#4.8M: DR. IGALI IS A FRAUDSTER - GODSIDI

Reported by Dei Badou.

- Godsidi demands immediate payment.

- Igali is a fraudster-Godwin Sidi

Reports reaching our news desk indicate that one time Secretary to the Bayelsa State Government, Dr. Boladei Igali is alleged to be heavily indebted in a case of unpaid printing contract job done; Dr. Igali contracted with Godsidi Press Limited.

The Managing Director Godsidi Press Limited, Mr. Godwin Sidi said, Dr. Igali while in office as SSG Bayelsa State in anticipation of the former President Obasanjo’s visit to Bayelsa State in October 2006 requested his company to embark on a printing job amounted to #4,850,000.00 (Four million, Eight Hundred and Fifty Thousand Naira only); a contract that was verbally made to him by Dr. igali and since then payment has not been effected before his exit and subsequent deployments at the federal level following the elevation of his boss, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan who was then the governor of Bayelsa State as the Vice President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

According to Mr. Sidi, despite Dr. Igali verbally asked him to complete the job and deliver to him in good time for the Bayelsa State Interdenominational Thanksgiving Service in commemoration of Mr. President’s visit to Bayelsa State at the King of Glory Chapel, Government House, Yenagoa on Sunday 29th October 2006 at 9.00am, he did so and never doubted the credibility and integrity of Dr. Igali, hence he embarked on the printing job without accepting even a little deposit for the commencement of the job.

Despite the fact that Dr. Igali O.K. the job on the pro-forma invoice when presented to him, it is surprising to note that Dr. Igali refused to pay him even a dime for the job up to date and appealed to him to pay him his money to enable him pay-off his creditors who are persistently on his neck.

He said the sum, invoices and other transactions between him and all the Secretaries of Bayelsa State Government including Mrs. Ketebu, Hon. Chief Gideon Ekewe, Professor Edmund Allison-Oguru and Dr. Igali and his company are hereby attached for the public to judge Dr. Igali who has indeed turned him self a chronic debtor.

Meanwhile, in a statement issued, signed and made public over the unpaid contract for a print job by the Managing Director Godsidi Press Limited, Mr. Godwin Sidi states inter alias, “Precisely on the 28th of October 2006, I was at home when I saw Dr. Igali B. who was the S.S.G to Dr Goodluck Jonathan.

He said he wanted me to print some items for Mr. President visit and demanded my help it I can do the job but payment will be effected on Monday 30th October 2006. As a matter of fact, it was already 12pm and I extremely found it difficult to accept the job but he pleaded with everything one can think of for me to do the job. After all said and done,
I considered taking the risk to embark on the job. The total cost estimate for the printing and materials were #4,850,000 which he promised to come personally to pay me. I had to collect my workers and sourced for materials that night which my graphical artist commenced on the designs.
As God could have it, we finally completed the job. As early as 9am Sunday, morning Dr. igali drove in and collected the printed items and said I should expect the money by 11am on Monday.

Behold, till this point of writing this note. Igali has refused to pay us our money. We have had made a spirited efforts to see if we can get our money through his predecessors but all proved abortive, reasons being that Igali didn’t leave any note to show that he printed anything for his office while as SSG.

When we contacted Igali, he said he was on medical treatment abroad and that as soon as he comes back he would pay us our money.
Dr. Igali returned to Nigeria on February 2016 with the hope was going to honour our request but turned out to be a lie and deceit. I made another call to him and he promised to be in Yenagoa for late D.S.P Alamieyeseigha’s burial and that he would settle us once and for all.

Dr. Igali came to Yenagoa with an empty promise and deceives us with two policemen claiming that they were sent from the CP’s Office to arrest me. I was invited into his leaving room to be handed over to the Police but Igali tactically told the police to plead with me so that he can have a space to escape from his house because I had already blocked his gate with my car.

Finally, his sister intervened and begged me that I should take things easy. Having heard from his sister, Dr. Igali called me to one of his private rooms and said that he would give a hundred thousand through P.A. and that I should take it for my transport.
The so called P.A. whom he said he had given a Bank cheque to the bank never showed up till this point of writing this reports and every efforts to get Igali has proved abortive.

Since I have exhausted all peaceful means to collect my hard earned money, and I do not have the means as well as the connections like Dr. B. Igali, I am prepared to jack-up Igali by either his short or trousers any where any time I see him, whether he has all the police and soldiers surrounding him. 

When our reporter contacted Dr. Igali in a text message to his cele-phone number replied as follows: “Thanks sir for your text. My advice is for you to occupy your time with better things than such frivolous issues of debts or fraud are better handled by other authorities and not the media. God bless you richly sir.”             
It would be recalled that The Guardian Newspaper of 16th May 2016, reported the on-going probe of AMBASSADOR BOLADEI IGALI OVER ALLEGED #3.5BN SCAM, INVESTIGATES ABANDONED #500M TV PROJECT which stated as follows:

Barely a week after the Permanent Secretary in the Power Ministry, Godknows Igali, disclosed that #2.74trillion had been spent in the drive for better electricity supply since 1999 without anything to show for it, the public servant himself is to be investigated over some alleged scams in the sector.

