERSHIP which was a major target of the Jonathan government because it was perceived as the opposition newspaper during the PDP days lost more than N70 million during the attack of the soldiers.
He recalled that the soldiers carried out the activities in June 2014 against media houses perceived to be opposed to the administration of ex-president Goodluck Jonathan ahead of the 2015 general elections.
Okpere also added that he attended all the meetings of NPAN, as the publisher, Sam Nda-Isaiah had resigned his position as chairman of the newspaper and executive council member of the NPAN at the time to contest in the APC presidential primary.
New Telegraph got no money from Dasuki through Obaigbena –Management
The management of New Telegraph Newspapers has expressed shock over its inclusion in the list of media houses that THISDAY Publisher and President, Newspapers Proprietors Association of Nigeria (NPAN) claimed he paid N10 million each to from funds he received from the immediate past National Security Adviser (NSA), Col Sambo Dasuki (rtd), as compensation for the illegal seizure of some newspapers by the military during the administration of former president Goodluck Jonathan.
A statement by the MD/EIC of New Telegraph, Mrs Funke Egbemode said “It is on record that following the decision of NPAN to seek compensation from the Federal Government in the aftermath of the seizure of editions of newspapers by the military, New Telegraph computed its losses, which were passed to the association.
However, since then, the company has heard nothing from the association on the matter.”
She further disclosed: “Following a report that NPAN has begun paying N9 million (not N10 million as contained in the report that has gone viral on the Internet), the management of Daily Telegraph Publishing Company Limited, publishers of New Telegraph, Saturday Telegraph and Sunday Telegraph, has written three letters to NPAN for its share of the compensation; but regrettably, as at this moment, not even a kobo has been received.
“The first letter was written on May 22, 2015 followed by another on July 16, 2015 with a reminder written on November 19, 2015.
“Therefore, it is nothing but sheer falsehood for the NPAN president, who claimed he received the money on behalf of the association, to have included New Telegraph Newspapers as one of the beneficiaries of the funds, which as it has now emerged, was disbursed by the former NSA.”
Meanwhile, two other national newspapers, the Nigerian Tribune and Peoples Daily have denied collecting any kobo from the NSA’s office through Obaigbena.
The two newspapers in separate statements Friday said they were shocked to find their names listed as some of the media houses that were paid for losses incurred as a result of the action by the military to seize copies of some newspapers and blocked their circulation nationwide.
-Leadership/Daily Sun
