EFCC probes SEC boss Oteh’s allegation
DID the chairman of the House Committee on Capital Market and Other Institutions, Herman Hembe, demand N44 million bribe from Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Director-General Ms Arunma Oteh?
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) is set to unravel this puzzle.
Ms Oteh made the allegation when she appeared, last Thursday, before the panel, which is probing SEC’s activities.
Hembe, it was learnt, may be asked to step down today pending the conclusion of the EFCC probe.
The House may also ask its Ethics and Privileges Committee to probe the allegation against Hembe.
Raising the probe team in Abuja yesterday, EFCC Chairman Ibrahim Lamorde outlined its mandate, which includes interaction with Hembe and Ms Oteh.
It was gathered that the EFCC probe may not last more than two or three weeks.
Besides taking evidence from Hembe, Ms Oteh and others, the EFCC team will also demand documents to back all allegations.
A source at the commission said: “The EFCC Chairman raised and briefed the investigation team today. It is a matter of public concern and the Commission feels obliged to get to the root of the matter.
“The team will interact with all parties involved in the case and consider all relevant documents and text messages as may be applicable.
“Hembe, Ms Oteh, members of the committee and officials of SEC will surely be invited by the team for interaction.”
Contacted, the Head of Media and Publicity of the commission, Mr. Wilson Uwujaren, said: “We have already started work on it.”
Hembe may be asked to step aside today when the committee resumes sitting to allow a full-scale investigation of the allegations against him and others.
A principal officer of the House, who pleaded not to be named because he is not allowed to speak to the media, said: “The Speaker, Alhaji Aminu Tambuwal, and some officers have met with Hembe. During the session, he denied demanding N44million bribe from the SEC DG.
“On the sponsored trip to Dominican Republic by SEC, Hembe admitted that he made the trip up to Texas in the United States but could not reach the Republic.
“He said he got to the US at about the time the conference was rounding off and he placed a call to a top official of SEC who advised him against coming to the Dominican Republic again because it would be fruitless. He said he has air tickets to back his claim.
“But the House leadership agreed that since the allegations are weighty, it is in the public interest for Hembe to step aside while investigation is on. He cannot be a judge in his own case.
“This decision will be communicated to Hembe today. I think a member of the committee may preside over the conduct of the hearing.”
A source in the House said: “We have decided to ask the Ethics and Privileges Committee to investigate the matter – in line with our rules.
“You know, she also levelled some allegations against the Deputy Speaker, Mr. Emeka Ihedioha. This has made the setting up of the Ethics Committee probe important.”
Ms Oteh blew open the bribery allegation during her appearance before the committee last Thursday.
She took exception to Hembe’s allegations that she is not qualified to be SEC DG; seconded two Access Bank workers to SEC; and spent N850, 000 on hotel accommodation in a day and another N85,000 on a meal.
She said: “This has been a Kangaroo court. Not even in Idi Amin’s Uganda did we have this type of public hearing. You had implied that as a regulator, that by having people on secondment from the private sector, it could undermine the capacity of the regulatory functions of the commission.
“In asking the SEC to contribute N39million to this public hearing, don’t you think that you are undermining your capacity to carry out your duties?
“You think that if Hon Ihedioha, the Deputy Speaker of this House, being the nephew to Prof. Ndi-Okereke Onyuike and having his wife work in the Abuja office of the Nigerian Stock Exchange, don’t you think it will be compromising his capacity to carry out his duties?
“I do not think that it is appropriate for you to have gathered information from the SEC and without even asking us to verify that information, to respond to that issue; you already made the judgment that you made yesterday; we are trying to build a democracy”.
Hembe asked EFCC officials present at the hearing to take note of the allegations, which he described as “weighty”.
He said: “The allegations are about Ndi Okereke-Onyiuke who you had issues with. So the House cannot be said to be unfair. Those will be taken into consideration, to check whether in doing what we are doing today we have been affected by such bias.
“The public is also watching. If what I am doing is because of the fact that I have collected money from SEC to go on overseas trip to study and I didn’t go, which is why I am doing what I am doing, the public will take note.
“But if it is the wish of members of the committee that I respond to the issues, I will go ahead and respond to the issues. I will respond to the issues as much as I can.
“The issue of corruption or no corruption, we should put it aside. They (EFCC and ICPC officials) are here and they will write their report. I think we should concentrate on the major issue here. Let’s see how we can forge ahead with the hearing and achieve something before the end of the day.
“I want to say something as the Chairman of this Committee. I will Chair this committee to the end of this public hearing. I want to say firmly, in support of what you have said, that it’s on the issues of bias or corruption that the Committee invited the EFCC and the ICPC.”
