The publisher was one of the people fingered as the beneficiaries of the sum of $2.1 billion meant for acquisition of arms but was allegedly mismanaged by the former NSA.
Prominent Nigerians already fingered in the arms deal scandal include the Chairman of DAAR Communications Limited, Chief Raymond Dokpesi; former Sokoto State governor, Alhaji Attahiru Bafarawa; former Director of Finance at the Office of the NSA, Mr. Shuaibu Salisu; former Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Peoples Democratic Party, Chief Tony Anenih, and Senator Iyorchia Ayu, among others.
Explaining his role in a letter he addressed to the Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Obaigbena admitted collecting a total sum of N670 million from the office of the former NSA, N550 million of which he said was compensation for the Kaduna and Abuja offices of ThisDay newspaper burnt by Boko Haram insurgents on Thursday April 26, 2012.
The balance of N120 million, Obaigbena, who is the President of Newspapers Proprietors Association of Nigeria (NPAN), said, were compensations for the various newspaper houses whose bundles and copies were seized at different locations by security agents in the middle of last year
Giving details of his company’s losses in the burning of its Kaduna and Abuja offices, Obaigbena recalled that “four innocent Nigerian lives were lost, our buildings (were) destroyed and we lost full colour Goss printing towers and three pre-press computer-to-plate and auxiliary equipment and other (in)valuable property valued at over N2.5 billion.
“This is aside from daily costs to pay third party printers of over N1 billion, having lost our printing facility to terrorists due to inadequate protection by the Federal Government of Nigeria.
“The bombing of ThisDay offices followed the Abuja United Nations Building bombing for which the Federal Government has so far spent N3 billion for reconstruction and much more earmarked for furnishing.”
He recalled that 12 newspapers had demanded compensation “for the brutal and unlawful seizure of newspapers and stoppage of circulation by armed soldiers in Abuja and several cities.
“As President of the NPAN, it was my duty to lead media leaders to hold discussions with President Goodluck Jonathan to avert a class action lawsuit against the armed forces and the Federal Government of Nigeria.”
He added: “On both occasions, President Jonathan said he did not wish to lay precedence and in our case, he specifically said there were many victims of Boko Haram.
“I had to confront President Jonathan on the issue when I learnt of approvals for the reconstruction of the Abuja United Nations Building, since we were the second major organisation to be attacked by Boko Haram after the UN attack.
“He therefore directed me to meet the National Security Adviser who processed the three payments in question.”
Obaigbena, who said he was writing from the US, said he would be making his way to Nigeria to meet the EFCC chairman if the latter required further information.
Our story, by The Nation
The Managing Director of Vintage Press Limited, publishers of The Nation and Sporting Life newspapers, Mr. Victor Ifijeh, yesterday explained how the company got “a paltry N9 million” instead of the N300 million it demanded from the Federal Government as compensation for bundles and copies of its newspapers seized by security agents in different parts of the country last year.
The Nation was one of the 12 newspapers named by the President of the Newspapers Proprietors Association of Nigeria (NPAN), Nduka Obaigbena, as beneficiaries of the sum of N120 million obtained from the office of the former National Security Adviser, Col. Sambo Dasuki.
Explaining the company’s position yesterday, Ifijeh recalled that the company had written a letter to the NPAN notifying it of the company’s decision to demand the sum of N300 million from the Federal Government as compensation or resort to legal action.
The letter dated July 16, 2014 and signed by the company’s Managing Editor (Online/Special Duties), Mr. Lekan Otufodunrin, stated that Vintage Press Limited had suffered “monumental losses” from the clampdown on The Nation and Sporting Life..
“The days in question were Friday June6, Saturday June 7 and Sunday June 8, 2014,” the letter stated.
“On these days, soldiers who said they were acting under instructions ‘from above’ willfully and maliciously impounded the circulation vans of Vintage Press Limited carrying bundles and copies of The Nation and Sporting Life for distribution and sales across the country.
“The vans were impounded on the highways of Oyo, Ondo, Ekiti, Edo, Delta, Niger, Kogi, Kano, Kaduna, Plateau, Benue, Imo, Abia, Enugu states and the FCT, Abuja.
“The soldiers arrested and detained in military barracks some of our drivers.
“Consequent upon the foregoing, over 100,000 copies of The Nation and 140,000 copies of Sporting Life on each of the three days could not be distributed and sold.
“The losses of Vintage Press Limited can be broken down as follows:
.Unsold copies of The Nation and Sporting Life seized across the country
.Advertisements in the papers on those days were affected.
.The emotional stress and psychological effect of this barbaric act on the company and its staff.”
The company had in another letter to Femi Falana, SAN, dated June 9, 2014, instructed the human rights lawyer to file am action against the Federal Government, claiming the sum of N3 million for Vintage Press Limited.
“As counsel for VPL in the matter, your mandate is to get the best judgment for the company in this case. We expect you to deploy your best legal skills and international best practices in doing so,” the letter signed by Ifijeh stated.
Recalling that Vintage Press Limited was prevailed upon by NPAN to shelve legal option, Ifijeh said “sometime in May this year, the NPAN met and Obaigbena told us that the government had agreed to pay N10 million to each newspaper that asked for compensation.
“The meeting resolved that N1 million of the amount be paid into the association’s coffers towards the purchase of a befitting secretariat.
“About a week later, the government made good its promise and Obaigbena sent a draft of N9 million to The Nation, saying that the money was from the Jonathan government.
“I had briefed the board of directors, the management committee and the editors conference about the negotiations and the three organs were equally informed of the receipt of the draft for N9 million.
“No further payment was made to The Nation by any other person, organisation or body on behalf of the Jonathan government.”
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