House of Representatives Committee on Public
Petitions yesterday adjourned its sitting on a petition on a reportedly failed
oil deal between the Chairman of Capital Oil and Gas Limited, Ifeanyi Uba, and
the Chairman of Coscharis Motors, Cosmas Maduka, due to a pending litigation.
Due to the litigation, Finance Minister, Dr.
Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, and the Managing Director of Access Bank, Aigboje
Aig-Imokhuede, failed to turn up at the hearing.
The House Committee, after a meeting, resolved to ask for one week to investigate claims by Maduka and Access Bank that the matter is in court.
Chairman of the Committee, Uzor Azubuike, who read the resolution, stated that it could not hear the petition in the absence of Dr Okonjo-Iweala and Aig-Imuokhuede.
Shortly after the opening ceremony of the investigative hearing, counsel to Maduka, Osita Mbamalu, raised an objection to the hearing of the petition on the ground that the matter is before the court.
After 10 minutes of consultation with members of the committee on whether the hearing should be shelved or not, it was resolved that the hearing should be adjourned to Thursday next week.
Azubuiked directed Access Bank and Maduka to furnish the committee with documents on court process on the matter on or before next Tuesday.
He said: "We are standing down the hearing for today, we are adjourning the hearing to Thursday next week. We want Coscharis and Access Bank to furnish us with court processes on the matter on or before Tuesday next week."
Despite the protest by the legal team of Coscharis that the time given for the submission of the documents was short, the Chairman insisted on one week for all the parties to reconvene.
Addressing newsmen after the meeting, Uba vowed to fight to the end.
He, however, ruled out seeking the intervention of President Goodluck Jonathan on the matter.
"I have sought the intervention of Mr President on this and I don't intend to do so because there is no need for that. I will not contest the resolution of the House that we should come back next week Thursday. I have to comply with that but it is important to let Nigerians know that at this moment, our workforce are outside.
"We believe there is a grand conspiracy to strangulate us. Since December last year, our payments have been stalled.
With regards to verifications and unending investigations by the House Committee, we have been cleared by the House of Representatives, we are also cleared by the CBN, we are also cleared by the same Aig-Imokhuede on July 21, when they published 21 companies, our name was not there, surprisingly three weeks after July 21, our names came out with about 16 infractions.
"Our demand is that the Ministry of Finance should pay us our claims so that we can settle our obligations, we are not suppose to owed anybody as regards to other parties we are seeing today. You cannot hold our payment telling us that until the subsidy investigation is completed.
"There is full ploy to humiliate me and they are not getting their way, now they are running away. Why are they saying the House cannot hear this matter, this is the same issue the House has deliberated upon before and there is no suit in court on subsidy either from them or us.
Why are they trying to use other suits in court which is not the subject matter of today? We know their moves, we know what they are doing, let them come and tell Nigerians why they are doing this to us”
The House Committee, after a meeting, resolved to ask for one week to investigate claims by Maduka and Access Bank that the matter is in court.
Chairman of the Committee, Uzor Azubuike, who read the resolution, stated that it could not hear the petition in the absence of Dr Okonjo-Iweala and Aig-Imuokhuede.
Shortly after the opening ceremony of the investigative hearing, counsel to Maduka, Osita Mbamalu, raised an objection to the hearing of the petition on the ground that the matter is before the court.
After 10 minutes of consultation with members of the committee on whether the hearing should be shelved or not, it was resolved that the hearing should be adjourned to Thursday next week.
Azubuiked directed Access Bank and Maduka to furnish the committee with documents on court process on the matter on or before next Tuesday.
He said: "We are standing down the hearing for today, we are adjourning the hearing to Thursday next week. We want Coscharis and Access Bank to furnish us with court processes on the matter on or before Tuesday next week."
Despite the protest by the legal team of Coscharis that the time given for the submission of the documents was short, the Chairman insisted on one week for all the parties to reconvene.
Addressing newsmen after the meeting, Uba vowed to fight to the end.
He, however, ruled out seeking the intervention of President Goodluck Jonathan on the matter.
"I have sought the intervention of Mr President on this and I don't intend to do so because there is no need for that. I will not contest the resolution of the House that we should come back next week Thursday. I have to comply with that but it is important to let Nigerians know that at this moment, our workforce are outside.
"We believe there is a grand conspiracy to strangulate us. Since December last year, our payments have been stalled.
With regards to verifications and unending investigations by the House Committee, we have been cleared by the House of Representatives, we are also cleared by the CBN, we are also cleared by the same Aig-Imokhuede on July 21, when they published 21 companies, our name was not there, surprisingly three weeks after July 21, our names came out with about 16 infractions.
"Our demand is that the Ministry of Finance should pay us our claims so that we can settle our obligations, we are not suppose to owed anybody as regards to other parties we are seeing today. You cannot hold our payment telling us that until the subsidy investigation is completed.
"There is full ploy to humiliate me and they are not getting their way, now they are running away. Why are they saying the House cannot hear this matter, this is the same issue the House has deliberated upon before and there is no suit in court on subsidy either from them or us.
Why are they trying to use other suits in court which is not the subject matter of today? We know their moves, we know what they are doing, let them come and tell Nigerians why they are doing this to us”
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