‘Termites ate N17b vouchers’ report: How a “journalist” reportedly fabricated “termites” story after alleged failed blackmail on NSITF MD
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A new twist has appeared to the viral story of how ‘termites ate N17 billion vouchers’ belonging to the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF), which turned out to be a fabrication of a fallout of an attempted blackmail.
Our correspondent spoke to a senior official of NSITF, who pleaded anonymity, following which it was discovered that a “journalist” tried to extort the agency but ended up fabricating the story in a failed blackmail stunt.
News Band had launched an investigation on Tuesday after NSITF released a press statement entitled “Our Current Management Not Under Probe – NSITF” to ascertain the veracity of the “termite” report, or the rebuttal thereof.
In the course of the investigation, NSITF not only denied the termite angle, but also disclosed that someone called the Managing Director NSITF, Dr. Michael Akabogu, on Wednesday, August 10, 2022, at about 8:24pm requesting for money.
The shadowy figure, who claimed that he is a journalist and later identified as “Badaki Oluwatosin” by Truecaller, threatened Dr. Akabogu that he will blackmail him if he fails to pay a huge lump of money.
See a screenshot of the Badaki’s identity as supplied by Truecaller below:
A further probe into his Instagram and Facebook accounts revealed that his full name is “Badaki Oluwatosin Felix“.
He is a graduate of Kogi State University with B.Sc in Physics Electronics major in 2010 and lives in Abuja, Nigeria.
He is not, as indicated in his profiles, attached to any media outfit [see below].
The NSITF Managing Director, of course, called the bluff on the would-be blackmailer and refused to accede to his threat.
True to his threat, however, Badaki went on and published the malicious story that MD NSITF told the Senate that termite has eaten the vouchers of N17.24 billion while under probe.
In the meantime, NSITF has, as contained in clarifications made in the released press statement on Tuesday, debunked the “termite” report.
Whereby it did not deny that N17 billion vouchers are missing and that the 2018 Audit Report by the Office of the Auditor General of the Federation raised 50 queries on misappropriation of N17.158 billion, it denide that termites ate N17 billion vouchers needed to defend query of illegal transfer of fund from two banks .
It also added that the missing vouchers has nothing to do with the current Management, which came into office on June 1, 2021.
NSITF said that though the current probe by the Senate Committee on Public Accounts is in exercise of its statutory oversight functions, “it is overly important to inform the general public that what is under investigation, are not new infractions but a cumulative financial violations under the management that ran the agency between 2012 and 2017 financial year.
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“These infractions are not new. They have in fact been subject of probe since the Office of the Auditor General of the Federation first raised the red flag in 2015.
“We make it clear therefore that the negative trails of these breaches, have nothing to do with the present management beyond assisting the Senate Committee, carry out its oversight functions, knowing full well, that government is a continuum.”
Respecting the missing vouchers, the current management stressed that “the contents of the container in the premises of the fund, where the former Managing Directors allegedly left the vouchers have succumbed to the elements”, without a hint of “termites”.
“This statement has become necessary to forestall further wrong finger-pointing and mischief in a section of the media directed at the current Management of the NSITF, which has charted a new course with strategic reforms, strongly anchored on transparency, and already, producing positive reports,” it added.
Meanwhile, it could be recalled that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has probed and taken the former Chairman of the Board and five other senior officials, including the Managing Director and three Directors to court over some of the issues.
Consequently, on October 21, 2021, the former Chairman of NSITF Board, Ngozi Olejeme was remanded in the custody of EFCC.
Huge sums of money as well as property have been recovered, while some of the indicted staff members were equally removed from office.
Read also:
Court orders interim forfeiture of 48 properties linked to ex-NSITF chair
When contacted via phone, Badaki claimed that the number is “wrong number” and refused to speak further.
He is also yet to respond to SMS and WhatsApp messages sent to the number. [See below]
