Four out of 12 prominent Nigeria Newspapers who were allegedly to have collected N10M each from ex-NSA director Sambo Dasuki, in his $2.1 billion arms deal corruption trial has denies and also distance themselves from the claimed that they received money in March this year.
According to Sahara Reporters and Premium Times reported that four prominent leading Nigeria newspapers such as African Newspapers of Nigeria (ANN) Plc, publishers of the Tribune; Peoples Media Limited, publishers of Peoples Daily; Daily Telegraph Publishing Company Limited, publishers of New Telegraph, Saturday Telegraph and Sunday Telegraph, and Independent Newspapers Limited, publishers of Daily Independent newspapers has discredited the claimed on social media and also distance themselves from collecting N10 Million each from Dasuki through the chairman and publisher of ThisDay Newspapers, Nduka Obiagbena.
However, the man in the Dasuki corruption saga ; Nduka Obiagbena, had claimed his response to a letter of invitation by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) , that he received N120 million in March 2015 on behalf of the Newspaper Proprietors Association of Nigeria, NPAN and the 12 newspapers.
The newspaper company has requested a compensation for the “unlawful seizure and stoppage of circulation of their newspapers by armed soldiers in Abuja and several cities” during the Goodluck Jonathan administration.
However, in a statement Friday, the management of Tribune said at no time was any money received by the company from Mr. Obaigbena as compensation for attacks on its operations and personnel by soldiers in June 2014.
The Managing Director/Editor-in-Chief of the media organisation, Edward Dickson, explained that although it had filed claims like all other newspapers as requested by the NPAN, no payment was received, contrary to claims by Mr. Obaigbena.
“Our attention has been drawn to claims by the Publisher of Thisday newspapers, who is also the President of the Newspapers Proprietors Association of Nigeria (NPAN), Mr. Nduka Obaigbena, that a sum of N10 million was paid to our company through NPAN by the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) as compensation for the disruption of our circulation operations, seizure of our newspapers and damage to our property by soldiers in June 2014.”
“Although, like other NPAN members, we filed claims as requested for by NPAN, the fact of the matter is that up till this moment, 11th December, 2015, our company is yet to receive a kobo as compensation through NPAN for the 2014 disruptive activities of the military to our operations,” Mr Dickson said.
Similarly, the management of New Telegraph newspapers also denied receiving any money from Mr. Obaigbena, despite repeated demands for same from NPAN.
The Managing Director/ Editor-in-Chief of the newspaper, Funke Egbemode, said in a statement.
“It is on record that following the decision of NPAN to seek compensation from the Federal Government in the aftermath of the seizure of editions of newspapers by the military, New Telegraph computed its losses, which were passed to the association. However, since then, the company has heard nothing from the association on the matter.”
The Chief Operating Officer of the Peoples Daily newspaper, Ali Ali, also concurred with the two aforementioned newspapers, as he said, the newspaper never received any such money under whatever guise.
“One of the revelations on the current inquisition of the tenure of the former National Security Adviser, Col. Sambo Dasuki (rtd) is that this newspaper, among several other national dailies, received the sum of N10million from the office of the former NSA through Nduka Obaigbena, the President of Newspapers Proprietors Association of Nigeria, NPAN.
“This is news to us. At no time was such money made available to us in whatever guise. We wish to state clearly that it is false and therefore, wish to completely distance this medium from this revelation.
“We don’t know of others, therefore, we can’t speak for them,” said the newspaper.
The Chief Executive Officer, Independent Newspapers Limited, publishers of Daily Independent newspapers, Ted Iwere, also denied receiving payment.
Mr. Iwere could not be reached late last night for comments.
It was learnt that Mr. Iwere had earlier contacted Mr. Obaigbena on reading reports that his company was paid the money.
Mr. Obaigbena was said to have responded by saying inform the cheque for Daily Independent was available for collection at the NPAN Secretariat in Lagos.