Some of the top military officers under probe
for the $2.1 billion arms deals have lost their command positions, it was
learnt yesterday.
The Presidency has also replaced the designated
military attache for the embassy in Germany.
It was gathered that the military officers
under investigation have been detained at a facility in one of the barracks in
Abuja.
The Presidency handed over a former Chief of
Defence Staff, Air Chief Marshal Alex Badeh, and 17 others to the Economic and
Financial Crimes Commission(EFCC) for investigation on their involvement in the
scandal.
The list include 11 military officers and two
former Chiefs of Air Staff, Air Marshals M.D. Umar and A.N. Amosu(retd.).
A source at the EFCC said: “Investigation is
still ongoing in respect of the past and serving military
officers referred to
this commission.
“I cannot say exactly when their trial will
begin but investigation has reached appreciable level.”
It was unclear if the affected military
officers will be tried by military tribunal or by a civil court.
“I think the weight of their offences and the
sensitive nature of infractions will determine whether or not they will be
arraigned before the military tribunal or a civil court.
“For instance, one of the suspects is from the
Intelligence Unit. It will be challenging subjecting such an officer to an open
trial in a law court.”
Section 113 of the Armed Forces Act(2004) makes
an officer found guilty liable for an imprisonment of five years.
The section says: “A person subject to service
law under this Act who by means of a fraudulent trick or device-
(a) obtains from another person anything
capable of being stolen; or
(b) induces another person-
(i) to deliver to any person a thing capable of
being stolen;
(ii) to pay or deliver to any person any money
or goods or any greater sum of money or greater quantity of goods than he would
have paid or delivered but for the trick or device,
is guilty of an offence under this section and
liable, on conviction by a court-martial, to imprisonment for a term not
exceeding five years.”
A military source said last night: “All the
serving military officers have lost their command positions. In fact,
irrespective of their status(whether guilty or not), fairness demands that they
should step aside until their trial is concluded.
“This is a standard military practice, which we
have already adhered to. There is no way they can still be holding these
sensitive military positions.”
Some of those serving military officers are:
AVM A. M. Mamu(the Chief of Administration); AVM R.A. Ojuawo (Air Officer
Tactical Air Command, Makurdi; AVM J.B. Adigun( Chief of Accounts and Budgeting
in NAF); AVM T Omenyi (MD, NAF Holdings); Col. N. Ashinze(Designated Military
attache to Nigerian Embassy in Germany)
Their replacements are: AVM A.A. Jekenu(Chief
of Administration); AVM B. G. Saidu(Chief of Policy and plans (DHQ); AVM E.A.
Anebi(Director of Production, Defence Headquarters); and AVM E.E.
Agwungwu(Acting AOC, Tactical Air Command); and Air Commodore Clement
Ogbeche(Chief of Accounts and Budget); AVM Lawal Alao (Managing Director, NAF
Holding Company (NAFHC).
There were indications last night that the
Presidency has replaced Col. Ashinze as the military attache to the Nigerian
Embassy in Germany because of the ongoing investigation.
A top source said: “The government cannot wait
till the end of investigation before posting a military attache to Germany.
Col. Ashinze has been dropped from this assignment.
“A new attache must have resumed by now.”
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