The senate has received petition accusing Igali of diverting #3.5bn meant for payment of beneficiaries of the National Power Sector Apprenticeship scheme (NAPSAS), the Guardian has learned.
In a petition submitted to the chairman of senate Ad hoc Committee on Power, Abubakar Kyari, (NAPSAS) alleged that the ministry recruited 7,200 youths for the apprenticeship scheme which was expected to last for six months, but stopped abruptly.

According to the petition, each participant in the scheme was expected to be paid #20,000 stipends monthly for six months, after which they may be absorbed into the Power sector, but that is not to be at the moment due to alleged failure of the Permanent Secretary to implement the programme to the fullest, even after #3.5bn had been signed by leaders of the participants in the training scheme, Onyemelikeya Chukwu and Balogun Tirimisiyu. They said; ‘It is in view of the foregoing that we, the ad hoc excos of the (NAPSAS) trainees, plead with your esteemed committee to:
Investigate, with a view to ascertaining the veracity or otherwise, the allegation of fixing of the funds meant for this programme by Ministry of Power (under Ambassador Godknows Igali) and NAPSAS (under Mrs. Sybil Williamson, the coordinator) in interest-yielding accounts in Also savings/Loans and other commercial banks in Abuja. And if found to be true, who authorized the fixing and for what purpose?.

Compel Igali to refund the balance of #2000 to each of the trainees paid in February 2015 and to explain why they were paid #18,000 as against #20,000 budgeted for each trainee. And to pay all the trainees their allowances from February to June 2015, including the accrued interest.

Compel the Permanent Secretary to explain why other trainees outside Abuja were not paid in February, and all the trainees, other months till date. Also, what has happened to the funds meant for these payments, for these past months?

Investigate why despite the fact that less than half of 7,400 trainees budgeted for are actually undergoing this exercise, (NAPSAS) and Federal Ministry of Power keep bandying that figure (7,400) as the number being trained.

We suspect that this is a ploy to misinform Nigerians in order to divert misappropriate the remainder of funds meant for the programme, especially in view of the change in government and the new administration may not have indicated interest in continuing the programme;
Run a background check of the personality of the Coordinator of (NAPSAS) Programme Mrs. Sybil Williamson especially during her sojourn in the UK. We attached forthwith some findings of one Mrs. Sybil Williamson, a Nigerian, whom we think relates to her person and we are seriously worried why such a character, if she is the one under reference, that requires high degree of personal integrity and financial transparency.

Compel Mrs. Williamson to explain her recent statement during NTA interview on Friday, 4th September 2015 that they (NAPSAS) have successfully completed the training of first batch of the trainees and had paid them all, even when she is aware that such insinuation is a deliberate act of deception of the innocent public;
Compel Ambassador Igali to tell Nigerian public the names and contacts of over 600 (NAPSAS) trainees whom he claimed to have completely trained and offered employment through the DISCOS. He claimed this through one Mr. (Oyedeji of Ministry of Power as reported by Daily Trust of September 1 2015, and
Compel lgali to step aside as the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Power, while the investigations are on. “The petitioner said: “Finally, we also note here that Ambassador Igali and Mrs. Williamson have restored to misinforming the public that non-genuine trainees and some wrong people with MSC, and PhD who ride in all sorts of Cars, have found their way into the programme and they are trying to fish them out, also that some of the trainees submitted wrong account details and that is why they have not paid them.

This is contrary to what they had told us before now (as well as our observation) as reason our payment could not be made as we have stated them in this letter. “In conclusion, a lot of things are obviously amiss with the handling and handlers of this programme which should be thoroughly unearthed.

That is the reason we invite your committee to move in. we shall continue to challenge systems that encourage poverty and corruption. “The petitioners explained that (NAPSAS) is a capacity building programme that was initiated by the Federal Government, through the Federal Ministry of Power, for various categories of unemployed Nigeria youths in November 2014 with the overall purpose of bridging skilled manpower gaps currently experienced in the power sector. In the programme guideline, it stipulated that the total number of participants will be 7,400 from across the federation with 200 participants each to be drawn from the 36 states and the FCT.

Also yesterday, the Senate President Bukola Saraki said the upper chamber would begin a thorough investigation of circumstances that led to the abandonment of the National Assembly television worth over #500m, located inside the National Assembly premises.

The television project was initiated to give publicity to parliamentary activities in the country, particularly that of the Senate and House of Representatives.

It was gathered that a broadcast license has been obtained for the studio which is yet to take off. It was one of the projects inspected by Saraki last week.