The Northern Youth Council has called for the sacking of the Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo.
The group in a statement by its President, Wahab Adamu, faulted the Minister’s link to the alleged corruption that led to the suspension of Betta Edu as the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation.
The group premise their call for his sack after it was revealed that a N438.1 million from Beta Edu’s N3 billion social register scam was sent to New Planet Project Limited company, wholly owned and operated by the Minister for Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, with registration number 804833, registered on March 3, 2009.
Tunji-Ojo’s New Planet Project Limited was initially paid N279 million for verification of the list and another N159 million for the same purpose.
Report revealed that the firm has the Interior Minister and his wife, Abimbola as directors.
According to the group, the action is against the Nigerian Constitution and Code of Conduct law.
The Code of Conduct Law, in Sections 5 and 6, bars public officers from putting themselves in positions of conflict of interest and prevents them from partaking in any business other than farming.
The group in a statement signed by its president on Monday, 8 January, 2024 said, Betta as well as Tunji-Ojo are greedy individuals frustrating Tinubu’s capacity to alleviate the sufferings of the less privileged.
It also said that it took the bold move to lend its voice in crying out to state its position over “the ignoble crass corruption and embezzlement that was carefully designed and masterminded by Betta Edu and Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo.”
However, a source revealed that the interior minister may have gotten the contract through his former aide and coordinator of the National Programme Manager, Grant For Vulnerable Groups, Thalis Apalowo.
Apalowo served as legislative aide to Tunji-Ojo while he was representing Akoko North Federal Constituency at the National Assembly.
“He was the one who lobbied for his appointment as coordinator of programme under the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, he is his close aide,”
Apalowo was one of the Minister’s advanced team who received N2,515,000 for DTA for five nights, local running @30% of DTA, for flight tickets and airport taxis to Kogi — a state with no airport.
“After the suspension of Betta Edu on Monday, for requesting payment be made into a private account for some projects while also approving payments for flight tickets for herself and some staff of the ministry to travel to Kogi State which has no airport, it is reasonable to also suspend Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo in order to completely wash out corrupt eggs from the yet-to-be-matured system.
“For an administration that has taken a bold step to letting go of corrupt Betta Edu, identifying with a man of questionable character like Tunji-Ojo is a direct mockery of the expectations of Nigerians and as believers of President Tinubu’s vision”, the group said, adding that ”We cannot fold our hands and watch this ignoble development continue to fester.”
