Judge OA Adeniyi of the Federal Capital Territory High Court, sitting in Apo, Abuja, on Friday, September 20, 2019, ordered the preventive detention of Ms. Grace Taiga, a woman complicit in the multiple fraud involving P&ID in Suleja prison.
Wilson Uwujaren, head of media and advertising for the anti-corruption agency, says she is being prosecuted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC.
Taiga, former Director of Legal Services at the Ministry of Petroleum Resources was a key player in the fraudulent Gas Supply and Processing Agreement (GSPA) between the federal government and P&ID. It is alleged that he used his position to administer undue favors to the company.
She was indicted on eight-count amended charges, bordering on accepting leftovers and other related offenses.
The first count of the charge reads: “That you, Process and Industrial Developments Limited, being a company incorporated in the British Virgin Islands (now a convict), Michael Quinn (deceased), Brendan Cahill (released), Neil Hitchcock (deceased) and Grace Taiga on or about January 11, 2010 in Abuja, within the Jurisdiction of this honorable court, with intent to defraud made a false statement under Paragraph 8(g) of the Gas Supply and Processing Agreement (GSPA ) namely: the parties are aware that the 24-inch Adanga pipeline currently under construction from the OML 123 operated by Addax, directly to Calabar and scheduled for completion in 2010, part of said agreement that you knew to be false and, therefore, he committed an offense contrary to Section 362 ((a) of the Panel Code Law and sanctioned by article 364 of the same law.”
Count five of the count reads: “That you, Grace Taiga (former Director of Legal Services at the Ministry of Petroleum Resources) on or about December 18, 2017 in Abuja within the jurisdiction of this honorable court, corruptly received the sum of $10,000 (Ten thousand dollars of the United States of America) from Industrial Consultants International, through your offshore Zenith Bank Account No.5070369868 due to the favor you have already shown to Process and Industrial Developments Limited, which gave rise to to the execution of the definitive agreement between said company, incorporated and existing under the laws of the British Virgin Islands and the Ministry of Petroleum Resources on January 11, 2010 and therefore committed an offense contrary to Section 8(1) ( a) of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offenses Act, 2010”.
The defendant pleaded not guilty to all charges. In view of his guilty plea, the prosecution’s attorney, Bala Sanga, prayed to the court to set a trial date and for the accused to be remanded.
However, the defense attorney, Ola Olanipekun SAN, submitted an oral request for bail for the accused, which Judge Adeniyi rejected, preferring that he submit a formal bail request.
Olanipekun SAN further told the court that the defendant had been in the custody of the EFCC all the time and was suffering from hypertension, praying that the defendant would remain in the custody of the EFCC.
The prosecution’s attorney objected to the sentence and urged the court to dismiss the defendant’s claim of ill health as there was no proof or evidence for it. He also opposed the sentence for the defendant to be placed in EFCC custody, arguing that the matter was now in court and that the Commission’s detention center was overcrowded.
Judge Adeniyi adjourned the matter until September 25, 2019 for trial and remanded the accused to Suleja Prison.
It is worth recalling that two P&ID directors: Muhammed Kuchazi and Adamu Usman were sentenced on Thursday, September 19, 2019 by a Federal High Court, Abuja, after they pleaded guilty to 11 charges bordering on obtaining by false pretense; trade in petroleum products without the corresponding license; tax evasion, money laundering, and failure to register P&ID with the EFCC’s Special Control Unit Against Money Laundering (SCUML) as required by law.
The trial judge, Judge IE Ekwo, also ordered the liquidation of the fraudulent company, while all its assets will be confiscated from the federal government.