Fela Durotoye, a former aide to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has revealed how he almost fell into a N5 billion fraud while serving in the administration, Church Times Nigeria reports.
Durotoye was appointed Senior Special Assistant to the President, National Values & Social Justice Tinubu in 2023, before that appointment, he contested the presidential election.
The former presidential candidate spoke on Tuesday during a programme organised by the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria, PFN, in Abuja the nation’s capital.
His revelation comes on the heels of the designation of Nigeria as one of the most corrupt countries in the world by Transparency International, TI, in its recently released corruption index. Nigeria was ranked 140th globally in the global Corruption Index.
Revealing his experience while in the Tinubu’s administration, the former presidential aide said he was almost forced to inflating a contract worth N1.2 billion to N5 billion, saying he turned down the request because of his good orientation, he urged Nigerians to imbibe good values.
He said he was introduced to a training contract job, which according to him, was worth only N1.3 billion, and after making a quotation, he was allegedly approached by some presidency officials who advised him to inflate the price.
After protesting, the alleged official told him that he needed to be taking care of for serving the country, that the excess in the contract sum was part of the pay back for his service to his country.
He said, “I got a call congratulating me that I had secured the job.
“But they said the amount I was asking for was too small. They promised to add N700m to make it N2bn. Then they asked me to submit an invoice for N5bn.
According to him, the official told him that nothing is wrong with inflating the contract after he raised serious concern over the issue, that it amounted to ripping of the country.
He stated, “The man assured me he wasn’t ripping off Nigeria.
“He said he had served the country and deserved compensation. When I reminded him that the blessings of God make one rich and add no sorrow, he fired back, saying, ‘There is no sorrow in this one. You have been doing well for Nigeria. It is time for Nigeria to do well for you.”
Durotoye who claimed he turned down an official car and salary while working in the administration, said the decision not to be involved in the alleged fraud save him, as not too long after some officials in the presidency were arrested for defrauding the government of N426 million, in a contract, he believed was the same he turned down.
While in Tinubu’s government, “I did not collect an official car, I did not collect a house, and I did not collect a salary for serving,” Durotoye said.
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