N20B Fraud: Fear Grips Lagos Commissioners

PHOTO: LAGOS STATE GOVERNOR, BABATUNDE RAJI FASHOLA.

LAGOS, April 26, (THEWILL) - The cabinet of Governor Babatunde Raji Fashola (SAN) of Lagos State has been thrown into a state of fear as the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) may detain three commissioners in an attempt to unravel the N20 billion naira fraud currently the administration of Fashola.

This comes following last week’s arrest of the Chief Executive Officer of Deux Projects Limited, Dr. Olatunji Olowolafe, who has been linked to a series of fraud.  

Also, the arrest of Olowolafe by the EFCC was a subject of discussion in the state secretariat wherein the civil servants were seen in groups in different blocks of the state secretariat, discussing allegations of financial impropriety brought against Fashola.  

At the Office of Deputy Governor and in such ministries as Education, Health and Finance among others, civil servants were seen curiously looking through reports related to the on-going investigation in the national dailies.

Among those scheduled to be invited include Commissioner for Health, Dr. Jide Idris; his finance counterpart, Mr. Rotimi Oyekan; and Deputy Governor, Princess Adebisi Sarah Sosan, who oversees the state Ministry of Education.

THEWILL gathered that some members of the State Executive Council spent the early hours of today discussing the arrest and its implication on the administration, a situation which brought about an uneasy calm in the council meeting.

According to our source, some top government personnel in such ministries as Health, Education and Finance have been invited for questioning by the anti-graft commission, before the end of this week.

The source said the civil servants at the ministries of Health, Finance and Education were gripped with fear because Olowolafe, who is the Chief Executive Officer of Deux Projects Limited, undertook most of their projects.

THEWILL also gathered that Olowolafe supplied most hospital equipment in the state, and that the scam largely involved the ministry of health where Dr. Jide Idris, a former permanent secretary in the ministry, supervises as a commissioner.

It was revealed that Olowolafe became the state government’s contractor during the administration of the immediate past governor of the state, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, when Deux Projects Limited undertook some works.

"The Ministry of Health will be so much affected because most of the projects that Olowolafe did were in Lagos State University Teaching Hospital, Ikeja. Deux Project still undertook the construction of the state health centre located inside the state secretariat, Alausa. The building is currently at the stage of completion.

"Deux Project Limited was also involved in the N25 billion expansion of Lekki-Epe Road, currently generating controversies. The company had since undertaken 27 projects for the ministry of health, three for the ministry of education and had since collected the sum of N10 billion as mobilization fund. I know that the commissioners in the ministries will be panicking now," the source told THEWILL.