• N'Assembly insists on Oteh's removal
EMBATTLED chairman of Pension Reform Tax Team (PRTT) Abdulrasheed Maina, has disclosed that aside the initial N221 billion stolen pension fund recovered, an additional N20 billion has been found in hidden accounts that have been dormant for over three years and which is currently under investigation to unravel signatories of the account.
Meanwhile, the Senate and the House of Representatives have said that there would be no budgetary provision for the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in 2013 until the embattled Director General, Aruma Oteh, is removed.
In a related development, the Coalition of Civil Society Group for Transparency and Good Governance (CCSGTGG) in conjunction with members of the National Union of Pensioners (NUP) has restated its call for the sack of the Maina-led Pension Reform Task Team (PRTT).
Similarly, the PRTT has disclosed that in last two years it recovered over N200 billion of which N74 billion was channelled to the 2012 budget by the Ministry of Finance.
Speaking in Abuja at the weekend, he said: "They said I am a monster. I don't know how I have become a monster. My aim is to ensure that no pensioner is owed.
"Recently, we discovered that some amount of money is hidden in other accounts apart from the N221 billion we sent to the government. I have not said this out because we are still under investigation. It is over N20 billion. This money has been hidden in some accounts that are dormant for over three years. As soon as we get through with our investigation, we will report to the Minister of Finance to instruct the Accountant General to move the money to the Central Bank where special account is opened for such money."
Maina alleged that the Senate Committee's hostility towards him was a calculated attempt by the cabal to frustrate his effort at blocking several loopholes through which pension money was siphoned. Rather than proper investigation on his activities, he said the committee members have been sitting on falsehood.
"I have been saying that I am ready to partner Senate to uncover the N195 billion but when we went for the public hearing for the first time, we were intimidated and not allowed to talk because the cabal had gone to give false information to the Senate Committee. The Committee was misinformed. The last time they said I should answer 'yes or no.'
Maina has come under fire since the Senate Committee began its investigation into the management of Pension fund from 2005 till date. Recently, he was alleged to be behind the missing N195 billion pension fund and was consequently requested to appear before the committee alongside some heads of government agencies including Comptroller General of Immigration, Controller General of Customs and Director General, Nigerian Prison Service.
Others are Accountant General of the Federation, Auditor General, Head of Service and several others.
However, Maina refused to appear until he was issued warrant of arrest on Wednesday last week. He also came about three hours behind schedule and at a point when the committee had adjourned sitting till Wednesday this week.
Maina told journalists that having denied fair hearing in his previous appearances, he found no need to obey the committee's order until its chairman, Aloysius Etok, was removed.
Speaking with The Guardian at the weekend, chairman of the Senate Committee on Capital Market, Ayo Adesun, said both chambers have resolved that there would be no going back on the demand for Oteh's removal.
"We have resolved that the DG be removed and the Senate and the House of Representatives have taken a position that there would be no budgetary provision for that agency of government until the current DG is removed. That is our position because she cannot appear before either of the chambers for any budget defence. That remains our position. Let us see how she will run that agency without budget," he said.
The PRTT also distanced itself from the alleged N195 billion missing fund from military and other agencies.
The spokesperson for PRTT, Mr. Hassan Salisu, in a statement on the matter of missing fund, explained that as at the end of October 2012, the team recovered and saved over N241 while stopping a monthly stealing of N4.2 billion from the HOS pension office and reduced N1 billion police pension monthly releases to N500 million.
