P&ID: Court remands former federal director in prison
- A former director in the ministry of petroleum Mrs. Grace Taiga, has been remanded in prison
- Taiga was remanded for allegedly accepting a bribe in connection with the controversial contract awarded to Process and Industry Development (P&ID) Limited
- Due to the contract, a $9.6bilion judgment is now pending against Nigeria
A former director for legal services at Nigeria’s petroleum ministry, Mrs. Grace Taiga, has been remanded in Suleja prison, Premium Times reports.
She was remanded after pleading not guilty to an eight-count charge of alleged financial impropriety in the controversial contract between Nigeria and the Irish firm, Process and Industrial Development Company (P&ID).
Taiga is accused by the federal government of participating in the award of the contract with a former petroleum minister, Rilwan Lukman, who is now deceased.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) described the processes of awarding the contract as “unlawful and an abuse of constitutional provision.”
The commission which is prosecuting the case accused Mrs. Taiga and Mr. Lukman of violating the law and awarding the contract without the approval of the Federal Executive Council or recourse to the provisions of the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission Act.
Taiga was also accused of collecting over $20,000 from the Irish firm “for her cooperation” in ensuring that the contract was signed.
Justice Olukayode Adeniyi ordered Mrs. Taiga to be remanded pending the determination of a bail application scheduled for Wednesday, September 25.
Recall that a Federal High Court convicted the suspects arraigned on allegations of fraudulent involvement in the 2010 contract between the Nigerian government and P&ID.
The court also ordered the firm to forfeit all its assets to the Nigerian government.
The court gave its ruling after the suspects on Thursday, September 19 pleaded guilty to an 11-count charge filed by the EFCC.
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